【推荐2】About 30 years ago, I left Cuba for the United States with my son. After getting settled finally in Brunswick, New Jersey, I enrolled (注册) my son in kindergarten. Several weeks later, my son’s teacher asked me to meet him at his office.

In the teacher’s office, and exchange of greetings was followed by his questions: “Is your son mentally retarded (弱智的)? Does he suffer from any kind of mental disability?”

Was he talking about my wonderful Scola? NO, no, it can’t be. What a helpless, lonely moment! I told him that Scola was a quiet, sweet little boy, instead. I asked him why he was asking me all these questions.

My son could not follow the teacher’s directions, he told me, and thus, Scola was disrupting the class. Didn’t he know my son did not speak English yet?

He was angry; “Why hasn’t your son been taught to speak English? Don’t you speak English at home?”

No, I didn’t speak English at home, I replied. I was sure my son would learn English in a couple of months, and I didn’t want him to forget his native language. Well, wrong answer! What kind of person would not speak in English to her son at home and at all time? “Are you one of those people who come to this country to save dollars and send them back to their country, never wanting to be a part of this society?”

Needless to say, I tried to tell him I was not one of “those people.” Then he told me the meeting was over, and I left.

As I had expected, my son learned to speak English fluently before the school year was over. He went on to graduate from college and got a job, earning close to six figures. He travels widely and leads a well-adjusted, contented life. And he has benefited from being bilingual (双语的).

Speaking more than one language allows people to communicate with others; it teaches people about other cultures and other places — something very basic and obviously lacking in the “educator” I met in New Jersey.

【推荐3】Computer programmer David Jones earned ￡35,000 a year designing new computer games,yet he cannot find a bank prepared to let him have a check card.Instead,he has been told to wait another two years until he is 18.

He works for a small firm in Liverpool,where most young people of his age are finding jobs.David’s biggest headache is what to do with his money.Though he has high payment,he cannot drive a car,or get credit cards(信用卡).

David got his job four months ago,a year after leaving school with six O-levels(普通成绩) and working for a time in a computer shop.“I got the job because the people who run the firm knew I had already written some programs,”he said.

“I suppose ￡35,000 sounds a lot but I hope it will come to more than that this year.”He spends some of his money on records and clothes,and gives his mother ￡20 a week as he lives with his parents.But most of his spare time is spent working.

“Unfortunately,computing was not part of our studies at school,”he said.“But I had been studying it in books and magazines for four years in my spare time.I knew what I wanted to do and never considered staying on at school.Most people in this business are fairly young,anyway.I would like to earn a million and I suppose early retirement(退休) is a possibility.You never know when the market might disappear.”

【推荐1】When I was 19 years old, I was at a dance club. As we were walking to my car one cold night, a man walked up to us. Behind him was a woman carrying a small child. The child had a jacket on but it wasn't buttoned up (扣上). The man began to tell us he wanted to borrow some money for the night to get his wife and kid into a hotel. He had a job but no place to live in and was waiting for the first paycheck. He said he could get our mailing address and mail the money back.

The guy I was with reached into his pocket to give this man a $20 bill. As the other man was extending his hand out to take the money, I put my hand on my new friends’ hand and said, “Can I talk to you for a minute？”

I told him that every day people asked my mother for money on her way to work. She said they made more money than she did, simply begging for money. These people were scamming those with soft hearts. And if they were truly worried about their child suffering from the cold, they would have at least buttoned his jacket or covered him with his blanket.

My new friend looked at me with disappointment and said, “Michelle, I know there are people out there that take advantage of others. I also know there are people out there that are one paycheck away from being homeless. If I give $ 20 to 10 people and only one of them really needs it and uses it for the right thing, it is worth it.”

I am now 37 years old and have never forgotten what he said to me. I don't even remember his name. But I do remember that that experience changed the way I look at different situations.

A．He had been begging for a long time near the dance club.

B．He would spend the cold night at an expensive hotel.

C．He was careless and didn't take good care of his child.

D．He might be just lying in order to get some money.

【推荐3】When I was a kid, my family farmed 200 acres with mules (骡子), and the most naughty one was Tobe. It’d frequently jump out and run around. But when asked why he liked it, Dad would say, “When it comes to farm work, Tobe comes up to standard.”

Dad died when I was 11, and we had to sell the farm. Those were hard years, but Mom managed to give me my first music lesson. Before long our neighbors liked my songs so much that I decided to make a career in singing.

At 17 I left home for a radio station in Jackson and this job made me discover how inexperienced I was. I made up my mind that I would practice until I came up to standard. I took a job as a driver. With 8 hours spent in the car, I could spend the rest of the time practicing. Finally, when I was good enough, I began playing for audiences nationwide.

By now, I had two kids and I knew what a family was without a dad, so I quit the performances and entered the most depressing (令人消沉的) years of my life with all the clothing, homework, and duties around the house. That was when I thought about Tobe. It was self-willed, but in the field, where it mattered, Tobe came up to standard. So I started listening and made a discovery. My kids’ lifestyle may be different. But where standards are concerned (涉及) — for things like honesty and courage — they often do better than some of us.

Not long ago my son Dick told me he was going to apply for a job at a TV station. “ I know the general manager. I’ll put in a good word for you,” I said. “I’d rather go alone,” he replied. “If I’m not good enough yet to do the job, I shouldn’t get it.” Then I realized he wanted to be up to standard. I felt proud the minute he came home shouting, “ Dad, I got the job!”