Martin was returning home after a difficult shift (轮班) on a dark snowy night. He worked as a truck driver in Los Angeles, taking several shifts a week because he had a sick daughter, Anne, who needed urgent surgery, but he wasn’t sure if he’d be able to raise enough money for it.

Anne was diagnosed with a cyst (囊肿) shortly after birth. The doctors told Martin and his wife Helen that she needed an operation as soon as possible, otherwise, it could pose a threat to the little girl’s life. The parents decided they should do whatever it took to save their daughter and began saving money right away.

It was too black outside with no visibility (能见度). Martin was driving slowly, thinking of solutions to his problem when he noticed a shadow in the middle of the road. He hit the brakes and the truck came to a complete stop. Rubbing his eyes, Martin looked more closely. A human figure — a woman lying unconscious in the middle of the road!

Martin picked up the woman, carried her to his truck, quickly changed his route and drove straight to the hospital. About 10 minutes later, they finally arrived at the hospital. “It’s an emergency! Please call the doctor!” he screamed at the top of his lungs. The woman was admitted to hospital at once.

The next day, Martin went to the hospital to see the woman. The woman was Daisy, who was a rich businesswoman. Daisy expressed her gratitude to him and told him the whole story about how she ended up on the road. “Thank you so much, Martin. You’re a really generous soul. I heard you drove me to the hospital last night and that you have been here a few times with your daughter.”

Daisy found that Martin seemed to be worried.

As the saying goes, one good turn deserves another.

My name is Maeli. I am so lucky, because I have Lizzy Jo. She is my cousin and my friend! We are close. We talk about everything from our dreams, our sad things to the things we value most such as her beautiful bracelets (手链) and my beads (有孔的珠子).

Yesterday our teacher brought out a big box just before the last bell rang. “I have a little gift for each of you,” she said. Then she gave each of us a perfect popcorn ball. Each popcorn ball was in clear bag that was tied with a ribbon (丝带). Just that little ribbon made the gift look so fancy! Sometimes, it’s the tiny details that make things special.

I happen to have a great appreciation for popcorn balls, so I was pleased. Lizzy Jo and I rode the bus home. The moment I was off the bus, I untied the ribbon and put it into my pocket. Then I took the popcorn ball out of the plastic bag. I didn’t even stop walking. Unfortunately, my feet were in a big hurry to get home, and sometimes when feet are in a hurry, they trip.

My feet tripped. I fell. And my perfect popcorn ball dropped right into a dirty puddle (水坑). I was okay, but my popcorn ball wasn’t. Have you ever seen a perfect popcorn ball in a dirty puddle? It isn’t something that you want to take a photo of and frame and keep forever.

I looked at my popcorn ball. That moment definitely was NOT the time to use the two second rule. Last week at my grandma’s house I used the two second rule. I accidentally dropped my cookie on her floor. I picked it up REALLY fast, and I admit that I ate that cookie. But this was a very different situation. This involved a puddle.

On a Friday evening in December, two weeks before Christmas, my mother and I got home as usual. We were excited for the coming weekend and planned to get our Christmas tree. Suddenly, my mother got her voice mail: “We’re sorry but your work assignment has ended as of today.” The news cast a cloud of gloom over her face. And my heart sank and anxiety sent me spinning — my mother lost her job.

The following days my mother got up early and set out to look for work, but still hadn’t seen it coming. And I noticed that we were running out of natural gas and bills of electricity and water began to pill up. I knew money was tight. One wrong move could send the family into trouble. My mother also wasn’t easy. She wasn’t just a single parent; she was the only parent. My father had been in prison most of his life and I hadn’t met him for a long time. Nevertheless, I’d grown accustomed to the life. My mother did everything she could to give me a good life.

The next day as we searched for our tree in the shop, I struggled to be cheerful as I eyed each price tag. I handed a note of $100 to my mother, but she refused without hesitation, saying “Absolutely not, that’s what grandma gave to you.” I whispered to her “Mom, I don’t want any gifts. All I need is to be with you. I love you forever!” Then I held her by the hand leaving the shop.

Over the next week, my mother crazily applied for jobs as the bank account grew smaller and smaller. We still needed money for rent, food and other daily expenses.

One night, lying on the bed and lost in thought, I decided that it was time for me to do something. At that, I rose up to dial a telephone number.

The next morning, just on the day before Christmas, I noticed a familiar car pull up in front of my house.

At this time, I couldn’t help but cry.