An old man lived with his little grandson. Every day the old man got up early to read books.His grandson wanted to be just like him and tried to copy him every 1 he could.
One day the grandson asked, “Grandpa, I want to read books as you do. But I don't understand it, and I always forget 2 I close the book. What good does 3 do?”
The grandfather quietly turned from putting 4 in the stove and replied, “Take this coal basket down to the river and bring me back a basket of water.”
The boy did as his grandpa said, but all the water leaked（漏）out before he got back home.
The grandfather laughed and said, “You'll have to walk faster next time.”
The next time the boy ran faster, but the basket was still empty before he 5 home. The boy said, “see, Grandpa, it's 6 to finish this task!”
“Is it no use?” the old man said. “ 7 the basket.”
The boy looked at the basket and for the first time realized that the basket was 8 . Instead of a dirty old coal basket, it was 9 inside and out.
“My child, that's what happens when you read the book. You might not understand or remember everything, but the 10 will change you inside and out. That is the work of reading in our lives.”
Do you know One Belt, One Road? We also call it the Modern Silk Road. And Zhang Qian was an early traveler of the Ancient Silk Road. He was probably the first 1 to bring back good information about the central Asian lands to China.
In 138 BC,Han Wudi sent Zhang Qian to the Yue-chi people to ask for their 2 against the Xiongnu who often infringed(侵犯）them.3,on the way to the Western Regions, he was caught by the Xiongnu people. Zhang had to stay with them 4 about 10 years before he got away. When Zhang finaly 5 the Yue-chi in the North India, he was 6 to find that they didn't want to fight against the Xiongnu people.
On 7 return journey, Zhang Qian and his men were 8 again. It was not until 125 BC that they returned to China.9 Zhang didn't finish his job, he learned a lot about the places, people, customs and cultures of the 36 kingdoms(王国）in the Western Regions.
Later Han Wudi sent Zhang to the West again. Zhang's journey to the West helped 10 international trade, especially in silk, between China and the West. That's the Ancient Silk Road.
10-year-old Penny goes back to her school to find a place for her dog Socks. The big door is 1. Penny walks around the school: there were doors at the 2. They are all locked. Then she sees a window. It is open. She 3 inside. She walks along the hallway between the classrooms. She can't put Socks inside a classroom.
Under the classrooms, Penny finds a store room. It is locked, too, and she doesn't have the 4. Penny puts Socks on the ground and he runs along the hallway. Penny runs after him. “Come here,” she says. Socks is not 5. He runs into the girls' changing room.
Suppose you find a bright yellow bike on a street corner in the city. You hop on(跨上)it and 1. But wait—isn't this stealing? No, it isn't. 2 shouts,“Stop! Thief!” That is 3 this free ride is just fine with the city.
You 4 find hundreds of free yellow bikes in some US cities. The idea began in Portland, Oregon, in 1994. People saw a need for 5 transportation, and they wanted to help 6 pollution. So, to get citizens(市民) 7 their cars and onto pollution-free bikes, they 8 the Yellow Bike Project.
The 9 bikes are painted bright yellow and placed throughout the city. People can hop on the yellow bike and ride to run errands(短程差事), to work 10 to school. Then, they leave the bike for the 11 rider. There have been times when bikes have been stolen, but most people 12 the rules, because they think it is not wise to 13 the bike that's already free.
Portland's 14 was quickly loved by a lot of people. Within two years of its starts, similar programs were 15 in cities in six other states.
Confucius lived in the Kingdom of Lu, part of today's Shandong Province. September 28th is his birthday. 1 he was born over 2,000 years ago, people still remember him on this day.
His childhood was sad. His father 2 when he was only 3 and he had to work to help his mother. But young Confucius didn't 3 studying. He visited many famous teachers and learned music, history, poetry and sports.
Later, he became a teacher and started the 4 private school in Chinese history. At that time, only children from rich families could go to school, but Confucius believed 5 should go to school if they wanted to learn. He had about 3,000 students in his lifetime.
Today, people still follow his 6. He told us that each person has something worthy to learn and teach. “When I am with three people, one of them must be 7 than me in some areas. I choose their good qualities（品质）and follow them. I take their bad qualities and change them in myself.”
