My parents and I had been planning my brother's birthday party since the beginning of March. Johnny would be six years old in two days. My mom was going to bake her special chocolate cake with white icing. As I watched her, I thought, Gee, I wondered what I can do to make my brother's birthday special.

I knew my parents had already bought a present for me to give to Johnny, but I wanted to buy him something I had chosen myself and with the money I had saved. After giving it some thought, I wanted to buy him the paint­by­number­kit (数字涂色小套装) I had seen at the store around the corner, which I hope must make him delighted.

I decided to empty my coin jar and see how much money I had saved. However, I was disappointed to find there was much less than I had imagined. “Oh, no, I only have about three dollars,” I muttered to myself. The set cost more than I have saved.

Suddenly a “great” idea occurred to me. I slid into my parents' bedroom where my dad kept loose change (零钱) on top of the dresser. I stood on my tiptoes and saw some dime, nickels, and a few quarters. I carefully counted out what I needed to make up the difference. I'm sure Dad won't mind just this once, I thought.

However, I was soon overcome by guilt. Even though there was no one else in the bedroom, I felt like I was being watched. Mom was always telling us about the importance of honesty. Maybe my plan wasn't such a great idea after all, I thought. I jingled the change around in my pocket while wondering what to do.

I grabbed my jacket from the closet and headed toward the door. “Where are you going, honey?” Mom asked, “Oh, just up to the corner store,” I replied. “Well, don't stay out too long. Daddy will be home soon.” “Okay, Mom.” I ran out of our house.

Once I got to the store, I took the paint­by­number kit from the shelf.

“Can I help you, young lady?” the salesclerk asked.

“No. I'm just looking, thank you,” I said.

“That's a really nice paint kit. We sell a lot of them and, as you can see, that's the last one.” she said.

I nodded my head in agreement, with my mind racing.

I would just have to wait until I saved the extra money I needed.

Better to Give than to Receive

When a special occasion arrives, a gift often finds its way to a doorstep or an office desk. But once in a while, a present arrives at an unexpected moment as a reminder that someone is thinking about us.

Wanda Anderson remembers such a gift.

The rosebushes were finally in full bloom that day. Seeing roses always brings to mind Wanda's childhood memories. To this young girl, those flowers were a luxury. "We never had money to buy extra things, so even a tired rose was something to cherish," Wanda said.

Nowadays, to have a backyard filled with many different roses is pure enjoyment. Wanda especially loves the very first blooms. Her husband, Dale, devotedly tends the roses and knows this little fact about his wife. So, on this particular morning, he picked the very first flowers of spring, fresh from the garden, just for Wanda.

But as Dale came back, he was met by a neighbor who had dropped by. As the woman turned to go, Dale graciously (有风度地)handed the roses to her. Even though their visitor insisted she didn't want to take them, she was repeatedly assured that the flowers were hers to keep.

“I told her I was happy for her to keep them, but I really wasn't," Wanda said, recalling the emotions she was feeling right then. Seeing her very precious first blooms go out of the door filled her with regret.

Throughout the rest of the morning, Wanda argued with herself, knowing logically it was “better to give than to receive. Nevertheless, she wished she could have kept the roses for herself.

Later that day, the couple just arrived at the post office, where they were about to park the car.

Then, without warning, a bunch of multi-coloured roses appeared at the car's window.

For the rest of the day, she was happy and moved.

After 21 years of marriage, my wife wanted me to take another woman out to dinner and a movie. It’s hard to imagine that the other woman was my mother, who has been living alone for 19 years, but I am too busy to visit her often. That night I called to invite her to go out for dinner and a movie.

“What’s wrong? Are you well?” she asked. My mother always doubts that a late night call is a sign of bad news.

“It would be pleasant to spend some time with you,” I responded.

As I drove over to pick her up, I noticed that she seemed to be nervous about our date. But she smiled from a face that was as beautiful as an angel’s. “I told my friends that I was going to go out with my son, and they were impressed,” she said.

We went to a restaurant that was very nice and comfortable. My mother took my arm as if she were the First Lady. After we sat down, I had to read the menu. Her eyes could only read large print. I saw mom sitting there looking at me with a smile on her lips.

“I used to have to read the menu when you were small,” she said. “Then it’s time to let me return the favour,” I responded.

During the dinner, we had an agreeable conversation-nothing special but catching up on recent events. We talked so much that we missed the movie. As we arrived at her house later, she said, “I’ll go out with you again, but only if you let me invite you.” I agreed.

When I got home, my wife shared her story about her mom who passed away years ago.

Several days later, I received my mother’s invitation.

“Want to go to the pool tomorrow?” Rosa asked Stephanie during recess. The pool at the YMCA was one of their favorite places, where they learnt and practiced swimming.

Rosa and Stephanie did everything together. They rode the school bus together. They sat together during lunch. They took dance lessons together and they even went to the same summer camp. Their classmates called them “twins”. They were best friends. Most of the time.

Sometimes, though, when Stephanie was with other friends, she ignored Rosa or treated her like a little kid, even though they were the same age. Rosa and Stephanie had played together since they were babies, but sometimes Stephanie didn't act like a friend.

Today was one of those times.

“Sorry. I’m already going to the pool,” Stephanie said. “Toni and Vanessa and I are going.” She gave a broad smile, but in Rosa’s eyes, it wasn’t her nice smile. Saying nothing more, she walked straight away to join Toni and Vanessa, and Rosa was left standing alone, with her face burned and an angry tension coming into her limbs.

After school, at dance class, Stephanie talked and giggled with the other dancers as they stretched in front of the mirror. When Rosa came in, Stephanie didn’t say hello to her, but just another smile. Rosa hesitated for a while about whether she should join them, but she still felt too upset.

