The secret of happiness

    An old man walked slowly with a cane(手杖)into the restaurant .His old jacket, worn-out shoes and warm personality made him stand out from the usual crowd.

    A young waitress watched him move toward a table by the window. She ran over to him, and said: “Here, sir……let me help you with that chair.”

    Without saying a word, he smiled and nodded(点头)a thank you. She pulled the chair away from the table and helped him sit. Then she put his came against the table.

    “Thank you, miss.”he said, kindly.

    “You're welcome, sir.”she said.

    After he had finished his breakfast, the waitress brought him the change(零钱)from his bill. He left it on the table. She helped him up and walked with him to the front door.

    When she went to clean his table, she found a business card under his plate and note on a napkin(纸巾). Under the napkin was a 100-dollar bill.

    The note on the napkin read: “Dear miss, I respect you very much and I can see you respect yourself, too. It shows by the way you treat others. (3)You have found the secret of happiness. Your kindness will shine through to all those who meet you.”

    The man she had waited on was the owner of the restaurant where she worked. This was the first time that she or any of the other workers had ever seen him in person.

    By Steve Brunkhorst

B

    Fraser is four years old. He has autism(自闭症). He lives in his own world. Everything is very difficult to him. He doesn't want to play with other children. He doesn't want to say any words to others. His parents are worried about him.

    Then Billy, a cat, comes. It helps Fraser go out of his world.

When Billy sees Fraser, it runs to him quickly. It sits beside Fraser with its paws on Fraser's legs. They seem to be old friends. Fraser says, "This is our cat. He can come to live with us." "I know our life changes," says Fraser's mother.

    Billy stays with Fraser all the time. They play together, listen to the story together and sleep together. When Fraser walks in the garden, Billy is never far away. When Fraser is unhappy, it always lies beside him.

    It seems crazy. But Billy is like Fraser's angel. Fraser changes a lot. The doctor says he is getting better. He doesn't have to see the doctor now.

    A businessman was once deep in debt（债务）and could see no way out. He sat on a park bench, head in hands, wondering if anything could save his company.

    Suddenly an old man appeared in front of him. “I can see that something is troubling you,” he said. After listening to the businessman's trouble, the old man said, “I believe I can help you.”

    He asked the man his name, wrote out a check（支票）and pushed it into his hand, saying, “Take this money. Meet me here exactly one year from today, and you can pay me back at that time.” Then he turned and disappeared.

    The businessman saw his hand a check for $500,000, signed by John D. Rockefeller. One of the richest man in the world.

    “It can solve my problem at once!” the businessman realized. But instead, he decided to put the check in his safe. Just knowing it was there that might give him the strength（力量）to work out a way to save his business, he thought.

    With renewed optimism（乐观精神）, he did better in his business. Within a few months, he was out of debt and making money once again.

    Exactly one year later, he returned to the park with the check. At the agreed-upon（约定的）time, the old man appeared. But just as the businessman was about to hand back the check and share his successful story, a nurse came running up and caught the old man.

    “I'm so glad I caught him!” she cried. “I hope he hasn't been troubling you. He's always escaping from the hospital and telling people he's John D. Rockefeller.”

    And then she led the old man away by the arm. The businessman just stood there,________. Suddenly, he realized that it wasn't the money, real or imagined, that had turned his life around. It was his newfound self-confidence（自信心）that gave him the strength to achieve anything he went after.

    When Jim was young, he liked watches very much. When he was 18 years old, he joined the army, and after a year, he began to teach himself to mend watches. A lot of his friends brought him their watches with problems and asked for mending. Jim was always glad to help.

    Jim's captain(土校) heard about this, and one day he brought Jim a watch and said, "My watch doesn't work, can you mend it for me?" "Yes, sir. I can. " Jim answered. A few days later, he brought the watch back to the captain. "How much shall I pay?" the captain asked. "Nothing, sir." Jim said. He took out a small box and gave it to the captain and said, "In the box are three wheels from your watch, I couldn't find any places for them when I put everything back."

    A dog on a surfboard is something you might enjoy seeing in a funny video. But would you believe that a real surfing dog could help raise money for those in need? A dog named Lucky is using her special talents to do just that.

    Lucky's trainer started coaching her to become a service dog when she was a puppy. Lucky did well during training. She learned how to turn on lights, open doors, and do other jobs. These skills would be useful for her to help a person with special needs.

    Judy, the dog s trainer, concentrated (关注) on Lucky's positive qualities. Like most dogs, Lucky loved water, so Judy look her to the beach. Lucky quickly became good at surfing. Her talent got people's attention. Judy decided that instead of being a service dog. Lucky would become a" surfing" dog. The idea was that Lucky could use her surfing talent to raise money to help people.

    Lucky's first charity event was in 2009. She starred at an activity to help a teenager named Patrick. Patrick was unable to walk, but he had always dreamed of surfing. At the event, Patrick's and Lucky were supposed to use their own surfboards. Lucky decided to jump on Patrick's board, however. They surfed together and raised $10, 00. The money helped pay for Patrick's medical treatment and his own service dog.

    Encouraged by this event, Judy started the organization named Surfing for Paws-abilities. Lucky now travels to different places and surfs at events t0 raise money for the organization that helps people in need.

    Not only does Lucky raise money, but also what she has done inspires many other organizations to help both people and animals. She's surfed to make money to buy pet masks for fire departments. She's surfed al charity events to help fight human and animal cancer. She's even shown off her surfing skills to raise money to buy teddy bears for children in hospitals and people in nursing homes. As of 2012, this amazing dog has raised $250, 000 to help those in need.

    When I was about 12, I had an enemy, a girl who liked to point out my shortcomings (缺点). Sometimes she said I was thin. Sometimes she said I was lazy. Sometimes she said I wasn't a good student. Sometimes she said I talked too much, and so on. I tried to put up with (忍受) her as long as I could. At last, I became very angry. I ran to my father with tears in my eyes.

    He listened to me quietly, and then he asked, "Are the things she said true or not? Mary, didn't you ever wonder what you're really like? Go and make a list of everything she said and mark the points that are true. Pay no attention to the other things she said."

    I did as he told me and to my surprise, I discovered that about half the things were true.

    I brought the list back to my dad. He refused to take it. "That's just for you," he said. "You know better than anyone else the truth about yourself. When something said about you is true, you'll find it will be helpful to you. Don't shut your ears. Listen to them all, but hear the truth and do what you think is right."

    Many years have passed. The situation often appears in my mind. In our life we often meet with some trouble and we often go to someone and ask for advice. For some advice you will treasure (珍惜) all your life!