There is one incident in my life that makes me want to say thank you to the person involved.

My story happened in June, 1975. It began when my family was finally notified that we had successfully met all the requirements to emigrate (移民) to Canada.

We immediately set about selling our household goods to have enough money to start our life in a new country.

However, our government only allowed us to use a small portion of the money to pay for the flight tickets. The rest was required to be sent directly to a bank account in Canada. The only cash we were allowed to take along with us was $16.

We started our journey. It was the first time my children and I had left our home country, and the first time we had travelled by plane. We were filled with a mixture of excitement and nervousness. Everything was new to us, especially the concept of in-flight entertainment. In our home country, we did not yet have access to televisions, so the thought of watching movies during the flight was thrilling.

However, our excitement quickly turned into disappointment when we realized that headphones were not provided for free. The stewardess informed us that headphones cost $1 for economy class passengers. My children looked at me with longing eyes, asking if they could have a dollar for a set of headphones which they intended to share. Deep down, I knew that we couldn’t afford to spend any of our limited cash on headphones, not even a single set.

Unwillingly, I explained the situation to my children, preparing for their disappointment and understanding that they would have to go without headphones for the duration of the flight. My children accepted it without complaint. But our disappointment must have shown clearly.

A gentleman nearby handed his headphones to us, smiling, without saying a word.

This incident definitely had a powerful effect on my children and encouraged them to spread kindness.

4 . This week we drove over to spend some time with Aunt Carmeleta. We don’t see her ________ because she lives in Tennessee, which is far from us. However, this past week her husband Ken drove their motor home to Michigan to ________ a party.

As always, it was ________ to see Carmeleta. She met us at the motor home door ________. She gave us each a big hug (拥抱) and scurried (碎步疾跑) around to make us ________.

The first time my friend, Bill, met Carmeleta, he said, “She can’t be ________!” Bill had never met anyone so kind, ________, and full of mercy (仁慈) as Carmeleta. But after knowing her for well over 50 years, he ________ she is.

I’ve been _______ to know Carmeleta my whole life. She has _______ me more than she could ever know. When I complained (抱怨) to her how people ________ me, she would ________ me, “Just keep being yourself.________ yourself for who you are.” I’m sure she saw areas where I needed ________, but she only showed love, patience, and mercy to me.

Next month Carmeleta will be 89 years young. I say young because she never seems to ________ for me. And she is still full of love, kindness and mercy. She accepts people where they are, and she is for real!

5 . Michael Todd wore the same clothes every day for the first three weeks of school. When the other kids began to notice that he was wearing the same black pants and blue, and gray long-sleeve shirt day after day, Todd, a freshman at Martin Luther King Jr. College Preparatory High School in Memphis, became the target of laughter. But there was little Todd could do. His mother simply couldn’t afford to buy him new clothes.

Two of the kids piling on were Antwan Garrett and Kristopher Graham, a pair of freshman football players. But over time, they realized that their unfavorable words felt like bullying (欺凌) and seemed to be slowly crushing (击垮) Todd’s spirit. Something finally clicked (被突然领悟) . “I felt like I needed to do something,” Graham told CBS News. So he and Garrett hatched a plan. They went home and hunted through their own drawers and closets.

The next day at school, they met Todd at their third-period class and asked him to come into the hall. Todd was understandably nervous about being called out by the larger boys. “He wasn’t smiling or anything, and I was like,’I think this is going to make you smile,’” Graham says. “I told him, ‘We’re in the same third period, and I apologize for laughing at you, and I want to give something to you to make it up.’” He then handed Todd a bag. Inside were clean shirts and shorts, plus a brand-new pair of New Balance sneakers.

Todd was blown away. “I was very happy,” he told CBS News. “Surprised and upset, completely.” And Todd got much more than a new wardrobe. He no longer sits alone at lunch. Now he eats with his new friends, Garrett and Graham.

“I’ve been bullied my entire life,” Todd told CBS News. Reflecting on the day Garrett and Graham called him into the hall, he called it “the best day of my entire life, basically.”

7 . Rain was beating down on my car as I drove slowly down a less-traveled road. Suddenly the steering wheel jumped in my hands as one of the tires burst with a bang. It was impossible for me to change that tire! A thought that a passing motorist might stop disappeared at once. Why would anyone? I knew I wouldn’t. Then I remembered that a short distance up a little side road was a house. I started the engine and drove slowly until I came to that house.

I sounded the horn. Then the door opened and a little girl about eight stood there. I rolled down the window and called out that I needed someone to change the flat tire because I was disabled and couldn’t do it myself. A moment later, the girl came out with a raincoat and a hat, followed by a man who called a cheerful greeting. I sat there, comfortable and dry, and felt sorry for the man and the little girl working so hard in the storm. Well, I would pay them for it. The rain seemed to be little now, and I rolled down the window to watch. It seemed to me that they were awfully slow and I was beginning to become impatient. Finally, it was done and then they were standing at my car window.

He said, “This is a bad night for car trouble, but you’re all set now.” “Thanks,” I said. “How much do I owe you?” He shook his head. “Nothing, madam. Cynthia told me you are on crutches (腋杖). Glad to be of help. There’s no charge.” I held out a five-dollar bill, but he made no effort to take it and the little girl stepped closer to me and said, “Grandpa can’t see it.”

A blind old man and a child! They were just working with cold, wet fingers for tools in the dark — a darkness that for him would probably never end until death. I don’t remember how long I sat there after they said good night, but it was long enough for me to search deep within myself. I realized that I was filled with self-pity, selfishness, indifference to the needs of others.

Helping others is a way of life, one that I am trying to follow. It isn’t always easy, but the value is there. I am trying now not only to climb 14 steps each day, but in my small way to help others.