My whole life began to make more sense after I was diagnosed with Turner syndrome（特纳综合征）at 12. Before that, I1understood why when the rest of my classmates were growing like weeds, I 2a seed stuck in the ground. I had always struggled being the3girl in my class and was known as “Shorty” . Though this 4 me deeply, I refused to let my classmates5my enthusiasm for school and learning. I 6 lots of after-school activities, though they sometimes presented problems. Because girls with Turner syndrome tend to have 7coordination (协调), I hardly had any athletic ability. I loved to sing, but it proved 8to share a microphone with a group of girls seven inches taller. Despite this, I 9 to drive myself to prove that heart and brains could make up for lack of 10. Once diagnosed, I was given a 11plan that involved daily growth hormone (激素) injections. I am the type of person who 12 a doctor's appointment for weeks in advance, 13 getting used to injections every day — and even worse, giving them to myself — was a true test of my character.14 , I got over this difficulty and after five years, I have grown 11 inches. This was a(n) 15 response and I consider it my own little miracle. I am not 16that I have Turner syndrome. It has built up my character and17me into the person I am today. I have learned that you need to try your best to 18the difficulties in your life. Someone once told me, “No one can make you feel inferior (自卑) without your permission.”This statement has always 19 me and so I will journey on to the next stage of my life with  20and self-confidence.

The Best Nutrition of Life

    A little boy always thought himself unfortunate because of his disability. He 1 played with his classmates. When the teacher asked him to answer questions, he always 2 his head without a word.

    One spring, the boy's father asked his children 3 to plant a young tree. “Whose tree grows best, I will buy him or her a favorite gift.” The boy wanted to have a try. But seeing his brothers and sisters watering the trees 4, anyhow, he 5 an idea: he hoped his tree would 6 soon. After watering it once, he never 7 it.

    A few days later, when he 8 his tree again, he was 9 to find it grew some fresh leaves 10 that compared with other trees, his appeared 11. His father bought him his favorite 12 and said that from the tree he planted, he would become an outstanding botanist（植物学家）.

    From then on, the little boy slowly became 13. One night, enjoying the bright moon-light, he went to see the tree. When he came to the courtyard quietly, he found his 14 was watering his tree with a ladle（长柄构）. 15 he understood: his father had been 16 fertilizing his small tree! He returned to his room, tears 17 in his eyes.

    Decades passed. The little boy didn't become a 18 as expected, but he was 19 President of the Untied States. His name was Franklin Roosevelt.

    20 is the best nutrition of life. Even it means a ladle of water, a thin and small tree can grow into a towering tree.

    After 22 years of marriage, I have discovered the secret to keep love alive in my relationship with my wife, Peggy. I started dating another woman.

One day Peggy said to me, "Life is too 1, you need to spend time with the people you love. You probably won't believe me, but I know you love her and I think that if the two of you spend more time together, it will make us2.

The "other" woman my wife was encouraging me to3is my mother, a 72-year-old widow who has lived alone since my father 4 20 years ago. Right after his death, I5 2,500 miles away to California and started my own life and career. When I moved back near my hometown six years ago, I promised myself that I would spend more time with mom. But with the 6of my job and three kids, I never got around to seeing her much 7family get-togethers and holidays.

    Mom was 8 and suspicious when I called and suggested the two of us go out to dinner and a movie.

    We didn't go anywhere 9, just a neighborhood place where we could talk. 10 her eyes now see only large shapes and shadows, I had to read the menu for both of us.

"I used to be the 11 when you were little," she said.

"Then it is time for you to relax and let me 12the favor," I said.

    We had a nice talk 13dinner, just catching up on each other's lives. We talked for so long that we 14 the movie.

"15was your date?" my wife asked when I got home that evening.

    Nice...nicer than I thought it would be,' I said.

    Mom and I get out for16a couple of times a month. Sometimes we take in a movie, but 17we talk. Through the talks, I know what it was like for her to work in a factory during the Second World War. I know how she met my father there, and know how they 18the difficult times. I can't get enough of these stories. They are 19 to me, a part of my history.

    Peggy was right. Dating another woman has20my marriage.

A Wonderful Christmas Gift

    Ann and her mother had lived in a small cottage. Christmas was so close， and so was her birthday.

    Ann wished she could get a new 1with lace as a wonderful Christmas gift. All her friends would be getting new dresses.2Ann did not want to ask her Mom for that.  She knew how hard her mom worked to make both ends meet. Maybe she could make a3maybe Santa Claus would come， even though she knew that Santa Claus is just an imaginary character.