Then she noticed Kiara, the new girl. Rosa joined her and began stretching, too. Kiara smiled and Rosa smiled back. The two girls began to talk. Rosa discovered that Kiara was not the quiet girl she had thought she was. Kiara talked a lot — about her little brother, about the tree house her uncle had built and even about swimming. “I love swimming,” Kiara said. “I will hold a pool party at the YMCA. Would you like to come?” “Yes. It’s awesome.” Rosa responded. She tried not to check the mirror to see if Stephanie had noticed. She hoped Stephanie felt left out.

After the dance class, when Rosa boarded the bus, Stephanie was waiting in their usual seat.

When Rosa saw Stephanie in low spirits, her heart sank.

He met her at a party. She was so outstanding, with many boys around her, while he was so ordinary, with nobody paying attention to him.

At the end of the party, he invited her to have coffee with him. She was surprised, but out of politeness, she agreed.

They sat in a nice coffee shop. He was too nervous to say anything, and she felt uncomfortable, thinking, “Please let me go home.”

Suddenly he asked the waiter, “Would you please give me some salt? I’d like to put it in my coffee.”

Everybody stared at him. So strange! His face turned red, but, still, he put the salt in his coffee and drank it.

She asked him curiously, “Why do you have this hobby?”

He replied, “When I was a little boy, I was living near the sea. I liked playing in the sea, and I could feel the taste of the sea, just like the taste of the salty coffee. Now every time I have the salty coffee, I always think of my childhood. I miss so much my hometown and my parents who are still living there.”

While saying that he couldn’t hold back his tears. She was deeply touched. That’s his true feeling, from the bottom of his heart. A man who can speak out his homesickness must be a man who loves home, cares about home, and has responsibility for his family.

Then she also started to speak about her faraway hometown, her childhood, and her family. That was a really nice talk, also a beautiful beginning of their story.

They continued to date. She found that actually he was a man who met all her demands: he was kind-hearted, warm and careful. He was such a good person but she almost missed him.

Thanks to his salty coffee! Then the story went on just like every beautiful love story: the princess married the prince, and then they were living in happiness…And, every time she made coffee for him, she put some salt in the coffee.

After 40 years, he passed away, leaving her a letter.

Learning the truth while reading the letter,

While waiting to pick up a friend at the airport in Portland, I had one of life-changing experiences. It happened only two feet away from me.

In order to find my friend among the passengers, I noticed a man walking toward me carrying two light bags. He stopped right next to me to greet his family.

First he smiled to his younger son, about six years old, as he laid down his bags. They gave each other a long hug（拥抱）. I heard the father say, "It's so good to see you. I missed you so much! " His son smiled shyly and replied happily, "Me, too, Dad! ”

Then the man stood up, cupping （捧着） his son's face in his hands and said, "You are already quite a young man. I love you very much, Zach! "Then the father gave son a warm hug.

At the same baby girl was squirming（来回扭动） excitedly in her mother' s arms The man said, "Hi baby girl! "as he gently took the baby from her mother. He kissed her face. The little girl felt satisfied in her father's arm.

After that. he handed the baby to his son and gave his wife the longest and warmest hug He gently said, "I love you so much! " They looked at each others eyes with big smiles on their faces.

At that moment, they reminded me of newly -married couples, though it couldn't be possible by the age of their son. Full of admiration, I asked, "Wow! How long have you two been married?" "Almost 10 years in total. " the father replied.

When asked how long he had been away from his family, he said it was only two days.

“I hope my marriage is similar to your!" I talked to him.

9 . On my first day of the sixth grade,I noticed one little girl called Amy on the school bus.”Don’t _______ her,” Lauren said, who sat beside me. “Or they will make fun of you.”

Amy had many _______ differences - lots of reasons for other kids to make fun of her. Her eyes weren’t straight. Her glasses were an inch thick. And she had really ugly teeth.

Every day _______we drove to and from school, kids would shout insults (侮辱) at Amy. “God, what a (n) _______ face! Stop looking at me!” “Mr. Rolland (the driver) ! Amy took off her_______,and now her eyes are _______ me! “Make her put them back on! “ For a while I shouted my share of insults,just so I would fit in (合群)._______,I didn’t want them to treat me the same way they treated Amy.

But while I was insulting her, my heart _______ for the girl. I could see that the insults were making her look _______ , because she was so ashamed (羞愧)and alone. Then I wanted to ________ her. I just didn’t know how to stop my schoolmates________ the night of our class roller - skating party.

Our whole class was there, including Amy. Amy didn’t know how to ________ , but I could see how much she wanted to ________ like the rest of us. So I skated over   to her and took her by the hand; we began the journey together around the skating rink (溜冰场).She just smiled, and sometimes she would laugh in ________ .

On the school bus the next morning there was much news about Amy and me________together, ________ nobody insulted her or me. And they didn’t do that for the rest of the year.

After graduation, I never ________ Amy again. However, I never forget her and I have always ________ if I changed her life for the better. But I know for sure she   changed my __________ After becoming her friend, I no longer tried to impress (给留下印象)people by trying to ________ like them. I became myself.

Furthermore, the work flow was     1    . There was one especially absent-minded young man in the assembly line who     2         3     buttons. After a while I recognized him as“Big Jim”who used to sit behind me in math class in high school. He was very slow and all the shirts were held up at his position. Workers     4     him in line on his shift had to wait with nothing to do; therefore a great deal of time and efficiency were lost as Big Jim daydreamed while he worked. All week I wondered why he wasn’t fired.