What to Do when You’re Falling Behind

When I was a kid, it took me longer to learn how to ride a bike. I kept using a bike with training wheels and I didn’t _______ much, so of course I didn’t learn how to balance.

One day I _______ that my sister, 2.5 years younger than me, was getting close to _______ how to ride a bike. She wasn’t quite there yet, but she was _______ much closer to balancing than I was. I couldn’t let her _______ me to it!

So I took my bike, _______ it out to the street, and decided that I was going to learn how to ride it right now. I _______ the training wheels, jumped on, and swerved (突然转向) all over the place like an out-of- control madman. I tried to stay near the grass when I could get some degree of _______, so when I fell, I’d _______ fall to the lawn instead of the street or sidewalk.

After many attempts, I finally learned how to ________ Then I rode my bike a lot that summer and have had the ________ ever since.

Up until that point, I’d been making a big deal out of the whole process. It seemed ________ and discouraging. I was afraid of falling. But once I began to face the fear and ________ the courage to risk getting hurt, I quickly showed my ________ ability on the other side with a whole new skill. From the moment of making the decision to the time I ________ to get the basic skill it probably took me less than an hour.

What finally ________ me to face the fear and take action? It was the ________ that I was falling behind. My sister was leaving me in the dust. She could ride ________ I couldn’t. I really didn’t want that to happen.

I had no idea that I could learn to ride a bike so quickly. The feeling of falling behind served as a powerful motivator (动力). ________ trying to hide the disappointment, I allowed myself to feel the weight of that pressure. I used the ________ feeling to motivate myself to take action.

   It was a winter morning, just a couple of weeks before Christmas 2005. While most people were warming up their cars, Trevor, my husband, had to get up early to ride his bike four kilometers away from home to work. On arrival, he parked his bike outside the back door as he usually does. After putting in 10 hours of labor, he returned to find his bike gone.

The bike, a black Kona 18 speed, was our only transport. Trevor used it to get to work, putting in 60-hour weeks to support his young family. And the bike was also used to get groceries (食品杂货), saving us from having to walk long distances from where we live.

I was so sad that someone would steal our bike that I wrote to the newspaper and told them our story. Shortly after that, several people in our area offered to help. One wonderful stranger even bought a bike, then called my husband to pick it up. Once again my husband had a way to get to and from his job. It really is an honor that a complete stranger would go out of their way for someone they have never met before.

People say that a smile can be passed from one person to another, but acts of kindness from strangers are even more so. This experience has had a spreading effect in our lives because it strengthened our faith in humanity (人性) as a whole. And it has influenced (影响) us to be more mindful of ways we, too, can share with others. No matter how big or how small, an act of kindness shows that someone cares. And the results can be everlasting.

   During the recent school holidays I was walking past a playground on my way to a meeting. The thing that _____ me was not the number of children _____ the fresh air on a pleasant Queensland winter day，but the number of older people _____ those children.

Sure，there were a few younger mums and dads，but there were _____ more“old folk”who I doubt were all grandparents. It is great that they are able to _____ quality time with their grandchildren. After all，we often hear people say that their _____  for retiring（退休）is that they can devote more time to their families. However，I _____ how many grandparents are spending their retirement years taking on the role of full-or part-time _____ of their grandchildren.

Retirement is a(n) _____ time. We are generally living much longer than our own grandparents did, but as we ______ we become more limited in our ability to pursue our own ______. However, what if your plans for pursuing some of these lifetime dreams are ______ out of a sense of ______ for your family?

So how can you keep a ______ balance between helping out your family and ______ your dreams altogether？I'm not sure where the answer lies，but having an open and honest ______ with your family should be at the top of the list. You need to nip any sense of duty in the bud（对……一开始即加以阻止）— and sooner ______ later.

By all means，help your family whenever you can. Everyone will ______ from it，and your grandchildren will get the rewards from staying with their ______. Do it because you want to，not because you feel you have to. ______ spare time for yourself to realize your dreams and ensure that nobody puts your retirement on hold.