Last week, I finally managed to ask my parents to buy me a new football shirt for the school match. I was very excited and wore it to the training before the match, but I wished I hadn't done that! My new shirt was torn (破损的) after the training and only a tailor (裁缝) could help!
As I walked home worriedly, I saw a shop sign: All Kinds of Repairs and Services! I went inside at once. I looked around the shop and saw broken toys, broken chairs … I wondered if I was in the wrong place. Just at that moment, a man with white hair came up to me and said cheerfully, "Welcome! This is a repair shop and I can repair everything!"
"But … what I need is a tailor to deal with my football shirt."
"You've come to the right place. I've been waiting a long, long time to repair a football shirt."
"Really?" I held the shirt in my hands.
To my surprise, he took the shirt from me, put on glasses and sat down on the sofa with my shirt in his hands. " I guess you are a striker (前锋), " he smiled warmly. How could he know? The man gave me a wink and said calmly," See that picture on the wall? That was me 30 years ago. "
I couldn't believe my eyes! He was Orhan, the famous footballer who was on the city team years ago! I told him I was playing for the school team and I had been his fan for years. I told him everything, my dream, my practice and even my dad's words. " Dad thinks I should be an engineer or a doctor. " I lowered my head.
"Follow your dream, choose a job you love and carry on. " The man smiled at me with his blue eyes. He patted (轻拍) me on the shoulder and put the shirt he had repaired in my bag.
Today I have become a footballer and I still keep that shirt in my closet.
My Olympic volunteering journey started last September. I was excited as I was myself a sports fan and my home country has not hosted a competition like this. It was a great chance for me to both watch and serve the Olympics.
After getting trained through the Internet and spending two weeks in quarantine（隔离）, I began to volunteer inside the Wukesong Sports Center. The Center hosted ice hockey games for both men's and women's teams. My job was to guide the audience（观众）to their seats and answer their questions. I was wild with joy to be present and watch my first-ever Olympic games live, on the ice. All the games were interesting, and I watched them whenever my volunteering duties would allow.
In our free time, we had pleasant conversations. It was the best chance for us foreign students to learn more about the Chinese New Year celebrations, and this year, to celebrate it together with bur Chinese friends. It was really a big festival. We had special Chinese dishes like dumplings, fish and spring rolls. I also tried to write Chinese characters.
I decided to make the most of the chance and introduce my African and Rwandan customs to other volunteers. I showed to them the real Africa that they had never seen on TV before. From geography to social life, I made them understand more about Africa by giving examples of my hometown. It was a great platform（平台）for us young people to share both our culture and futures.
As an international volunteer for Beijing 2022, I was given a special experience to help others and more importantly, to learn about the spirit of the Winter Olympic Games. I'll never forget it.
Katie's father was at the airport waiting to meet her. She was going to spend a week with him, and usually she really enjoyed their visits. But this time was different: her dad was getting married, and Katie wasn't at all sure if she liked the idea.
On the way from the airport to her dad's house, Katie almost kept silent. Finally, her dad asked, "Do you want to talk about it, Katie?"
For a moment, Katie sat silently. Then she said, "I'm sorry, Dad. I just don't think I want you to get married."
"I thought you liked Celia," Katie's dad said.
"I do like Celia," Katie answered, "It's not that at all. I just don't know if I want her for a stepmother — that's totally different."
"It really is different," her dad agreed, "But I hope you'll get to like having Celia as a stepmother. She likes you a lot, you know, and I'll bet Megan will, too."
"Who's Megan?" Katie asked. She hadn't heard that name before.
"She's Celia's daughter," her dad replied, "She is your age, actually, so maybe you'll even have something in common."
After dropping Katie's luggage (行李) off at her dad's house, Katie and her dad went to meet Celia and Megan at a restaurant. They were going to have dinner together. When they got to the restaurant, Celia and Megan were already there. Celia introduced Megan to Katie. At first, Katie didn't know what to say to Megan. But then, Megan said, "Mom, don't forget I have swimming practice tomorrow."
"You like to swim?" Katie asked hopefully.
"I love it—I'm on our school swimming team," Megan answered excitedly, "Do you swim?"
"I love to swim, too" Katie said with a smile. Maybe having Celia as a stepmother wasn't going to be so bad after all.
Hearing that Erin was coming for the silver wedding party, Mr. Joe and his wife got worried.
"Erin the thief!" said Mr. Joe to his wife. "Anything smaller than a table, and more expensive than paper, would finally be found in his bag."
"He's sure to come for the presents we've received," added Mrs. Joe. "We can't hide them all. How can we deal with him?"
"We must keep an eye on him," said Mr. Joe.
As soon as Erin arrived, the couple started to keep a sharp lookout. After dinner, the three talked nervously from one boring topic to another in the living room.
Suddenly, Erin asked, "You've got so many presents. Can I take a look at those pretty silk scarves?"
"Only it's annoying to have seven of them," Mr. Joe blurted.
Erin studied the scarves carefully, lost in thought. The couple got more anxious.
After Erin went for sleep, Mrs. Joe counted the presents immediately. "I'm not sure if we've lost anything," she doubted.
