【推荐1】Chris Smith’s early life seemed ordinary, similar to any other boy in his small-town class with a cheerful character, sports involvement, and a charming smile. However, his family encountered big trouble, due to his father's dishonest business practices.

He ended up homeless and it all began when Chris's little brother drowned, leading to his father's imprisonment and his mother's emotional shutdown. Chris found himself homeless when his mother left without notice. At 17, he relied on his newly married sister's hospitality, hoping to graduate high school and make it on his own.

Despite challenges, a pivotal moment came from his history teacher, recognizing Chris’s intelligence and warning him of potential regrets if he didn’t graduate. Guidance extended further with Chris’s wrestling coach, teaching him the value of hard work and teamwork over individual achievement.

For Chris, school became a retreat. He would go to the library and gym, finding inspiration in stories of underdogs overcoming odds. Graduation brought a full college scholarship, but financial struggles led to loss of funding. Determined, Chris secured grants and loans, transferring to a smaller college, and graduating in the top 10 of his class.

Undiscouraged by setbacks, Chris earned acceptance to medical school, got married, and faced a new challenge when he and his wife adopted a child in need. Applying for medical residencies, Chris aimed high, including Johns Hopkins, the No. 1 program in the nation. To his surprise, he received the acceptance letter.

Chris, now a practicing radiologist, emphasizes the importance of hard work to students, echoing the encouragement he received. His journey from homelessness to professional success illustrates the transformative power of flexibility, mentorship, and a determined commitment to one’s dreams.

【推荐2】I. M. Pei, one of the world’s most famous building designers, died at age 102. Mr. Pei created buildings which are known and appreciated around the world. Mr. Pei’s style of architecture is called “modern” or “modernist”. This style of architecture makes use of newer building materials, such as concrete(混凝土), glass and metal. Modernist buildings are often designed with straight lines, without a lot of decorations. Modern architecture appeared at the end of the 19th century from changes in technology, engineering and building materials, and from a wish to break away from historical architectural styles and to invent something that was totally functional and new.

Mr. Pei designed many different kinds of buildings, including libraries, concert halls, office buildings, hotels, hospitals and skyscrapers. But he’s probably famous for some of his museums, like the East Building of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC. Perhaps Mr. Pei’s best-known building is the Pyramid he created as a new entrance to the Louvre Museum in Paris, France. Like many of Mr. Pei’s designs, it wasn’t all that popular at first, but over time, people came to love it. Now it is one of the main reasons why people visit the museum. Another famous building of his is the Bank of China Tower in Hong Kong, China. Mr. Pei said he wanted it to look a bit like bamboo.

Mr. Pei put a lot of thoughts into his designs. He studied carefully before he designed each building. For example, he didn’t like rock and roll music, but he went to rock concerts before he designed the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland. He read books, studied music and visited many musicians. He preferred his students or teammates who came from different cultural backgrounds.

Not all of Mr. Pei’s buildings were triumphant. The Hancock Tower in Boston is one example. The huge glass-covered skyscraper was nearly finished when the bad thing happened. Some glass began falling out of the building. They had to be replaced with plywood(胶合板) until a solution could be found. The problem was a headache and took years to fix.

【推荐3】In my eyes, my mother is capable of doing anything, especially chores such as ironing and cooking. However, teaching her how to use the Internet is as frustrating as untangling(解开) wires.

Once, my mother came to me to ask for help on how to find a recipe for all-beef Lasagna. I gave her very simple verbal(口头的) instructions—go to the home page of a particular search engine and type in “recipe for all-beef Lasagna.” Fifteen minutes later, she came to me, telling me that she was unable to find the Internet icon(图标). I went over to the computer and pointed out the icon to her.

Another fifteen minutes went by when I felt a tap on my shoulder. This time, my mother said that she was unable to search for the particular recipe. Gritting(咬) my teeth, I walked to her room again. I saw that she had typed “all beef La saga” instead. With frustrated strokes, I keyed in the correct spelling.

Yet another fifteen minutes went by again when my mother gingerly tapped my shoulder. I stormed next door without bothering to hide my frustration. The main page of the website had not shifted one bit. I then realised that she did not know how to scroll down the page. What had initially seemed like an easy task was turning out to be an intense one.

To avoid being disturbed again, I decided to find the recipe for her. Without a word, I rapidly downloaded a few recipes, printed them out and passed them to my mother. However, seeing her embarrassment, I began to regret my impatience during the whole process.

At that moment, memories flashed through my mind. When I was young, my mother endured my endless questions, enlightening me with much patience. Now that I am older, the roles slowly reverse. As my mother may increasingly need my help, shouldn’t I rethink how to respond to her needs?

【推荐3】Returning from an early-morning walk with my dog, I dug in my pockets for the keys to the front door but failed. I decided to return to find them.

I spent an hour looking for the keys, but the keys remained lost. At home again, I pulled the backup key from its hiding place, let myself in the house, and fell on the couch thinking. The house key wasn’t that important as I had an extra. I had a spare car key, but the iron heart made by my grandson was precious. For some reason, thinking of it being gone forever made tears come to my eyes. I blamed myself for not being more careful. In my head, I reflected on my steps but finally gave up. Life is too short to get worried over these things.

For some reason, I continued the day without beginning the various tasks of getting replacements. That night, it began to snow. I settled into a peaceful evening. It was peaceful until I heard the scream of my car alarm. I rushed to the car, opened it, and stopped the alarm. I felt red-faced as I imagined my next-door neighbors being annoyed.

I went back in the house, and the next sound was the front doorbell. Assuming it was a neighbor ready to complain, I opened the door with apologies ready.

In the light snow stood three neighbors from several streets away. One of them held out my keys with a smile! I wanted to hug her, but in a COVID world, all I could do was say. “Oh, my goodness! Thank you!” She said, “Sorry about the alarm. We had to press it to find your home!” Pressing the alarm until I heard a car alarm wouldn’t have occurred to me. I was astonished by her clever kindness and wished I could have hugged her. Instead, I hugged the keys.