If life were a book and you were the author, how would you like the story to go? That is the question that 1 my life forever.

    One day I went home from the training of snowboarding with what I thought was the flu, and less than 24 hours later, I was in a 2 on life support with less than two percent 3 of living. It wasn't until days later that the doctors diagnosed me with a 4 blood infection. Over the 5 of 2.5 months, I lost the hearing in my left ear and both my legs below the knee. When my parents 6 me out of the hospital, I 7that I had been put together like a patchwork(接缝物) doll and I had to live with 8 legs. I was absolutely physically and emotionally broken, 9 streaming down.

    But I knew in order to move forward, I had to let go of the Old Amy and 10 the New Amy. It was at this moment that I asked myself that significant 11. And that is when it 12 me that I didn't have to be five-foot-five anymore, 13 I could be as tall as I wanted. And 14 of all, I can make my feet the size of all the shoes. So there were 15 here.

    Four months later, I was back upon a 16. And this February, I won two Board World Cup gold medals, 17 me the highest ranked snowboarder in the world.

    So, instead of looking at our 18 and our limitations as something 19 or bad, we can begin looking at them as a wonderful 20 that can be used to help us go further than we ever know we could go.

    During the course of a lifetime, we all make mistakes. And often we take for granted what we have, thinking that we 1 what we already have, or believing that we will never need anyone to 2 us out from difficult and 3 times.

    Such was the 4 of Cecilia. Cecilia had a great job, a nice house and everything she needed. 5, she was not a kind person for several reasons that became 6 once you got to know her. The first thing was her lack of 7 for others who were not as fortunate as she was. She would not help anyone, 8 would she even begin to express any sympathy for anyone's troubles. Her 9 was that they were just too lazy.

    But, then came the catastrophic day. Her husband got into financial difficulty, to the point 10 he was forced to declare bankruptcy(破产). She found that she was the one who 11 nothing.

    Now she was 12 for help. She also found out that her parents were unwilling to help her but, 13 for her, his family was willing and able to help them through these difficult times despite the 14 that she had deliberately kept them out of her life. 15 Cecilia was assisted through challenging times, once 16, she changed to her true self.

    But this is not the main point of the story. We all need help 17 along life's path whether we think we will or not. And, if you are the one 18 help, just remember this: no matter what 19 later, you will always be 20 in the fact that you have remained strong and true to assist those that need your help.

    I believe that life's toughest lessons are best learned through personal experience. Throughout my childhood, my grandmother 1 me with unconditional love but always stressed, "You're not 2 than anyone else, but you're just as good as anyone. Treat others with 3, and you would earn respect 4.

    However, I never really 5 it until I was seventeen and got a summer job as a janitor. As I 6 floors and toilets, I watched people walk right by me and ignore my 7. This made me feel angry and wonder why they treated me so poorly.

    When I 8 to my grandmother, she offered me some words of 9 and reminded me never to forget the feeling of being "10" and to do the best job, because it was still my work, 11 which I should take pride. She added that it would make me a better man someday.

    Make me a better man someday? She must be 12, I thought to myself. But I needed the job to 13 college and there were few other jobs available, 14 I bit my tongue and kept on working as best as I could for the 15 of the summer.

    Today, when asked what job helped prepare me to gain the 16 of a key university, I tell people it was my summer job cleaning restrooms that 17 me as a man and, down the road, as an educator.

    As you can see, 18 can only be understood by walking in a lot of different shoes. So I suggest students 19 of their comfort zones and get deeply involved in different work and community experience. It's essential for people to find 20 in every person, no matter who they are or what they do for a living.

    Each week, I give my elderly neighbor a ride to the store when I am going. She keeps trying to 1 me for the ride, and I always 2 refusing. I tell her that it doesn't cost any more for her to 3 with me and it is 4 for me to do this.

    Last week, she brought a(n) 5 and said happily, "I have something for you and you must accept it." I said, "If there is money in it, I don't want it." But she 6 it on a stand. Later, I opened it to find a "thank you" card with 7 in it. That night, I stopped at her house to give a plate of 8 fried chicken that I had. I took an envelope and put the $10 9 it along with a"10" card. When leaving, I left it 11 in her door.

    The next day, she paid a(n) 12 to my home to return my 13. She said, "Look, I know you put that letter in my door this morning, didn't you？" I had 14 forgotten about it, and I thought from the sincere 15 on my face, she believed me when I said that I hadn't put any letter in her door that morning. Actually, it was the night before, 16 I thought I wasn't lying. She went on to17 the envelope and enclosed (装入) the "smile" 18, and told me how she was blessed with so many good things lately. I told her that I was so 19 for her, and that I hope she 20 to be so blessed.

    I was five foot ten and weighed between 340 and 360 pounds; the exact number depended on whether you took my weight before or after one of my big meals. I knew that I needed to 1.

    "At every 2, just make sure that at least half your plate is full of fruits and 3." And my doctor suggested I start with 20 minutes of easy exercise twice a day. "Something you can enjoy, like taking a walk. And I suggest that you go to 4 a dog."

    "A dog is a good partner," she said. "Plus, you live in an apartment, which means the dog has to be walked. So you walk your dog twice a day, and that will be your 5."

    "I've never owned a dog. What about a cat?" I asked.

    "Have you ever seen anyone 6 a cat?"

    My friend Casaundra said she had the 7 dog for me. There he was: a large black-and-white dog with a big round body. He looked up at me and then 8 his head with a clear look of 9. Like, Really? This loser? I suppose I looked at him the same way.

    I named him Peety, and we took it 10, just as my doctor had suggested. Peety weighed 75 pounds when a healthy 11 for him was more like 50 pounds. But on our first walk together, Peety took the lead. We made it halfway down the 12 and then came back. Luckily for me, he didn't walk very fast. You could 13 hear my footsteps on the sidewalk as I 14 each leg forward—thump, thump, thump, like the giant from "Jack and the Bean Stalk." The next day we made it to the 15 of the block. Soon he would 16 me around the block.

    Over the next weeks, Peety kept 17 harder and harder on the leash(束缚). There were times when I couldn't 18, even though I'd dropped five pounds a week 19 I started the plant-based eating and walking.

    We walked together for nearly five years, until Peety died of cancer. He'd come into my life, and simply by being here, he 20 me. And in that moment, I felt like the two of us could have done anything.

I've been writing now for 34 years. It all started when I was just 18 years. As a boy growing up, I probably read hundreds of books. I read mysteries, science fiction, thrillers, and just about any other type of book I could find. I had a thirst for knowledge that never seemed to disappear, no matter how many books I read over the years.

Then suddenly, I found that I too had ideas of my own that I wanted to write and share. I wanted to share things that were full of goodness, love, joy, and happiness. I tried to ignore my desire at first, but as any writer will tell you, once ideas awaken inside of you, they don't leave you alone until you write them down. I didn't have a computer, or even a typewriter, but I grabbed a pen and a notebook and wrote down everything that was burning inside of me.

When I was finally done, I didn't know how to share my work with the world. There was no Internet back then, no smartphones, and no social media. However, I sought out the editor of my local newspaper and asked if he would like to print what I'd written. He was a good man, full of both wisdom and kindness. He not only printed my first story but agreed to publish anything else I was willing to write.

After that, of course, nothing could stop me. I continued to write new articles each week, which were published in different local papers and later on the Internet. Years later I even self-published two collections of my stories in book form.

Through my writing, I slowly became a better person. Writing allowed me to discover the goodness and light that exist in us all. I also found that we are all writers whether we put pen to paper or not.

With every choice we make, with every thought we think, and with every action we take, we are writing our own life story.