Andrew and Tina was a happily-married couple who lived in New York. Andrew worked hard every day to support their family and Tina stayed at home to look after their children. Andrew felt lucky to have such a kind and understanding wife as Tina and he was determined to try all out to earn more to make their life better and better.

While Andrew was getting ready for work one Friday morning, he announced to his wife that he had finally decided to ask his boss for a salary raise. Tina smiled at him without a word but her warm smile gave Andrew a lot of courage. However, all day Andrew felt nervous and anxious as he thought about the upcoming showdown. What if Mr. Larchmont refused to accept his request? Andrew had worked so hard in the last 18 months and landed some great accounts for Braer and Hopkins Advertising Agency. Of course, he deserved a wage increase.

The thought of walking into Larchmont’s office left Andrew weak in the knees. Late in the afternoon he was finally courageous enough to approach his boss. To his delight and surprise, the ever-frugal(一向节俭的) Harvey Larchmont agreed to give Andrew a raise!

Andrew arrived home that evening—despite breaking all city and state speed limits—to a beautiful table set with their best china, and candles lit. His wife, Tina, had prepared a delicate meal including his favorite dishes. Immediately he figured someone from the office had told her the news!

Next to his plate Andrew found a beautiful lettered card. It was from his wife. It read: “Congratulations, my love! I knew you’d get the raise! I prepared this dinner to show just how much I love you. I am so proud of your accomplishments!” He read it and stopped to reflect on how sensitive and caring Tina was. He felt warm and proud to have such a good wife, and thanked God for that again. He was eager to show his love and gratitude to his wife and he hurried to the kitchen to find her.

I always think of my mother as a superhero, because she never runs out of room in her heart for anyone or anything.

I could write about all of the wonderful things she has done, but I want to focus on one project she does every year that has shaped my whole family and everyone around us: She saves money, and she puts it in a little jar (罐子) that we refer to as “The Charity Jar”. Every year, she takes this money and puts it toward something—an act of kindness, anything that can help someone. Sometimes, she buys something for an organization that needs it.

If you ask her about this tradition, she will tell you that she is carrying on something that her mother used to do around the holidays. If you ask anyone else who knows her, however, they will tell you that she has a huge heart. She manages to get our whole family involved (参与) in this movement every year. Last year, she helped an organization where I volunteered—Ruth’s Place—a homeless women’s shelter in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.

I had been helping a professor run a writing workshop in the shelter when I noticed the wish list on the wall: warm clothes, a coffee maker and supplies. I told my mom, and within a day, she had already asked if our family wanted to help Ruth’s Place. We all agreed and decided that the coffee maker and supplies would be the best things for our family to work on together.

A few days later, Mom found a coffee maker online, and showed it to us. With a few clicks, it was on its way. She also baked(烘焙) fresh chocolate cupcakes for the women in the shelter. We gathered the rest of the supplies and called the shelter to find a day when we could deliver them.

That day I drove my mom to the shelter very slowly. _______________________________________________________________________

As we left, we were met with heartfelt thanks. _____________________________________________________________________________