I will never forget the year when I was about twelve years old. My mother told us that we would not be   (1)  Christmas gifts because it was a hard year. I felt sad and thought, “what would I say when the other kids asked what I’d   (2)   ?” Just when I started to   (3)  that there would not be a Christmas that year, three women   (4)  at our house with gifts for all of us. For me they brought a doll. I felt such a sense of   (5)   that I would no longer have to be embarrassed when I returned to school. I wasn’t  (6)   . Somebody had cared   (7)   me to bring me a gift.

Years later, when I stood in the kitchen of my new house, thinking how I wanted to make my  (8)   Christmas there special and memorable, I   (9)   remembered the women’s visit. I decided that I wanted to creat that same feeling of   (10)  for as many children as I could possibly reach.

So I  (11)  a plan and gathered forty people from my company to help. We gathered about 125 orphans(孤儿) at the Christmas party. For every child, we wrapped colorful packages filled with toys, clothes, and school supplies,   (12)   with a child’s name. We wanted all of them to know they were   (13)   . Before I called out their names and handed them their gifts, I   (14)  them that they couldn’t open their presents   (15)  every child had come forward. Finally the  (16)   they had been waiting for came as I  (17)  out, “ One, two, three. Open your presents!” As the children opened their packages, their faces brightened and their bright smiles lit up the room. The   (18)   in the room was obvious, and   (19)  wasn’t just about toys. It was a feeling – the feeling I knew   (20)  that Christmas so long ago when the women came to my visit. I wasn’t forgotten. Somebody cared about me. I matter.

I still remember the day I was driving to the supermarket I own. When I came out, I found a boy   (1)  my car with a brush. I went over and patted (拍) him   (2)   the shoulder, which surprised him very much. In no time he began to   (3)   at me, so I was sure he   (4)  some money. From the shoes he was wearing I could hardly imagine how   (5)   he was. So I offered him a $100 bill. To my great surprise, he   (6)   to take it. When I was wondering what he was doing, he said, “I was waiting here for 4 hours, waiting for you. Your   (7)   is so beautiful and I like it, but I don’t need that.” I knew he was mentioning the   (8)   .

 As he had refused the money, I offered to drive him around the town. The boy became so  (9)   that he got into the car at once, “Would you please drive me   (10)   ? It is only about 3 miles.” What the boy wanted to do was to show off to his friends and his family.

   (11)   I stopped, he jumped out and ran into an old building, telling me to wait there for some time. Very soon he came out, saying to a little girl on his back, “Look at this beautiful car. I will buy you   (12)   some day.”

 I noticed his sister had a pale (苍白的) face.   (13)   , her legs were too thin, and she was unable to   (14)   . 

 After that day I went to his home several times. And I got to know more about him and his  (15)   . Poor as they were, the boy   (16)  refused my money, and said, “I can   (17)   money by myself, thank you.”

 Soon I   (18)   my manager of the supermarket that a boy would go to   (19)   here the next day.

 No matter how poor we are, we would   (20)   give in (屈服) to ourselves.

A man was driving at 70 miles in a 40-mile zone, when a   (1)   came behind him. Right away the man started thinking of   (2)   to give.

       As the policeman came to him, he said, “Hi, officer, I guess you  (3)   me a little bit over the speed limit. I was in a rush to get   (4)   , to be with my wife and kids. You know my younger son wasn’t feeling too  (5)   when I left home this morning. I’m afraid he’s ill.”

       The policeman said, “Well, I guess so,” and started   (6)   something in his notebook. As minutes went by, he could see from the side view mirror, the police-man was  (7)   writing. When the man was wondering why he hadn’t asked for his driving   (8)   so far, the policeman came to his window,   (9)   him a piece of paper, and returned to his car without saying a single word. The man wondered: how much was this  (10)   going to be? However, the man was  (11)   it was not a ticket at all and he began to  (12)   :

       “I had a daughter who was   (13)   by a speeding car at the age of six by a speeding driver. He got a fine（罚款）, a few months in  (14)  , and then was free, free to hug his two daughters. I only had one, and now I have to   (15)   until I get to heaven before I can hug her again. I have tried to  (16)   that man a thousand times, and I thought I had. Maybe I really did forgive him. So pray (祈祷) for me, and be   (17)  when you drive again. My son is all I have been left with.”

       The man was completely   (18)   and could not move for the next few minutes. When finally he did, he drove   (19)  , even a few miles  (20)  the speed limit, praying for forgiveness.

Honest Thanks

   I sat down at my desk and started writing. I wrote an emotional letter of gratitude. I put the notecard into the   (1)  , sealed it and stuck the stamps on it, but when it came to actually placing the letter into the mailbox... I   (2)  .

   The letter was to a schoolmate with whom I kept in contact via Facebook   (3)  . She had inspired me to live a(n)   (4)   life — for example, by   (5)   more.

