Each of us fails from time to time. If we are wise, having enough experience and knowledge, we will regard these failures (失败) as a necessary and 1 part of learning. But often as parents and teachers, we don't 2_this right (权利) to our children.

    Donnie was a student in my class. His 3 about failure kept him away from classroom games which other children enjoyed. He 4 answered my questions—he was afraid of making mistakes.

    I tried my best to build his self-confidence. But nothing changed 5 midterm, when Mary, a new teacher, came. She was young and pretty, and she was loved by every student6 Donnie. She made a big difference to Donnie later.

    One morning, Donnie copied the math problem clearly and 7, but he missed the fourth problem and began to cry with his head in his arms.

I didn't know what to do. Suddenly, a smile 8on Mary's face. From the desk she got a box that 9 pencils. “Look, Donnie,” she said gently, kneeling (蹲在) beside him. “I've got something to 10 you.” She took out the pencils, one at a time, and placed them on his desk.

    “See these pencils, Donnie,” she continued. “They 11 Mrs. Landon and me. See how the erasers are worn (磨损)? That's because we make mistakes, too. But we erase the mistakes and try again. That's what you12 learn to do, too.”

    She kissed him and stood up, “here,” she said, “I'll leave one of these pencils on 13 desk, so you'll remember that everybody makes mistakes, even teachers.” Donnie looked up with 14 in his eyes and a smile.

The pencil became Donnie's prize. That, together with Mary's encouragement, gradually made him understand 15the meaning of making mistakes is —it's all right to make mistakes as long as you erase them and try again.

    At the age of fifteen, both his legs had been badly hurt in an accident. From that time on he begged, dragging himself along the roads.

    In the villages, people hardly gave him anything — he was too well-known. Everyone had grown tired of seeing him — day after day for forty years, dragging his disabled and ugly body from door to door on his wooden crutches. He was among people, yet loved and cared by no one. They called him "Bell" because he hung between his two crutches like a bell.

    For two days he had eaten nothing. No one gave him anything now. Women shouted at him from their doorsteps when they saw him coming:

    "Go away, you good-for-nothing beggar! Why, I gave you a piece of bread only three days ago!"

    It was December and a cold wind blew over the fields. Now and then he sat down for a few moments' rest. He only got one wish — to eat — but no one offered anything. For three hours he continued his painful journey but received not a half penny.

    When he had visited all the houses he knew, "Bell" sank down in a corner, having no idea what he was waiting for. Several hens ran here and there in front of him. "Bell" watched them at first without thinking of anything. Then a thought reached him —the thought that one of those hens would be good to eat if it were cooked over a fire.

    He took up a stone beside him and luckily killed the nearest hen at the first shot. The hen fell, flapping its wings. "Bell" picked up his crutches, approaching where the hen lay.

    Just as he reached it, he received a strong hit in the back which made him let go of the crutches and sent him flying half a meter away. The owner of the hens, kept kicking him angrily. The other villagers came up and joined the beating. In the end, "Bell", half dead, was shut in the town jail.

    The police had no idea that he might need food, and he was left alone until the following day. When in the early morning they came to him, he was found dead on the floor.

    One afternoon in June, Maggie was driving back to her house. Her sheepdog, Patches, was sitting in the back with 1 head out of the window to help it cool down. 2, Maggie heard a loud noise and she began to lose control of the car. Then the 3 crashed into a tree.

    Maggie opened her eyes and looked around to 4 that her dog was all right. Then she felt a great pain in her left leg. And she realized that the car was filled with thick black smoke. She pushed the car door open and tried to get out, but her trousers were caught in 5. That's when Patches proved (证明是) to be a 6 dog hero.

    It started biting her trousers until Maggie could pull her leg. Unluckily, that wasn't enough because Maggie 7 couldn't move. Patches grabbed(抓住) her jacket with its teeth and bravely pulled her out of the car. She 8 to the ground, but Patches kept pulling until it made Maggie far away from the car. After a while, the car blew up (爆炸).

    Finally, the emergency services 9 and they took Maggie to a hospital.

