As a waitress I have met and seen all types of people. I think it is _____ that brings us all together. I was about to _____ my job one afternoon and go home when a family came in.

As they sat down, they _____ that they were on their way home. And they added they just had enough money to buy their children only a _____ snack and that all they needed was _____ I showed them a few things on the menu and _____ them what they would like.

As I walked away to _____ their order, I just couldn’t _____ to see this family leaving,_____ with just a snack and some water!______ , I asked some of the other waitresses to ______ me in helping this family. They ______ because they knew I was kind when it came to ______ others. It made them feel good too. So I ______ to the table and told them that they could order what they wanted because it would be paid by some ______ strangers. At first, they didn’t know what to say, but then they looked at the ______ to see what was on offer. They then ______ accepted the meal and said “Thanks” with smiles.

When they left, all I could see was the ______ on their faces. With tears in my eyes, I wished them a ______ trip. I learnt that with every kind ______ , you can get to know a person, and the feeling it gives flows both ways.

Running for a Dream

I will never forget that November day．It was hotter than normal．This was the ________ my father and I had waited so long for，because we had been working towards this race for three years．Dozens of familiar faces from church and school flashed across my view．They had come ________me．I saw worry and ________on my father's face．Then the race began!

For the first two and a half miles．I felt________．I had never before been so ready for something．The weeks leading up to the race were filled with controlled________and a strict diet．My friends hadn't seen me in weeks，but they understood the _______required to make my dream a reality．As in all of my races，I didn't _______ out in the front，I loved the pleasure of passing people as my strength overtook their premature speed．

Then without warning，my strength began to decrease．Neck and neck with one of my greatest competitors，I ________see the finish line．I had begun the final dash into_______when my knees became weak and my legs gave way．Nothing I could do would make them _______ weight．

I watched as runners rushed by me．________ I knew my dreams of victory were destroyed．I had to finish the race．However，my legs hurt badly．With all of the ________ left in me，I got on my hands and knees and crawled （爬），inch by inch，across the finish line．Voices，both ________ and familiar，cheered me on．They gave me the courage to keep ________until the very end．

The doctors were there in seconds，but my eyes searched the crowd for him．There was only one person I wanted to ________to．I whispered，"I'm so sorry，Dad，I'm so sorry I ________you．"He looked at me，saying，"You could never disappoint me．Sometimes these things just ________．All that matters is that you did your best．"

"But we worked so ________．What about our dream？"He reached over for my hand and said，"Don't you know that you are my dream and it has come true？"

It wasn't long before my running shoes were back on，marking a________path for my journey，I learned that all of the miles，the tears，the sweat，and the pain my dad and I experienced together were not for a________．What I realized，though，was that to him，I was the greatest prize he had ever won．

   Like most people these days，I can't imagine life without e-mail. But there's something about a letter，something more personal，more meaningful.

During my freshman year of college I was _____ . I loved to sing，and I was cast as the lead in the fresh play. The _____ didn't allow much time for studying，and then there were _____ to make and parties to go to. _____ my straight A average in high school，I didn't have good study habits. My first college report card _____ it. I sat on my dorm-room bed，staring at C's and D's.

I knew my parents had gotten a copy of my _____. My mother was an advocate for women's education. My dad ran his own business and was a leader of the community. They'd been so _____ I was following in their footsteps. I could have called home，but long-distance calls were expensive then. _____ ，telling my parents“I'm so sorry I've disappointed you”hardly seemed _____ .

I got two letters from the student union. My dad's letter was typed on his business paper. I could hear his voice，quiet，______ and kind.“I understand you are struggling. We have all been there. We all fail sometimes. We ______ ourselves and our family. ______ those who deserve to be at the top, when they fail, get right back up to the top again. And I know you will.”Dad wasn't ______ of me. He believed I could succeed. If only I had believed in myself as he did!

Then I opened the envelope from Mom. As I read, the miles between us disappeared and her words went straight to my _____ “I suspect you are ______ burdens. Perhaps you feel guilty about ______ that you are not proud of. This is the time when everything we' ve taught you — persistence, forgiveness and diligence — will ______ .”

I did, often. College got much better. My grades ______ . I joined a group that sang at dinners and concerts.

A letter can change the ______ . The message is simple and true: letters can touch our lives mysteriously and ______ .

   This is the best time and this is the worst time；this is the time of great material richness and this is the time of desert of the soul. Everyone seems to be rushing around for something but they have never fulfilled their dreams. Everyone tries to seek happiness but it seems to be nowhere to be found.

When asked "What on earth can make you happy？"，most modern men would give similar replies such as becoming extremely wealthy，or getting promoted in work and then becoming very wealthy. When asked "What will you do with your wealth？"，they would make a long list of things they have been longing for. However，haven't you noticed the multimillionaires are not as happy as we common guys suppose them to be？Haven't you noticed that the multimillionaire celebrities（名人）don't even enjoy the fundamental freedom of going shopping with their own families without being followed by annoying paparazzi？

If we focus our happiness on such big issues，we are bound to be unhappy all through our life，because those big issues might just occur to us once in a blue moon.

As Socrates（苏格拉底）once put it，"He is the richest man who is content with the least，for content is the wealth of nature. "But how can we" be content with the least"？If you pay due attention，you will find our life is loaded with little joys，sometimes too little to be noticeable. Stop once in a while in your rush to your destination，look around and you will see that there are always little things worth cheering for. You got an "A" in a test. Good！You listened to all inspiring lectures. Great！You offered a helping hand to someone who had a flat tire. Amazing！Your dream girl or boy greeted you with a sweet smile. Fantastic！Let's cheer for the little joys in life！Please keep in mind that never should we wait to be happy！

   Successful people are the center of any hot discussion. Actually any successful individual is flesh and blood just like you. 【小题1】 It's the small differences that help them stick out from the rest.

1.Ordinary people dream of a better future，while successful people create a better future.

We all want to live a better life: more happiness，more freedom and better health. 【小题2】 However，the average person will focus on dreaming，while the successful one spares no efforts to create that dreamy future.

2. 【小题3】

Everyone has doubts and negative thoughts once in a while. It's just human nature and the way our brains function. Many people accept these thoughts as truths and let them control their lives. On the contrary，great people are conscious of the impact their thoughts have，and try to influence their thinking to make it work for them.

3.Ordinary people prefer short-term satisfaction，while successful people choose long-term rewards.

Do you know anyone who hates to be rewarded？Neither do we. 【小题4】 In the era in which we are taught to praise comfort over anything else，it's easy to settle for instant pleasure. However，successful people recognize that oftentimes you need to wait to experience the true pleasure.

4.Ordinary people praise overabundance（过多），while successful people praise limitation（限制）.

A kind of person loves to gather wealth. 【小题5】 However，one of the features of truly successful people is that they can limit a lot of things in order to focus on the ones that are actually important.