He also taught us that thinking is very important in study. “All study but no thinking makes people puzzled（迷惑）. All thinking but no study makes people 8.”
Confucius is not only a great teacher but also a famous 9 with wise thoughts about the world and society. His most important teachings are about kindness and good manners. “A kind person should care for others. Be strict 10 yourself, but be kind to others.” He said.
My great-grand mother, Winifred Hastings, got rich in a mining（采矿）town out West. But her 1 didn't come from gold or silver, but from soup, steak, apple pie, and good coffee.
In the early 1900's, Winifred arrived in Silver City with her husband. But he caught a fever and died suddenly. With the little money she had, Winifred decided to open a practical restaurant to 2 all the hungry miners in town.
The restaurant had only wooden boxes for tables, but business was very good 3. The miners 4 that Winifred was a great cook, 5 they ate in her restaurant every day.
One time, Winifred had a small accident in the restaurant. A fire started in the kitchen and her customers had to put it out. The town mayor walked in 6 there was still a lot of smoke in the room. “Winifred,” he said. “What are you cooking back there?” Everybody 7.
In 1905, Winifred got married again and moved out of town. On her 8 day in Sliver City, a photographer took her picture. The picture is over my desk at home. It shows Winifred with about fifty miners standing in front of the restaurant. At the top of the photo 9 says: TO WINIFRED THE BEST COOK IN THE WEST. 10 YOUR BOYS.
Froggie was a frog who never remembered where he had been.His biggest dream was to find the best pond to 1 in freely without worrying about water snakes，which were his natural enemies.One day，Froggie hopped(跳) to a kitchen and jumped into a pot full of hot water.Froggie felt the burning heat 2 hurried out of the water as fast as his legs could carry him."I almost 3 there!"Froggie thought.
A few days later，Froggie 4 back to the same kitchen，completely forgetting he had been there.He again hopped into the same pot.This time，the water inside was 5 .He 6 and thought，"There's no water snake trying to eat me and I can have this place all to myself ! "At that moment，Froggie knew it was his 7 pond. What he didn't know was that the water was warming up over a low heat.
After thirty 8 of swimming，Froggie felt the water was warmer but he regarded this as a nice surprise."This sure is the best place for swimming.I get to have a hot bath，too." 9 his comfortable bath，the water kept getting warmer and warmer.Froggie was so comfortable that he fell asleep.And he 10 woke up.
From Froggie's story，we can learn that people are blind to problems that slowly get worse over time.
The Spring Festival is one of the most important festivals in China. During the Festival, Chinese people have many activities. They paste up Spring Festival couplets(舂联) , greeting the New Year and saying 1to the old year. On the first day of the Spring Festival, people 2, wearing new clothes. Nowadays, children get 3pockets from their parents and their relatives by web chat. It is a good time for people to visit relatives and friends. More importantly, the Spring Festival is celebrated not only in China but also in4parts of the world.
The Spring Festival was 5 in the UK from 1980. Every new year, people also get together and have lots of activities. They sing songs, dance6music, share photos with friends or watch7in the cinema. Additionally, the Spring Festival has become a key time for Chinese living in the US. They8in a large evening party to welcome the traditional new year. The Chinese New Year will be welcomed with three weeks of celebrations across Australia. Thousands ofpeople come to Sydney's Chinatown. They enjoy fireworks(鞔炮) and lion dances. The family dinner on New Year's Eve is an important tradition for Chinese9they were born in Singapore or moved there from China. They usually hold it at10because having it in a restaurant takes away the meaning of the tradition.
B
A young woman in her 20s was sitting on the train, next to her mother. They both looked tired 1 excited.
The young woman was looking out from the train's window. Suddenly, she shouted: "Mom,look, the trees are behind us!" Her voice was so 2that everyone on the train heard.
Mom smiled. But a young couple sitting nearby looked at the young woman's childish behavior (行为 ) with pity. "Poor young woman. There must be something wrong with her3," they thought.
A while later, the young woman4again: "Mom, look! The clouds are running with us!"
Mom smiled again. And she seemed very happy with the young woman's words.