Maggie is very proud of Patches. She says that she wouldn't be here today to tell his 10 if there were no her brave dog.

    A girl complained to her father about her hard life. She didn't know what she had to do and wanted to give up. She felt tired for fighting and fighting, one problem had been finished but another came.

    Her father, who was a cook 1 her into the kitchen. He poured water into the pans (锅) and boiled it. When the water was boiling, in the first pan he put some carrots, in the second he put some eggs and the last he put with coffee. He 2 them a few minutes without any words.

    The girl closed her mouth and waited impatiently, not knowing 3 her father was doing that. After about 20 minutes, her father turned 4 the stove, took out the carrots and put them in a bowl. He took the eggs and put them in another bowl. After that the 5 was poured into a cup. Turning back to his daughter, he asked, "What do you see?" "Carrots, eggs, and coffee," she answered.

    Her father told her to 6 her eyes and let her touch the carrots. She did and felt that the carrots were soft. After that he asked her to take the eggs and 7 them. Then she got boiled and hard eggs. At last, the father asked her to smell the coffee. "What is the meaning, Father?" He  __8 that each one had the same experience -the boiled water, but 9 had a different reaction(反应). The strong and hard carrots had become soft and weak after being in the boiling water. The eggs became hard after being cooked. The coffee was very special and it changed the water. "Who are you?" asked her father, "When calamity(厄运) 10 your door, what is your reaction? Are you carrots, eggs or coffee?"

    My father was a self-taught mandolin(曼陀林琴) player. He was one of the best players in our town. He could not 1 music. but if he heard a tune(曲子) a few times, he could play it, When he was young, he was a 2 of a small country music band. They played at local dances and the radio station.

    At home Dad often took out his mandolin and played for the family. We three children sang along.3 played the mandolin like my father. He could 4 your heart with the music that came out of that old mandolin, He seemed to shine when he was playing. You could see his 5 in his ability to play so well for his family.

    But Dad had to find another 6 in a factory later because the money he made at the band wasn't enough to 7 the family. Unluckily, he had an 8 one day and lost one finger, He couldn't play as 9 as before. From then on, every time we asked him to play, he would make up reasons to 10 down our request. However, we missed his performance so much. 11, he agreed and said, "Okay, but remember, 1 can't hold down on the strings(琴弦) the way I 12 to."

    When he played the old mandolin, it carried us back to a 13 ， happy time in our lives. Dad was that kind of man. 14 was what he was doing all his life. If he could give to 15 others, he would, especially his family. He was always there. sacrificing(牺牲) his time to see that his family had enough in their lives.

    Have you ever eaten a dandelion(蒲公英)? Me neither. Have you ever blown it to make a wish? Me, too.

    "Time to pick dandelions, Athena, "Mum opened the car door and I entered with a1. My hometown is in Greece(希腊), where dandelions are 2on the menu. But I didn't eat dandelions. Why did I have to 3them with my family every spring?

    Then I said goodbye to my new friend Brigid, whose family had 4moved in our neighborhood in New York. I was 5Brigid didn't ask where we were going. Nobody in America ate dandelions. I always worried that 6would notice us picking dandelions.

    We 7into a wild field. Hundreds of lively yellow flowers appeared everywhere. Then we stopped our car. Dad went over to cut dandelions and put them in his bag. But I just hid in the book. "8do we cat dandelions? "I asked. "The best food in the world. "Dad answered, shaking a handful of greens. 9we were ready to leave, we had enough dandelions. On the way home, Mum and Dad talked about hosting a dinner party for the new neighbors to try our 10Greek food.

    The night of the party, Brigid arrived with her parents. Mum served 11different. Greek foods. Our guests ate everything. Finally came the dandelions. "Wait! " I said to Brigid. But it was too 12. "You ate the dandelions! "I told her. We both 13, and she ate another bite. "  14, "she said.

Mum was smiling at us. After dinner. Brigid and I went to the backyard and lay on the grass. The stars reminded me of dandelions in the soft field. I closed my eyes and made a 15: to be as open-minded as my family and my new friend.