   Her volunteer efforts weren't  (6)   she wasn't building wells in Uganda, but   (7)   she was doing small, local good deeds, such as serving as a crossing guard. These were things I could do, too. She made me   (8)  I could make a difference here at home. I felt I should let her know how her   (9)   positively influenced my life. I could have easily sent her an e-mail,   (10)   that seemed a bit lame for such an important thank you. That's why I ended up   (11)  the letter. But now I stood before the mailbox, unable to place the envelope inside. What was   (12)  me? Why was this so   (13)   to do? I guess I fell strange because it wasn't like she was my best friend. I just knew her. "People don't   (14)   do dais," I thought to myself. However,   (15)   thinking it over, I still felt a(n)   (16)  to let her know how grateful I was. Finally, I put the envelope in the mailbox.

   Weeks later I received her reply. She was   (17)   a tough time and my letter meant the   (18)   to her. She didn't know she had such a(n) _  (19)   on orbed. Not only did this letter make her happy, but her response to it increased my  (20)  of happiness. I decided to write a gratitude letter to someone each month. Cultivating gratitude is a great skill to practice. Life is too short not to do it.

I realize that we all live in a world where there is no trust.   (1)   I go, I have to prove my identity and make myself   (2)   whether it’s a bank, a shop or an office. I have been used to living by the   (3)   that no one is believable unless it proves otherwise.

But yesterday I saw a young man who lived by a totally   (4)   rule.

He was selling toys on a busy street.   (5)   I would ignore and hurry past such sellers. But this time, I noticed this young man was   (6)   , so I stood for some time to see   (7)   he sold his toys.

Soon, a little child was   (8)   by one of the toys, whose price was only one dollar. His mother gave the young man 10 dollars and wanted the   (9)   back. When I was   (10)   how he was going to do it, he told the young mom to   (11)_  the money in the bag which was hanging around his neck and take out whatever change he owed (欠) her.

I realized that this young man’s whole way of earning   (11)   believing people not to cheat him. There was no   (12)   of him knowing if someone took more out of his money bag. I was so   (13)   by how this young blind man trusted people that I took a toy I did not   (14)   at all. He told me to do   (15)   thing. So I put my 10 dollars in his bag   (16)   did not take any change. As I walked down the street, I gave the   (17)   to a little boy passing by. I hope those two people would have a smile on their face that day.

I kept thinking the world would be a   (18)   place if we could all learn to   (19)   people more, like the young blind man.

  Robby was 10 for his first piano lesson in my class. Much as he tried, he   (1)    even the basic rhythm. However, he dutifully reviewed the pieces that I required.

  Over the months he tried and tried while I    (2)    and encouraged him. At the end of each lesson heˈd always say, “My momˈs going to hear me play some day.”  (3)    it seemed hopeless.

  I only knew his mother from a    (4)    as she waited in her aged car to pick him up. Then one day Robby stopped coming. I was secretly     (5)    that he stopped because of his lack of ability.

  Weeks later I informed the students, including Robby, of the coming recital(独奏). To my   (6)   , Robby asked me if he could be included. I told him he really did not qualify, because he had    (7)    out. He said his mom had been sick and unable to take him to lessons but he was still  (8)    .

  “Iˈve just got to play!” he     (9)   . Something inside me let me allow him to.

  Then came the recital night. The gym was  (10)   with parents. I put Robby up last, thinking that I could  (11)     his poor performance through my “curtain closer (谢幕).”

  The recital went off smoothly. Then Robby came up on stage. His clothes were wrinkled and his hair was     (12)    . “Why didnˈt his mother at least make him comb his hair for this special night?” I thought.

  Robby pulled out the piano bench and began. I was not    (13)   for what I heard next. His fingers were   (14)  on the keys. Never had I heard Mozart played so well by people of his age. After he ended, everyone was     (15)    their feet in wild applause.

  In    (16)  I ran up on stage and put my arms around Robby. “Iˈve never heard you play like that, Robby! How did you    (17)   it?”

  Robby explained, “Well, Miss Hondorf…remember I told you my mom was sick?   (18)  

she had cancer and passed away yesterday. She was born deaf, so tonight she could hear me play in heaven. I wanted to make it special.”

  There wasnˈt a  (19)    eye in the house. That night I felt he was the teacher and I was the pupil, for it was he who taught me the meaning of perseverance and   (20)    .

 I was an angry adolescent in my first year of college. In my eyes, my father never seemed to ____  (1)  ____ me.

   One day we had a serious fight. I thought my father was ____  (2)  ____ me, so I wanted to break free. ____  (3)  ____, he regarded me as disobedient and tried to have ____  (4)  ____ over me. We both acted in ____  (5)  ____. The situation was so unbearable that I ____  (6)  ____ out of the house and took the bus to school. My mind was filled with ____  (7)  ____ thoughts about my father, feeling certain that no one in the world had ever had such a terrible father!

   "I am the son of an IDIOT! How dare' he interrupt my life and plans?" I wrote these words on a thought card, which served as a communication ____  (8)  ____ as well as the entrance ticket to the literature class of Dr. Simon, a unique excellent teacher with ____  (9)  ____ teaching methods. Being ten minutes late, I ____  (10)  ____ handed it to him and dashed into the classroom.

   The next day, his comment on the ____  (11)  ____ card struck me. It read, "Why not stop blaming and be responsible for yourself?" No one had ____  (12)  ____ me to do so!

