I walked into a stranger as he passed by me.

“Excuse me,” I said.

He replied with a smile and said, “Please excuse me, too. I didn’t notice you.” We apologized and went for our own ways.

Later that day, when I was cooking, my daughter was standing too near. When I turned to reach for some milk, I nearly knocked her over. “Move out of the way!” I shouted.

She walked away sadly. But I didn’t feel like I had to apologize to her.

While I was in bed that evening, my husband said to me. “While dealing with a stranger, you were polite. But with a daughter you love, you were unkind. Your daughter brought you some flowers that she picked herself this afternoon. You will find them in the kitchen by the door. Have you seen the tears in her eyes?”

I quietly went and sat down by my daughter’s bed.

“Honey, I am sorry,” I said. “Are these the flowers you picked for me?”

She said, “I found them by the tree. I picked them because they’re pretty like you. I knew you’d like them, especially the blue ones.”

I tearfully replied, “Sweetie, I’m really sorry for the way I acted today. I shouldn’t have shouted at you.”

Rick was a young boy who was angry at everything around him. To make Rick happy, his mom came home with a canvas (画布) and paint. “Whenever you feel bad about something, paint it instead of getting angry.”

Though not that happy, Rick gave it a try. After creating many paintings, he took his artworks to his mom.

“Tell me, Rick. What are these paintings about?”

“The first is about how some kids show off their new clothes. The next is about my teacher who always tells me about how I’m doing things wrong. And the last painting is about how one of my schoolmates said I should change my attitude (态度). They all make me so angry.”

Rick’s mom took Rick by her side and told him, “Don’t you see, Rick? You’re getting so angry but you never try to understand why.” Then she explained carefully, “All the people you were angry at did nothing wrong. The kids were showing off their good clothes but never laughed at you for being poor. Your teacher punished you but that was because you caused trouble in class. And your schoolmate was only trying to help you correct your mistakes.”

“Next time you get angry, ▲ . And when you come back, talk to the person you’re angry at. You might calm down in this way.”

Rick took his mom’s advice and became less angry. He even started to feel happy around other children.

My name is David Black. 【小题1】 Now, I am in Beijing with my family. My father and mother work (工作) here. My father is an engineer (工程师) and my mother is a teacher. 【小题2】 My sister and I are in a middle school in Beijing. 【小题3】 Four rooms are in it. And my room is nice and tidy. You can see some things in it. My white computer is on the desk and two chairs are under the desk. 【小题4】 My books are in the bookcase. My quilt is on the bed. 【小题5】 They are my family photos. I love my room.