5, the couple couldn't help asking the old woman: "Sorry if we offend (目犯) you. But why don't you take your daughter to a good doctor?"
The old woman smiled and said: "Actually（其实）, we have just come from the6."
"Then you should go to a better one. Because it seems that your daughter's situation hasn't 7," said one ofthem. They felt so bad for the old woman.
"No, in fact I'm very happy with the treatment," said the mother. "My daughter was8from birth. Today, she is seeing the world for the first time."
Every single person has a story. Don't judge people before you truly know them. The truth might9you.
A
How do you keep cool during summer? Air conditioners or electric fans are good tools in modern society. But1that, people could only use fans.
Over 3,000 years ago, fans began to be used. They were made of feathers (羽毛), bamboo or silk. They came in different2, including round and square.
Later, with the invention of paper, folding(可折叠的) paper fans became popular during the Song Dynasty. There are usually beautiful3on fans. Some are landscapes（风景）. Others are flowers and animals. Moreover, many great people including Su Dongpo, a poet of the Song Dynasty, and Tang Yin, scholar (学者) and painter of the Ming Dynasty, once painted their masterpieces (杰作) on fans. This made fans not only4tools in daily life but also great artworks.
So, with its value ofbeauty, people take fans as a symbol of status （地位）. That's why in old China, emperors and scholars often held fans.
Today, fans are also great collectors' items (藏品) and gifts. On the opening ceremony of the2008 Beijing Olympic Games, folding fans were 5to leaders and officials (官员 ) of othercountries. While they were6fans to get cool, they were also experiencing Chinese culture.
Henry Bond was about seven years old when his father died．His mother found it 1to support the large family．However，she tried her best to do so．Also，she 2Henry，the eldest son，to school．
At one time，Henry needed a grammar book for his study．His family was so 3that his mother could not afford one．
One morning，Henry found that a deep snow had fallen，and the 4wind was blowing．"Ah，"he said，"it is an ill wind that blows nobody good．"With these words，he ran to the house of a neighbor，and offered his 5to move away the snow around it．The offer was accepted．When he finished the work，he received his 6 ． Then he went to another place for the
7purpose，and then to anther，8he had earned （挣得） enough to buy a grammar book．
From that time，Henry was 9the first in all his classes．He knew no such word as"10"，and he succeeded in all he tried to do．Having the will，he always found the way．
People once went hungry．A rich man who made bread and cakes sent for twenty of the1. children in the town，and told them to take a loaf（条）of bread from a 2every day till the hard days passed．
The hungry children came together3 ， and argued for the bread，because each wished to have the largest one．Finally they went away without even thanking the good gentleman．
But Gretchen，a poorly﹣dressed little girl，did not argue or 4with the rest，but remained standing quietly far away from them．5the bad﹣mannered girls left，she took the smallest bread，which alone was left in the basket，kissed the gentleman's hand，and went home．
The next day the children were as bad﹣mannered as before，and poor，shy Gretchen 6loaf hardly the size of the one she got the first day．When she came home，her mother cut the loaf open．Many new shining pieces of 7fell out of it．
Her mother was very surprised and worried，and said，"Take the money back to the good gentleman at once，for it must have got into the dough（生面团）8mistake．Be quick，Gretchen!Be quick!"
But when the little girl gave the rich man her mother's 9 ， he said，"No，no，my child，it was no mistake．I had the silver pieces put into the smallest loaf to give you．Always be as satisfied，quiet，and 10as you now are．Go home now，and tell your mother that money is your own．"
B
Rose was telling her granddaughter Lily stories about how she had written a best-selling 1 in her early 30's.
"Did you always know you wanted to be a2, Grandma?" asked Lily. Rose smiled at her granddaughter. " I 3 knew it on my first day of primary school."
"I felt like that on my first day of primary school too! It was singing, I used to be sure that I would be a singer," said Lily. "Why 'used to' ,Lily?" Rose asked.
"Well," began Lily,"4 be the best singer in the class. But there was a new girl coming to my class, and she was better at singing than I was. What was the point(意义) of 5 as she was much better than me?"
