I live in a city where jobs are difficult to get and if you want to find a well-paid job, it will be even harder. Therefore, it is not surprising for you to see many people in our city walk a long way because they can’t even afford an old used car.

It was a cold windy day. I saw one of these people who often have to walk from and to work every day, when I was driving after work. A middle-aged man wearing only a thin overcoat was walking down the road and trying to ask for a ride from the passing cars. Unluckily, there was no driver willing to stop their cars. When I saw two cars in front of me pass him by, I wanted to do the same. But the sight of that poor man remained in my mind for quite a moment. I felt as if a big hand was dragging me and forcing me not to leave. Finally I drew back and gave him a ride.

As I drove along, we had a conversation, during which he told me something about himself and his family. I learnt that the man was doing everything he could to support his family using the limited salary from several part-time jobs. As you could imagine, every coin he earned was going to be used to pay for the house and food.

It was a long drive before we got to his home. All the way, I could feel his hardship and tiredness. But as we came close to the house where he was living, I saw his tired eyes grow bright and the whole body was lit up. His lovely girl was playing in the front yard. Seeing her father was out of the car, she ran to him as quickly as possible, reaching out her two small hands. He held the girl with his two strong hands, laughing and kissing her cheeks. I was lost in that happy moment. I smiled, said goodbye to them, wished them the future happiness and then drove off.

On my way home, something came into my mind.

Half an hour later, I got home.

My three-year-old son, Charles, has loved watching trucks, cars and all types of vehicles (交通工具) since he could sit up and look around. Charles was a fan of fire trucks, ambulances, garbage (垃圾) trucks and other vehicles which have wheels.

Because of his deep love for anything with wheels, I always made it a point to take him outside to watch garbage trucks drive up and down. Charles loved watching the workers and would get so excited when the drivers beeped the horns (鸣喇叭) at him as they went by. Charles would wave and shyly say, “Thank you.”

There was a particular waste management employee who was extra friendly. Charles was attracted by him, and after we knew his name — Lonnie, Charles talked about him throughout the day. One day, Lonnie rode by and said, “Charles, I promise when this pandemic (流行病) is over, I’m going to let you ride in my truck.” However, we were going to move out of the state about a week later. I had to tell Lonnie the truth.

The next week, we waited for the garbage truck. Finally, late in the afternoon, I heard the loud noise of the truck. I raced to the door, carrying Charles. We did not want to miss seeing Lonnie on our last week in Birmingham. Lonnie stopped the truck and got out. He told me he had some things for Charles — a hat, a yellow safety vest, two toy garbage cans, coloring books and so on. Charles was absolutely excited, especially by the garbage cans, and I was so touched. The next day, Charles and I were playing in the front yard when a man approached me. He said, “I’m Lonnie’s manager, and he has something special planned for Charles. Are you going to be here around 11 am?” I said, “Of course we will.”

At noon, something surprising happened.

Even though we moved out of the state, Charles still misses Lonnie.

After Sri Pisharody’s father died, her mother moved to the U. S. to be near her family. But a few things needed to be finalized back home. So Pisharody, her young daughter, and her mother flew to India together. During the long flight, Pisharody laid out some ground rules for her daughter.

“In India, it’s crowded. You have to stick with me and never trust the police officers or the auto rickshaw (黄包车)drivers because everybody wants a bribe (贿 赂)and they’ll try to cheat you,“ Pisharody recalled telling her daughter.

Pisharody had packed all of their passports, documents and other valuable items in a small briefcase. Upon landing, they hailed a rickshaw to the train station. When the driver dropped them off, Pisharody paid him, and then she turned around to make sure her daughter and mother were close by.

“Before I knew it, the auto rickshaw driver drove away with our briefcase that had my passport, our documents, our cash, everything in it,” Pisharody said. ”My heart sank. I started trembling. I didn’t know what to do. ” Her mother, who was 70 at the time, quickly sprang into action and headed to the police station, leaving Pisharody and her daughter at the train station.

While standing on the front steps, a group of auto rickshaw drivers approached them and asked what was wrong.

When she looked in the rickshaw, the briefcase was exactly where she had left it.