【推荐1】Daniel, at age 17, is a student support captain at Armidale High School, a motivational speaker and a published author. He also has autism (自闭症), something he says doesn’t define him but inspires him.

At just six months old Daniel had a stroke (中风) that left him physically impaired (受损的), unable to bear weight in his legs or move the left side of his body. Unable to walk and in a wheelchair until he was six years old, Daniel turned to books and could read fluently at age four.

According to the Autism Association of Western Australia, it is estimated that one in 100 people in Australia have autism. In 2018, there were 205, 200 Australians with autism, a 25. 1 percent increase from 164, 000 in 2015.

The idea of writing a book had been in Daniel’s mind for as long as he could remember. “It’s been one of my long-term goals and I feel very passionate and happy about doing it,” he said. With Mum’s help, Cracked As A Crab was born, the story of Chip, a crab who has autism and uses humour to make friends. “The response to it has been very positive. People are happy and excited for me,” Jacob said.

Now a published author, Daniel has plans to write more books. Not content with sitting idle (无所事事) while most students are studying for their exams, Daniel is busy involving others in his role as student support captain. He saw a gap in student support leaders within his school and wanted students with autism to be included. He is determined to have a long and successful career, and wants to inspire other people living with autism to achieve their dreams.

【推荐2】I had an opportunity to teach at a five-star hotel in Nevis, a small island in the Caribbean Sea. After that, my friend Clayton and I flew into Panama City for a surfing outing at a surfing camp in the bay of Chiriqui, whose tourism is booming. To get there, we had to take my tennis bags on and off several buses and boats. After eight hours of travel we finally arrived. The camp was perfect, and the accommodations were not bad. We had an unbelievable week there!

On our return trip, when we got to the bus station, we learned that our bus had been delayed for 2. 5 hours. The sun was beating down on us.

As we walked over to the shaded area, a couple of kids started throwing rocks at me. I opened a can of tennis balls. They stopped and took an interest in the balls. I had a special racket (球拍) with me. I had the strings cut out and replaced them with a net, which is prefect for hotel teaching. I got them to throw the balls into the net. They seemed to enjoy that. Then an older boy got interested, to whom I gave another racket to hit the ball into the net of the catching racket. I showed him how to position and hold the racket. Soon, their bus arrived, and they were on their way.

But families from across the street came over and wanted their 10-minute tennis lesson，too. The other passengers waiting for the bus each got a lesson. Eventually, restaurant workers next door and the bus terminal clerk invited me to give them a lesson, too. They learnt well and were having a great time. And so was I. In what seemed like no time, our bus arrived. Satisfied with what I did, I changed my shirt, and made it back to Panama City.

When I was a little girl, I spent memorable holidays with my grandmother, who lived in a small village. She was a farmer with a stooped (弯曲的) back that made it seem like she was always leaning forward to examine something. Early in the morning, she would tie a cloth around her waist and set out to the farm. I would skip breathlessly alongside, trying to keep up. On our way, she would greet everyone we passed.

There was the standard greeting, “Did you wake up on the right foot this morning?” Then, the more personalized greetings. To Patriarch Kosi who sat under the mango tree, she would ask, “Are the grandchildren in good health?” To the Bean Stew Seller who was preparing to serve breakfast, she would inquire, “Are your boys well?”

Sometimes, the greetings were spoken soothingly (安慰地). When we walked past the widow, Dada Mawusi, many months after her husband’s death, Grandmother would say directly, “How is your grieving?” She didn’t like to beat around the bush. The greeting made more sense to her to acknowledge the woman’s suffering, and in doing so, empathize (理解) with her.

The people that Grandmother greeted would respond similarly. “I see you have your granddaughter with you today. How is her father?” or “I see you have woken up before the cock’s crow today. May it be a fruitful day at the farm.” As a young girl, I thought these greetings were unnecessarily time-consuming. What I now realize is that the greetings increased a sense of belonging. My grandmother taught me that there is always time to greet someone before getting down to business. You can always take a few extra seconds to say a greeting to a person. We enrich our society when we acknowledge the unique presence of one another.