1 . I was 40, with two adorable children and a caring husband. And I’m enjoying a challenging but _________ career. Although this is “success”, sometimes I feel my heart asking if this is who I truly am.

The chaos of the family kitchen was _________: the noise of the kettle, pots and dishes, and the conversation _________ while I’m making breakfast. I escaped _________ to my bedroom. Only in silence do I bear the self that is _________ from the children and wonder who that person might be.

So, I journeyed, for the first time in a decade, without my husband or kids. I went with a friend to _________ in Iceland. I hoped the consideration of walking would help me better _________ who I wanted to be. For 6 days, I was absorbed in wild scenery and real weather. The mountains in Iceland rise black and tall into the heavens against the white snow. Looking outside at wild wind and rain and knowing there’s no decision to make _________ the soul. Climbing a mountain against sheets of rain and returning to a tent for a simple meal _________ me how little I actually needed and how strong I felt __________ uncomfortable.

I found __________ in Iceland, and time to consider “the me” outside career and kids as I shared stories with strangers with no __________ past and no expected future. When I stopped talking and just listened, I was surprised at how my __________ changed—I became more generous. I learned generosity can __________ more space and more warmth __________ when there may not seem enough to go around at first glance.

I came home to __________, chaos and love. I know the answer isn’t waiting out there on the top of a mountain or inside my head, however __________ I try to hear; and it isn’t in conversations with other seeking souls. The answer is in front of me with every step on my own life’s __________.

I’m not finding myself, but I’m creating myself. I need the storm as much as I need the quietness. __________ is built under a heavy load. I’m expecting to pick up all of my loads and travel __________.

2 . When I was in fourth grade, I worked part-time as a paperboy. Mrs. Stanley was one of my customers. She’d watch me coming down her street, and by the time I’d biked up to her doorstep, there’d be a cold drink waiting. I’d sit and drink while she talked.

Mrs. Stanley talked mostly about her dead husband, “Mr. Stanley and I went shopping this morning.” she’d say. The first time she said that, soda(汽水) went up my nose.

I told my father how Mrs. Stanley talked as if Mr. Stanley were still alive. Dad said she was probably lonely, and that I ought to sit and listen and nod my head and smile, and maybe she’d work it out of her system. So that’s what I did, and it turned out Dad was right. After a while she seemed content to leave her husband over at the cemetery(墓地).

I finally quit delivering newspapers and didn’t see Mrs. Stanley for several years. Then we crossed paths at a church fund-raiser(募捐活动). She was spooning mashed potatoes and looking happy. Four years before, she’d had to offer her paperboy a drink to have someone to talk with. Now she had friends. Her husband was gone, but life went on.

I live in the city now, and my paperboy is a lady named Edna with three kids. She asks me how I’m doing. When I don’t say “fine”, she sticks around to hear my problems. She’s lived in the city most of her life, but she knows about community. Community isn’t so much a place as it is a state of mind. You find it whenever people ask how you’re doing because they care, and not because they’re getting paid to do so. Sometimes it’s good to just smile, nod your head and listen.

The spot of red was what first caught Randy Heiss’s attention on December 16, 2018.

He was hiking behind his ranch (牧场) in Patagonia, Arizona, a town near the US-Mexico border, when he found a balloon on the grass. Heiss walked towards it with his dog, thinking he would pick up something useless and throw it away.

That’s when he noticed the balloon was connected to a piece of paper. ‘Dayami’, it read on one side, in a child’s writing. Turning the paper over, he saw a numbered list, all in Spanish. “My Spanish isn’t very good, but I could see it was a Christmas,” he said.

Heiss was attracted. He thought that maybe a child had tried to send Santa Claus a Christmas wish list by balloon, something he used to do himself when he was a kid. Nobody had ever returned the letters Heiss had sent, but he wondered whether he could find the kid who had sent this one.

It would be difficult, but he believed he could work it out. About 32 kilometers to the southwest, just across the border, was the city of Nogales, Mexico. “Based on the prevailing wind (盛行风), I was pretty sure that’s where it came from,” he said.

Heiss brought the note home to his wife, who is good at Spanish and helped him translate the list. The elderly couple figured out that Dayami, probably a girl, had asked for a doll, a dollhouse, clothes and some art supplies.

Heiss then posted on social media along with some photos, hoping some of his friends in Nogales might know the girl’s family. A few days passed with no useful information provided; Heiss worried that time was running out before Christmas. On December 19, 2018, he decided to send a message to Radio XENY, a radio station based in Nogales.

To his surprise, someone from the station called him back right away.

Arriving at the Radio XENY offices with presents, the elderly couple finally met the excited little girl.

7 . Carlton Hotels are famous for their brilliant customer service. Well, here’s a wonderful story of this in action, and it_________Joshie, the Giraffe!

When Chris Hurn’s_________came back from their holiday at the Ritz-Carlton on Amelia Island in Florida, they_________returned without Joshie, the Giraffe, Chris’s young son’s “best friend”! They’d_________him behind, and as you can imagine, this caused huge stress and trouble_________! Chris_________that there was nothing to worry about and that Joshie was having a little_________holiday and that he was fine. His son seemed to_________this and dropped off to sleep!

