An American named Crum invented potato chips in 1853, although that was not his intention (意图). He was a chef(厨师长) at a beautiful restaurant in Saratoga Springs, New York. A regular dish on the menu was fried (油炸的) potatoes, which was an idea that had started in France. At that time, French fried potatoes were cut into thick slices (片).

      One day, a dinner guest at the restaurant sent back his fried potatoes to the chef because he did not like them so thick. So Mr. Crum cut the potatoes a little thinner and fried them. The guest did not like those either. That made Mr. Crum angry, so he thought he would just show the man. He sliced the potatoes paper-thin and fried them, thinking that the man would say nothing about it. However, to his surprise, the man loved the thin potatoes very much. Other guests tried them and also liked them. So, Mr. Crum's potato chips were added to the menu. They were called Saratoga Chips.

      Finally, Mr. Crum opened his own restaurant to sell his famous chips. Now potato chips are packaged (包装) and sold in stores.

    Have you ever been sad because you failed in something? If so, please remember, for often, achieving what you expect is not the most important thing. Here is a story to tell you why.

    One day a little boy decided to dig a hole behind his house after watching a science program. As he was working, a couple of boys stopped by to watch. “What are you doing?” asked one of the visitors. “I want to dig a deep hole all the way through the earth!” the boy answered excitedly. The older boys began to laugh, telling him that it was impossible to do it. Then they left.

    The little boy kept on digging and digging. Suddenly, a few small colorful stones caught his eyes. He collected them and put them into a glass jar (罐) patiently. Humming (哼唱) a song, he went on digging. The jar was full soon. Then he talked to himself calmly and proudly, “Maybe I can't finish digging all the way through the earth, but look at what I have found in the process (过程) of digging!”

    The boy's goal (目标) was too difficult, but it did cause him to go on, in other words, to cause us to keep working!

    Not every goal will be achieved. Not every job will end up with a success. Not every dream will come true. But when you can't achieve your goal, maybe you can say, “Yes, but look what I've found along the way! There are so many wonderful things that have come into my life because I tried to do something!” It is in the digging that life is lived. It is the unexpected joy on the journey that really has a meaning.

    Mak Som was an old lady in her seventies. She was often seen collecting unwanted boxes from rubbish bins. She would then put them on her old bicycle and sold them to the rubbish station. Many villagers had offered to take her in (收容) but she refused. She wanted to be independent. At night, she would sleep on a bench in the park.

    One day, the village headman called a meeting. They discussed Mak Som's condition and decided to build her a small house as a surprise gift. After buying the necessary materials, the villagers started working. Even the children went to help. They liked carrying tools or just passing things for the workers.

    Mak Som was curious and asked others what was happening. Someone told her that a villager's relative was moving in and people were only helping to build a house for him.

    After the house was completed, the villagers decided to hold a party in it. The headman invited Mak Som to go there together. He then said that the new house was a gift to Mak Som. She didn't want the house at first and said that she didn't have enough money to pay for it. After making her believing that it was a gift of love from the villagers, she finally accepted. With tears of joy, Mak Som thanked every one of the villagers. The villagers were glad that they had done something for this elderly member of their community.

    There was a boy and his family was very rich. One day his father took him on a trip to a place. He wanted to show his son how poor people were there. They spent several days on a farm. There were many poor families living on the farm.

    On their way home, the father asked the son, "How was the trip?" "It was great, Dad," the son answered. "Did you notice how poor people were there?" asked his father. "Oh, yes," said the son. "So, tell me," said his father. The son said, "Well, we have one dog and they have four. We have a pool in our garden, while they have a river that has no end. We have expensive lanterns(灯), but they have stars above their heads at night. We have only a small place of land to live on, while they have the endless fields。We buy our food, but they grow theirs. We have high walls around our houses to protect us, but they don't need walls, because their friends will protect them."

    The father had nothing to say. Then the boy added, "Thank you, Dad, for letting me see how poor we are."