The most valuable gift I have ever received was a photo album from my best friend Kevin.

      Kevin and I were classmates for all six years of primary school. We both had the same interests, so we always had a lot of things to talk about. It is wonderful to have such a good friend.

      However, last summer, Kevin had to move to another city because of his father's job. Then he gave me a photo album. “It has photos of the memorable events we have experienced together. I've also written some notes under each photo,” he said. I was deeply moved.

      I put the album beside my bed. I always look at it when I think of Kevin.

  A road is just like a bridge between two places. The Silk Road has been a bridge between East and West. But the Silk Road is not a single route! It is a series of trade and cultural transmission routes. From the time Zhang Qian opened up the world-famous Silk Road during the Han Dynasty, until the Yuan Dynasty, it enjoyed a history of about 1,600 years.

 This ancient road begins at Chang'an (now Xi'an), and it reaches Dunhuang, where it divides into three, the Southern Route, Central Route and Northern Route. And then it ends in Eastern Europe, near the Mediterranean Sea(地中海). The Silk Road is about 6,500 kilometers long. It goes across one-fourth of the planet. (3)In fact, there is another trade road which is called the “Silk Road on the Sea” in the southwest of China.

 The Silk Road was very important to both China and the rest of the world. Besides trade, knowledge about science, arts and technologies were shared across the Silk Road. The Four Great Inventions of China was introduced to the West and Chinese also knew about the religions of the West. (4)In this way, languages and cultures developed and influenced each other. Today, places along the Silk Road are great places of interest, such as the Terracotta Warriors in Xi'an and Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang, Gansu.

    ① {#blank#}1{#/blank#} It's on the fourth Thursday of November. And it is also a time for tradition and sharing. Even if they live far away, family members gather for a reunion at the house of an older relative. All give thanks together for the good things that they have.

    ② {#blank#}2{#/blank#} It is on the first Sunday after the full moon which falls on or after March 21st. It is said that on that day Jesus Christ comes back to life. But now for most people, it is a spring holiday, while for children, it means, more than anything else, Easter eggs or chocolate eggs!

    ③ {#blank#}3{#/blank#} It's also called Double Fifth Festival, is celebrated on the fifth day of the fifth moon of the lunar calendar. It is one of the most important Chinese festivals with a history of more than 2,000years. It was originally designed in memory of ancient poet called Qu Yuan.

    ④ {#blank#}4{#/blank#} It is a very important Chinese festival. There will be a big family dinner. People who work far away from home will try to come back. At night, people can enjoy the moon while eating moon cakes. They are the special food for this festival.

    ⑤ {#blank#}5{#/blank#} It falls on the ninth day of the ninth month of the lunar calendar in China. The aim is to promote respect for the elderly. According to centuries-old customs, people climb mountains to admire the view.

A. The Double Ninth Festival    

B. The Mid-autumn Festival C. Easter Day     

D. The Dragon Boat Festival   

E. Thanksgiving Day

    You are in a full-time school called “life”. Each day in this school you will have the chance to learn lessons. You may like the lessons or hate them, but they're part of your life. Each person has a different path. As you travel along your life path, you will be faced with many lessons that you will need to learn in order to realize your goal. These lessons are specific. As you travel through your lifetime, you will meet challenge lessons that others don't have to face, while others spend years struggling with challenges that you don' t need to deal with. You cannot be sure why you struggle hard for money while your friends enjoymuch wealth. You must remember that you will be faced with all the lessons that you specifically need to learn, whether you choose to learn them or not. Remember, don't compare your path with that of people around you and focus on the differences between their lessons and yours.

    Life is not fair, and you may indeed have a more difficult path than others around you, and the only thing you can do is to accept it and make it better.

Information Card

Human's Greatest Achievements

    The Earth is 4.5 billion years old, but the human race has lived on it for just 200,000 years. In that short time, we have achieved some amazing things.

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#} The list is almost endless. The invention of the airplane has changed our lives. The discovery of antibiotics(抗生素) has saved the lives of millions of people. Can you imagine living without electricity? What about the printing press? Without the printing press, you wouldn't be reading this. In the last 50 years, there have been great achievements in communication, such as radio, TV, computers, the Internet, and smartphones{#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    What about arts? The arts have brought pleasure to many people, but are the Beatles and Bach more important than antibiotics?{#blank#}3{#/blank#}

Finally, we must not forget humans' early achievements{#blank#}4{#/blank#}We can't imagine modern life without cooked food and cars.

    What are humans' greatest achievements? To answer the question, we need to decide what we mean by “great”{#blank#}5{#/blank#} Or is it just something that makes us say “Wow,” like the Great Wall? What do you think? 

A. We could probably live without them, but life wouldn't be as interesting.

B. Is it something that makes us rich or happy or save lives?

C. And is Mickey Mouse as important an achievement as going to space?

D. They used fire for cooking and heating and invented the wheel.

E. Many of humans' great achievements are in science and technology.

    Being a good friend isn't always easy, but taking the time to nurture（培养） a lasting friendship is worth the effort. As the years pass, some people will stay by your side; but many won't. And you'll realize that each friendship you keep is valuable. To have a good friend, you must be one. But, what is the quality of a good friend? {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    Being trustworthy. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} If you say you'll go out with a friend and just cannot go, give your friend a gift and tell him or her you're sorry. Nobody's perfect, and it's okay if you break a promise once in a blue moon, but don't make it a regular thing.

    Be respectful. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} If your friend doesn't share the same values and beliefs with you, respect his or her choices and be open to hearing more about them.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Don't interrupt conversations. Take the time to truly understand when your friend is talking to you. Listening may open space between the two of you.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#} The best gifts are often hand-made and come from the heart. A phone call can mean as much as a visit!

A. You don't have to spend a lot of time or money to be good friend.

B. Good friends show respect for each other by being open and supporting each other.

C. Just follow these steps.

D. Be a good listener.

E. Don't ever make a promise that you can't keep.