A gift in a wrong place brings unexpected(出人意料的) happiness.
Last year I came to my new neighborhood, I had a good time meeting a few neighbors. They seem to be quite 1 people. For Christmas, I thought I would do something nice for each of the neighbors that I know. I sat down and 2 . There were nine neighbors, and I also knew which houses they lived in.
However,I decided to 3 one more person to my list(清单), the lady I met every morning walking to work as I drove down the street. She always gave me a sweet smile and a hearty wave(挥手), 4 I had no idea which house she lived in.
My gift idea was to make small 5 baskets and leave them on each of my neighbor's front porches(门廊)the night of Christmas Eve. I kept the last one for the friendly lady,because I was still not sure where she lived — 6 the house where I met her each morning. Finally I decided to put it there. My neighbors really enjoyed the baskets and a couple even came by to 7 me.
This morning on my way to work, I noticed a thank-you card in the mailbox(邮筒). I opened it and read the 8 .
The card said, "Thank you for those lovely apples and strawberries you left on the porch of Tod. He 9 on January 19,but he never stopped talking about how nice you were. Because someone 10 him in his time of illness. He really enjoyed it. "
I was very 11 . I didn't know who Tod was or that he had been badly 12 . I had left that nice lady's basket on Tod's porch by mistake. I believe that Tod never expected(料想) to have that basket. I feel 13 that the nice lady did not get a basket from me this Christmas,but I believe that if she knew what had happened, she would 14 me.
I feel lucky to have helped Tod be more cheerful in his last days. This just makes me further believe that sometimes 15 in life are beautiful.
A Day at the Nature Center
Emma stared(凝视) sadly out of the window of the bus. Only 50 miles outside town was the farm. She thought about the farm all the time, especially the animals.
When her family sold the farm and moved to nearby town, Emma was excited. But when she got to the new school, she felt very lonely.
With a sigh(叹气), Emma turned her attention back to the present. The bus came to a stop. "Welcome to the Leinweber Nature Center," her teacher said. "A guide will give us a presentation about animals, and then you'll help to feed the baby squirrels, now, I want everyone to find a partner."
Emma didn't have any friends yet—who would be her partner? Emma got close to Julia, a talkative and outgoing girl. "Could I be your partner?" Emma asked uncertainly.
"Sure," said Julia warmly.
Together, the girls walked into the center. After the presentation, a keeper showed them how to hold the bottle of milk for baby squirrels. Then the girls started to feed their own baby squirrels.
After the babies finished eating, the keeper asked, "Would you like to help feed the adult squirrels, too?"
Emma was quick to volunteer, but when the keeper opened the first cage, the squirrel inside jumped out. Emma remained calm(镇静的), held out her hand, made quiet sounds, and then quickly got it.
"Wow!" Julia said. "You're always so quiet, I thought you were afraid of everything, but you were brave."
"I know that when animals are frightened or excited, you have to stay calm."
The keeper nodded in agreement and asked Emma, "Would you be interested in volunteering to help out with the animals at the center?"
"Interested? I would love to work here! What an opportunity!" Emma was excited.
That afternoon, in the bus on the way back to school, Emma sat next to Julia, her new friend. A rush of newfound happiness washed over her.
Mr. Clarke hated to do the housework. He wouldn't stay at home on weekends. As his wife always told him to do some washing or cleaning, or he had to cook for his family. So he always made some excuses(借口) on Friday evenings.
Recently Mr. Clarke was interested in playing cards, but he was afraid to let his wife know. So every Sunday afternoon he brought some fish home. It made his wife happy and she never asked where he spent his weekends.
One Saturday morning, Mr. Clarke left home at 7 o'clock. He took a bus and got off at a stop near a small town. His friends were waiting for him in a small hotel. They played cards there. Mr. Clarke didn't go home until 7 o'clock on Sunday evening. He went in the shop near the bus stop as usual. As soon as the shopkeeper saw him, the man said, "I'm sorry, Mr. Clarke. I have no fish today. What about some chicken legs?" "Don't be silly!" said Mr. Clarke, "I can't tell my wife that I have fished some chicken legs, can I?"
Nine-year-old Regina, from Scotland, has always loved taking photos. When she was just three, she picked up her father, Kevin's camera, and asked him how it worked. But rather than just being a curious (好奇的) child or a girl with an inability to leave anything alone, Regina is in fact a professional wedding (婚礼) photographer.
"Regina became interested in photography at a very young age, " her father, and fellow professional photographer, Kevin, tells Daily Mail Australia. "She first started asking questions about how to use my cameras. Regina has never been on a training course, " He goes on to explain that he has never forced his daughter to take photos like her dad does for his job. "I just answer questions when she asks them, and when she wants to do some shooting she can. Over the years she's tagged along to quite a lot of shoots, so her skills just grew through experience. "
These skills reached the highest point on April 15 this year, when Regina shot over 400 photos at her first wedding. "She completely loved it, " Kevin said. "She is quite a quiet girl, but when she has that camera in her hands she is super-confident, and had no problem dealing with people or setting up shots throughout the day. Regina's next wedding is on July 1 and several of my other brides have called to ask if she can come along as they love her work. I honestly don't have words to describe how proud I feel, " he concluded.
