I wanted to go to a party. Especially it was a beach party. It had been almost the only thing my friends had been talking about for the last couple of weeks. But My mom had said no. The more desperately I pleaded her case, the more forcefully my mother said no. “I don’t care who’s going,” said coldly my mother, “you are not going.” I was heartbroken. This was my best friend’s party.

Sunday dinner came around and my grandmother joined the family for the meal. Gran noticed my depression but didn’t say a word. It was my turn to wash up and Gran said, “Let me help you.” “What’s up?” asked Gran as I dumped the dishes into the foaming water. Gran wiped a plate with a tea towel. “Mom won’t let me go to my best friend’s party.” I said sadly. “Has mom explained why she doesn’t want you to go?” asked Gran. “No.” I replied. “Then for a moment, put yourself in her position.” said Gran. “If you were mom, what would your objections be?”

I hadn’t stopped to think about my mom’s side. “Well,” I answered, “it’s a beach party. Maybe she doesn’t trust us or thinks we’ll get into trouble.”

“Are there going to be any adults there?” asked Gran. “No,” I said, “who wants their parents hanging around when you’re trying to have fun?” “Might it just be,” said Gran, “your mother doesn’t want anything unfortunate to happen to you.”“Nothing will happen.” I objected. “Maybe you’re right,” said Gran, “but maybe mom’s worried in case it could.”

Gran looked at me gently, seeming to expect my agreement. For a minute or so, I kept silent, pondering for a while about my eagerness for the party. “Maybe, you are right, however, is there no hope?” I inquired. “Not necessarily.” answered Gran, lost in thought.

Paragraph 1: “Then maybe think of a compromise.” suggested Gran.

Paragraph 2: The long-awaited beach party finally came.

Emily was a shy and quiet student in Greenfield High School. Emily was known for her quiet behavior and her love for literature, often found lost in the pages of a book during lunch breaks.

One day, as Emily walked through the hallway, she noticed a colorful poster announcing an upcoming English poetry competition. Her heart raced with excitement at the prospect of showcasing her talent, but her mind was immediately flooded with doubts. “What if my poem is not good enough? What if everyone laughs at me?”she thought to herself, her cheeks flushing with embarrassment.

As the days went by, Emily found herself caught between her desire to participate and her fear of failure. She talked with her best friend, Sarah, who had been by her side since they were little. She was known for her outgoing personality and her ability to make everyone feel included.

“You have a gift, Emily, ”Sarah said reassuringly, her blue eyes filled with encouragement. “Don’t let your fears hold you back. You never know what might happen unless you try. ”

With Sarah’s support, Emily decided to take a leap of faith and submit her poem for the competition. As the day of the event drew near, she felt a mix of nervousness and expectation. She spent hours perfecting her poem, carefully choosing each word and line to convey her emotions. She practiced her poem in front of the miror, trying to perfect her delivery and expression.

But despite her newfound confidence, Emily couldn’t shake off the feeling of doubt in her mind. These thoughts consumed her, making it difficult for her to focus on anything else.

It was during one of these moments of self-doubt that Sarah came to her rescue once again. “You’re an amazing writer, Emily, ”she said, her voice filled with warmth and sincerity. “Your poem is going to be incredible. Just believe in yourself. ”With Sarah’s words in her mind, Emily felt a renewed sense of determination.

On the day of the competition, Emily took a deep breath and stepped onto the stage.   

In the end, Emily’s poem won first place.

A six-year-old Scottish girl has taken her first steps even though doctors said she would spend her life in a wheelchair. Arabella was born with arthrogryposis multiplex congenita (AMC, 先天性多发性关节挛缩症) affecting both her arms and legs, but when doctors in Scotland said there was nothing that could be done for Arabella, her mom Catherine refused to believe it and instead made it her mission to find a solution to help her daughter.

She reached out to Dr. David S Feldman, a famous doctor based in Florida who treats AMC with surgery (外科手术), and made an appointment with his team at the Paley European Institute in Warsaw, Poland. “We all agreed she is a great person for operation and can gain motion in her legs, which gave great hope to Arabella and her mom,” Dr, Feldman said. However, it needed a big amount of money for the operation, which the family couldn’t afford it.

