In the United States a voluntary organization called Musician Corps is making a difference in people's lives. Five years ago，Kiff Gallagher，the founder of the organization，realized that music and public services could be used together to help Americans in need. Recognizing that music has a positive effect on Alzheimer's disease and autism（自闭症），he had the idea of creating Musician Corps.

Musician Corps looks for musicians and trains them as teachers. Then the musicians provide these services in city schools，children's hospitals，and assisted-living homes for older adults. They also help organize community concerts. Anyone can play music at these community activities.

Kiff Gallagher says what makes Musician Corps different from other charity organizations is that everybody can take part. It provides a place for people to get involved. He remembers a Musician Corps event at a hospital. Afterwards，he says，the patients are less depressed.

David Meletiche, one of 200 musicians in Musician Corps, teaches an after-school guitar class in a high-crime neighborhood. He is excited that the group gives him not only a job in a difficult economy but also the chance to use the team-building skills he gained in college.

There are 12 high school students in his class. Selena Makwan, one of them who are learning to play the guitar, says the program keeps her busy. "It definitely keeps me off the streets, because without this program I probably would be wandering around right now and I would not know what to do. And it also gives me an opportunity to learn something I' ve never done before."

Musician Corps has established programs in California and North Carolina. Kiff Gallagher hopes Musician Corps will continue to expand across America.

   In the town of Whitesburg, Kentucky, Mick Polly, who lives with his teenage daughter Carolina in a white house, is known as the bike man. Over the past five years, Mick has built hundreds of _______ for needy kids.

One day, a 13-year-old boy with a(n) _______ bike walked by Mick’s house. “When I was working in my _______, he approached me, saying he had an accident, and asked if I could _______ it, “says Mick. The boy left his bike to Mick who asked friends _______ the Internet if they had the missing _______. The town’s former police chief saw the _______ and donated two used bicycles. Mick took parts from each to _______ a new set of wheels for the boy.

Soon after, Mick, who owns a toy business, repaired a bike for the boy’s brother and assembled（组装）one for his sister. _______ spread, and within the year, he had fixed up dozens of bikes for local kids whose parents couldn’t ________ to buy new ones. “People were always dropping off bikes day and night,” says Mick.

Mick ________ these bikes and bike parts in his garage. “I ________ the good tires or the handlebars or the seat and use them, “he says. So far, the bike man has repaired hundreds of bicycles and ________ nearly 700 newly constructed bikes. They’re ________, but the kids must agree to two things: They’ve got to “remember who is ________ them”, and they’ve got to try in school. If a kid’s grades are ________, Mick willrequire a teacher’s ________ “saying that you're doing your best”.

Mick also ________ the bikes will get kids off the sofa. “When I was growing up, we all ________ our bikes, “he says. ”________ these kids can get some exercise. ”

   Helen Keller once wrote, “The unselfish effort to bring cheer to others will be the beginning of a happier life for ourselves.” 【小题1】 The UN has set December 5 as International Volunteer Day to give recognition to these people.

Nineteen-year-old Andrew Makhoul was a communications major at the University of Pennsylvania. It was coming up to the spring break, but unlike his classmates, Makhoul wasn’t planning on spending the break relaxing.【小题2】

He traveled to Guatemala. He went to an orphanage (孤儿院) in one of the most violent and poor parts of Guatemala city. 【小题3】 Although he didn’t speak much Spanish, he found communication wasn’t a problem: “You communicated with love.” And what he gave out, he got back: “You could see love when you looked in their eyes.”

Makhoul’s first time as a volunteer only lasted a week, but by the end of that week, he knew he’d be back in the future.

【小题4】 The UN highlighted the case of Palestinian women who are survivors of breast cancer. As part of the UN’s Aid and Hope Programme for Patient Care, the women have been volunteering their time to create low-cost breast prostheses (假体) to be distributed to women for free, among whom Shahd El-Swerki is a brilliant example.【小题5】 By the end of her time there, she admired these women who are “not only survivors but also volunteers”.

About 2,400 years ago, Greek philosopher Aristotle said, “The essence (本质) of life is to serve others and do good.” Volunteers all around the world are making these words come true, each and every day.

   In the United States a voluntary organization called Musician Corps is making a difference in people's lives. Five years ago，Kiff Gallagher，the founder of the organization，realized that music and public services could be used together to help Americans in need. Recognizing that music has a positive effect on Alzheimer's disease and autism（自闭症），he had the idea of creating Musician Corps.

Musician Corps looks for musicians and trains them as teachers. Then the musicians provide these services in city schools，children's hospitals，and assisted-living homes for older adults. They also help organize community concerts. Anyone can play music at these community activities.

Kiff Gallagher says what makes Musician Corps different from other charity organizations is that everybody can take part. It provides a place for people to get involved. He remembers a Musician Corps event at a hospital. Afterwards，he says，the patients are less depressed.

David Meletiche, one of 200 musicians in Musician Corps, teaches an after-school guitar class in a high-crime neighborhood. He is excited that the group gives him not only a job in a difficult economy but also the chance to use the team-building skills he gained in college.

There are 12 high school students in his class. Selena Makwan, one of them who are learning to play the guitar, says the program keeps her busy.“It definitely keeps me off the streets, because without this program I probably would be wandering around right now and I would not know what to do. And it also gives me an opportunity to learn something I've never done before.”

Musician Corps has established programs in California and North Carolina. Kiff Gallagher hopes Musician Corps will continue to expand across America.

   If you could have one superpower, what would it be?

Dreaming about whether you would want to read minds, see through walls, or have superhuman strength may sound silly, but it actually gets to the heart of what really matters in your life.

Every day in our work, we are inspired by the people we meet doing extraordinary things to improve the world.

They have a different kind of superpower that all of us possess: the power to make a difference in the lives of others.

We’re not saying that everyone needs to contribute their lives to the poor. Your lives are busy enough doing homework, playing sports, making friends, seeking after your dreams. But we do think that you can live a more powerful life when you devote some of your time and energy to something much larger than yourself. Find an issue you are interested in and learn more. Volunteer or, if you can, contribute a little money to a cause. Whatever you do, don’t be a bystander. Get involved. You may have the opportunity to make your biggest difference when you’re older. But why not start now?

Our own experience working together on health, development, and energy the last twenty years has been one of the most rewarding parts of our lives. It has changed who we are and continues to fuel our optimism about how much the lives of the poorest people will improve in the years ahead.