【推荐2】Have you ever heard of King Charles the Twelfth of Sweden? He was born in 1682. When he was only three or four years old, he was able to speak German as well as Swedish. He became a good horse rider at the age of eight. As a king, he was famous for his courage in defending his country.

One day he was working in a small house. The house was almost between two armies. He asked one of his officers to sit down and write a short order for him.

The officer began to write, but jus as he finished the first word, a bomb came through the roof of the house and struck the floor close by him. He dropped the pen and sprang to his feet. He was pale with fear. “What is the matter?” asked the king .

“Oh, sir. The bomb! The bomb!” he answered.

“Yes, I see,” said the king. But what has the bomb to do with what I wish you to write? Sit down, and take your pen. When your country is in danger, you should forget your own safety.”

【推荐3】Graduation is a significant milestone for everyone. An 89-year-old man called Rene Neira had been trying to finish a degree since the 1950s. However, in the 1960s, he was so passionate about urban and economic development of the southside of San Antonio that he stopped school and got involved with the local government. From that time, one of his life goals was to earn a degree in economics. In 2017, the grandpa and his 19-year-old granddaughter both enrolled (入学) at the University of Texas at San Antonio.

“There were times when we would get lunch together, be in the library together, and just work silently side-by-side,” Melanie Salazar, Rene’s granddaughter, recalled. “He always had something to say, especially if his professors had different opinions than him,” Melanie said. “And there were often times when a professor would invite him to talk about the past.”

Rene’s college years weren’t easy. “He has worked very hard over time. Especially in recent years, with hearing loss and going through seasons of not having a car, there was a term where he had to take medical leave because he had a stroke, so he couldn’t go back to school that term. And then the pandemic started,” said Melanie.

After four years, their hard work finally paid off—they graduated. Together, they stood on the stage. Everyone broke into applause and cheered for this fantastic pair.

Their story has been making waves online. People have nothing but good words for them, “Awww... I love stories like this. This was such a beautiful moment. Congratulations to both of them. Grandpa definitely demonstrated that one shouldn’t give up their dream no matter how long it takes,” one wrote. Another wrote, “I’m motivated to go back to school myself, thanks to his example.”

Rene had the determination to finish his degree even at an advanced stage in his life. Hard work, patience, and determination are the keys to success, especially when the path is not easy or clear.

【推荐2】Paul, a carpenter (木匠), was over 60 years old. He was ready to retire. He told his boss that he was about to leave the house building business because he wanted to live a relaxing life with his wife and enjoy family life. The boss was sorry to see his good worker go and asked if he could build one more house. Paul said yes, but not long after that it was easy to see that his heart was not in his work. He didn’t care about the work, and he used bad materials to build the house. It was a terrible way to end his job.

When Paul finished his work and the boss came to check the house. Then he handed the front-door key to Paul, “This is your house,” he said, “my gift to you.”

Paul was shocked! What a shame! If he had only known he was building his own house, he would have done it all so differently. Now he had to live in the home that wasn’t built very well.

After Paul moved into the house, he found everything wasn’t going well. One day, his wife fell over and hurt herself. She complained, “Look! The floor isn’t smooth at all. The stairs are broken and there is something wrong with the window. ” “Sorry, it’s my fault.” said Paul, “I should have tried my best to build it well, but…”

So it is with us. Sometimes, we don’t give the job our best effort. When looking back at what we have done, we find that we are now living in the house we have built. So we should build our lives in a responsible way. Your attitudes and the choices you make today help build the “house” you will live in tomorrow.