There is always something that we can never forget. And it can really change our life.

Time is important for everyone. It organizes our everyday moments. However, before I received a watch from my father, time never had any importance in my life. It organized my life and made me more responsible.

I received this gift on a Sunday. I had to go to the airport at 9:00 am to pick up Uncle Jim and take him to my father’s house. However, I was late because I hung out with my friends. Later on that day, around 11:00 am, I remembered my uncle and went to the airport to meet him, but I was too late. He had left the airport and taken a taxi to my father’s house.

I got to my father’s house at 2:00 pm that day. (1)Looking at my father’s face, I felt ashamed (羞愧的) at that moment. My father asked me to sit next to him and he handed me this watch as a gift. Then he said, “Bob, did you have fun with your friends today?” “Yes, Father, and I’m sorry about not picking up Uncle Jim,” I replied. He then said, “What you did was not very nice and you should be sorry for your actions. I think you should learn something from it, and this watch will be a reminder for you in your future life.” (2)The watch is very important to me, not because of its price, but because of the lesson that I learned from it.

Today I still remember my father’s words “Respect time and never be late for anything.”

When I was young, my father told me that some acts of love might give someone happiness. So I always try my best to help others.

One afternoon, it was very hot. I was driving on the highway to Guangzhou when another car suddenly came into my lane (车 道). My car was in the far right lane, so it ran into the roadside. But luckily, it didn’t cause an accident. I was angry with that driver, but I thought that he just did not notice the lane change, and maybe he was just not careful enough.

The car ran away after cutting me off. Very soon it disappeared. After a while, I found the same car. The driver was walking along the roadside. He looked worried because his car had a flat tire (瘪 胎). Though he had a spare tire (备 胎), he had nothing to work with. I decided to help him. I spent fifteen minutes changing the tire for him and let him sit in my air­conditioned car while I did it. I was hot and tired, but I really felt happy after an act of kindness to the man.

Helping others is how we get happiness. That’s true. We should lend a hand to others in trouble.

I AM THE PINE

“Look,” I said to my friend Mandy, holding up the bright-red paper. “There’s a five-day art camp this summer.”

Mandy took the paper and looked at it. “Tessa, you should go. You’re the artist. I am not.”

“You can learn with me.” I said in an encouraging voice. “I really didn’t want to go alone.”

Mandy smiled, “I tried, but my little brother thought the corns I painted were rockets.”

Later, I called my other friends, but none of them could go with me. Disappointed, I decided to go outside to draw the Westons’ pine tree. Drawing always made me feel better. On the way, I thought about the art camp and wished I felt a little braver. Mandy could make friends with others in 10 minutes, but I was embarrassed when there were no familiar faces around me. By the time I arrived there, I had made myself believe that I was happy to give up going to the camp.

I took out my pencils and started drawing the strong trunk of the pine. Once I started, I didn’t notice the fly buzzing around me. That’s why I jumped when Mr. Weston talked behind me, “You’ve done a great job showing the strength of that tree.” “Thanks.” I smiled. Mr. Weston continued, “I’ve planted pine trees before. You have to spread out the roots near the surface so the tree can get enough water and grow tall. If you plant the root ball too deep, the tree dries up and dies. Roots grow out, not down.”

Now I noticed the roots all around the tree. I’d never realized how far a tree’s roots stretched（延伸） outward. It made me think about the art camp and my own roots. I was planting myself into one deep spot because it felt safer. If I wanted to grow, I had to start reaching out too.

That night, I made my final decision. I felt nervous but excited. “I am stretching my roots out into new earth so I can grow”, I thought. “I am the pine”.