"You know, Lily," Rose said," Although I was the best at writing in primary and middle school, when I got into high school, I met a girl in my English class. She was always the best writer. I used to 6 because of it, thinking that I was no longer the best writer, I was 7."
"So what did you do?" Lily asked. "I did what any person would do." said Rose." I did everything to be better than her."
"Did you ever write better than her in your class?" Lily asked." No. But I realized that it wasn't about being the best out of everyone, it was about being the very best that I could be.
So I 8my love for writing, and look where I am now…" Rose 9.
"Wow!" said Lily in surprise. "But what's that girl doing now?" "Who knows, but there's one thing I am 10:she hasn't written a best-selling book yet."
Maxime and Lise are a young French couple. They are ready to travel across China from Beijing to Yunnan Province on a tandem bicycle (双人自行车). They have two main purposes and one of them is that they want to encourage green 1 through it.
Maxime, 26, works helping farmers raise their cows, 2his wife Lise, 26, is a teacher. The two also like sharing their travel stores on Facebook.
We chose a tandem bicycle because it makes it 3 to communicate with each other about interesting people and things we come across during the journey. 4, bicycling is healthier. And it's a cheaper and more environment-friendly way of traveling than 5 cars, motors and so on, “the couple said.
As for the other 6of their journey, the two said they wanted to get people's good ideas on topics such as health, econnmy (经济) and politics. When they were asked 7they chose to visit China, they said it was because they often talked about its long history and beauty and how much of the country is competitive (有竞争力的) in the world.
We know China is a country with a large population and will be the 8 of the economy around the world in the future. We want to get a better understanding of the country and its people. We 9the country,” they said.
The couple will be on the journey to China soon. We hope they can make more people further 10 China by shairing what they see and hear on the way. Meanwhile. We hope they enjoy their travel in China.
Bike-sharing is a new choice for short journeys in cities．It is good to the1development of the big cities．
A2by a company found that shared bikes started the nation's3for bikes again．Now more and more Chinese people are4bikes instead of cars to make short journeys in cities．
An engineer of that company says that since the5of shared bikes，people have made fewer trips by car．The love for shared bikes is not only among 6people，who were born in the 1980s and 1990s，but also among people over sixty．
At weekends，the number of the riders in Shenzhen reaches the7of all cities．On weekdays，the number of people who use shared bikes to travel to word is8in Shanghai．
It is said that bike﹣sharing will help9the cities'environment．It not only helps solve the traffic problems，but also will help to make more use of10in cities．Take Beijing as an example if more people choose shared bikes，an area of five Bird's Nest stadiums （体育场）will be saved．
"I'm going shopping in the village，"George's mother said to George on Saturday morning．"So be a good boy and don't get into trouble．And don't forget 1good care of Grandma．"Then out she went．
Grandma 2 in the chair by the window when she opened one little eye and said，"Now you heard 3your mother said，George．"
"Yes，Grandma，"George said．
George was bored to tears．He didn't have a brother or a sister．His father was a farmer，and 4farm they lived on was miles away from anywhere，5 there were never any children to play with．He was tired of staring at6pigs，hens，cows and sheep．He was especially tired of having to live in the house with his grandma．Looking after her all by himself was hardly 7way to spend a Saturday morning．
"Go and make me a cup of tea for a start，8 sugar and milk．"Grandma said．Most grandmothers are lovely，kind，helpful old ladies，but not this one．George's grandma was a woman9was always complaining about something or other．She spent all day10on her chair by the window．George 11 that Grandma used to be a gentle lady，but as she grew older，she was not able to look after herself and even worse，she was easy to get angry．
"We 12be nice to the old，George，"His mother always told him．
Thinking of this，George 13into the kitchen and made Grandma a cup of tea with a teabag．He put one spoon of sugar and 14 milk in it．He stirred the tea well and carried it into the living room 15 ．
More than 700 years ago，Scotland （苏格兰） was fighting with England．The king of England wanted to 1 Scotland．He had a strong army so it was2for the Scots to fight．They lost many times，King Robert of Scotland had to run from the English army．
One rainy day，King Robert lay in an old house．He thought that he was not good enough to be king．He was so3that he didn't even see a spider（蜘蛛）near him．He 4when he saw the spider climbing．It was trying to climb up its web at the top of the house but it fell down．
"How sad"thought King Robert．"The spider is like me．It's not 5enough．"He watched while the spider climbed up again．It fell down a second time．
"Be careful，little spider，or you might die，"he said．"Life is so hard．You'll never get back to your web．"But the spider 6again and again．King Robert watched while it 7climbed back to its web．After an hour，the spider got do the web．
"You are such a great 8 ， "he said．"If you can keep trying．I can too．I must keep on fighting．I won't let the English win．"His 9grew strong and they 10the English army．Scotland was free．
Nobody knows if this is a true story．Many parents tell it to their children because they want them to keep trying．
One thorn(刺) of experience is worth many times of warning.
