1 . Looking back, Geoff Banks of Devon, England can hardly even remember how he first started writing to his American friend, Celesta Byrne.

Geoff and Celesta were given each other’s names and addresses as part of a school pen pal program back in 1938. They’re both now 100 years old, and a lot has changed in the past 84 years: their age changed ;their appearance changed; but one thing has not—they still use the traditional way to contact.

“I honestly struggle to remember something, but I was talking to Celesta recently and I think it was something to do with an American school’s scheme,” Geoff said,” They matched us up with Americans for a pen pal relationship, and somehow I ended up with this letter from an American girl, and we’ve just kept corresponding (通信) ever since.”

Geoff and Celesta’s relationship never turned romantic, but they shared a lot over the decades. They kept up their correspondence through World War II, sending updates about their families, friends, and work. In 2002, they finally got a chance to meet in person during a trip to New York City. Two years later, they met up again, but ever since then they’ve gone back to pen and paper.

Recently, they’ve switched to digital forms of communication to stay in touch. Their children have helped them set up email accounts. “I’ve known this new thing called Zoom, I think, now to chat with her, but I leave all the technology to younger people. Deep down, I refuse to use Zoom. Writing to Celesta has been a source of great satisfaction for me over the years,” said Geoff.

Celesta says their relationship is “like people who live next door”. “You know how they’re doing, you say a few words, and then you both go to work,” she explained. “She’s always been there to write to, even if it was just birthday cards and Christmas cards.” Geoff added.

2 . When she was just 9 years old, Hilde Lysiak became famous across the United States for reporting on different news stories.

Hilde Lysiak’s father was a reporter for New York Daily News. When she was young, he often took her to work with him, so she developed a strong interest in news reporting.

At age 8, Hilde Lysiak started her own newspaper, called Orange Street News (OSN). Her family lived on Orange Street at the time. Hilde Lysiak wanted to cover stories important to everyone in her town. Following the rules her father had taught her, she researched and reported stories in her monthly newspaper. She also set up her own website and reported on YouTube.

OSN suddenly became famous when a murder happened in town, and 9-year-old Hilde was the first person to report it. Soon, news organizations around the country were writing and reporting stories about Hilde. However, not everyone was happy about Hilde’s efforts. Some people criticized (批评) her parents for allowing her to report on something as unpleasant as a murder. Others criticized Hilde for “pretending to be a reporter”. Hilde was upset about the complaints (埋怨). She responded with a YouTube video, “I never began my newspaper so that people would think I was cute,” she said. “I want to be taken seriously. I am sure other kids do, too.”

That wasn’t the first time Hilde had found it hard for people to take her seriously, which was mainly because of her age. But she never let that stop her. Hilde continued reporting.

In 2019, Hilde wrote a book for young people, called Hilde Cracks the Case, which is based on stories that Hilde wrote. The book was then turned into a TV show called Home Before Dark. For now, Hilde says she has given up reporting. But her efforts have already inspired people around the world.

A Four-legged Guardian Angel

Snow had just melted off the ground that April day at our house in Regina Beach. I had just cleaned up the pool in preparation for selling the house. The year before, I had lost my job, and now our financial situation was depressing. Finally, I had put the home on the market. Even worse, I would have to give up my beloved Great Dane (大丹犬), Brigitte, because I could no longer afford the cost of feeding it. The thought of losing the dog and our beautiful home was almost more than I could bear.

Deep in discouragement, I sat typing up my application letters. Out of the corner of my eye I could see my thirteen-month-old son, Forrest, as he lay on the carpet, playing near our big, gentle Brigitte. It seemed as if Brigitte was always meant to be in this family and she turned out to be a perfect companion.

Brigitte came to our house on Christmas eve when the doorbell rang and I was sure some of my Christmas packages had arrived.   I ran to the door but no one was there. I sensed something and looked down, only to find a beautiful Great Dane sitting there, looking up at me with big, intelligent eyes. Perhaps, someone had found the puppy somewhere and left her there, and then rang the doorbell and ran away. They accurately guessed I would welcome an additional family member and take care of her.

Thinking of these, I couldn’t help sighing and went straight back to work. However, I hadn’t typed more than two sentences when Brigitte began barking and running back and forth to the sliding glass door overlooking our pool.

I raced to see what was happening and noticed that the sliding door was slightly open. Suddenly, I realized Forrest was nowhere to be seen.   In panic, I opened the door and ran outside.

