Countless people long to make a difference this holiday season, yet they don’t realize that opportunities to make a difference are everywhere. Here are some ideas to get you started.

It is cold outside, but imagine how thousands of homeless people may feel without a home of their own, or even a blanket to keep them from the cold. Organize a blanket drive for your local homeless, and ask around for donations!

I’ll never forget the time when I went to pay for my Dr. Pepper, but the server resisted, saying my bill was paid by an anonymous (匿名的) guest. It’s this random act of kindness that restores my faith in humanity. Bless someone by paying for their drink at Starbucks, or praising them! If you live somewhere where it snows, shovel your neighbor’s snow out of their driveway for them! Whether it is as simple as praise or as complex as paying the bill, you’ll never know how far your impact will reach.

Just a simple thank-you can make somebody’s day, especially if they feel like their work is never noticed. Cultivate(培养) a smile on their face by being sincere and grateful for all that they do.

The best way to show your appreciation for people is by using the talents and skills you have to bless others. For me, I love to coordinate(协调)events and write, and so my way of reaching out to the community is through writing articles and creating awareness about problems we face today. If you can bake, make some delicious cookies for people to enjoy! If you can knit, put your talents to use by making clothes for children in foster care. Any talent can be used to help the community in meaningful ways.

Wish you a happy, healthy and helpful holiday season.

Corcoran, a farming town of California, is slowly sinking(下沉) when drought has forced farmers to pump(用泵抽) amounts of water from the ground. Corcoran is struggling to make sense of the strangest thing: His already suffering town is sinking, ever so gradually, into the ground.

To water its large fields and help feed America, farm operators began in the last century to pump water from underground sources, so much so that the ground has begun to sink. Strangely, signs of this subsidence are nearly out of sight. There are no cracks(裂缝) in the walls of the typical American shops in the town’s center, nor in the streets or fields.

This year’s drought has changed this food-basket of America into a large field of brown dust, forcing the government to limit(限制) the use of water by farmers. So Corcoran now finds itself in the middle of a bad circle: With their water supplies limited, farm operators are forced to pump more underground water, which in turn speeds the sinking of the town.

Few locals have spoken out against the problem -- not surprising, since most of them work for the same big agribusinesses pumping up groundwater. “They are afraid that if they speak against them, they might not work there any more,” said Atilano, who has spent years working for one of the country’s biggest cotton producers, J. G. Boswell.

On this summer afternoon, under a heat wave, some people stop to chat under a large wall painting. It describes a clear blue lake surrounded by snow-covered mountain peaks -- for now, a far dream.

Most musicians agree that the best violins were made in Cremona, Italy, about 200 years ago. They even sound better than violins made today. Violin makers and scientists try to make instruments like the old Italian violins. But they aren’t the same. Why are these old Italian violins so special? Many people think they have an answer.

Some people think it is the age of the violins. But there is a problem here. Not all old violins sound wonderful. Only those from Cremona are special. So age cannot be the answer.

Other people think the secret to those violins is the wood. It must be from certain kinds of trees. It must not be too young or too old. Perhaps the violin makers of Cremons knew something special about wood for violins.

But the kind of wood may not be so important. It may be more important to cut the wood in a special way. Wood for a violin must be cut into the right size and shape. The smallest difference will change the sound of the violin. Musicians sometimes think that this is the secret of the Italians.

Size and shape may not be the answer either. Scientists make new violins that are exactly the same size and shape. But the new ones still do not sound as good as the old ones. Some scientists think the secret may be the varnish (清漆), which covers the wood of the violin and makes it look shiny. It also helps the sound of the instrument. Since no one knows what the Italian violin makers used in their varnish, no one can make the same varnish today.

There may never be other violins like the violins of Cremona. And there are not many of the old violins left. So these old violins are becoming more and more precious.