Yours,

Li Hua

5 . Children with strong family connections are associated with a high likelihood of flourishing (成功) in life, according to a new study led by Dr. Robert Whitaker from Columbia University, who surveyed over 37,000 children in 26 countries.

Family connection was determined by a mean score of five categories: care, support, safety, respect and participation. For each subject, the participants were given a statement and asked to assess now much they agreed with it, scoring from zero (do not agree) to four (strongly agree). For example, to measure care, they were asked how much they agreed with the statement, “I feel safe at home.”

The core of family connection is children feeling that they’re accepted and nurtured at home, which allows them to learn what their strengths and weaknesses are in a safe environment as they are building their identity, Whitaker said.

Children with the greatest level of family connection were over 49% more likely to flourish compared with those with the lowest level of family connection, according to the study. The highest scores in both family connection and flourishing came from children who lived with parents or never had their family worrying about finances.

Researchers then controlled the data for families’ poverty levels, including financial circumstances and food insecurity, to remove the effect they may have had on the numbers. After controlling for these factors, the strength of family connections still impacted how much children flourished.

So it is important to create a space where children feel seen and heard. While they are talking, grown-ups should show that they have a genuine interest in what their children are saying and try to suspend judgment. Adults do not need to make grand gestures to bond with their children. Having meaningful conversations is more important for your connection than taking them on expensive trips. Silence is also another powerful form of communication. Children and parents spending time together in silence or even running an errand or doing chores can create a connection.

6 . John Kerr and his 86-year-old grandma, Sandy Kerr, are nearing the finish line on a goal they once thought was impossible: Visiting all national parks together.

They kicked off their _________ in September 2023, when John was looking for a way to spend a two-day weekend. He said the idea _________ from a conversation he had with “Grandma Sandy” about his past adventures on the Appalachian Trail. “I felt sorry that she was always _________ vicariously (间接感受到地) through my stories,” John said. “And so just knowing that she had never seen _________ and mountains and the oceans and these _________ wild places on Earth, it just felt like a _________ that I had to her to make sure that she had some memories to take away in her life story as well.” John began _________ their adventures on the social media in 2019, and they quickly _________ a large number of followers.

“You don’t assume your grandma going with you on a camping trip is going to be anything but _________,” John said. “That was my __________. That was my misunderstanding of what age means.” More __________, her spirit was good enough for her to go traveling. “It’s been a __________ adventure; it really has,” Grandma Sandy said. “It’s really been a beautiful time. And I wouldn’t trade it for anything,”

As for __________ from John and Grandma Sandy, they encourage everyone to __________ opportunities for exploration. “We realize that not everybody is going to be able to travel to every national park,” John said. “But there is some adventure to be found in every __________ of the country and we hope that people will go out and seek that adventure.”

7 . Due to the fact that the average life expectancy in Ghana is 64 years old, and the most common causes of death are largely treatable conditions, such as malaria, stroke, and respiratory infections. Boateng, growing up in a small village in southern Ghana/struggling to access basic health care, felt an urgent call to help and decided he would make it his life’s mission to bring health care to remote communities in Ghana.

Boateng worked hard in school, getting a scholarship to study biology at Cornell University in the US, and ultimately earned his master’s in Healthcare Administration. Later he started his nonprofit, OKB Hope Foundation, and converted a van into a mobile doctor’s office called the Hope Health Van to bring health care directly to those in need in 2021.

A few times a week, the mobile clinic and medical team travel long distances to remote communities in Ghana and provide free routine medical care. On each trip, Boateng’s team consists of a nurse, a physician’s assistant, a doctor, and an operation assistant. In the van, they can run basic labs like bloodwork and urinalysis as well as prescribe and provide medications. “It’s like a one-stop shop for people,” said Boateng, adding that most of the people they see have one health issue or another.

Since its launch, Boateng says the Hope Health Van has served more than 4, 000 Ghanaians across more than 45 rural communities who otherwise don’t have easily accessible medical care. To supplement the mobile clinic, Boateng’s organization has also trained 20 volunteers to serve as local health advocates. They check people’s vitals and provide the medical team with timely data for assessing how to move forward with care and treatment, especially for those whose health is at risk.

In the future, Boateng hopes to expand to provide more consistent and high-quality medical care not only to those living in remote areas of Ghana but in other countries as well. “I believe that our model can be replicated in sub-Saharan Africa,” he said.