"In the past, Regina said a few times that she just wants to keep it as a hobby, " said Kevin. "But over the past few days, upon seeing some of the response her work has got and some of the nice messages she's received from people all over the world, she has said she might like doing this when she's older. "
①Eating out is such a pleasure-the food, the wine, the joy of having it all brought to you by someone else-that it's a pity to ruin(毁掉) the experience by sharing it with other people.
②Well, I do like visiting restaurants with friends. But dining out alone has its own very special advantages. For a start you can give all your attention to the food. There's nothing worse than having to show your own opinion , and listen to everyone else's opinions, when all you really want is to enjoy the dinner.
③A second great thing about eating out alone is the chance to connect food with one of life's other true pleasures: reading. You have to plan this carefully: Indian or Chinese restaurants are the best-you need food you can eat with just one hand, leaving the other free to hold your reading material.
④But perhaps the biggest advantage of a table for one is the chance it gives to people-watching. Restaurants and the different reasons for visiting them-first date, business meeting, night out with friends-produce surprising and different human behavior. Will the man selling his business idea get any joy out of his possible investor(投资者)?Will the married couple think of anything to say to each other before their main courses arrive?
⑤This "human zoo" part of eating out alone is one of the reasons I hate to be famous:everyone would be watching you, so you wouldn't be able to watch them. The snooker player Steve Davis says this was one of the strangest results of becoming well-known: he got very worried about his eating in public, almost to the level of doubting whether he was "doing it right. "
⑥So next time you're considering your eating out choices, remember the advice of the businessman Nubar Gulbenkian: "The best number for a dinner party is two-myself and a super head waiter. "
at least across from according to once a year millions of |
—.
—Oh, it's over there, the white building.
Nowadays many people leave the countryside to search for work in the cities. But some people still live in their h34 (家乡). Mr. Zhang is among them. He′s lived in his village since last century. He is working in a crayon factory close to a railway station. As for a crayon m35 (生产者), Mr. Zhang is a truthful man and saves every cent in his life.
Last week, Mr. Zhang held a y36 (院子) sale. He cleared out many old things from his bedroom, such as soft toys, a scarf, a bread maker, a toy bear, a board game and many old things he o37 (拥有). To be honest, Mr. Zhang felt sad to p38 (分开) with certain old things. He r39 (看待) them as his favorite. He thought they could give him some sweet m40 (回忆), especially his childhood. So he checked them out again and again before selling.
According to him, his home is just o41 (在……对面) a junior high school. It′s a s42 (羞耻) that he couldn′t read or count because he had no money to go to school when he was young. So he is c43 (考虑) holding the yard sale and donating all the money to the school.
What a kind man he is!
Dear Miss Yang,
I'd like to thank you for 44 (raise) money for Animal Helpers, a group that was set up 45 (help) disabled people. You helped to make it possible for me to have "Happy". "Happy" makes a big difference to my life. Let me 46 (tell) you my story.
"Happy" is a special 47 (train) monkey for the disabled. It is a good name for him. I 48 (feel) very happy to have him. Being unable to use my hands easily is the main 49 (difficult) I face. "Happy" helps me to do many things, like opening and shutting the doors, 50 (carry) things and even answering the telephone. He 51 (cheer) me up a lot.
I'll send you a photo of him, and I could 52 (show) you how he helps me these days. I thank you again for supporting "Animal Helpers" and for 53 (change) my life.
Yours,
Leah White
Last weekend, we raised money for Sunny House Old People's Home. We all had a great time there. Here are what we did last weekend.
On Saturday, some volunteers went to Sunny House Old People's Home in the morning. Fiona and Tom played chess with some of the old people. In the afternoon, David, John and Alice made tea for everyone. Sam played the piano and Sally washed the ladies' hair. In the evening, we had a concert for the old people. It made them very happy. Grace played the violin and Nick sang songs. Some of the old people sang along with them.
On Sunday, we held a fair(展销会) on the school playground. In the morning, we prepared(准备) food, drinks, and some old books for the fair. Nancy and Ann helped one another to buy fruit for their stall(摊位). Leo and Philip helped one another to collect old books for their stall. Amy and Tom helped each other to make fruit salad and fruit juice. In the afternoon, Nancy sold fruit salad and Ann sold fruit juice. Leo and Philip sold the old books.
Many students and their families came to the fair and donated money. We have raised a lot of money for Sunny House Old People's Home.
Our activities on the54. |
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55 we did last Saturday in Sunny House Old People's Home |
Some 56 did many things for the old people, such as playing chess with them, making tea for them and washing hair for ladies, which made them happy. |
Things we did last Sunday on the school 57 |
We held a fair to 58 some food and some old books to raise money for the old people in Sunny House Old People's Home. |