    It was not just gift that4Ann. It was her mother. Nowadays she was working overtime and looked pale and worn out.

    The days passed and soon it was Christmas Eve. In everyone's house， except Ann's ,a Christmas tree  adorned(装饰)the living room. In the5there hung the baked cakes and turkey. But6lovely was being cooked in Ann's house. Every child went to bed eagerly waiting for the lovely gifts that he or she would 7the next day. Ann went to bed with a8heart. She knew that there would be no gifts for her.

    Ann wished with her whole heart that at least this time she would get a gift from Santa Claus. Ann slowly drifted off to sleep. She dreamt of Santa riding in the snow on his reindeers.

    Ring.…Ring.…Ann jumped， hearing alarm.

    She suddenly remembered that it was Christmas morning. Without much hope she looked 9there were any gifts for her. Wonder of wonders! There lay a beautiful packet tied with a red ribbon.

    Ann excitedly opened the package. It was a pretty white dress with attractive lace. She 10the gift carefully to find out who gave it to her. Suddenly a small piece of paper fell out from it. Ann11started to read the note.

“Dear Ann ，

    This dress is given to you as a12 for being a good girl. Hope you continue to do good things and help your mother.

Your Loving friend ，

Santa Claus"

    Ann felt that there was something familiar about this note. She looked into the note carefully. Then it13 her. It was her mother who had worked overtime to save money to buy this expensive gift. Ann was happy 14words. She knew that she was the15girl to have such a wonderful mother as a wonderful Christmas gift.

When I was a child my father taught me five words that I've used all my life — in my acting career, as a mother, in my business activities. If I 1 that I was afraid of the dark, or if I seemed worried about meeting new people, Dad would say, "Stand porter to your 2 . "

A porter is a gatekeeper who stands at a door letting people in or out. Dad would get me to picture myself stopping 3 things — such as fear — at the door, 4 saying "Come in" to faith, love and self-assurance.

As an actress, before I went on camera, I'd make sure anxiety stayed out and confidence in my ability came in. As a mother, when I was anxious about my children, I would try not to let worry in but would 5 my mind with trust in them.

Of course, there were always times I'd 6 those words.

In 1972 my husband, Fillmore Crank, and I opened the doors to our own 7 in North Hollywood. This was a new business venture for us, and it was a lot more 8 and complicated than we had 9 .

We were on call 24 hours a day. Something was always going 10 . Electricity went on the blink (失灵), food wasn't enough, employees called in sick. Once, a flu epidemic suddenly left us with no maids. Fillmore gave me a choice: scrub (擦洗) floors or do the laundry. For 10 days I folded enough sheets to 11 the whole state of California.

Then there was the 12 crisis. The price of gasoline doubled, and tourism in California 13 . How could we fill our beds? What if we kept losing money? What if we failed? Fear and worry were sneaking in. But I caught them just 14 I stood porter.

I stood in the door of my mind and sent fear packing.

These days at the hotel, whenever fear tries to 15 , I just smile and point to the sign that reads "No Vacancy".

Linda Brown, a real estate agent, believes that when it comes to solving homelessness, it takes a village. She spent nine years supporting homeless people in Springfield, Missouri, through a charitable organization called The Gathering Tree, which welcomed people a few times each week during daylight hours, providing a safe and welcoming place for them to take showers, socialize, or simply rest. But they had to close their doors for the night. "One cold winter night, I watched as my friends walked off into the darkness to a wet, cold camp, while we went home to a warm bed," Linda said, "I realized I had to do something."

She had an idea to create a village of tiny houses to make sure no one slept outside on her watch! Linda started fundraising. She began by appealing to her fellow estate agents in the area before branching out into local businesses.

Using these donations, Linda purchased a nearby abandoned area that already had the infrastructure in place. By February 2019, they'd built 31 tiny homes for their Eden Village and found residents for each one. All the residents must be good neighbors in order to stay in the village, and they certainly are! Linda was happy when she learned that the village actually increased local property values rather than lowering them as some people had feared.

Linda hasn't stopped working since Eden Village began. A second village opened in the fall of 2020, and there's a third location in the works as well! She hopes to have five villages across Springfield within the next five years, helping more than 200 homeless people get off the streets and into a new life.

To this day, Linda firmly believes that there are a million reasons someone can become homeless, but each of them can be solved with love and community involvement.