   The ____  (13)  ____ kept appearing in my mind over the next few weeks. When I again blamed my father for this or that, I asked myself, "Why do I always ____  (14)  ____ responsibility for my own life and keep blaming others for it?"

   Gradually, my mind ____  (15)  ____. It took over a year ____  (16)  ____ people began to notice that I was taking responsibility for my own actions and feelings.

   I was amazed at improvement of my grades and the ____  (17)  ____ of number and quality of my friends. It was ____  (18)  ____ surprising how much smarter my father seemed to become. Fights with my father became less and finally disappeared because I learned to think of him as a loving man with good ____  (19)  ____, who just had no smooth ways to ____  (20)  ____ me.

   It all started with a question.

I sat with my friend in a coffee shop. As we enjoyed our   (1)  a man entered and sat on an empty table beside us. He called the   (2)  and placed his order saying,“Two cups of coffee, one of them there on the  (3)  .” We heard this order with rather  (4)  and observed he was served with one cup of coffee but he  (5)  two. As soon as he left, the waiter pasted (粘贴) a piece of paper on the wall   (6)  A Cup of Coffee.

While we were still there, two other men entered and   (7)   three cups of coffee, two on the table and one on the wall. They had two cups of coffee  (8)   paid for three and left. This time also, the waiter did the   (9)   he pasted a piece of paper on the wall saying, A Cup of Coffee.

  (10)  several days went by, we went to this coffee shop again. While we were enjoying our coffee, a man entered. The way this man was dressed did not  (11)  the standard nor the atmosphere of this coffee shop.

Poverty(贫困) was  (12)  from the looks on his face. As he seated himself, he looked at the wall and said, one cup of coffee from the wall. The waiter  (13)  coffee to this man with respect. The man had his coffee and left without paying. We were  (14)  to watch this when the waiter took off a piece of paper from the wall and threw   (15)  into the dustbin.

Now the matter was very clear. The great  (16)  for the needy shown by the residents (居民) of this town, made our   (17)  filled with tears. When we   (18)  pleasure in any blessing(祝福), maybe we also need to   (19)  about those people who appreciate that specific blessing as much as we do but they cannot  (20)  to have it.

He met her at a party. She was outstanding; many guys were   (1)   her, but nobody paid any attention to him. After the party, he invited her for coffee. She was surprised. In order not to appear   (2)  , she went along.

As they sat in a nice coffee shop, he was too   (3)   to say anything and she felt uncomfortable. Suddenly, he asked the waiter, "Could you please give me some   (4)  ? I’d like to put it in my coffee." They stared at him. He turned   (5)  , but when the salt came, he put it in his coffee and drank.   (6)  , she asked, "Why salt with coffee?" He explained, "When I was a little boy, I lived near the sea. I liked playing on the sea ... I could feel its taste salty, like salty coffee. Now   (7)   I drink it, I think of my childhood and my hometown. I   (8)   it and my parents, who are still there."

She was deeply   (9)  . A man who can admit that he’s homesick must love his home and   (10)   his family. He must be responsible. They continued to date. She found that he met all her   (11)  . She felt she would have missed the catch if not for the salty coffee!

So they   (12)   and lived happily together. And every time she made   (13)   for him, she put in some salt. After 40 years, he passed away and left her a letter which said: My dearest, please   (14)   my life-long lie. Remember the first time we dated? I was so nervous I asked for salt instead of   (15)  . It was hard for me to ask for a   (16)  , so I just went ahead. Many times, I tried to tell you the truth, but I was afraid that it would   (17)   everything. Sweetheart, I don’t exactly like salty coffee. But as it   (18)   so much to you, I’ve learnt to enjoy it. Having you   (19)   me was my greatest happiness. If I could live a second time, I hope we can be together again,   (20)   it means that I have to drink salty coffee for the rest of my life.

On  one of  those  perfectly  sunnygrandma-babysitting days, we set off to play in a nearby park. Kids were 41 the merry-go-round(旋转木马) and the swings. But what 42 my four-year-old grandson was the tennis court(球场).

Two kids were riding their bikes in and out of the lines on the newly finished  43. Their parents sat on a bench just inside the gated entrance. The kids laughed as they 44 one another.

A sign was clearly posted on the entrance No 45 Allowed. 

     Just beginning his reading lesson, my grandson 46 knew the word “No”. He asked me what 47  came next. I told him that the 48 asked people not to ride bikes on the tennis court. He was just four years old, 49 he could clearly see two kids riding their bikes where they shouldnˈt be 50 .

We watched for a little while and then he reached up to 51 the gate. I thought that he wanted to watch the kids more clearly.  52 , he walked straight over to the couple and asked if they 53 what the sign said. Oh, what a 54 four-year-old!

The man gave me an unfriendly look and then  said 55 that it didnˈt matter.

I led my grandson away from the tennis court and told him that sometimes people donˈt like 56 rules.

By now, those kids are probably in middle school. What they 57 on that tennis court could, be impacting(影响) their lives today. I wonder whether those parents will  58 if their kids think that some rules donˈt matter.  59 speed limits when they drive, or cheating on a test? Sometimes itˈs the 60 things that matter the most.