It was a dark and stormy night. The ferocious wind shook the windows wildly, as though someone outside were beating on the glass. It was also New Year's Eve. We were having our annual party and had a house full of people just starting to celebrate.

Suddenly, we heard loud explosions. Looking outside and up into the hills, we saw sparks(火花) flying from electrical transformers(变压器). One area after another went dark up in those hills. Then there was the loudest explosion of them all and our house went dark too. I tried to find every candle we had and lit them. The candles made everything look lovely. But we had problems. We had fifteen people standing around and we still had to cook dinner. How would we do that without electricity?

The barbecue! Why not cook on the barbecue? We men went outside, some holding flashlights and others cooking. We did a wonderful job. The women stayed inside and got the salads ready. Everything was delicious. There were still a few hours to go before the beginning of the new year, so we all sat around the dining room table and sang up until a few minutes before midnight. We couldn't watch the ball drop in Times Square on television but that wouldn't stop us from celebrating. I stood on a chair and, with the help of someone's watch to tell us the time, we all counted down and I dropped a tennis ball! We all screamed Happy New Year. We didn't need electricity for that!

Nowadays, we still get together with the same group to celebrate the New Year and we still talk about that special night. I don't think we have ever laughed so much as we did on that New Year's Eve.

Growing up poor and having parents who didn't receive a good education, I often struggled at school. What was worse, my parents often moved to different places. They likely did not realize the damaging effects it had on my learning as they moved from apartment to apartment, year after year.

I attended seven different schools from kindergarten through the 8th grade. With a fragmented (片段的) education, I entered high school, not doing well in literacy and math. But it was not until I attended a major public state university that I really understood the academic gaps that I had in comparison to my peers. I had to work particularly hard to not only understand the textbooks and lectures, but also catch myself up in basic skills of writing and comprehension. But I wasn't the one to forgo. No matter how hard it was, I persisted.

Today, I have many degrees, three of them are Master's Degrees and I am currently in my second year of studying for my doctorate in Educational Leadership.

I share my story for various reasons, but mainly due to the hope that another young child, possibly growing up poor, can realize that an education is the ticket to the quality of life. It can happen for that child. One can be successful! One can overcome all obstacles.

Some days will be extremely tougher than others and someday those accomplishments will glow (发光), but giving up is not a wise choice. It certainly won't lead to the light at the end of the tunnel. Therefore, we should take advantage of the challenges and difficulties to make us stronger and reflect on how to beat all the differences. We should foster our thinking that current challenges have been designed to build upon our strength, not tear us down. In this way, we can fulfill our long-term goals.

Today, the first thing you see when you drive into the small town of McFarland, California, is a welcome poster. "Home of the State Champions, it says proudly. Written across the bottom are the names of the members of the running teams that have brought McFarland nine state championships over the past twenty years. Today, this little farming town is the "home of champions", but things weren't always like this.

It all began with a group of seven young men, who were McFarland High Schools first running team. They were called "cloud runners" because it looked like they were floating on a brown cloud of dust as they carved paths through the surrounding fields.

They weren't a very good team. But the turning point came one hot summer afternoon when the young men were doing hill practice. As there were no hills in McFarland, their coach, Jim White, made them run up and down large piles of nut shells covered in white plastic sheets.

"Enough!" one of the young men cried. The sound of breaking shells could be heard as he beat his fists on the sheet. The plastic tore and a river of nut shells poured out. "Do you know what these are, Mr. White? They're almond shells. Do you know where they come from? My family has been working on farms picking almonds for forty years.

You and your family, living in your big comfortable home, eat these without giving a single thought to where they came from. And now you are making us run on them! I've had enough!"

"We're losers, Mr. White, not winners," another young man continued his face wet with tears and sweat. "Nothing has changed here for forty years and nothing's ever going to change! Running is for rich kids in private schools in the big city, not for us poor farm boys. We can't even afford real shoes for running. We're 'pickers'. I'm going home!"

Something in Jim White's heart changed that day. He went into the fields and worked with the 'pickers'. He bought running shoes for the boys. He spent evenings having dinner with the boys' families. His wife baked and sold cookies to raise money. One small act of kindness led to another. Other families began to take notice, and slowly, the entire town came to support Mr. White as he helped these young men change from farm workers to champions.