【推荐1】I was on a train in Switzerland (瑞士). Thirty minutes later, the train came to a stop and the conductor’s (乘务员) voice over the loudspeaker delivered a message in German, Italian and French. I’d made the mistake of not learning any of those languages before my vacation.

Everyone started getting off the train and an old woman saw that I was confused and stressed. (I had to catch an overnight train to Rome, and I was flying home from there). She could speak some English and told me that an accident had happened on the tracks (轨道). She asked me where I was trying to get to, then went and talked to some workers, and came back to tell me that we’d have to hop (换乘) trains three or four times to get there.

I was really glad she was heading the same way because it would have been impossible for me to figure it out on my own (自己弄清楚). So we went from one train station to the next, getting to know each other along the way. She was really the sweetest woman. It was a 2.5-hour journey in total, and when we made it to the final destination (目的地) , we got off and said our goodbyes. I had made it just in time to catch my train to Rome. She told me she had a train to catch as well. I asked her how much farther she had to go and it turned out (结果是) that her home was two hours back the other way. She had jumped from train to train and travelled the whole just to make sure that I made it. I was in shock. A woman spent her whole day sitting on trains and taking her hours away from her home just to help out a confused (迷惑的) tourist visiting her country.

No matter how many countries I visit, I’ll always say the most beautiful country in the world is Switzerland.

【推荐3】It was an evening. An old man was standing by the river for hours. His beard（胡须）was frozen while he was waiting for a ride across the river. The wait seemed endless.

Finally, he saw several horsemen coming. He watched them silently and let the first one pass by without even asking for a ride. Another passed by, and then another, till the last horseman came near him. The old man said, “Sir, would you mind giving me a ride to the other side?”

The horseman answered, “Sure thing. Get on.” The horseman took the old man not just across the river, but to the old man’s home.

As they went near the old man’s house, the horseman asked, “Sir, I noticed that you let several other horsemen pass by without trying to ask for a ride. Then I came up and you asked me for a ride at once. Why? What if I refused and left you there?”

The old man replied, “I looked into the eyes of the other horsemen and saw that they didn’t care about me. It was useless to ask them for a ride. But in your eyes I saw kindness. I knew that you would help me.”

These heartwarming words touched the horseman. “I’m so thankful for what you said,” he told the old man.

“I hope I will never get too busy to help others.” With that, Thomas Jefferson turned his horse around and made his way back to the White House.

【推荐2】Boys and girls, I know you may be sad now. Yeah, we lose the game. I’m sorry to hear that. Well, if you love to watch sports games, you’ll see it happen—tennis players jump over the net to shake hands after a hard match; football players exchange（交换）ball uniforms after 90 minutes of knocking each other around; even boxers（拳击运动员）touch gloves at the beginning of the game. Players in every event act in this way. What’s that? It’s all parts of sportsmanship（体育精神）.

Everyone feels great when they win. They may sing or dance excitedly on the ground. However, it’s always hard for people to say in public（在公众场合）that they made a bad play. Good sportsmanship is what we really need.

Good sportsmanship means that you play by the rules, talk politely to everyone during games and stay cool even when you lose the game. I do think every one of you tried your best. And at the school sports meeting, it’s more important for you to know how to work as part of a team and cheer your team on. Just like in life, you may not always win, but believe me, sportsmanship will help you out. After all, there is always the next match, right? So enjoy your day and stay cool! You can make it!

【推荐3】Nick is like many other boys in his town. He goes to school, does his homework, has fun with his friends and likes to do sports. But in his free time from Monday to Friday, Nick does something different（不同的）. He makes dinner for his mom, dad, brother and sister. They all like the food Nick makes for dinner.

“I think it’s ________ for children to learn how to cook. It isn’t only parents’ work,” Nick’s mother says. “Children need to learn school subjects, but they also need other necessary（必需的）life skills（技能）to help them in today’s world. I teach Nick how to make some easy meals（餐）. Now he can use recipes（食谱）in books to make dinner.”

“I love cooking and I think I’m really good at it. No friends around me can cook. I don’t know why. It’s not difficult and it’s great fun!” Nick says.

At first, like other children, Nick is kind of lazy and doesn’t help with housework at home. So his mom isn’t happy with him. But now, things are different.

【推荐2】Rick was a young boy who was angry at everything around him. To calm Rick down, his mom came home with a canvas (画布) and paint. “Whenever you feel bad about something, paint it instead of getting angry.”

Though not that happy, Rick gave it a try. After creating many paintings, he took his artwork to his mom.

“Tell me, Rick. What are these paintings about?”

“The first is about how some kids show off (炫耀) their new clothes. The next is about my teacher who always tells me about how I’m doing things wrong. And the last painting is about how one of my schoolmates said I should change my attitude (态度). They all make me so angry.”

Rick’s mom took Rick by her side and told him, “Don’t you see, Rick? You’re getting so angry but you never try to understand why.” Then she explained carefully, “All the people you were angry at did nothing wrong. The kids were showing off their good clothes but never laughed at you for being poor. Your teacher scolded (批评) you but that was because you caused trouble in class. And your schoolmate was only trying to help you correct your mistakes.”

“Next time you get angry, take a deep breath, drink a cup of coffee and walk away for a couple of seconds. And when you come back, talk to the person you’re angry at. You might calm down in this way.”

Rick took his mom’s advice and became less angry. He even started to feel happy around her children.

【推荐3】During my second month of the nursing school, our teacher gave us a test. I was a hard-working student and I did well in all the subjects. I finished the questions successfully and easily until I read the last one. “What is the first name of the woman who cleans the school?”

What a surprising question! I saw the cleaning woman almost every day. She was short, about 60 years old and had black hair, but how would I know her name? I handed in my paper, leaving the last question empty, so did my classmates.

Just before class ended, one student asked if the last question would influence our test grade.

“Of course,” said the teacher. “In your life, you will meet many people. All people are important and all jobs are important. They deserve(值得)your attention and care, even if all that you do is to smile and say hello to them.”

I’ve never forgotten that lesson. Actually, that was the most important lesson in my life. I also learned her name was Dorothy.