8 . With a broad smile on her lips, 15-year-old Sirin rushed to her mom to show off her new painting. But her mom raised her eyebrows, and spoke in a hushed tone, “Shh. . . honey… don’t shout. I am busy with a (n) _______ talk.”

Holding her oil painting, she _______ and then searched for her dad. “Dad, see what I have done,” Sirin announced aloud in a (an) _______ voice. Her dad smiled and just patted her on the back lovingly, saying, “No time, baby. I’m late for work.”

Hearing this, she stormed off to her own bedroom, slammed the door and _______ herself on her bed, sobbing. When her mom was calling her for dinner, Sirin arrived late deliberately. She kept silent, _______ the table mat with her nail. Her mom was puzzled at the _______ behavior. Suddenly, the morning _______ clicked in her mind. Softly, she asked, “Honey, did we do anything wrong?”

At this very moment, Sirin could no longer _______ her anger. “Why is everybody so busy?” she roared, tears streaming down. She assumed that, _______ ignoring her like others in her school, her mom and dad would appreciate her painting, but they were no ________ . Shocked, mom threw her arms around her tightly, announcing ________ and firmly, “Baby, I am so sorry!”

When back from school the next day, Sirin was surprised to see her beautifully-decorated painting on the wall. It was beautifully ________ and just below the painting, it read, “Honey, we are really proud of you!” ________ her parents’ stress from daily routine, she felt sorry about her previous behavior. She ________ her head and apologized.

Though everything came and went, mutual ________ would stay forever in their family.

9 . When I was in my second year in senior high school, I found a four-dollar-an-hour part-time job at Villa-nova Pizza. Like many of my friends, I longed to earn some pocket money from the job as well as gaining social experience. Just one week after I worked there, Stubby, the manager, called me into his office. As the saying goes, “Life isn’t a bed of roses.” My first job ended in failure. His reason was that I showed up late twice and took more breaks than others. “Oh, I’m a loser,” I thought to myself. I believed that thought was shared by my brothers, neither of whom had ever been fired, and my mother, though she would never express it in those terms.

“I am too sad to do anything,” I complained to my father. After listening to my words, he laughed. “It’s not funny; I’m a loser,” I said.

“No, you’re not. This is a part of growing up. You will be all right, my dear daughter,” he said, patting my shoulder. “Trust me. You are good enough.”

I looked into my father’s eyes and I could see he really trusted me. And I believed him. Since then, “Trust me. You are good enough!” are the only words I have repeated to myself. I have worked hard to be a better person and cherished every chance I have got.

Finally, I succeeded in entering a good university. After graduation I found my dream job. I couldn’t wait to call my father and show my gratitude.

Look ahead when you experience something unpleasant and there is always someone around believing in you. When they believe in us, we begin to believe in ourselves, too. They tell us we are good enough over and over until we can hear it.

My son David was injured in his forehead so I had to take him to a hospital. I looked around the crowded waiting room in the hospital and sighed. I thought, “Will the doctor be able to see my eight-year-old son soon?” I tried steadying the ice pack (冰袋) over his forehead, but it was no use. I couldn’t stop shaking. The injury in his forehead was deep, but at least blood wasn’t pouring from it anymore.

His face was full of tears, but he seemed really brave for his age. I handed him the ice pack, and he covered his forehead with it. He was doing a much better job than I had. We were at the hospital because another child had thrown a rock at David during a break between classes as he was running around the corner. His teacher called me, and when I arrived, I found him sitting in front of her. His teacher was caring for his injury, trying to keep him calm. She felt terrible about what had happened, but I knew none of it was her fault.

David received four stitches (缝线) and didn’t cry once throughout the whole treatment. For the next two days, his forehead was swollen and black and blue. I felt like I’d had a mini nervous breakdown. Every time I tried to sleep or tend to housework, horrible thoughts crept into my mind. Fear had taken over, and then the fear turned to anger. I was angry with the child who’d thrown the rock. I just couldn’t shake it. What was she thinking? She should have known about that better.

David’s headmaster and teacher called me that evening to see how David was feeling and told me Cherry, the girl, felt terrible. I wanted to stand up for my son, do the right thing and protect him.

The next day, David’s teacher stopped by to see how David was feeling and dropped off a get-well card that Cherry had made. David and I read it several times, and I couldn’t help but feel a little choked up. It was a sincere apology.

This card mattered a lot to us.

We wondered how Cherry would make a response after reading the letter.