Pembral was a good boy. But he was always forgetting things. Big things, small things, important things, little things. His mother was a patient woman, which was a good thing. Pembral regularly tested her patience. She learned early on to remind him of everything: big things, small things, important things, even the little things. Once in a while the little things that didn’t seem important at the time became more important later.

Sometimes she thought that Pembral forgot things on purpose — things like washing behind his ears; or picking up his toys; or feeding the dog. It bothered (麻烦) her to remind him of these sorts of things. However, for the most part, she knew that his mind just wandered off and it was her job to bring it back.

Fall weather had arrived. The air was cool and fresh, especially in the morning, even if the skies were brilliant blue and the sun was shining brightly. The light of the morning made wisps (缕) of fog come up from the ponds. The trees were changing their summer greens to coats of brilliant yellow, orange and red.

This was a time when Pembral’s mother cooked things that smelled and tasted really good. It seemed like he was just hungrier in the fall or something, and he liked how the windows steamed up and how the kitchen smells filled up the whole house when his mother was cooking up something good at that time of the year.

Pembral’s mother was baking (烤) something special that day: a carrot cake. It was one of Pembral’s favorites. But she needed some things from the store, and sent Pembral to get them. “I need eggs, sugar and raisins (葡萄干),” she said. “Here’s some money,” she went on. “Put it in your pocket where you won’t lose it.”

Pembral pushed the money into his pocket, and headed toward the door. He went outside and down the street, kicking dry leaves on the sidewalk into the air and breathing in their smell, and watching flying birds.

When he got to the store, he picked up a basket and went about shopping.

He was reaching into his pocket for the change when his mother said, “Where are the eggs?”

I needed to do something in my community (社区) in order to complete the community service hours required to graduate from high school. Some of my friends had signed up to spend time at a soup kitchen, so I did, too. It seemed like a good thing to do.

I thought that we would just be passing out dinners to those in need, but I found out we would be doing everything from preparing to serving the dinner. We began preparing the food, from mixing salad dressing to separating frozen meat. Much still needed to be done before dinner was served, but already outside the building many homeless people were gathering. It wasn’t until a couple of hours later that we opened the doors and began serving dinner.

As the line of people came toward me, I got a little scared. I’d come face to face with the homeless: How should I act? How would they treat me? Would they hate me for having more than they did? While some of the people looked very friendly, some of them looked so dangerous. I didn’t have too much time to worry about it. I was assigned (分配) to serve the salad with the lady next to me. She smiled at me and said if I needed help, she’d be right there, which I found quite comforting.

I had never seen so many people wanting food. They were of all ages and nationalities. Most of them wore clothes that were torn and dirty. Some looked like they had tally given up on life, while others seemed to be making the best of the situation, smiling and joking. Some were better off than others, but they all needed a good meal and a warm place to eat. It saddened me to think of how many people there were who didn’t have a place to call home and the only food they got came from a soup kitchen.

As they came in my direction, I put on my brightest and happiest smile.

I was so happy that I had earned my service hours in this way.

After a heart operation, I figured taking care of a dog would keep me active. So I went to the animal shelter, where a little dog in a cage caught my eye. Her name was Honey and she was five months old. The worker opened Honey’s cage and I picked her up. We both went to the yard where I picked up a ball and threw it. I sat down, watching Honey run after it. She ran back toward me, ball in mouth. Immediately, I filled out the paperwork and took Honey home.

One morning last year I decided to take Honey out with me. My wife was away for a few days and I didn’t want to leave Honey alone. I took my keys and opened the door of my car. Honey jumped into it and sat in the back seat.

I drove around the road slowly. Just then, a flash of sunlight blinded me. I put my hand up to protect my eyes. I felt the car slipped in the soft soil, and rolled and rolled until I heard a horrible noise. A giant part of the roof hit my leg and chest. I was pinned. With a sharp pain in my chest, I looked over to find Honey was still in the back seat, trembling.

I tried to see if I could unpin myself, but I failed. I fetched my cell phone and dialed 911. Just as I’d feared, I couldn’t get a signal at the bottom of this valley. Robin, my closest neighbor, lived a quarter mile uphill from me. There was no reason she would drive up to my house.

My chest hammered. I reached into my pocket and pulled out the pills. I ate one and took a deep breath. My heartbeat slowed. I knew that I must get Honey out first. There was a hole in the driver’s side window, small but maybe enough. Painfully, I reached over and picked her up. I gently got her through it. I patted her and she jumped to the ground and ran up the side of the valley.

