My parents influenced us with the concepts of family,faith and patriotism when I was
young.Even though we struggled to make ends meet,they stressed how fortunate we were
to live in a great country with limitless opportunities.
     I got my first real job when I was ten.My dad,Benjamin,injured his back working in a
cardboardbox factory and was retrained as a hairstylist.He rented space in a little mall
 and gave his shop the fancy name of Mr Ben's Coiffure.
     The owner of the shopping center gave Dad a discount on his rent for cleaning the
parking lot three nights a week,which meant getting up at 3 am.To pick up trash,Dad
used a little machine that looked like a lawn mower.Mom and I emptied garbage cans
and picked up litter by hand.It took two to three hours to clean the lot.I'd sleep in the
car on the way home.
     I did this for two years,but the lessons I learned have lasted a lifetime.I acquired
discipline and a strong work morality,and learned at an early age the importance of
balancing life's competing interests-in my case,school,homework and a job.This really
helped during my senior year of high school,when I worked 40 hours a week flipping
hamburgers at a fastfood joint while taking a full load of collegeprep courses.
     The_hard_work_paid_off.I attended the US Military Academy and went on to
receive graduate degrees in law and business from Harvard.Later,I joined a big Los
Angeles law firm and was elected to the California state assembly.In these jobs and in
everything else I've done,I have never forgotten those nights in the parking lot.The
experience taught me that there is dignity in all work and that if people are working to
provide for themselves and their families,that is something we should honor.

A．he is lucky to have many chances to get a job
B．it is difficult to find a job to make ends meet
C．his parents are full of complaint about their life
D．it is not acceptable to live in such bad conditions