There I was surprised to see Brigitte, who was terrified of water, dive into the pool.

Finally, the doctor said Forrest was all right and could be released from hospital.

4 . Every year I’d read over 2,000 college applications from students all over the world. It is quite ______ to choose whom to admit. ______, in the chaos of SAT scores and recommendations, one ______ is always irresistible (无法抗拒的) in a candidate: kindness.

The most surprising ______ of kindness I’ve ever ______ came from a student who had excellent scores and a supportive recommendation from his college counselor (顾问). Even with these qualifications, he might not have ______. But one letter of recommendation caught my eye. It was from a school security ______. Actually, letters of recommendation are typically written by people like former presidents, celebrities, and Olympic athletes.

The security guard wrote that he supported this student’s admission because of his ______. This young man was the only person in the school who knew the names of every member of the guard staff. He turned off lights in empty rooms, consistently ______ the hallway monitor each morning and tidied up the classroom after his peers left school ______ nobody was watching. This student, the security guard wrote, had a(n) ______ respect for every person at the school, regardless of position, popularity or power.

It gave us a ______ onto a student’s life in the moments when nothing “counted”. That student was admitted by unanimous (一致的) vote of the admissions committee.

Next year there might be a flood of security guard recommendations ______ this essay. But if it means students will start paying as much ______ to the people who clean their classrooms as they do to their principals and teachers, I’m happy to help start that ______.

The event that stands out in Tom’s memory happened one morning when Tom was only ten years old.He was at home with his elder sister Jane.Tom was doing his homework when he heard raised voices.At first he thought nothing of it since customers in the motorcycle shop directly below their flat often became loud，but he soon realized this time it was different.

“Quick! Quick! Remove the motorcycles from the shop.” someone shouted.Then a thick burning smell filled the air.When Tom opened the front door of their flat to investigate，a thick cloud of smoke greeted him.The motorcycle shop had caught fire and people were running and crying.

Jane，who had been playing the violin in her room，hurried to the living room.They rushed out of the door and along the corridor (走廊) through the smoke.

They were heading towards the stairway at the far end of the corridor when Jane suddenly stopped in her track.She turned around and headed back the way they came.Tom had no idea what she was doing，but he followed her.

Jane had suddenly remembered the lady in her 70s who lived next door to them，who they called Makcik.Jane began banging on Makcik’s door，but got no answer.As the smoke thickened around them，Tom could see many of their neighbors—some still in their pajamas (睡衣)—running for safety.The thought of fear crossed his mind.

“She would have run for safety like everyone else!” Tom cried.However，Jane refused to give up.“I know Makcik’s still inside.” She said she was familiar with Makcik’s daily routine and was certain she would still be sleeping.She pounded against the door.“Go downstairs.Go now! Go!”

Tom noticed the flame (火焰) was reaching up.

Luckily，some neighbors passing by stopped and offered help.

When my daughters reached the third and fourth grades, I sometimes allowed them to walk to and from school alone if the weather permitted. One warm spring day, a little dog followed them home after school. It had short legs and long lovely ears. It was the cutest dog I had ever seen and the girls begged me to keep it.

The dog was about twelve weeks old. It had no collar(项圈) or identifying marks of any sort. I didn’t know what to do. I thought about posting an advertisement but I really didn’t want to. It would break the kids’ hearts if someone should show up. Besides, its owners should have watched it more closely.

By the end of the week the dog was part of our family. It was very intelligent and good with the girls. The following week something told me to check the lost—and—found section in the local paper. One particular advertisement jumped out at me and my heart beat with fear for what I read. Someone was begging for the return of a lost dog in the neighborhood of our grade school. They sounded extremely eager. My hand shook, couldn’t bring myself to pick up the paper.

Instead, I pretended I hadn’t seen the advertisement. I quickly put paper away in the drawer and continued with my dusting. I never said a word about it to the kids or my husband.

By now we had named the dog. It looked like a Molly, so that was what we called it. It followed the girls everywhere they went. When they went outside, it was one step behind them. When they did the housework, it was there to lend a hand.

There was only one problem with this seemingly perfect picture: my conscience(良心)was bothering me. I knew in my heart I had to call that number in the paper and see if our Molly was the dog they were desperately seeking. It was the most difficult thing I’ve ever done.

With mixed feelings, I finally picked up the phone.

I asked the woman to come in and she quickly bent over and hugged Molly tightly.