Boys like to be considered to be brave, but what kind of things can be considered to be brave? It is not a question that can be answered by words, but by the actual deed. A boy with the name Henry gave us a good example. Ronny and Henry were two friends in the same class. They always played together and went home together. One day as Ronny and Henry were going home after school, they saw some people fighting in the street corner. Ronny said excitedly, “Some people are fighting! Let’s go and have a look!” But Henry refused, “It’s none of our business. We’d better go home and don’t get close to them. Also our parents are expecting to have dinner with us together at home and I don’t want them to worry about me.”

“You are a coward, and afraid to go,” said Ronny, and off he ran to the spot with some other boys. Henry had to go home alone and didn't think about it anymore.

But Ronny thought Henry was a coward and told all the boys that. They laughed at him a great deal. From then on, they looked down upon Henry and didn’t want to play with him.

Henry was sad but he wasn’t angry with Ronny for his rude behavior, because he had learned that true courage was shown most in bearing misunderstanding when it was not deserved, and that he ought to be afraid of nothing but doing wrong. Thus, he just ignored the other boys’ laughter and continued to stick to his thought and go to school and study as well. However, Ronny didn’t invite Henry to go home with him anymore. Instead, he had his new friends who also thought Henry was a coward. Every day after school, they didn't go home directly but went to the river or somewhere to play games and had lots of fun.

At noon that day, I drove back to my house after the performance. Just as I entered the living room, I heard a gentle sound coming from the bedroom upstairs—it was the sound of my favorite violin.

“Thief!”

I dashed upstairs. Sure enough, as expected, a boy of about 12 years old was petting my violin. The boy had messy hair and a thin face, his oversized coat seemingly filled with something. At first glance, I found a new pair of shoes missing. It seemed that he was surely a thief.

Then, I saw his eyes full of fear and despair. My anger was immediately replaced by a smile, I asked, “Are you Mr. Ram’s nephew, Michael? I’m his housekeeper. Two days ago, I heard his nephew living in the countryside will come. It must be you. You’re really like him!”

On hearing my words, the boy was first astonished, but then quickly said, “Has my uncle gone out? I think I’d better first go out for a walk and visit him again in a while.”

I nodded and asked the boy who was preparing to put down the violin, “Do you like to play the violin so much?”

“Yes, but I’m so poor that I can’t afford it,” the boy replied.

“Then, I give this violin to you.” The boy looked at me questioningly, but he picked up the violin. Going out to the living room, he suddenly saw on the wall my huge color photo I performed in the Sydney Opera House. He involuntarily trembled for a moment and ran out without looking back.

I was sure that the boy had understood what happened because no one would decorate the living room with the housekeeper’s photo.

A few years later, I was invited to be a judge at a music competition of senior high school students.

After the competition, “Michael” ran to me, holding a violin box.

Jenny was a pretty eight-year-old girl.

One day when she and her mother were checking out at the grocery store, Jenny saw a plastic pearl necklace, by which she was totally defeated. How eagerly she wanted it! But when she saw the price, her heart sank a little. She gathered up her courage and asked her mother if she would buy it for her. Her mother said, “Well, it is a pretty necklace, but it costs an awful lot of money. I can buy you the necklace, but when we get home, we should make up a list of housework that you can do to pay for the necklace.” Jenny agreed immediately, feeling a burst of joy. So her mother bought the pearl necklace for her. Jenny worked on her housework determinedly and earnestly every day. Soon Jenny paid off the pearls.

Jenny had a very loving daddy. When Jenny went to bed, he would read Jenny her favorite story. One night when he finished the story, he said, “Jenny, do you love me?” “Oh, yes, Daddy, you know I love you.” the little girl said delightedly, with a broad smile on her face. “Well, then, give me your pearls.” Hearing that, Jenny froze there, an anxious expression twisting her face. “Oh! Daddy, not my pearls! But you can have Rosy, my favorite doll. Remember her? You gave her to me last year for my birthday. Okay?” “Oh no, darling, that’s okay.” Her father brushed her cheek with a kiss, gently and calmly. “Good night, little one.”

