It’s hard being an astronaut’s son. I often wonder how my father ever had a son like me. I mean he’s so special and so good at everything he does. But I’m just an average eleven-year-old kid.

Nowadays I dream about being a famous writer, but I used to dream about doing something special to impress my father and make him proud of me-something like rescuing a child from a burning building.

I was dreaming in school one morning, which I often do. I was daydreaming about being some kind of hero when my friend Ellen reminded me of my English teacher’s announcement about a Father’s Day essay contest.

“I hope we have a winner right here in my English class.” she said. “There are three prizes for each of you.”

When I got home, I kissed my mom quickly. Then I went upstairs to my room and sat down with a pen and a pad of paper. I started to think about what I would write.

How did I see my father? Mmm…

I saw him teaching me how to use a bat and how to throw baseball.

I remembered how he hugged me for hours when my dog Spotty was hit and killed by a car.

And I remembered how he sat and tried to explain death to me when Grandpa Bob died.

These were the things I was going to write about my dad. To me, he wasn’t just a famous astronaut. He was my dad.

I wrote about all these memories and put them in my essay. I handed it in the next day and was surprised to find out that the winning essays would be read in the lecture hall on Thursday night. All the parents and students were invited.

My parents and I went to school Thursday night. One of our neighbors said, “I bet you’ll win the contest, David. I bet you wrote what it’s like to be the son of an astronaut, and you’re the only one in town who could write about that. ”

I shrugged and then the first winner - Ellen was announced.

The second prize winner was announced next - It was me.

It took place in a teacher’s family. One day, Ben was playing basketball in the living room after school, when he accidentally threw the ball at a vase sitting on the shelf. The vase dropped to the floor and a large piece broke off. What made Ben more upset was that the vase was not a common decoration but an antique (古董), which was handed down through generations from the 18th century. It was also his mother’s favourite possession. To cover his terrible action, the terrified boy glued the pieces together hurriedly and put the vase back to its place.

As the mother herself dusted the vase every day, she naturally noticed the cracks (裂纹) that evening. To her surprise, the repair work was actually very good. At dinner time, she asked her boy if he broke the vase. Fearing punishment, the suddenly inspired boy said that a neighbour’s cat jumped in from the window and he couldn’t drive it away no matter how hard he tried. It raced around the living room and finally knocked the vase off its shelf. His mother was quite clear that her son was lying, for all the windows were closed before she left for work each morning and opened after she returned. However, in the face of her son’s nervous eyes and the suspicious looks of the other family members, Ben’s mother remained calm. She realized she shouldn’t just simply blame and punish her son for lying. She came up with another idea.

Before going to bed, the boy found a note from his mother in his room, asking him to go to the study at once. The boy thought he would now be punished but, as he had already lied, he was determined to deny everything to the end, no matter how angry his mum became.

In the study, calmly bathed in the light, his mothers face showed no sign of anger. On seeing her son push open the door and cautiously enter, she took a chocolate box out of a drawer and gave him one.

The mother said, “This chocolate is a reward for your imagination: a window-opening cat!”

Now with some chocolates in hand, the boy’s bad attitude disappeared.

One weekend in July, Jane and her husband, Tom, had driven three hours to camp overnight by a lake in the forest. Unfortunately, on the way an unpleasant subject came up and they started to quarrel. By the time they reached the lake, Jane was so angry that she said to Tom, “I'm going to find a better spot for us to camp” and walked away.

With no path to follow, Jane just walked on for quite a long time. After she had climbed to a high place, she turned around, hoping to see the lake. To her surprise, she saw nothing but forest and, far beyond, a snowcapped mountain top. She suddenly realized that she was lost.

“Tom!” she cried. “Help!”

No reply. If only she had not left her mobile phone in that bag with Tom. Jane kept moving, but the farther she walked, the more confused she became. As night was beginning to fall, Jane was so tired that she had to stop for the night. Lying awake in the dark, Jane wanted very much to be with Tom and her family. She wanted to hold him and tell him how much she loved him.

