I’m John. When I was young, I was always sad, almost everything ending in failure (失败). I completely lost my heart, sighing (叹息) unhappily all day. Having seen me like that, my father decided to cheer me up.

One day, he gave me a cup of water and asked me to taste it, I found it salty (咸的). My father said he just put one small spoon of salt in the cup. And then, he led me to a lake, where he put a big handful (一把) of salt into the lake, picked up a spoon of water and let me taste it again. He asked, “Does it still taste salty?” “Not at all,” I said. My father said, “Now, you may know the reason for your pain: you are just a cup of water, but not a lake. Be a lake and you won’t feel sad any more.”

I came to understand my father’s purpose. I feel frustrated (沮丧) because my heart is as small as a cup of water. He hoped that I can be a person with a heart like a lake.

At the age of 19, I graduated from high school and moved to a place where it snowed often. I felt free, independent and completely in control of my life there until I knew I had bacterial meningitis (细菌性脑膜炎).

When my parents wheeled me out of the hospital, I felt like I had been pieced back together like a doll with my “new legs”. They hurt so badly that all I could think was what I could do with these things. Tears streamed down my face. I was completely emotionally (情绪上) broken.

But I knew I had to let go of the old Amy and learn to welcome the new Amy. Four months later I was back up on a snowboard, although things didn’t go quite as expected: My legs went flying down the mountain, and I was on top of the mountain still. I was so discouraged. But I knew that if I could find the right pair of legs, I would be able to do this again. And this is when I learned that difficulties we met would bring two kinds of results: stop us on the road or ▲ .

I did a year of research, but still couldn’t find out what kind of legs to use, so I decided to make a pair myself. It was these legs and the best 21st birthday gift I could ever receive—a new kidney (肾) from my dad—that allowed me to follow my dreams again. I started snowboarding, then I went back to work.

In 2005, I founded an organization for youth and young adults with physical disabilities so they could join in sports. From there, I had the opportunity to go to South Africa, where I helped to put shoes on thousands of children’s feet so they could attend school. With my effort, I got three World Cup gold medals which made me the highest ranked female snowboarder in the world.

Twenty-six years ago, when I lost my legs, I had no idea what to expect. But my legs haven’t disabled me. They’ve forced me to depend on my imagination and to believe in the possibilities, because in my mind, we can do anything and we can be anything!

It was a cloudy afternoon. I was walking in a park near my neighborhood. The wind was blowing hard and I knew it was about to rain. Even so, I didn’t want to go home. I had a fight with my mo m and ran out of the house just 10 minutes ago. I sat down near a lake. There were many children playing with their parents nearby. I felt a little lonely.

“Shall we play together?” A little girl came towards me with a ball in her hands. I agreed and she handed me the ball with a sweet smile.

When it began to rain, most children by the lakeside went home with their parents. “Where are your parents?” I asked the girl. “My mom is selling candied fruits outside the park. She seldom has time to play with me,” the girl explained. “I usually play alone here. It’s OK if you need to go home now. I am old enough to stay here and wait for my mom.” “But it’s raining,” I said. “You’d better not be here alone when it’s dark.” “It’s OK. Mom won’t leave me alone. She is coming soon,” the girl replied. “She is my mom. Even if she seldom plays with me, I know she cares about me.”

The little girl’s words touched my heart. She taught me to love and believe in my mom. Should I listen to her and say sorry to my mom?

In the end, I took the little girl to her mom’s stand (货摊) and then ran home quickly. Seeing me entering the house, my mom was close to tears. “Where have you been? I looked for you everywhere! See how wet your coat is! Don’t come to my room if you get a cold tonight!” But I knew she wasn’t angry anymore. After taking a shower, I heard her calling outside my room, “Lisa, dinner time! Come out if you feel like eating some fish.” I came out and said sorry to my mom.