The art competition at school was always a highly anticipated event. This year was no exception, with students from all grades eager to showcase their creative talents. Among them were two friends, Jane and Sally.

Jane had a deep passion for art, but she often struggled with expressing her ideas on paper. She would spend hours in front of a blank canvas (画布), trying to capture the perfect image in her mind, but her efforts often fell short. Sally, on the other hand, was naturally talented and her artworks were always praised by teachers and classmates.

As the competition drew nearer, Jane worked harder than ever, staying up late into the night to perfect her piece. Sally, however, seemed to take it all in stride (大步走), casually sketching and painting without much effort. She often teased Jane about her lack of talent, making jokes that were meant to be light-hearted but stung Jane deeply.

On the day of the competition, Jane’s heart was filled with both excitement and fear. She had worked so hard on her piece, but she knew that it still paled in comparison to Sally’s effortless creations. As she set up her canvas and began to paint, she could feel Sally’s eyes on her, mocking (嘲笑) her every move.

Halfway through the competition, Jane encountered a difficult obstacle. She couldn’t seem to capture the essence of her subject the way she wanted to, and her frustration mounted. She looked around at the other students, seeing their confident strokes and vibrant colors, and she felt a pang of defeat. She wanted to give up, to throw away her brush and walk away.

But just as she was about to do so, she caught sight of Sally. Sally wasn’t laughing or mocking her now; instead, she looked at Jane with a mixture of surprise and concern. It was as if she realized that her words had hurt Jane more than she had intended. And in that moment, Jane found a new resolve. She wasn’t going to let Sally’s words or her own doubts defeat her. She was going to finish her piece, no matter what.

With renewed determination, Jane returned to her canvas.

She heard her name announced as the winner of a special recognition award for perseverance and dedication.

Aubrey, a mom of three, was breastfeeding her 10-month-old daughter in her Maui home last week when alarms started going off and she saw her entire neighborhood was covered in black smoke.

Aubrey and her husband Alex rushed out of the home and into their car, escaping with their 10-month-old daughter as well as their 6-year-old twin daughters. They didn’t take any necessities. In fact, they had never thought the wildfires would ever get to where they lived. After all, they were very far.

While Aubrey and her family eventually made it to safety, a relative’s home, they later learned their own home was burned to the ground.

They were left with no possessions, so Alex had to go to the neighborhood surrounding his relative’s home searching for supplies for his baby daughter Blue. He went door-to-door, asking if anyone had a baby and if there was a bottle or a diaper (尿布) and some extra milk.

One neighbor just had a baby so he gave Alex two bottles. And some neighbors gave Alex two diapers and some gave her three. Alex later said. “They were holding onto their own diapers too, which I understand.”

The disaster turned into a crisis for countless parents like Aubrey and Alex, who had to escape quickly and now needed basic supplies to keep their children alive and safe.

The wildfires claimed the lives of over 100 people, while many more remained missing. Officials on Maui warned that their supplies were running out.

Aubrey and Alex decided to travel to another island, Oahu, where they could stay in the home of Alex’s brother’s. There, they had more access to supplies like diapers and milk. Then they managed to contact with volunteers and left in a lifeboat for Oahu. Thinking those helpless people, they cried in pain.

Now on Maui, situations were becoming worse.

Together with other volunteers, Alex and his brother collected large quantities of supplies on Oahu.

My Father, My Hero

I consider my father to be the most important person in my life. This is not because he is famous or wealthy. We do not have a big car, and there are no old, expensive vases or paintings in our house. Rather, what I value about my father is the care and love he shows for me and my family. What blesses my father most is being able to put food on the table and a roof over our heads.

My father might work hard, but he is always there for us. Whenever I trip or hurt myself playing sports, he's there to pick me up. My brother and I grew up with his constant care and the funny nursery rhymes and stories he told us.

My father also helps our local community. My father has been successful as he never shrinks from helping others. People also like him because he often has a smile on his face. He is optimistic and finds good in all situations. He is great at problem-solving, and his favorite phrases are “Don't worry! It’s not worth it” and “It will be all right—just you wait and see”. He is always right! And I have learnt from him the need to be patient and honest, and to care for other people.

I can well remember that when my mother and father got married, they did not have much money. The situation got worse when they had children. When we were very young, my father had an extra job as a hotel porter, and he also mopped the floor of a hotel every night so that he could give us a special treat or a vacation. At the start of last year, my father began putting at least fifty cents every day into a jar on a shelf in his bedroom. We all wondered what he was saving the money for, but he refused to tell us.

Then, in December, I noticed that the jar was empty.

Later the next year, I found that his best friend passed away, leaving the family too poor to send the son to school.