A few years ago, the company I worked for sent my wife and me to live in New York for a year. I’ve always loved running, so I was really happy when I found out I lived next to Central Park. This meant that every morning I could go for a run before I went to work.

Because a lot of people had told me to be careful of robbers in the park, so usually I didn’t take anything with me. How could they rob me if I didn’t have anything? But one morning, my wife gave me a S 10 bill and asked me to buy some bread on the way.

It was a beautiful morning and the park was quiet with very few people walking or jogging (慢跑) around. While I was running through the park, another jogger knocked into me. He apologized and continued running. For a while, I didn’t think too much of it. However, when I noticed the wide path where I was running, I thought was kind of strange. The warning of robbers in the park occurred to me. ”It could have been a robber!” I suddenly became alarmed, so I checked my pocket and found that the money was missing. Without thinking twice, I ran after that jogger. I finally caught up and held him by the arm. I shouted, “Give me the $10 bill! Now!” I am not usually a hot-headed (性急的) person, but I got really angry this time. I couldn’t believe the robbery was actually happening to me. Filled with anger, I shook my fist at him. This seemed to frighten him. He quickly put his hand in his pocket and gave me the money. Then he ran away as fast as he could.

I bought the bread and went home. As soon as I got home, I couldn’t wait to tell my wife my story. “You won’t believe what happened to me,” I started with pride. She immediately stopped me, “I know, you left the money for the bread on the kitchen table.”

Looking at the money on the table, I stood there, shocked.

Alex was very excited because the New Year Eve’s party was coming and as usual it was going to be held in his Uncle Peter’s home. Suddenly, he saw his grandfather sitting alone looking very unhappy.

Alex went to him and asked, “Grandpa, why are you sitting alone? Is there anything wrong with you?”

His grandfather replied, “No, I am fine. I just feel like sitting alone.”

“Grandpa, you know the New Year party is near, so are you preparing for it?” asked Alex excitedly.

“No dear, I am not. With the passage of time, the world has completely changed and I don’t see any point in celebrating the world I see today,” answered his grandpa disappointedly.

“I know something is wrong with you and you are not telling me. Please tell me what the problem is.” Alex said.

“I feel I am a stranger in the world I am living in. It is not the same as I have known. Now everyone is busy with their own work. Your father is busy with business, your brother is busy on the computer, your sisters are busy watching dramas and your mum is busy with housework. I don’t know how to pass my days,” said his grandfather sadly.

“Grandpa, you have me!”said Alex.

His grandfather smiled and said, “Yeah, you are here, but what about others? In our days, we had a fixed (固定的) time each day when the whole family sat together and talked, shared problems and laughed together.”

That night Alex thought about what his grandfather had said and an idea flashed his mind. He decided to have a surprise. New Year party at his own home and make everyone come together that day. As New Year’s Eve got nearer, Alex got busy preparing for the party. He kept it a secret from his grandfather and asked everyone not to let him know about it in order to surprise him.

It was December 31 and everyone was busy with their own work.

Alex saw his grandfather looking very happy while talking with the family members.

Growing up, I wanted to be just like my mom. She was kind and caring, and always made people comfortable in her presence. For years she was a volunteer in our community. I love going to the local nursing home to help with her when I was a child. However, once I became a teenager, I was too caught up in my adolescent world to worry about helping others.

One particular summer day when I was 12, Mom came into my room and told me to get up and meet her at the car. But I had planned to spend the day at the lake with friends. Why did she have to ruin everything? At last, I made my way outside with my mother. Angry and annoyed, I climbed into the car and shoot the door loudly. I sat in silence, too upset to talk. “Tasha, do you know where we are going?” Mom asked calmly. I remained silent. “Sweetheart, we’re going to the children’s shelter. I have been there before and I think it would benefit you,” she explained.

I feel a pain slowly form in my stomach. How was I supposed to help there?

When we reached the shelter, I was rather surprised. As we approached the front door, wind bells played a calming tune while trees and flowers welcomed us. Maybe this wasn’t going to be so.

Mom rang the doorbell. We were led to the front room, where all of the children were playing. Toys were spread out across the floor. I noticed a baby whose body was seriously wounded. Most of the children had noticeable physical scars such as cuts, burns and scratches. What a terrible life they must had had before they moved here! My heart sank. As I was looking around, I felt a gentle pull on my shirt.

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.

On a late afternoon, Brandon finished feeding his cows on the farm and decided to go back with his two sons, Louie, 6, and Everett, 3. As they headed for the house, the two boys ran ahead of their father. Suddenly Brandon was aware he forgot to close the door of the barn (牲口棚). He told the boys to wait for him at the gate and returned to lock it. When he was at the gate minutes later, he saw only his youngest son.