My pulse was weakening with the sun set.

Robin brought Honey to the hospital the next day.

Jim was walking down a dimly lit street late on evening, hoping to see his lovely children as soon as possible. As he was walking quietly, Jim heard muffled (低沉) screams coming from behind some bushes. Alarmed (惊慌的), Jim stopped to listen carefully. He realized that what he was hearing was the unmistakable (清楚明白的) sound of a struggle. Thinking of the danger, he became frightened.

Only yards from where Jim stood, a girl was being attacked. Jim didn’t know what to do. Should he get involved in it? He was worried about his own safety. He was wandering whether he should just run to the nearest phone and call the police or went to fight with the attacker (攻击者) to save the unknown girl.

As he suffered from inward struggle, the girl’s cries were growing weaker. Jim knew he had to act fast. Yet he knew he couldn’t just walk away from this. He realized that he could not turn his back on the fate (命运) of this unknown girl, even if it meant risking his own life.

Jim was not a brave man, nor was he athletic (健壮的). Even he himself didn’t quite know where he found the moral courage and physical strength. However once he was determined to help the girl, he became strangely transformed (转变). He ran behind the bushes and pulled the attacker off the girl, who panicked very much. Seeing Jim prevent him, the attacker became crazy and began to fight with him. Jim became fearless and then fell to the ground, where they wrestled (摔跤) for a few minutes until the attacker jumped up and escaped. Jim felt very tired and he couldn’t catch the attacker.

Watching the attacker run into the darkness, Jim thought of the girl.

Recently, I have read an article about the mental state of teenagers, which said that

6-year-old Jesse was playing in the field when he suffered an electric shock, leaving him unconscious. He was rushed to the hospital. When he opened his eyes, he found both his arms gone.

His mother was in deep concern. She was aware that Jesse couldn't depend on his parents all his life. So she guided Jesse to learn to use his feet. To her delight, within three months, Jesse could do many things with his feet, even write.

It was time for Jesse to start school. On the first day, he was laughed at by other kids. Then Jesse surprised everyone that he wrote much more beautifully than the normal kids.

While walking, Jesse often fell because it was hard for him to keep balance without arms. He practiced again and again until he made it to walk steadily. Then he could even run fast.

At the age of 10, Jesse became an athlete of the disabled track and field team of his city. He practiced very hard. At the age of 14, he was able to run 400 meters in 56 seconds. And it was hoped that he could compete for the national champion. However, the international track and field rules suddenly changed and his event was cancelled.

No one’s life is easy, especially for the disabled. But Jesse didn’t lose heart. He changed to swimming. He was talented and became a professional member at the age of 17 with the hope of winning the qualification of entering the Olympic Games. But just before the competition, his old injury returned and he only got the sixth place, which meant he could go no further in sports. He was at a great loss, wondering where his future was.

His father encouraged him to go back to high school for academic study after so many years of sports life.

Once making up his mind, Jesse threw himself into what he was seeking.

A great man once married his dream woman. With their love, they had a bright and cheerful little girl. The great man loved her very much.

When she was very little, he would do anything for her and the little girl felt protected around; he would tell her, "I love you, little girl." The little girl lived happily.

When the little girl was growing up, the great man would hug her and tell her, "I love you, little girl."

The little girl would be unhappy and say,"I'm not a little girl anymore. " Then the man would laugh and say,"But to me, you'll always be my little girl."

The little girl who was not little anymore left her home and went into the world. As she learned more about herself, she learned more about the man. She saw that he was truly great and strong, for she recognized his strengths. One of his strengths was his ability to express his love to his family. No matter where she went in the world, the man would call her and say,"I love you, little girl. "

The day came when the little girl who was not little anymore received a phone call. The great man was damaged.

He had a stroke (中风). He couldn't talk more and they weren't sure if he could understand the words spoken to him. He could no longer smile, laugh, walk,hug, dance or tell the little girl that he loved her. He could no longer comfort her.

She went to the side of the great man. She found he looked small and he was not the strong man at all. He looked at her and tried to speak, but he could not.

The little girl did the only thing she could do.She climbed up on the bed next to the great man. Tears ran from their eyes and she drew her arms around the useless shoulders of her father.

Paragraph 1: With her head on his chest, she thought of many things.

Paragraph2: And then she heard the beat of his heart.