"He must have taken something," claimed Mr. Joe angrily. "The awful pig hasn't brought us a present. How dare he take anything from us?"
"Let's go through his bag late at night," Mrs. Joe suggested.
The search was a short one. They found a silk scarf carefully placed in the bag. Mrs. Joe quickly picked it up and put it into her pocket.
The next morning, Erin was late for breakfast. "Something's been taken out of my bag," he said. "It was a present I had prepared for your silver wedding, only it happened to be a scarf. You seemed annoyed at having so many, so I thought I'd get it changed, but now it's gone."
The couple turned deadly pale. Mrs. Joe ran to the living room and surprisingly, she found their seven scarves were still there, ▲ .
Mrs. Joe returned with Erin's scarf. "This one is yours," she went on. "It's an unpleasant thing to say… Actually, we took it last night. It all started because there were some unkind words about you. It's really shameful to go through your bag without asking."
Erin's eyes widened as he was listening. Mrs. Joe handed the scarf to Erin.
"Please take your scarf back. It's unfair to you. Really hope you can forgive us for everything we did," Mr. Joe said.
Erin refused the scarf with a smile. "It has always been for you. Please keep it. Just want you to know that people change."
Just a few days after his 18th birthday, Beijing 2022 gold medal winner Su Yiming received a surprise gift—a letter from Xi Jinping, President of the People's Republic of China.
In the letter, Xi expressed his congratulations to Su and other sportsmen in ice and snow sports for their great achievements at the Beijing Winter Olympics, hoping what they had achieved would encourage young Chinese to aim （立目标）high.
When Su first stepped onto a snowboard at the age of four, a future as a world-class sportsman seemed to be "a dream too big" for him. Little did he know that he would not only compete for his country but also take home gold. With the great excitement of winning an Olympic gold medal still fresh in his mind, Su wrote a letter to the president, telling him how lucky he felt to have made his dream come true.
Su still remembers what Xi wrote in the reply, "The new era is the time for young people to realize their dreams. "
"I have always kept those words in my mind, " Su said.
"When I made up my mind to be a professional （职业的） snowboarder. I know there is a big gap between my performance （表现）and that of the top sportsmen in the world. But I have been working hard to realize my dream. Now my story shows the fact that hard will pay off. "Su said.
Su believes the sky is the limit. "Find the thing you love, believe in yourself and do your very best. Finally, your dream will come true."
Now Su has his strong wish to win all the competitions in his sporting field.
When she was 14 years old, Remya Jose's life was turned upside down by a family crisis (危机).
Remya, who lived in a small village in India, learned that her mother was ill and her father would have to spend his time caring for her. As a result, she and her twin sister had to do most of the housework 一including washing clothes. To make things even more difficult, the Jose family couldn't afford an electric washing machine. Instead, the two girls would have to do the washing all by hand in the local river, and then carefully carry everything back to their home—a task that took several hours.
Being a good student interested in engineering, Remya wanted to make a washing machine which could be used without electricity. She started studying electric washers to learn how they worked. Remya then designed(设计) a machine that used bicycle pedals(踏板) and chain. To find those items, she and her father went to a local auto shop. Workers there not only gave her the parts, they helped her make the machine!
Here's how the machine works: Remya used a cylinder (圆筒) to hold the clothes and put it in a cube (立方体). Next, she connected the bicycle pedals and the chain to the cylinder. As Remya pushed the pedals with her legs, the cylinder cleaned the clothes just like a regular washing machine.
Remya's invention worked! She had created her own human-powered washing machine—and now a task that used to take several hours took only 30 minutes. Remya's washing machine was chosen from among 25 ,000 entries as India's best innovation! She was given India's National Award and honored by the nation's former president.
The story of this young woman's creative invention spread around the world.
"Remya Jose made a difference," said Jeanine Thomas of The Borden Project, "Her invention saves time and money for the world's poor. Her story shows that with creativity, one individual can improve the lives of many."
①getting bicycle pedals and chains
②making a human-powered washer
③testing her machine by washing clothes
①studying how washing machines worked
Dear Erik,
Surprise! I believe you didn't expect a note from your mom in your lunchbox! How is your school day so far? I hope it is going well. You always do your best. I am proud of you! Because I had to leave so early this morning, I wrote this note last night and put it into your lunchbox to wish you well on your speech today. With all of your amazing research, writing, and practice, you are going to do great!
I know that you get a little nervous talking in front of large groups — everybody does. But, just remember what you practiced and you just might forget about being nervous.
Here are just a few things to remember when you are giving a speech:
1. Make eye contact(眼神交流) with your classmates.
2. Speak clearly and slowly.
3. Look at your notecards only when you have to.
4. Enjoy yourself! Once you are in front of the class, pretend (假装) that you are a
5. famous expert on your topic and everyone is listening carefully to your EVERY word. (I do that sometimes!)
Well, that's all for now. I am thinking of you today and I know you will do great. Do your best and be brave like George Washington. He was an excellent choice for your speech.
Good luck Erik!
Maybe we can go out for ice cream after school!
Love,
Mom