“ Where’s Louie? ” he shouted.

“He fell in the hole!” Everett said.

Brandon quickly realized what had happened. Noooo, he thought. Louie can barely swim! He ran to the well and heard Louie splashing, trying not to . Instinctively, he jumped in.

Somehow Brandon managed to grab on to a pipe that ran down the side of the well, which slowed his fall and kept him from crushing (挤压) his son.

Finally, Brandon hit the freezing water at the bottom of the well. He popped his head out of the water and grabbed Louie, who was panicking and trying to stay afloat in water that was too deep for either of them to stand. Knowing they could tread (踩水) for only so long, Brandon lifted his son onto his chest as he packed his own back against the narrow walls for support.

“All right, Dad, you can pull us out now,” Louie said.

If only it were that easy. There was no way he could climb out. The pipe that he’d grabbed during his fall was too slippery to be of any use. There was only one way out.

Looking up to see Everett peering down at them from the top of the well, Brandon shouted, “Everett, you’re going to have to be a big boy and save us. Run to the road and stand by the mailbox until someone stops. Tell them we need help. ”

Everett did as he was told. He stood alone by the side of the road, waving to stop someone.

After a while, Chris and Mark, nearby farmers, were driving by the farm.

Twenty minutes later, Louie emerged (出现), then Brandon, both cold and wet.

It was time to go home. “Remember to work on your class speeches for homework,” Miss Walker said as everyone started talking and packing their school bags. Jenny felt sick. She hated having to read aloud in class. She was sure everyone would get really bored with listening to her. Once, when Jenny was reading out her holiday diary, Lee was even looking at his watch, a silver and blue one which seemed just magical.

Jenny watched Lee walk ahead of her as they left school. He seemed so clever, and he had a certain sort of shining confidence. He was just one of those people who were good at everything. Jenny sighed. As she turned the corner, she saw Lee’s watch lying right in the middle of the path.

Jenny picked it up and wanted to return it to Lee, but she couldn’t catch up with him. When she arrived home, Jenny put it on, thinking about the magic. She was surprised that it fitted so well. She walked to the mirror and started practicing her speech. Words just flooded out of her. “I’m going to talk about swimming. I have been lucky. I’ve won lots of competitions. But when I’m in a race, I’m not really thinking about winning. I’m just loving the feeling of being in the water…” Jenny laughed with excitement. She walked across the room. She suddenly seemed to have a certain sort of confidence. Turning back to the minor, Jenny saw a flash of light from the watch in the glass. The flashes of silver seemed almost magical. So maybe Lee’s watch really did have something magical.

The next day, as the lesson began, Miss Walker ask cd who was going to be brave and go first. Nobody moved, Jenny slowly raised her arm. Before Miss Walker could say something, there was a shout “She’s stolen in y watch!” Lee said angrily. “It went missing at school yesterday.”

Everybody was fixing their eyes on Jenny, waiting for an explanation,

Miss Walker smiled and asked the class lo listen lo Jenny’s speech first.

As a young boy, I was innocent. Every vacation I looked forward to two things-seeing my grandpa and hearing his wonderful stories. My grandpa was a very good storyteller. He had worked various jobs when he was young and wove ( 编 织)his adventures and misadventures into fantastic tales. These wonderful tales colored my childhood.

As I grew up, I had to admit that Grandpa's stories went on a little long, even a little boring and gradually lost their magic. However, not wanting to upset him, my brother and I would sometimes take turns sitting in the living room, listening to grandpa tell his stories.

When my grandpa was approaching 91, he suffered from serious memory-loss.It was kind of what doctors called dementia (痴呆),probably the earliest stage of Alzheimer's disease. Following the doctor's directions, we moved him into a Sunrise Assisted Living Community, where he could get a better care. After that,grandpa hardly came to our house.

One weekend before my grandpa's birthday, I came to visit him. Seeing grandpa sitting in his armchair, dull-looking, I was filled with mixed feelings. I wheeled grandpa to the sunshine in the courtyard, talking to him. He couldn't express himself clearly and spoke in short bursts, but I listened to him patiently and carefully just as I used to be a little boy.

It was then that I noticed a shadow box with some old and yellowish photos in it. I picked one up, in which my brother, several boys in our neighborhood, and I were playing basketball, wearing basketball jerseys (球衣), with grandpa cheering us on ten years before.

My mind flashed back to those beautiful memories.

A bright idea for grandpa's birthday came to my mind.