A teacher decided to let her class play a game. She told each child in the class to bring along a plastic bag with a few big potatoes. Each potato was given the name of a person that the child hated, so the number of potatoes that a child put in his or her plastic bag depended on the number of people he or she hated.

The next day, every child brought some potatoes with the names of the people he or she hated. Some had two potatoes, some three while some had up to five potatoes. The teacher then asked the children to carry the potatoes with them wherever they went.

Days after days passed, and the children started to complain due to the unpleasant smell let out by the rotten potatoes. Besides, those having as many as five potatoes also had to carry heavier bags. After weeks, the children were relieved(如释重负的) because the game had finally ended.

The teacher asked, “How did you feel while carrying the potatoes with you these days?” The children said they were tired and unhappy because they had to carry the heavy and smelly potatoes wherever they went.

Then the teacher told them the hidden meaning behind the game. “This is exactly the situation when you carry your hatred for somebody inside your heart. The unpleasant smell of hatred(憎恨) will pollute your heart and you will carry it with you wherever you go. If you cannot tolerate the smell of rotten potatoes for just a short period of time, can you imagine what it is like to have hatred in your heart for your lifetime? So remember: Forgive those you hate and move on.”

We are in a world full of competition. Our parents compete (竞争) with others in their offices, our brothers and sisters compete with others in their colleges , and we compete with our classmates in school.

Many of us give up in the face of competition and will never be successful.

(58) Why can’t we do better than others. One important reason is that we have no self-confidence (自信).

In fact, everyone is born equal(平等) . You can do what others do. Although your classmates may be better than you in some ways, you may be better than them in other subjects. So everyone has his or her own advantages. Don't look at things from a single(单个的) point of view. Try to discover your own advantages, and believe that you can do better than others in those ways.

Competition is not so terrible. Don't be afraid of it. And don't be afraid of those classmates who are better than you. (59) Remember that self-confident is the first step to success. Believe in yourselves, and you will be successful one day.

Once there was an honest milkman（送奶工）named Deenu. He treated every person kindly, but sometimes he got cheated. He felt very sad. One evening, after selling milk, he met a wise man and said, “but there are so many bad people who only care about themselves. What can I do?”

The wise man smiled and said, “I can see that you’re a good man. Answer a few questions first. Did you smile at all the customers who came to buy your milk today?”

“Sometimes, but not all.” Deenu replied.

“When you smiled, did they smile back?” the man asked.

“Yes, they were very nice people.”

“For those people you didn’t like, did you show them a smile first?”

“Not really — why should I?” Deenu asked.

“What if you gave them a smile as well?”

“Well. they...they might smile back,” Deenu said.

“That’s it. If you really want to do something for the world, you can start with yourself. You can’t decide how other people act, but you can decide what you do.” the wise man said.