I used to think that I had to pretend to know what I was doing, that I had everything under control and that I was in charge. It was that kind of thinking that got me into trouble in the first place. Now, I was finding that the easiest way to gain other people' s respect was to admit to them what I did not know. I was shocked. It was my not knowing, my humility, and my willingness to ask others for help that was making me win in my new endeavor.
I finished my term as president. In the end, the team that I had put together raised over 125, 000 and we built a coffeehouse that is still there eleven years later.
On graduation day, as I grabbed my diploma and walked past my college president, he whispered, "Son, what doesn' t kill you makes you stronger."
我简直不敢相信自己的眼睛。一走进校园，我就看见海报贴得到处都是，上面潦草地写着：“傻瓜下台！”我是学生会主席，同学们却要我下台。同学们陆陆续续地到了学校， 我看见他们围到海报旁，然后向我望过来。当时，我感觉自己的身心和人格就好像被置于奶酪擦上来回地磨着，我觉得自己都要崩溃了，然而仍拼命地试图保持镇静。
当被同学们选举为学生会主席时，校领导在选举活动上对我选举成功表示祝贺，并说这是学校有史以来最精彩的一次竞选活动。校园草地上的扔飞盘活动是我政治生涯的开端，我将飞盘扔给一些不认识的人，然后，他们又把飞盘抛给他们不认识的人。没过多久，我们形成了一个小团体，每天的午餐时间聚在一起扔飞盘。
一天，在扔飞盘的时候，大家自发组织去学校附近爬山。在到达山顶的时候，我们又唱又跳，讲着笑话，就好像在夏令营一般。那实在是太有趣、太令人兴奋了。我们吹着凉爽的山风，就像小孩子一样嬉笑打闹，大家一致同意下周再来。“带上一个朋友”成了我们的口号。
于是，在接下来的一周玩扔飞盘时，我们向不认识的人抛去，然后跑过去邀请他们一起爬山。我们会对他们说：“我们保证每次都能爬到顶峰。”
起初，这个爬山团体的人数并不多，然而，随着消息的传开，越来越多的人参与到这项活动中。一天，我在学校里遇见一个坐轮椅的女子，并与她聊了起来。她叫格雷斯，我问她是否到过那座山的山顶，她说没有。我告诉她，如果她愿意的话，我和我的朋友们会带她一起去爬山，格雷斯接受了邀请。在下一次爬山的时候，我们轮流把她抬上了山顶，整整走了1.7英里的路。
这是我在大学里做过的最神奇、意义最深远的一件事。后来的每个星期四，包括格雷斯在内，有75个人一起爬山。我们都觉得自己是某个更加强大的事物的一部分，我们在组建一个团队，那感觉棒极了。
学生会的竞选活动快要开始了，一起爬山的朋友鼓励我竞选学生会主席，于是，我参加了竞选。我拥有一个75人的竞选团队，我明白这能够让自己不同凡响。我赢得了竞选，这个结果一点儿也不令人感到意外。
我在学生联合办公室的外面挂了一块牌子，上面写着：“在新的管理之下！”这就是我担任学生会主席所做的第一件事。可以毫不夸张地说，对于所取得的成就，我感到无比自豪。青少年时期，我在校长办公室度过了大部分时光，因为我总是调皮捣蛋。这次居然得到了同龄人真诚的尊敬和欣赏，这真是少有的事情。
人们说，绝对的权力一定会滋生腐败，这句话放在我的身上确实没错。我的脑子中想的全是权力，自负、自大和傲慢让我失去了控制。我开始没有礼貌地对别人指手画脚，我认为自己的决定才是最明智的，我命令所有的人都要听从我的安排。朋友们和拥护者努力地劝说我，他们说我变了，说我滥用权力。然而，我一句也听不进去。
没过多久，当初的拥护者开始与我作对。可是，我仍然执迷不悟。对于权力，我是如此痴迷。与学生会女副主席的公开冲突打开了其他人不满的闸门，后来发展成为一场毁灭性的战争。最初是一场奇妙而丰富的人生骗历，或者这仅仅是我自己的想法，突然之间却变成了一场梦魇。没过多久，“傻瓜下台！”的海报就被贴满了整个校园。
当我意识到自己做错了的时候，已骗太晚了。我的整个世界崩溃了，那种痛苦和伤心是我一生中从未骗历过的。直到自负占了上风并毁掉一切之前，我还是校园里最受欢迎、最有号召力、最有影响的一个人。
我的一位朋友曾骗说过：“当人窥探深渊而没有什么东西回视过来的时候，人才会发现自己的真实人格。”我变成了一个空虚、情感贫乏的人。当时，我已骗掉进了谷底，除了向上攀登之外，我无路可走。我开始改变自己，无论怎样，我的几个铁杆拥护者没有放弃我，我向他们道歉，并就我犯下的一切错误请求他们画谅。他们接受了我的道歉。我告诉他们，对于这次的“罢免风波”，我要作出积极的努力，我不愿意就这样被击倒，向失败屈服。
整个校园一片喧嚣。每日的校报上都会刊登致编画的一篇文章或者一封信，说我是一个大笨蛋。因此，我又回到了校园的那片草地，向同学们表明那些说法是对的，承认自己曾骗被权力冲昏了头脑，滥用职权。我向同学们保证，我已骗接受了教训，并说我还没有做完服务工作。我想要修建一座校园咖啡馆，这将会是这个州的第二座。我打算在美术区附近修建咖啡馆，戏剧系的同学可以在那里演独幕剧，音乐系的同学可以在那里举办音乐会，语言系的同学可以在那里朗诵诗歌。我默默地祈祷：我还有工作没有做，请不要罢免我。
对于是否会被罢免，我没有把握，然而不知是魔法还是神灵助了我一臂之力。夏天来临了，同学们停止了对我的指责，我仍旧担任学生会主席。
