【推荐1】Sarah came running in. “Look what I found.” Over the top of the paper I was reading came a crispy long object that caused me to jump. It was a snake skin that had been shed by one of our many garden snakes.

“Isn’t it beautiful?” said my wide-eyed seven-year-old.

I stared at the organic wrapper and thought to myself that it really wasn’t that beautiful, but I have learned never to appear uninterested with children. They see only good quality and excellence in the world until educated otherwise.

“Why does it do this?” Sarah asked.

“Snakes shed their skin because they need to renew themselves,” I explained. “Why do they need to renew themselves?” Sarah asked.

I suddenly remembered an article on this page many years ago where the writer was expressing her concept of renewal. She used layers of paper over a wall to describe how we hide our original selves，and said that by peeling away (撕掉) those layers one by one，we see the original beneath. “We often need to shed our skins and those coatings that we cover ourselves with,” I said to my now absorbed daughter. “We outgrow some things and find other ones unwanted or unnecessary. This snake no longer needs this skin. It is probably too crinkly (起皱的) for him, and he probably doesn’t think he looks as smart in it as he once did.”

Sarah was getting the point. As we talked, I knew that she began to understand, although slightly, that renewal is part of progress; that we need to take a good look at ourselves, our rooms, schoolwork and creativity, and see what we need to keep and what we need to cast off. I was careful to point out that this is a natural consequence of their growth.

“I see, Dad,”   said Sarah and jumped off my lap and ran off.

I hoped she would remember this. That often, in order to find our real selves underneath the layers of community and culture with which we cover ourselves year after year, we need to start examining these layers. We need to gently peel some away, as we recognize them to be worthless or unnecessary; or at best, store the ones thrown away as mementoes (念想) of our promotion to a better vitality or spirit.

【推荐3】Life offers its fair share of challenges. At any given time, anyone can face difficult seasons in their life. It is true for you. When you’re experiencing difficulty, it’s always helpful to have a support system to get through it. No man is an island. Knowing this, there are a few ways you can become supportive of a family member who is in the midst of a struggle.

Offer legal resources. If you have family members who are in trouble with the law, you can offer assistance by pointing in the direction of various legal resources, you can even decide to cover a part of their legal fees in court.     1    

Provide encouragement. When people are down on their luck, it’s really easy for them to get discouraged and give up. Instead, it’s a wise move to offer words of encouragement to the person. Always remind them that they’re strong, capable, and more powerful than they realize.     2    

Be a safe place. Sometimes, people struggle because they don’t feel any love or support from anyone around them.     3    Be their light in the dark places. This can do so much for someone who is carrying a lot on the inside.

    4    You never want to make a person feel like they can’t make it without you in their life. If you’re allowing the family member to live with you for a certain period of time, be strict about what needs to happen during that time. Make sure that they develop a plan, time line and measured action steps that can help them get back on their feet.

【推荐1】Daniella Wride was brushing her daughter’s long brown hair when she noticed that with each stroke, clumps of it were coming out. That was January 1, 2017, Within 20 days, seven-year-old Gianessa Wride’s hair and eyebrows were completely gone, and her dermatologist said they would never grow back. Gianessa had become one of the 6.8 million Americans with alopecia, an autoimmune disease that causes hair loss.

Alopecia isn’t painful, but for kids who suffer from it, the agony comes from standing out from the crowd. For the most part, the students in Gianessa’s first-grade class in Salem, Utah, were understanding. But the occasional taunt(嘲弄) of “Baldy” made her feel like an outcast. “I did not want her to not feel beautiful,” her mother told Today.

Then the school announced its “Crazy Hair Day” competition in April, and Daniella and Gianessa decided that rather than hiding Gianessa’s baldness under scarves or a wig(假发), they would celebrate it. Daniella bought scrapbook-sticker jewels and decorated her daughter’s head with floral designs and even an owl. “They just fit her personality,” Daniella told CNN. “She’s so lively.”

On the morning of the competition, Gianessa was nervous. Would her friends think it was funny or freaky? She had nothing to fear. Bedazzled Gianessa was a hit-and the winner of the crazy-hair competition. Gianessa is now glad she dared to go bare. “I was sad at first when I lost all my hair,” she told people, “but now I love being bald. I can do things to my head that other kids can’t. I’m thinking now it might be fun to decorate my head with some sparkly butterflies and flowers.”

【推荐2】So far, this year’s global music market has definitely been dominated (支配) by women：Beyonce Knowles, Taylor Swirl, and Iggy Azalea are all making waves. And one hot name that adds more conviction to the list is US singer Ariana Grande.

Almost exactly a year ago, Grande released her first album, Yours Truly. And over the past 12 months, the 21-year-old former Nickelodeon(an American TV channel for kids and adolescents)star has transformed from a pop artist you might recognize to an outstanding superstar. She now possesses three top 10 singles in the current Billboard Hot 100 chart, an impressive opening performance at this year’s MTV Video Music Awards, and millions of followers on social networking sites.