Ralph Wick was seven years old. In most things he was a fine boy, but he would cry from time to time. When he could not have what he wanted, he would 1for it. If he was told that it would hurt him, and he could not 2 it, he would also cry.
One day, he went with his mother into the 3. The sun shone. The grass was cut. The flowers were starting to come out.
Ralph thought he was, for once, a good boy. A 4 was on his face. He wished to do as he was told. Ralph helped his mother with the farm work and he was very happy.
“Now you must be tired and 5,” said his mother. “Have a good rest here and eat some cookies. I will get a beautiful red rose for you.” So his mother brought the red flower to him. When he saw his mother still had a white rose in her hand, Ralph 6 it.
“No, my dear.” said his mother. “See how many thorns it has. You must not touch it, or you would be sure to hurt your 7.” When Ralph found that he could not have the white rose, he began to cry, and 8 took it away. But he was soon very sorry. The thorns hurt his hand. It was so 9 that he could not use it for some time.
Ralph would never 10 this. From then on, when he wanted what he should not have, his mother would point to his hand which had been hurt before. He at last learned to do as he was told.
A bird went to look for its happiness in a faraway place．
It flew and flew when it suddenly saw a little dying flower，whose face was full of smile．Not knowing why，the bird asked the little flower，"You're going to die．Why are you still so1？"
"Because I will achieve my dream，"said the little flower．
"2 is your dream？"
"To produce sweet fruit．"
Then the little bird saw it：happiness is a3in the heart．
The bird continued flying and saw a lame duck help a little duck find the way back home．Although it was disabled，it had a smiling face．
"I'm happy because I can help4 ， "said the lame duck．
So the bird saw it：happiness is a love in the heart．
The bird kept flying and suddenly saw a spider climbing up a wall．The spider fell off the wall halfway，5it kept climbing again and fell off again．Even so，the spider didn't 6 ． The little bird asked the spider in surprise，"you 7again and again，why don't you have pain but happiness on your face？"
"As long as I keep making my 8 ， I'm able to climb up it．9this，I'm so happy，"said the spider．
The little bird saw it：happiness is a faith（信念） in the heart．
So the little bird10 looked for happiness because it had seen the truth：happiness is not in the faraway place but in your own heart．
One evening, I went out for a walk on the path (小路) near my house with my husband. On my finger was a very special ring with a diamond (钻石) that my grandmother gave me for my 23rd birthday. At the end of the path, when I looked down at it again and found the diamond was 1. I started back along the path hurriedly 2the tiny stone. In my heart, I knew it seemed impossible for me to find it. The path was very long and 3 with leaves. As I searched the ground, crying and upset, I met an old lady. "What's the matter, love ?" She asked kindly. I 4 about the missing diamond and showed her my ring. She said, "That's going to be hard to find. Tell me what, love, I walk along this path every day, I'll keep my eyes 5 for it." I thanked her, 6 nothing, but still told her that we sometimes walked our dog along the path if she might find something.
A few days later, my husband and I met the old lady on the path. "Guess what?" She said, "I found your diamond!" To our7, she'd found the tiny stone and was willing to hand it back to me. "It was lucky that I found it." When we 8 her with some money for her help, she 9 politely. I was deeply moved. She could have easily kept the diamond, or sold it, for it's worth several thousand dollars, but she didn't.
Every time I look at my ring and 10myself that there're kind and beautiful hearts in the world. I'll spend the rest of my life trying to do something like that.