That evening the Ritz-Carlton called to say that they had found Joshie in the laundry and that he had been_________to the hotel’s Loss Prevention Team. Chris told them about his “little__________” about Joshie’s extra holiday and wondered if they would__________taking a picture of Joshie on a chair by the pool to ‘prove’ it! To Chris’s__________, they said they were happy to help — so now that’s two people who could sleep sound!

A couple of days later a__________arrived. In it was Joshie, along with some Ritz-Carlton-branded “goodies” including a Frisbee and a football! Also included in the package was a notebook that__________Joshie’s extended stay at the hotel!

__________ , it included pictures of Joshie__________by the pool of the hotel, having a massage at the spa, meeting with other toy friends and even driving down to the beach in a toy car! It also showed Joshie working on the security cameras making sure that other things didn’t get__________!

The Ritz-Carlton__________clearly went the extra mile for Chris’s son and I often __________to them in my presentations on customer inquiry. It’s a great example of going beyond customer__________.

I once had a cute pet dog calling Jerry. Every day when I get home from school, Jerry would run to the door or give me a warm welcome. I would then pick him up and touch his head gentle. One day, when I returned home away from school, I didn’t see Jerry at the door. My mother told me that Jerry had died in accident. My heart broke when I heard this. In the following two week, I could not help go to his little house, but it was empty. I realized that she had left me. I just hope there are no accidents in the world which Jerry lives now.

Peter woke up early in the morning. He went downstairs in a hurry and started to have his breakfast. “Why are you in such a hurry, early bird?” Mum asked him. “We will have an English spelling test today, Mum,” Peter said. “Mr. White promised to offer prizes to those who get 100 scores. I’ve been studying the wordlist since last week. I am well prepared for them.” Peter reviewed the spelling of each word again while Dad drove him to school.

At last, it was time for the students to have a test. “Responsibility.” Mr. White started. Peter wrote it on his test paper quickly and confidently. “The second word: contribution,” Mr. White said. “So easy,” Peter thought. He quickly wrote the word down.

Thirty words later, the test papers were collected by Mr. White. “I am to mark your papers now, ” he told the class. After marking the test papers, Mr. White said, “Three of you won a prize today for excellent test scores. Peter, David and Mary got full marks on the spelling test!”

Mr. White praised them. Meanwhile, he gave the three students each a dictionary—the one he liked best. “This is my happiest moment,” Peter thought.

After Mr. White gave the test paper back, Peter had a look at the words, feeling proud of his spelling. All of a sudden, the word “contribusion” confused him. It didn’t seem right. Peter began to compare them after taking out the wordlist. “C-O-N-T-R-I-B-U-S-I-O-N,” he whispered. He spelled it wrong. “What am I to do?” Peter said to himself. “If I tell Mr. White one of my spelling words is wrong, I’ll have to give my prize back, or I’ll become an example for telling a lie.”

Peter was lost in thought. After a while, he remembered a lesson Mum once taught him, “We ought to be an honest person.”

Slowly, Peter raised his hand.

Peter looked around and found many of his classmates were not laughing at him.

10 . A Very Special Special Olympian

The professor was searching for student volunteers in the lecture room for a Special Olympics event. As the sign-up sheet went up and down the rows, I started to come up with my _______. Maybe it was the distance to the college where the event was to take place, or the early hour that _______ had to report for duty. Whatever the reasons that made me hesitate, I am thankful to this day that I _______ up volunteering. If I had missed the event, I would have missed one of the most unforgettable moments that I have ever _______.

I arrived at the volunteer tent bright and early. My task was _______. I was to stand at the finish line only and wait until the event was over and then take the _______ to the announcing booth (公告处). Standing at the finish line, I was able to witness many amazing efforts and close races. I was most impressed by the effort each athlete put into his or her _______. What also impressed me was the sincere _______ each athlete expressed while participating though sometimes the joy of participating in a sporting event can get _______ in the fierce competition of winning and losing.

Then an amazing moment happened right before my eyes. A group of athletes were ________ up to run a short race. One of them was in a wheelchair, a little girl with a ________ smile, wearing bright bows in her hair. Her smile filled the stadium that day. I couldn’t help but smile back at her.

The gun sounded. They were off. Runners sped up in the ________ with all their might. My eyes ________ for the little girl with the bright bows. There she was, pumping her arms with all the ________ she had. Her efforts were getting little result, but that did not stop her. I noticed as she got closer that she also had an injured arm. But that did not stop this bright star. The race was long over ________ the young athlete kept pumping her arms. As she finally ________ the finish line, the noise of the crowd was thunderous. There I stood ________, with tears falling down my cheeks.

After all these years, I can still hear those cheers. I wish I could thank that remarkable athlete for what her efforts ________ this unmotivated college guy. I grew up a lot that day because of the ________ of that little girl in the wheelchair. I was ________ that day of a poem from a book that states, "Whatever you do, do it with all your might."