Half a year before graduating from college, my son began to look for a job and soon got an interview. There were only three people for the final interview. The interview was very simple, during which the interviewer only chatted with them for a while. The interviewer said to them, “All of you are very good. Please go home and wait for our response.”

Three days later, my son received a message from the company. It said that he hadn’t been offered the job. But later in the evening he told me he had received another message saying he had been employed(聘用) by the company. Actually, the first message sent to my son was also part of the test in the interview. The three men received the same message, but only my son’s reply satisfied the company, so he was given the job. I asked my son, “How did all of you reply?” My son said, “One did not reply, the other said goodbye, and I said ‘thank you’.”

Only then did I know that Tom’s job came in that way. That is, when you feel disappointed, do not forget to say thank you to the one who disappoints you. Saying thank you shows respect for others’ work. Therefore, while under the same condition, you may get more chances compared to others!

In our life, we should say “thank you” more. It will bring more surprises.

I used to be a very selfish(自私的) girl, but I have changed in the past few years. I have started to think about others before thinking about myself. I’m happy about the change.

I think it started when I was at Palomar College. At first, I just wanted to get my degree and be left alone. I thought I was smarter than everyone else, so I hardly talked to anyone in my class. At the end of my first term, almost everyone had made friends and was having fun except me. I felt really lonely. So, I started to ask people around how they helped those in need. By the end of last year, I had made several new friends, and two of them are still my best friends today.

A bigger change happened when I took a part-time job at the Vista Nursing Home. One old lady there who was badly ill became my friend. Every time I came into her room, she was so happy because she thought of me as her daughter. Her real daughter never visited her, so I took her place. She let me learn that making others feel good can make myself feel good, too. When she died, I was sad. I was very thankful to her.

I think I’m much better than I used to be, and I hope I will remember these experiences. They have taught me to care about others more than myself.

As a student, I was most afraid to answer questions in class.     16    . At the beginning of each class, when the teacher asked a question, I always lowered my head because I was afraid that the teacher saw me.

One day, in a foreign language class, Mr. Black gave us a lesson. He wanted us to be active in class.     17     “Let me tell you a story first,” he said.

“When I came to the United States to study, the university often invited famous people to make speeches.     18     The students around me always took a piece of cardboard folded (折叠) in half, wrote their names in bold (粗体) with the most eye-catching color, and then placed the cardboard on the seat. So when the speaker needed the answers from the students, he could see and call a listener’s name directly.”

“    19    . My classmate told me the speakers were all top people who could offer chances. When your answer was to his surprise, it meant he might give you more chances. In fact, I really saw a few students get great chances because of that.”

After listening to the story, I understood that the chance will not find you itself.     20