When the Spring Festival falls, red flowers bloom(盛开) on the windows of my home. Of course, these are not1flowers. But in the cold of2, these wonderful flowers bring warmth to us. They are made of paper by my3, who is now aged 70, with a few cuts, she 4a piece of paper into a beautiful work of art.
When my grandma was considered clumsy(笨拙的) in the 5. But on a cold winter night, she saw some beautiful red paper6 on her new neighbor's windows. She was so interested in it and decided to 7from her neighbor. Tons of paper was wasted, and her fingers were cut many times. But she8practicing. It took 10 years9my grandma could make paper art skillfully(娴熟地). The red flowers, blooming like hurning fire, light up her world. Now, everyone in the village10her.
My grandma's story has shown me what it takes to realize one's dream.
As a foreigner, it's hard for me to tell what Chinese people are like. But my1in Beijing said something.
A couple of weeks ago, I went to buy four big suitcases(行李箱) for travel.2I was going down the street, it suddenly rained, heavily. A stranger called me into his little shop. He 3 me a cup of tea and a chair. When the rain got 4, I thanked him and rushed to a5nearby to buy my suitcases.
If you've ever tried to push four big suitcases by yourself, you may understand my6. I looked silly, for the suitcases were dancing wildly across the floor. Then I got a7on the shoulder. It was the seller. He signed that I should wait. A few minutes later, he8in a car, and put the suitcases inside. Then we went driving9along the road to my home. I offered him some money, but he10. In broken English he said, “Feel good…help you.”
Now, you can see Chinese people are always ready to help you.
A: Hi, Alice.
B: Yeah, I'd like to do some traveling.
A:
B: Not yet.
A: Do you want to travel in big cities?
B:
A: How about Huangshan Mountain?
B:
A: Sure!
A: Right. You can see In China, it's considered to be the king of all the mountains.
B: special pines(松树), rocks and clouds. You can enjoy hot springs as well.
B: Great! Thank you.
A. Glad to help you. B. What else can we enjoy? C. Is it worth traveling there? D. Have you decided where to go? E. Then it must have something special. F. I don't think it fun to travel in big cities. G. Do you have any plan for the summer holiday? |
During ancient times, children didn't have much to enjoy themselves. However, they came up with interesting games to play in their childhood.
Kicking stone balls During the Qing Dynasty, kicking a stone ball around was a popular game in the northern part of China, and it was often played in winter to keep warm. |
Playing hide-and-seek Hide-and-seek is a traditional game for children, popular around the nation. There are two ways to play: covering a child's eyes while other kids run around to tease(戏弄) him or, more commonly, others hide and one child must try to find them. |
Flying kites Kites have quite a long history. The earliest kites were made of wood, instead of paper. The three most famous kites are the Beijing kite, Tianjin kite and Weifang kite. Each has its own feature. For example, the bird-shaped kite with long wings is a special kind of the Beijing kite. |
Watching shadow plays(皮影戏) The closest thing to watching a film during ancient times was going to see a shadow play. The artists control puppets(木偶) behind the screen and tell stories to the music. |
Job interviews can be very different from country. An interviewer's “body language” and questions, and the form of an interview are not the same around the world.
If you're at a job interview in Japan, don't look directly into the eyes of the interviewer. It is considered impolite. But if you're at an interview in the US, you should make eye contact(交流) with the interviewer. If you don't, the interviewer may think you are not sure about your ability.
In the US and some other countries, interviewers aren't supposed to ask questions about family and personal information. In most countries, however, personal questions are very common during job interviews.
In Germany, your interview might begin with a very short conversation followed by a formal(正式的) interview. In Mexico and many other countries, the whole interview might not be formal.
It's a cold, grey Sunday afternoon in March. The British are all working in their gardens. They're digging, cutting leaves and planting new seeds(种子). By summer, their gardens will the full of bright colours.
The British love their gardens. A British newspaper recently asked people for their opinions about them. Around 70% of the people felt it was important to spend time in the garden, and over 50% of these described gardening as the most enjoyable thing they ever did.
Only one in ten houses in Britain do not have a garden. People who live in houses without gardens often rent(租用) land from the government.
At first, only very rich people had gardens. You can still see the gardens around houses with a long history, such as Chatsworth House or Castle Howard. In the early twentieth century, however, gardening became a hobby. People bought different kinds of seeds and plants for their gardens. Although roses, sunflowers and tomatoes are often grown in British gardens, they originally(起初) grew wild in other countries.
Every year, there are competitions for the largest vegetables, but don't expect to win: Britain's biggest carrot is almost six meters long.
Mr. Beynolds, my teacher, handed us a list of thoughts, and asked us to write a paper on one of those thoughts. I chose the topic “I wonder why things are the way they are.”
I wrote down all the questions that puzzled(困扰) me about life. I realized that many of them were hard to answer, and perhaps others could not be answered at all. When I handed in my paper, I was afraid that I might fail because I did not answer the questions.
The next day, Mr. Reynolds handed me the paper and asked me to read it for the class. The other students became quiet as I began to read my story:
Mum, why are the roses red? Why is the grass green and the sky blue? Why do I have to graduate(毕业)? Why do I have to grow up? Why do I have to be called “Grandma” on day? ...
Dad, why can't I stay out until 12:00? Why do I miss my old friends? Why do I miss being at home? Why do you love me so much? ...
Mum, Dad, why did you have to leave me? I need you.
At the end of my story, I looked at Mr. Reynolds, and I saw a tear slowly coming down his face. Then I realized that life is not built on the answers we receive, but on the questions we asks.
