April, a girl of six, and her brother, Jesse, lived in the city. On her seventh birthday, April' s mother gave her a puppy named Tiny as the present. The thrilled brother and sister couldn' t wait to walk the puppy and play with their new friend outside. In the big and busy city which they lived in, however, they could think of nowhere to go. They were deeply troubled and turned to their mother for help.
" The city owns the empty lot across the street, " said their mother, pointing to the piece of land. " Let' s ask the government if we could put a pocket park there. "
" What kind of pocket has a park?" Jesse was confused. He pulled a penny out of his pocket. " No park here, " he said.
" A pocket park is a small park, " their mother explained. April and Jesse thought a pocket park was a great idea.
In order for that to happen, their mother went on explaining;they would need a petition(请愿书) signed by all their neighbors, stating that they all wanted a pocket park. They would have to show it to the officials when they went to the city hall.
Having written the petition, their mother led April and Jesse to pay a door-to-door visit to the neighbors. Much to the pleasure of the trio, everyone was very enthusiastic about the idea. As a matter of fact, they had been harboring the idea for quite some time, and it was April' s family that took the first step. So they promised to make whatever contributions they could when the construction started.
With the signed petition in their hands, the mother took her kids to the city hall, where they showed the paper to the officials. The kids explained that their new friend Tiny desperately needed a playground, and that everybody in the neighborhood would benefit from it. They were very persuasive. Later, a worker gave their mother some forms to fill out. When everything was done, they were told to go home and wait for the news.
注意:续写词数应为150左右。
A few weeks later, they received a letter from the government.
The next day, the whole neighborhood met at the lot and the construction started.
I was a single mother in my 30s who lived down and out with my daughter Peggy in a small apartment, struggling hard to make ends meet.
One day, I headed to the downtown for an interview. I sat down in the streetcar, and there against the seat was a beautiful silk umbrella with a silver handle decorated with gold scrolls, among which there was a name carved.
On impulse(冲动) I determined to find the owner myself. I got off the streetcar in the heavy rain and thankfully opened the umbrella to protect myself. Then I searched a telephone book for the name, I found it immediately and called it, waiting patiently, and then a lady answered.
" Yes, " she said in surprise, with extreme excitement. " It was my umbrella which had been stolen more than a year before. "
So appealing was her pleasure that I forgot I was looking for a job and went directly to her small house. She took the umbrella, with teary eyes, explaining with choking voice that the umbrella was given by her parents, now dead. Her happiness at retrieving(找回) this special possession was such that to have accepted her reward would have spoiled something, so I refused her offer and left.
The following months were hard. I could only obtain temporary employment, for a small salary. What was worse, I had just lost my last job before Christmas, with only fifteen dollars left. Unless a miracle happened, I would be homeless in January, hungry and jobless. I had prayed steadily for weeks, and there had been no answer but this coldness and darkness.
The air was full of Christmas merriment, with the bells ringing and children shouting in the bitter dusk of the evening. But there should be no Christmas for me, I knew, no gifts, no remembrance whatsoever.
Thinking of this, I couldn' t control my tears on my way home, but I managed a smile so I could greet my little daughter. She opened the door for me and threw herself in my arms, screaming joyously and demanding desirably for her Christmas gift. There I stood, frozen, overwhelmed by misery.
注意:续写词数应为150左右。
Suddenly, the doorbell rang and Peggy rushed to answer it, calling that it must be Santa Claus.
Suddenly, a note attached to one package caught my eyes