A week later, her father once again asked Jenny after her story, “Do you love me?” “Oh yes, Daddy, you know I love you.” the little girl murmured softly, trying to escape from her father’s eyes. “Well, then, give me your pearls.” “Oh, Daddy, not my pearls! But you can have Ribbons, my toy horse. Do you remember her? She is my favorite.” The little girl begged. “No, that’s okay,” her father said, smiling broadly and sweetly and brushed her cheek again with a kiss. “God bless you, little one. Sweet dreams.”

Several days later, when Jenny’s father came in to read her story, Jenny was waiting anxiously for him on the bed.

Holding the plastic pearl his daughter offered, the father dragged out a blue box.

On a cold windy day, a poor boy tried to pay his way through school by selling goods door to door. Wandering on the street, he was not a successful seller. What’s worse, he found that he only had one dime left. His empty stomach reminded him constantly that for days he hadn’t eaten anything. He had no choice but to beg for a meal at the next house. Hesitantly he knocked at a door, thinking about what to say when it was opened. However, he lost his nerve when a lovely young woman opened the door. “What can I do for you?” asked the young woman. The boy paused for a while, “Would you please give me some...a drink of water?” the boy dared not to look directly into her eyes. She looked at the bony boy and thought he might need something to give him energy so she brought him a glass of milk. His head rising and small hands taking the cup, he drank it up slowly, and then asked, “How much do I owe you?” “You don’t owe me anything,” she replied with a warm smile on her face. “My mother has taught me never to accept pay for a kindness.”Deeply moved, he said sincerely, “Then I shall thank you from the bottom of my heart.” As Howard Kelly left that house, he not only felt stronger physically, but it also increased his faith in the whole human race. As a matter of fact, he was about to give up and quit before that point.

Years later the young woman became critically ill. However, the local doctors were unable to give an effective medical treatment. Finally they sent her to a hospital in the big city, where specialists can be called in to cure her rare disease. Among those famous specialists, Dr. Howard Kelly was called in for the consultation. When he heard the name of the town she came from, a strange light filled his eyes. Immediately, he rose and went down through the hospital hall into her room.

Dressed in his doctor’s gown, he went in to see her.

The bill was sent to her room.

One afternoon after school, Mary and her brother, Keith, were eating at a cafe near their home. That afternoon, they had to share their table with another person. That person was a young lady in her twenties. After eating, she went to the restroom. Without realizing, she had left her cellphone on the table. Five minutes later, she came out and walked out of the cafe without looking back.

Mary saw the cellphone on the table. She quickly told Keith, “Keith, the girl left behind her cellphone.”Keith looked at the cellphone. It took his breath away. It was one of the latest models on the market. Keith had always wanted a cellphone. But his parents had told him, “You don’t need one. You can always use the house phone.” He stared at it for some minutes. Then, he said slowly, pausing on every word, “I want to take the cellphone.” Mary could not believe her ears. She only stared at her brother, “You can’t! What if the owner comes to look for it?”

After making the decision, Keith quickly got the cellphone and put it in his schoolbag. Then, he took Mary’s hand and led her out of the cafe quickly.

Once back home, Keith locked his room door with trembling (颤抖的) hands. Inside his room, he took out the piece of beauty. Oh, he liked it so much. He had his own cellphone. Soon, he was polishing it happily. But Mary told him, “Keith, you cannot keep the cellphone. What will you tell our father about this? He will ask you how you got the cellphone.” Keith said quickly, “I will say a friend lent it to me.” Mary said, “Now you are lying too. Oh dear! When had Keith turned so dishonest?”

Then, Mary saw a house phone number on the cover of the cellphone. “This is the girl’s phone number. Why don’t we just call this number? We will talk to her and ask her to come and take back her cellphone,” she was trying to talk some sense into him.

That night, Keith turned over in bed from time to time.

Mary was very happy to hear that.

“If mum finds out that I'm going to the beach, I'll be in big trouble.” I said to myself softly in a low voice.

