As a child, I started learning to play the piano, my favorite musical 1,but I was forced to give up when I started my middle school 2 I could concentrate more on my studies.

    It's one of my biggest 3 to stop practicing the piano when I recall sadly today. During the following years, I kept telling my piano teacher that I would 4. However, I didn't keep my promise because I was 5 with my study. 6 I lost touch with my teacher. Some years later, my teacher died. I was very sad because I lost such a good teacher. She was a very warm and gentle person. It hurts me to think she may have been 7 that I never returned. I haven't taken lessons since then but to be honest, I 8 to. Sitting at the piano, I couldn't help recalling many 9—times of my practising at home and playing before my teacher and one time my teacher 10 me after I played entire pieces of music wrong in front of her colleagues. I was so 11 that I could hardly say anything. But her 12 helped ease my shame. These memories, 13, good or bad, never caused my 14 for playing the piano again.

      This thought then led me to think that 15 is like music, and that we all try to play different 16 in the instrument of our life. Sometimes the pitch(音高) is 17 when we play it well, but sometimes we are out of tone. However, we all continue to create our own 18 style of music. No matter what style our music is, it is 19 that we sing the songs of joy, quietness and love. Though I may never make it back to piano lessons, it doesn't 20 that I've stopped making music.

    Travis laughed as he tore at the wrapping paper on his birthday present. He was so 1! Finally, he would have the coolest pair of name-brand basketball shoes.

    All the guys on his team were wearing the name-brand shoes of a popular basketball  2 , Chuck Hart. 3 Hart was criticized for his poor sportsmanship and infamous 4, he was a great player. In fact, Travis wasn't thinking about Hart's behavior; he had only expected to see Hart's 5 on the side of the box. The first indication that something was 6 came as he tore away the last piece of paper. Not Hart's. The new shoes were the name-brand of another player, Robert Ryann, who was 7 for his amazing work in the community.

    Travis's hands 8; his heart stopped. It wasn't that the Ryann shoes weren't nice, but what would his friends think? They were the wrong shoes and Travis would be 9 by the other players. When he looked up into his dad's eyes, however, Travis 10he would not tell him. "Thanks, Dad. I was really hoping for shoes," Travis said as he pulled the shoes out of the box.

    Next morning his dad drove him to school. When they 11 in front of his destination, Travis slowly opened the car door. Just then, his dad stopped him.

    “Hey, Travis, wait a minute, look…” his dad said 12,“Travis, I know those aren't the shoes you had hoped for, but I saw the names of the two guy s and made a（n）13. The guy whose name is on those shoes,” he said, pointing down at Travis's feet, “is someone I 14. Do you know how often Ryann has found himself in 15?”

    “No,” Travis said.

    “Never. He's never talked back to his coach or started a fight, and he's a team player. You could have acted like a (n) 16  when you didn't get the shoes you wanted, Travis, but you were 17and made the best of it. You have such a good 18, like the guy whose name is on these shoes. I'm hoping that someday, your name will be on the coolest pair of shoes I'll ever see.”

    When Travis looked down at his feet, he saw the shoes 19. His dad had used his mind and heart to give the son a thoughtful 20.

    When I was about 12, I had an enemy, a girl who liked to point out my 1. Week by week her list grew: I was very thin; I wasn't a 2student; I talked too much; I was too3, always feeling superior to(胜过)others, and so on. I tried to hear all this as long as I could. 4, I became very angry. I ran to my father with 5in my eyes.

    He 6 to me quietly, and then he asked. "Are the things she says true or not? Janet, didn't you ever 7 what you're really like? Well, you now have that girl's 8. Go and9a list of everything she said and mark the points that are10. Pay no attention to the other things she said."

    I did11 he told me. To my great12, I discovered that about half the things were true. Some of them I couldn't 13 (like being very thin), but a good number I could – and suddenly I wanted to change. For the first time I went to a fairly 14picture of myself.

    I brought the list back to Daddy. He15to take it. "That's just for you," he said. "You know16than anyone else the truth about yourself. But you have to learn to17, not just close your ears in 18, feeling hurt when something said about you is true, you'll find it of help to you. Our world is full of people who think they know your affairs. Don't 19your ears. Listen to them all, but hear the truth and do what you know is the right thing to do."

    Daddy's advice has always 20 me at many important moments. In my life, I've never had a better piece of advice.

    5- year- old Lucy Green is from California. She didn't 1 to become a(n) hero when she went for a walk with her mom recently. But when some strangers called out for 2, Lucy and her mom ran to their side.

