On Thanksgiving day, Mrs. Klein told her first graders to draw a picture of something for which they were thankful. She thought that, living in a_____________neighborhood, most of these children would draw pictures of     ______or of fully laden Thanksgiving tables. That was what they believed was ___________of them.

What took Mrs. Klein by___________was Douglas’ s picture. Douglas was so alone and likely to be found_______in her shadow as they went outside for play. Douglas’s drawing was simply a(n)___________, obviously, but whose?

The class was_________by his image. “I think it must be the hand of God that_________us food,” said one student.

“A ___________,” said another, “because they grow the turkeys.”

“It looks more like a policeman, and they__________us.”

“I think,” said Lavinia, who was always so ___________, “that it is supposed to be all the hands that ________us, but Douglas could only draw one of them.”

Mrs. Klein had almost____________Douglas in her pleasure at finding the class so active. When she________the others at work on another project, she___________and asked Douglas whose hand it was.

Douglas_________, “It’s yours, teacher.”

Then Mrs. Klein___________that she had taken Douglas by the hand from time to time; she________did that with the children. But it should have __________so much to Douglas!

Perhaps, she reflected, this was her Thanksgiving, and everybody’s Thanksgiving—not the material things______     to us, but the small ways that we give something to others.

Never had I given back to the community. I gave generously to family since my father had drilled into my mind that _______ begins at home, but rarely to any cause outside.

One day, my _______ phoned me. “Aunt Lene,” she said in her sweet voice that never fails to _______ my heart, “the blood bank asked if I would _______ blood. Would you donate with me?” I couldn’t _______ her.

I didn’t know_______, that I would be able to donate blood in the name of someone _______. On the wall were photos of people who were _______ severe illnesses. One photo was of a little girl, named Alexis, whose smiling face, although swollen from drugs, _______ me. Then I decided to donate blood in her name.

I braved the __________ and the procedure was relatively painless. __________, that gave me a lot of happiness, so I continued to __________ several other donations.

One morning I happened to __________ a report about Alexis on the radio. I was thrilled, but I wasn’t __________ to learn how she had tried to help others although she was struggling with cancer, because when I first saw her angelic face, her __________ was so full of joy and __________ that I began to like her __________. I was so happy that I joined her trying to help.

I am grateful for this experience as it has __________ me to the fact that every little thing we do to help has its __________, not just to the one receiving, but to the one __________.

Attitude is everything. There is never a need to respond to anything that doesn’t make you feel ________: The Law of the Garbage Truck totally ________ my attitude to things.

One day I got in a taxi and we ________ for the airport. We were driving in the right lane(车道)when a black car ________ out of a parking space right in front of us. My taxi driver ________ the other car by just inches!

The driver of the black car, who almost caused a big ________, started shouting at us. My taxi driver just smiled and ________ at the guy. He was really friendly. So I asked, “Why? That guy almost ruined your car and sent us to a(n) ________!”

That was when my taxi driver taught me what I now ________ “The Law of the Garbage Truck”. He ________ that many people are like garbage trucks. They run around full of ________. As their garbage ________, they need a place to dump(倾倒) it and sometimes they’ll dump it on you.

When you meet similar situations, just smile, wave, wish them well, and move on. The bottom line is that wise people do not let garbage trucks ________ their day. Love the people who are ________ us and pray for the ones who don’t. ________ is ten percent what you make it and ninety percent how you take it!