Recently, I volunteered with Interact, my school's service group at Read 2 Me, an activity that gives volunteers the opportunity to read to little kids and interact with them.

I walked with other volunteers into a large room in which there was a large variety of books. Some were picture books, such as Cifford or The Very Hungry Caterpillar. Others were chapter books with pictures in them, such as the Berenstain Bears and The Wimpy Kid series. For the extremely talented kids who like to be challenged, we provided chapter books that required imagination to understand. Just after I had gathered some books together, someone announced that it was almost time for the activity to start. All at once, a burst of voices was heard. The doors opened, and the children rushed in, beginning to look for a reading buddy（伙伴）. They all looked so eager to read, just like mice eager to taste a piece of cheese. I was sitting there waiting and glancing at the books that I had picked out for the lucky kid I would read them to.

Just then, a boy about six years old began to come my way, and I knew that I had found my reading buddy. "Hi, I'm Max. Would you like to be my reading buddy?" "Sure," I responded. And then, I let him search for a book of his choice.

"I like this one," shouted Max. I looked at the book that he had chosen. It told an adventure story of a little girl with her dog, and it seemed that it would be a good one to read to him.

Paragraph 1: "Can you tell me why you want this book?” I asked.

Paragraph 2: Then came the after-reading activities in which we interacted with each other.

It was in the early morning of one summer holiday that I was flying to Bali, Indonesia to see volcanoes. And my best friend was waiting for my arrival there. When I got off the plane and stepped out of the airport, I was thinking how unbelievable it was to stand in front of the spectacular volcano mountain. The imaginary sights distracted me, for a moment, from my current problem.

Only when I stood by the bus station to Bali, did I realize that I had no enough cash on me. The only ATM nearby didn’t seem to have any power, and I nervously looked down at my credit card, my only lifeline. I hoped there might be a way to convince the bus driver to let me on and pay him once I reached the destination and got the cash from my friend.

When the bus door opened, I stood behind a young lady and her little girl. I started to worry, wondering what I’d do if the credit card didn’t make the cut. They boarded the bus, paid in cash and sat down in the first row. When I approached the driver and held out my credit card, he looked at me seriously and shook his head.

“I don’t have any money,” I said. I showed him my wallet to confirm that I was telling the truth. He stared back blankly and then said no. I still wanted to convince him again. I pulled up my flight information on my phone and showed it to him. I pointed to the nearby ATM and signaled that it didn’t work. This time, he looked at me and apologized to me. “I’m really sorry. Can you make way for the other passengers?”

I stood aside. “What should I do?” I hesitated. It was the first time that I had visited the city. I was unfamiliar with everything around me. I searched the locations of other ATMs in the area. They were too far away. It would take me at least two hours to get there on foot. I really didn’t want my friend to wait for me too long, but unfortunately, I had to.

I was about to get off the bus when the young lady stood up.

Once we arrived at Bali, I followed the young lady and her little girl off the bus.

Last Saturday, David was taking a walk in the park near his home when he noticed a woman with a boy of about eight years old. When David passed them, he heard the woman yell. “How stupid you are! You’re good at nothing.” David stopped and looked at the little boy. The boy said nothing. He just stood there, looking upset.

David was reminded of his English teacher Mrs Brown in middle school. After he entered a middle school, David lacked self-confidence because he was often made fun of by others. He was often told that he was good at nothing, which David behaved. But one day it all changed.

One day, in an English writing class, Mrs Brown asked them to read a novel. They were asked to write a new chapter of the novel after they finished reading it. A few days later, David handed in his story. He didn’t give it much thought. But the next day, to his surprise, the comment “well done” from Mrs Brown came into view the moment he turned to the page where the story was written. When David read that, he almost burst into tears. He never expected to be praised one day. He suddenly gained some self-confidence.

That day after he returned home, he wrote a short story and gave it to Mrs Brown the next morning. And again he was praised. David became very interested in writing. He often wrote short stories and asked Mrs Brown to read them improve writing skills. One year later, David joined the school newspaper and became an editor of it. He was no longer that boy who lacked self-confidence. He gained his confidence, and was hopeful about his future.

He succeeded in entering a college and kept writing. Several years after graduating from college, he had his first book published. With some more books coming out, he became famous as a writer in his country. And he owed his success to Mrs Brown’s encouragement. Without her encouragement, his life might be very different now.

Inspired by his own life story, David decided to do something for that boy.

The mother was ashamed when she heard that.