When Catherine returned to Scotland to meet with some famous doctors, they said there was nothing that could be done and the surgery wasn’t suitable for Arabella. As a result, Catherine was a little disappointed. “They said we needed to be realistic and think about how we could improve Arabella’s life in a wheelchair,” Arabella’s father William said, “On hearing that, as any parents, it dashed (使破灭) our hopes so much...” For the next two months, the family was in a low spirit. William has been on a mission ever since to help his daughter walk again. He launched a crowd funding page to raise £125,000 for the surgery.

Arriving in October 2021 and remaining there over Christmas, Arabella underwent 12 weeks of careful rehabilitation and physiotherapy (康复理疗) with the dedicated nurses as she built up her muscles and learned to walk. Last August she returned to hospital for a second operation and a further six weeks of physiotherapy. They didn’t give up. On the contrary. they looked after Arabella carefully and encouraged her to feel confident of the operation.

The parents tried their best to raise money for the second operation.

Arabella had the second operation and physiotherapy.

I had run away from home after finishing high school. My parents had insisted I go to college, but I was tired of school. I hated it. I was determined not to go. And, besides, my father was too strict. I had too many chores to do around the farm. I haled the work!

There had been a quarrel between my father and me. I threw some things into a bag and left angrily, as my father shouted after me, “If you leave, don’t come back!” My mother cried openly, and I had seen those tears during a hundred sleepless nights.

Then it was time to write a letter to my father.

It’s been more than a year now. I’ve traveled east to west. I’ve had dozens of jobs. None of them amounted to very much. Always the same questions: “How much education have you got?” It seems they always want college men for the good jobs.

Dad, you and Mother were right about everything. I know now that the work on the farm didn’t hurt me, and I’m convinced I need college. I’m also convinced that both of you loved me.

Dad, I’ve learned a lesson. I want to come home. I know you said if I left, I couldn’t come back, but I’m praying you’ll change your mind. I want to come home and be a part of the family again.

Give my love to Mother and the girls.

As I folded the letter and put it into an envelope, I felt a refreshing relief. It was as if a heavy load had been lifted from my shoulders. And I had to be on my way home.

I started down the desolate road—the long road home. Fortunately, a car picked me up, and it was good to have someone to talk with. The driver was a salesman and very pleasant.

“Where you going, boy?” he asked good-naturedly.

There was a long silence before I said, “Home.”

“Been away from home long?”

I smiled, a little self-conscious, and said, “One year, one month and two days.”

Having heard my story, he expressed his support for my final decision and told me something surprising.

Finally, I arrived home when. it was completely dark.

I am Li Jin.

Yours,

Li Jin

One day, a woman gazed silently at a black and white photograph of a little girl kneeling in the snow.

“Her name is Tina,” said the man who had handed her the picture. “She’s seven years old.   I love my daughter more than anything, but I can’t keep her. My wife…she isn’t Tina’s mother,   you know? She hates having a reminder around of my other marriage. I had to send Tina back to my cx-wife. to keep her cafe”

“But Tina’s mother hasn’t had Tom with her for your; she’s married now with two kids and she... well. she’s mutationally manic in deal with another one. You see?” He swallowed hard before adding. “My daughter need a home.”

The woman handed the photograph to her husband, when look it and audited it for several minutes before giving it back with a small smile He said. “Well. honey, what do you think?”

The woman looked into the eyes of the little girl’s father “Yes,” she said “We’ll take her.”

The little girl in the photograph was me. And the common when degreed to open her heart and home to a child she’d never met was my new mother. My new father, of course, played an important, loving part in this decision. but it was my mother who was willing to take on the full-time, thankless, and often heartbreaking care of a previously abused child. Loving me would be a challenge for hot from the very beginning.

In the first place, I didn’t want to be there. I was heartbroken at being taken away from my father. Moreover, I had a natural distrust of women. The two in my life so far had either abandoned me or beaten me. In my mind, why should this new one be any different?

I bonded with my new father quickly. But my mother was the one to deal with a bitter.   confused little girl. I tested my new mother’s love from time to time.

One day, when we ate out, I made a noise on purpose.

However, my mother didn’t give up.