【推荐1】Mama Cax, a model and motivational speaker, died in 2019 at the age of 30.

The Haitian-born model’s family took to her Instagram account on Friday to announce the tragic news, revealing that she passed away on Monday, Dec. 16^th. The news also reads, “To say that Cax was a fighter would be an understatement. As a cancer survivor, she had grown accustomed to taking on life’s challenges directly and successfully. It is with that same grit that she fought her last days on Earth.”

When she was 14, Cax was found to have bone and lung cancers and later had to have her right leg cut off. From then on, she wore an artificial leg for the last 16 years of her life. Mama Cax never lost heart. “I recognize how lucky I am and that many can’t afford medical treatments,” said Cax. “I feel like I’m in a position to make a difference and one day I will be an advocate for people with disabilities.”

In addition to walking the runway in New York’s Fashion Week, Cax was a strong advocate for disabled models. She broke down barriers in the fashion world as a disabled model with a history of fighting difficult health battles.

And she was also a successful blogger with a huge following. She wrote blogs about travel, food and fashion and was an inspiration to many people. “Scars, we can hate them but they remain part of us. They tell the stories of our struggle and survival. They represent the battles we’ve won” said Cax. “As women we were used to letting others judge our worth. My advice to any young woman out there is, to know your worth, figure out what you want, set up a plan and go for it.”

Cax loved sports, especially rock climbing. “I like to challenge myself physically. It is difficult but certainly not impossible,” said Cax. In November, 2019, Cax reached another life goal of hers—to finish the New York City Marathon. She appreciated every moment of life, and lived it with delight.

【推荐2】The Right Thing

“Hi, Mrs. Grady,” said Mark when their neighbor opened her door. “Would you like us to shovel your sidewalk and driveway?” Shoveling was Jamie’s idea, a way to earn enough money for the new Ocean Kingdom video game that came out the next day .Mrs. Grady was happy, “That would be wonderful, boys. I think the job is getting to be too much for me.

“It will cost 10 dollars,” Jamie said.” If that’s OK “, Mark added.

“Oh dear, ”Mrs. Grady said disappointedly, “I haven’t been able to get to the bank. I can offer homemade cookies, but I realize that’s not what you had in mind.”

Mark was going to say that Mrs. Grady could pay them another time, but Jamie cut him off. “We’ll come back later.”

Mrs. Grady doesn’t look like the person who’d come to his rescue last summer when Mr. Dunn’s collie, Goldie had just wanted to play, but Mark didn’t feel comfortable around big dogs. He wanted to call for help, but his tongue seemed locked behind his teeth. Then Mrs. Grady’s front door had flown open. She must have seen him from across the street. “Hold on, Mark. I’m coming!” “Goldie” she’d called. As soon as Goldie had turned her head, Mrs. Grady had slipped between Mark and the dog. She wasn’t much taller than Mark, but she’d stood firm as a rock in front of him. “Goldie, go home!” Then she’d swept her broom to hurry the dog along. “ Get!” Goldie had obeyed.

When Mark showed thanks to Mrs. Grady, Mrs. Grady laughed. “It was nothing. Good neighbors watch out for each other, don’t they? ”

And now Mrs. Grady needed Mark as much as he’d needed her last summer. He smiled and waved at Mrs. Grady, then his shovel deep into the snow.

“Hey!” Jamie shouted. “What are you doing?” Mark couldn’t explain about Goldie and watching out for neighbors.” I like Mrs. Grady’s cookies,” he said.

【推荐3】A librarian in Indonesia’s Java island started a project — lending books to children in exchange for trash they collect in a novel way — to clean up the planet and help improve kids’ literacy (识字能力).

Each weekday Raden Roro Hendarti rides her three wheeler with books piled up at the back for children in Muntang village to exchange for plastic cups, bags and other waste that she carries back. She told Reuters she is helping kids get into the habit of reading as well as making them aware of the environment. As soon as she shows up, little children, many accompanied by their mothers, surround her “Trash Library” and choose the books noisily. They are all carrying trash bags and Raden's three wheeler quickly fills up with them as the books fly out.

She’s happy the kids are going to spend less time on online games as a result. “Let us build a culture of literacy from young age to mitigate the harm of the online world,” Raden said. “We should also take care of our waste in order to fight climate change and to save the earth from trash,” Raden said.

She collects about 100 kg of waste each week, which is then sorted out by her colleagues and sent for recycling or sold. She has a stock of 6,000 books to lend and wants to take the mobile service to neighbouring areas as well. Kevin Alamsyah, an 11-year-old reader, searches for waste lying in the village. “When there is too much trash, our environment will become dirty and it’s not healthy. That’s why I look for trash to borrow a book,” he says.

The literacy rate for above-15-year-olds in Indonesia is around 96 percent, but a September report by the World Bank warned that the Covid-19 will leave more than 80% of 15-year-olds below the lowest reading level recognized by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.

【推荐2】It is widely acknowledged that it is by no means an easy task to bring up a child well. And our ancestors already understood it well. As an old proverb says, “It takes an entire village to raise a child.” That is being quoted more and more often these days. And I’m pleased about that.

Parents need to be involved in their children’s education in many ways. Helping children with homework and studying, going on a field trip, teaching a craft or coaching a child’s sports team are all great ways to be involved with your child’s education. And don’t forget to communicate with teachers—they need and respect your input. Studies show that children learn more and schools function better when parents and schools work together.

Communities can help children create and achieve new goals. There are other ways such as helping with homework. reading to a child, coaching a children’s team, providing emotional support, helping solve problems and building self-esteem（自尊）. Kids need role models and advisers can be role models by sharing their experiences and wisdom.

Businesses can also help shape our children’s future—invite a class from your local school to visit your workplace. You may be providing a glimpse that opens a new world of possibilities. Show students what goes on during a typical day. Give a mini course for students: how products are made; how machinery works. You may have a developing electrician, a teacher, a nurse, or even a newspaper reporter on your hands.

It really does lake an entire village to raise a child. So share the responsibility－and the joy—of bringing a child to his or her full potential.