Jane rose at the break of day, hungry and thirsty. She could hear water trickling (滴落) somewhere at a distance. Quickly she followed the sound to a stream. To her great joy, she also saw some berry bushes. She drank and ate a few berries. Never in her life had she tasted anything better.

As she picked her way carefully along the stream, Jane heard a helicopter. Is that for me? Unfortunately,the trees made it impossible for people to see her from above. A few minutes later, another helicopter flew overhead. Jane took off her yellow blouse, thinking that she should go to an open area and flag them if they came back again.

It's a funny and true experience. Now when Mike thinks of it, he laughs a lot, but when it happened , Mike was really frightened. He is going to tell it to you. Once when Mike was a child, maybe eight years old, he had a frightening experience. Mike thinks about it frequently. He was in his house with all his family. Mike cannot remember when it happened very well, but it was possibly at Christmas. They were going to have a big supper and Mike was very happy because he liked to eat a lot. Besides, Mike hadn't eaten for a long time. Therefore, he was starving. He became very angry, because Mike saw his mother and his aunt talking for a long time. This made him angry, because Mike didn't want to wait any longer. Moreover, it was time for having supper. Weren't they starving?

"Mother, what happened with the food?" Mike asked. Then she looked at him seriously and said, "You need more patience, my honey."

"Yes," Mike replied, "I see. I need to be patient. Nevertheless, I can't be patient today, because I am starving. "

Time passed, and finally dinner was on the table. The first dish was "puchero".   Puchero is one of his favorite dishes; this dish has chicken, rice, vegetables, and pork. Also, it's a very hot dish, so usually you need to wait at least half an hour before you start to eat. You can enjoy its taste better when it's not so hot. Nevertheless, when Mike saw it on the table, he got a spoon and started to eat quickly. In a moment, his face was red, and there was a strange feeling on his tongue. Mike had burned it. Immediately, Mike shouted in pain and his mother asked him, "What is the matter?"

"Mother, help me! I think my tongue is going to fall off! Send me to see the doctor. " Mike screamed crazily.

"Do not worry, my child. Your father is going to take you to the hospital, said his mother. Mike looked at his mother's face and he could tell she was concerned.

Then his father and Mike went to the hospital

Mike did it slowly. He looked at his tongue for a long time.

I was a single mother in my 30s who lived down and out with my daughter Peggy in a small apartment, struggling hard to make our needs meet.

One day, I headed to the downtown for an interview. I sat down in the streetcar, and there against the seat was a beautiful silk umbrella with a silver handle decorated with gold scrolls, among which there was a name carved.

On impulse(冲动) I determined to find the owner myself. I got off the streetcar in the heavy rain and thankfully opened the umbrella to protect myself. Then I searched a telephone book for the name, I found it immediately and called it, waiting patiently, and then a lady answered.

"Yes, “she said in surprise, with extreme excitement." It was my umbrella which had been stolen a year ago.”

So appealing was her pleasure that I forgot I was looking for a job and went directly to her small house. She took the umbrella, with teary eyes, explaining with choking voice that the umbrella was given by her parents, now dead, Her happiness at retrieving(找回)this special possession was such that to have accepted her reward would have spoiled something, so I refused her offer and left.

The following months were hard. I can only obtain temporary employment, for a small salary. What was worse, I had just lost my last job before Christmas, with only fifteen dollars left. Unless a miracle happened, I would be homeless in January, foodless and jobless. I had prayed steadily for weeks, and there had been no answer but this coldness and darkness.

The air was full of Christmas merriment, with the bells ringing and children shouting in the bitter dusk of the evening. But there should be no Christmas for me, I knew, no gifts, no remembrance whatsoever.

Thinking of this, I couldn’t control my tears on my way home, but I managed a smile so could greet my little daughter. She opened the door for me and threw herself in my arms, screaming joyously and demanding desirably for her Christmas gift. There I stood, frozen, overwhelmed by misery.

Suddenly, the doorbell rang and Peggy rushed to answer it, calling that it must be Santa Claus.

Suddenly, a note attached to one package caught my eyes.