I went downstairs slowly and tried to walk casually into the kitchen. As I was walking towards the back door, mum asked without looking up from her dish-washing, “Where are you going?” I answered back without hesitation, “I am going to the garden to play.” After I got out of the kitchen, I breathed a sign of relief. My plan had worked out fine so far. I climbed the fence and jumped onto the muddy field next to my house and started running towards the bus stop at top speed.

After half an hour I was at the beach scanning the crowd for my friends, Jimmy and Bobby. Two young men were racing in the canoes (独木舟). After a while, I saw them near a coconut tree. I ran towards them and got into my swimming trunk (游泳裤). For about an hour, we played volleyball happily.

Suddenly, Bobby hit the ball too hard and the ball fell into the sea. Just as Bobby was going to pick up the ball, the tide came in and carried the ball further and further away from the shore. I wanted to show off my swimming skills so I declared to help get the ball for him.

I dived into the water and started swimming at a steady pace. After swimming for about ten minutes, I became tired but when I saw that the ball was only a few feet away from me, I put in an extra burst of speed. However, just as I was going to get the ball, a very strong current swept the ball further away from me. At that moment, a string of weed (海草) tangled (缠绕) up with my feet and I could not swim properly.

I struggled to keep afloat but it was no use. “If I had listened to my parents, this would never have happened,” I thought silently.

Finally, after struggling for a minute or two, I still got pulled underwater.

When I woke up, I was in an empty room lying on a bed.

I was lucky to have an interview with a famous international bank after graduation. I really appreciated this chance. So 1 spent a lot of time preparing very carefully I prepared for all the possible questions ahead. As a result, 1 got the job. While my classmates were still struggling to get a job, I had succeeded in getting one, which made me feel very proud of myself.

After one month of hard training, Today was my first day at work to show the results of the training. I got up as usual, but I decided to skip doing exercise as I did not want to take the risk of arriving at the office late on my first day. I went through my morning routine and spent a lot of time deciding what to wear. I definitely wanted to make a great impression right from the start. Finally, I settled on the white suit with a tie.

I waved to say goodbye to my mother and set off cheerfully towards the bus stop. But l Saw a bus leaving the stop just as I turned around the corner. Now I would have to wait for another 15 minutes, even though time was very precious. I stood there patiently. 15 minutes passed and then 30 minutes, and there was no sign of the bus. Now what could 1 do? I had to reach the office on time. I saw a motorcycle approaching, but as I tried to stop it, the driver sped on without even a glance. It was then that a car stopped near me and a man waved to me. He said, “Aren’t you working at the bank at Nariman Point? My office is in the same building. Can I give you a ride?”

I was uncertain at first but then forced myself to get in as I was going to be late. Gradually, I realized that we were not on the familiar route to my office. I asked the man to stop the car, but he did not listen to me and told me to shut up.

My best friend's mother was a social worker in Detroit, Michigan.   Because of that, my friend Victoria and I were introduced early to the world of volunteering.

We did plenty of charity(慈善) work.   We always had a good time, and continued to volunteer whenever we had time, often even when we didn't.   It became second nature.   Hairstyles came and went, but Victoria and I found places to donate our time because that's how we were raised.

One particular morning we signed up for "Paint the Town",an organization in Detroit to help low­income homeowners clean their houses.   We were assigned(分配) a dilapidated(破烂的) house in one of the worst communities of the city.   I was afraid as we got near to the front door, not knowing who we would find on the other side.   We knocked three times quickly and stepped back, waiting to be let in.

When the door opened, my mouth did, too.   Standing there was a little old lady with wisps(一束) of white hair and a purple apron(围裙) tied around her waist.

"Hello" she said, "I'm Amelia.   Please come in and I will show you where to start."Her smile shone brightly.   “I am just baking some cookies for you girls to eat.”

As she led us to the parts of her house that needed painting, my heart softened.   Here was one of the scariest­ looking houses in the city, but behind its doors was a sweet old lady with a cane and a big smile.

Here we were coming to help her, and instead she was doing something for us—baking homemade cookies and serving us tea!

There was no age barrier that day as we worked on Amelia's house.

“Nonsense！” she criticized(批评).