Her second album, My Everything, which was released on Aug 25, is the latest sign of her       coming dominance. It hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 album chart this week, making her the only other female singer after Scotland’s Susan Boyle to have two continuous No. 1 albums in a single year.

Grande’s strength lies in her powerful voice and wide voiced range. Unlike her companions Selena Gomez and Demi Lovato, Grande’s star power is rooted in the fact that she can really sing. More importantly, Grande knows how to control her voice, which is at once strong and sensitive, and use it to expand her musical territory.

My Everything is the best example. In this album, Grande literally tries her hand at everything：dance music, R&B jams, hip-hop tunes, power ballads and even’ 60s-inflected pop.

While you can clearly sense her ambition as a singer, you will be impressed by how effortlessly she handles these different styles of music, especially if you have listened to Yours Truly, a more refreshing’ 90s R&B—influenced project.

Of course, one suggestion for Grande’s future music would be for her to display more personality instead of simply showing her voiced talent. But not to worry, based on what we’ve heard thus far, it's safe to say Grande is well on her way to growing into her own.

【推荐3】Nelle Harper Lee was born on April 28, 1926. Since Lee’s mother was mentally ill, she was raised by her father. She became very close to her father.

The naughty Lee loved reading, and would make up stories with Truman, her neighbour who was two years older than her. Seeing her daughter’s imagination, Lee’s father gave her a typewriter.

Before her final year in the university of Alabama, Lee dropped out to become a writer. She moved to New York City where her childhood friend Truman was already established as a famous writer. While there, she worked on her first book—To Kill a Mockingbird. It won her the Pulitzer Prize in 1961 and was made into an Academy Award winning movie the following year. To Kill a Mockingbird tells the story of six-year-old Scout and her brother who lived in the town of Maycomb Alabama with their single father Attics. Attics is a lawyer who defends the blacks. At a young age, Scout is exposed to the terrors of segregation(宗族隔离). Then, in 2014, the first draft of a new book—Go Set a Watchman was discovered among Lee’s papers. It is the story of 26-year-old Scout who returns to Maycomb to visit her father. She is shocked to find her father a changed man. Attics has turned into a segregationists! The story shows the mixed feelings Scout has for the changes that have taken place in her hometown and father.

A loner for most of her life, Lee stayed unmarried, preferring to lead a small town life. On February 19,2015, Lee passed away at the age of 89.

【推荐2】Mr. Harris used to work in Dover, but then he changed his work, and he and his wife moved to another town. They did not have many friends there, but they soon met a lot of interesting people, and after a few weeks, they often went to dinner or to parties at other people’s houses.

Then Mrs. Harris said to her husband, “We’ve been to a lot of other people’s houses, and now we must invite them to our house, mustn’t we?”

“Yes, certainly,” answered her husband, “A big party will be the easiest thing, won’t it? Then we can start to invite people to dinner in small numbers next month.”

So Mrs. Harris said, “Yes, I’ll invite all our friends here to a big party on 5^th December.”

“How many will that be?” Mr. Harris asked. “Don’t invite too many.”

Mrs. Harris was beginning to write the invitation when her husband saw that she was writing, “Party: 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.”

“That isn’t very nice, is it?” he said. “You’re telling our guests that they must go at 8:30.” So Mrs. Harris just wrote “Party: 6:30 p.m.”

A lot of guests came, and they all had a good time, so they did not go home at 8:30 p.m. In fact they were still there at midnight when the door bell rang and a policeman arrived. He said, “You must stop making a noise, because someone has complained(抱怨).”

Mr. Harris said he did not want to quarrel with the policeman, so everyone went home. They were sorry to have to go.

When Mr. and Mrs. Harris were alone again, she said to him, “That was a surprise, wasn’t it? Who complained about the noise?”

“I did,” Mr. Harris answered in a tired voice.

【推荐3】I am a taxi driver. One Monday morning, I had stopped at New York Hospital when I found a well-dressed man coming over. He was waving to me. I waited until he jumped into the taxi. “La Guardia Airport, please,” he said.

As always, I wondered about my passenger. “What do you do?” “I am working at the hospital.” For some unknown reason, I decided to ask for his help.

“Could I ask a favor of you?” He didn’t answer. “I have a son, 16. He’s doing well in school. He wants a job this summer. Is there any possibility that you might get him a summer job?” After a minute, he said, “The medical students have a research project. Maybe he could fit in. Have him send me his school records.” He searched his pocket and handed me a card.

That evening, I pulled the card from my pocket. “Robbie,” I said proudly, “This could be a summer job for you. Send him your school records.” He read it out loud, “Fred Plum, New York Hospital.” “Is this a joke?” he said in doubt. After I shouted and threatened (恐吓) to cut off his pocket-money, Robbie promised to send off his grades the next morning.

Two weeks later, when I arrived home, my son handed me a letter from Plum. He was to phone Plum’s secretary for an interview.

Robbie got the job. The white coat he wore made him feel more important than he really was. As high school graduation neared, Plum was kind enough to write letters of recommendation (推荐) for universities. At last, Robbie was admitted to New York Medical College.

It never happened to me that a stranger should change my son’s future.