In the days when an ice cream sundae cost much less, a 10-year-old boy entered a hotel coffee shop and sat at a table. A waitress put a glass of water in front of him. “How much is an ice cream sundae?” “Fifty cents,” replied the waitress. The little boy pulled his hand out of his pocket and studied a number of coins in it. “How much is a dish of plain ice cream?” he required. Some people were now waiting for a table and the waitress was a bit impatient. “Thirty-five cents,” she said rudely. The little boy again counted the coins. “I’ll have the plain ice cream,” he said. The waitress brought the ice cream, put the bill on the table and walked away. The boy finished the ice cream, paid the bill and departed. When the waitress came back, she began wiping down the table and then swallowed hard at what she saw. There, placed nearly beside the empty dish, were two five-cent coins and five one-cent coins—her tip.

I’d been thinking of taking a course on scuba-diving(水肺潜水)for months, but wasn’t sure because I was afraid of snakes! Sea snakes. Just thinking about it made me sick.

But then, I wanted to know why people loved it so much. They all said that under the sea was like a totally different world, yet a beautiful one. And because of that, I decided to take the risk and try to face my fear.

So, after taking a private course from my diving instructor, Mbak Vita，I went to Sepa Island with her, to take the final exam.

First dive, 12 meters in depth. “What am I doing?” I asked myself. “What if something bad happened?” I tried hard not to panic and told myself to keep a good thought, “It’s gonna be a wonderful experience. Just do it!” Then I went down. My heart beat fast and my ears hurt as I went deeper. I followed Vita’s instructions closely until I felt comfortable to explore the sea.

Suddenly all around me was green. It felt like I was living in a green world! I saw some corals(珊瑚), big ones, and lots of beautiful fish hiding in the sand.

I was enjoying the beauty all around me when my instructor waved at me with her hand holding a pink flipper(橡胶蹼). “That flipper looks familiar,” I thought. Yes! That was my flipper! I didn’t realize that my right flipper had managed to get away from my right foot!

So, that was the first dive. In total，we dove 5 times in 2 days. We managed to dive up to 18 meters in depth. The next dives were smooth and for sure I didn’t lose my flipper! I was so happy to see different types of fish swimming in front of me as if I was invisible(不可见的).It was indeed so beautiful and peaceful down there. Now I can see why people love diving under the sea.

On the first day of school our teacher introduced himself and challenged us to get to know someone we didn’t already know. I stood up to look around when a gentle hand touched my shoulder.

I turned around to find a little old lady with a warm smile. She said, “Hi, handsome. My name is Rose. I’m eighty-seven years old.”

“Why are you in university at such a YOUNG age?” I asked. She replied, “I’m here to meet a rich husband, get married, have a couple of kids, and then retire and travel.”

I knew she was joking. I was curious (好奇) what might have encouraged her to be taking on this challenge at her age.

“I always dreamed of having a university education and now I’m getting one!” she told me. We became friends. Every day we would talk nonstop after class. I always enjoyed listening to this “time machine” as she shared her wisdom (智慧) and experience with me. And Rose easily made friends wherever she went.

At the end of the term we invited Rose to make a little speech. She cleared her throat and began, “We do not stop playing because we are old; we grow old because we stop playing. I’ve learned a few secrets to staying young, being happy, and achieving success. You have to laugh and find humor every day. You’ve got to have a dream. When you lose your dreams, you die.”

“There is a huge difference between growing older and growing up. Anybody can grow older. That doesn’t take any talent or ability. The idea is to grow up by always finding the opportunity in change...”