    It turns out that some ducklings(小鸭子) had gotten stuck and the people who found them were unable to 3 them. But luckily for the ducklings, Lucy had just what it took to bring them to 4. Now the 5-year-old's 5 act is being talked about.

    It all 6 when a family found a mother duck 7 with only one duckling. The father duck was nearby, but strangely, there were no 8 ducklings following them. 9 the family knew that ducks often travel in flocks (群), they 10 that something was probably wrong.

    Then suddenly, there were strange sounds coming from a drainage pipe (排水管). They were the 11 of ducklings. It turned out that the other ducklings had 12 into the pipe and gotten stuck. Unluckily, no one in the family had 13 enough arms to reach down and pull out the ducklings but 14, there was a hero nearby.

    The family 15Lucy and her mom, who rushed to them in a hurry. The family filled Lucy and her mom in on what had happened, and Lucy decided to take 16immediately and try to bring the ducklings out.

    Lucy put her arm down into the 17 and carefully 18out the first duckling. And the next…until she had brought all eight ducklings out.

    After Lucy saved the little creatures from 19, the 20mother duck went off with her beloved ducklings.

    “Come on, Cindy!" Darcy sounded so impatient, “We'll be late for class."

    “Darcy, I can't find my1." I dropped my book bag to dig through my coat pockets. “My money was in it."

    “Someone took it." Darcy said. As usual, she was quick to point away from the2side of things. “Oh. I'm sure I just misplaced it." I hoped. Even though we were best friends, Darcy and I were just so3.

   We rushed into class. Darcy4the news about the theft. By last period in gym class, I was5of having to say over and over again, “I'm sure I just left it at home."

   After gym, we went into the locker room. I was changing6I heard a gasp from Darcy. I looked at her and found her face was white with7. There, at her feet, was my wallet.

    “It fell out of her locker!" Darcy pointed at Juanita, a “new girl" in our class. “She8it."

    Everyone began to9Juanita at once.

    “Darcy caught her red-handed."

    “Report her!"

   I looked over at Juanita. She picked up the wallet and held it out to me. Her hands were10. “I found it in the parking lot. I was going to give it to you."

    Darcy spit the words “I'm so sure!" at her.

    “Really, it's true." Juanita's eyes began to fill with tears.

    I11for my wallet. I didn't know what to think,12when I looked over at Darcy, her attitude made me sick inside. I looked at Juanita. She was scared but looked13. I knew I held her14in my hands.

    “I am so glad you found it," I smiled. “Thanks, Juanita."

    The15around us broke.

    “Good thing she found it," everyone but Darcy16.

    “If there is any money left in your wallet."

    “Not now. Darcy!"

    “You are so naive!"

    It wasn't until others left there that I opened my wallet.

    “It's all here." I couldn't help but feel17. A folded piece of paper fluttered from my wallet. I opened it to see what it was.

    “She just didn't have time to18it yet."

    “Darcy, maybe you spend too much time19people."

    Darcy grabbed the note, read it and threw it back at me. “Whatever!" she said and stomped off. I knew that something had20between us.

    I read the note again.

Cindy,

    I found your wallet in the parking lot. Hope nothing is missing.

Juanita

    P.S. My phone number is 55-3218. Maybe you could call me sometime.

    And I did.

    It started four years ago. My wife would see a 1 man near where she worked. It was the week before Christmas and she said she wanted to purchase a new coat for him because his coat was 2. We don't have a lot of 3. We are really a step away from being homeless in rags most months but we try to 4 when we can.

    We talked and found a way to get some money together to 5 him a coat. I 6 that since we were giving a coat to him, we should look at what else he might 7. We decided to fill a 8 with some useful 9 things—a toothbrush, soap, clothes, a hat, gloves and some food. A small gift and Christmas card was put in it as well.

    We haven't had money to exchange 10 for birthdays or Christmas for many years, too. It feels wonderful to have someone 11 you at Christmas but I've always been a little 12 when friends ask "What did you get for Christmas?" It always makes my wife feel bad that she can't 13 to give me anything and I feel the same. So I would 14 and say she bought me this thing or that. But that year we could say we 15 something to others instead and that's 16 what happened.

    People asked and we said what we did. They also wanted to help the following 17 and we made ten more backpacks the following Christmas, and this year we really 18 the gifts.

    I still can't afford to buy my wife some gifts to 19 on Christmas day, but the 20 we feel makes up for it ten times!