在接下来的那个学期，我获得了一个重新开始的机会。当动手筹建咖啡馆时，我比以前表现得更加谦虚。我想证明给全校和自己看，我是一个称职的学生会主席。我没有修建咖啡馆的骗验，事实上也不知道如何去做，因此，我请求大家的帮助。同学、指导老师、校画事会和校长，我都一一请教过了。
我一度认为，我必须假装明白我所做的事，一切都必须在我的控制和管理之下。我之所以在一开始就陷入困境，就是因为这些错误的想法。而今，我发现向别人承认自己有不懂的事情，才是赢得别人尊重的最容易的办法。这让我感到非常惊奇。我重新开始的努力取得了成功，这都是我有所不知、谦虚和主动向别人请求帮助的结果。
直到任期结束，我一直担任学生会主席一职。我组建的团队最终筹集了超过12.5万美元的资金，我们修建的咖啡馆11年之后仍然伫立在校园之中。
毕业典礼那天，当我拿着毕业证书从校长身旁走过时，他低声对我说：“孩子，那些挫折没有击倒你，反而让你变得更加坚强了。”
特殊的同学
Never too Old to Live Your Dream
丹·克à克 / Dan Clark
The first day of school our professor introduced himself to our chemistry class and challenged us to get to know someone we didn' t already know. I stood up to look around when a gentle hand touched my shoulder. I turned around to find a wrinkled, little old lady beaming up at me with a smile that lit up her entire being.
She said, "Hi, handsome. My name is Rose. I' m eighty-seven years old. Can I give you a hug?"
I laughed and enthusiastically responded, "Of course you may！" And she gave me a giant squeeze.
"Why are you in college at such a young, innocent age?" I asked.
She jokingly replied, "I' m here to meet a rich husband, get married, have a couple children, and then retire and travel."
"No seriously," I asked. I was curious what may have motivated her to be taking on this challenge at her age.
"I always dreamed of having a college education and now I' m getting one！" she told me.
After class we walked to the student union building and shared a chocolate milkshake. We became instant friends. Every day for the next three months we would leave class together and talk nonstop. I was always mesmerized listening to this"time machine" as she shared her wisdom and experience with me.
Over the course of the school year, Rose became a campus icon and easily made friends wherever she went. She loved to dress up and she reveled in the attention bestowed upon her from the other students. She was living it up.
At the end of the semester we invited Rose to speak at our football banquet and I' ll never forget what she taught us. She was introduced and stepped up to the podium. As she began to deliver her prepared speech, she dropped her three-by-five cards on the floor. Frustrated and a bit embarrassed， she leaned into the microphone and simply said, "I' m sorry I' m so jittery. I gave up beer for Lent and this whiskey is killing me！ I' ll never get my speech back in order so let me just tell you what I know." As we laughed, she cleared her throat and began:
"We do not stop playing because we are old; we grow old because we stop playing. There are only four secrets to staying young, being happy and achieving success.
"You have to laugh and find humor each and every day.
"You' ve got to have a dream. When you lose your dreams, you die.