I really love my job because I enjoy working with small children and like the challenges and awards from the job. I also think my work is important. There was a time when I thought I would never have that sort of career.

    I wasn't an excellent student because I didn't do much schoolwork. In my final term I started thinking what I might do and found I didn't have much to offer. I just accepted that I wasn't the type to have a career.

    I then found myself a job — looking after two little girls. It wasn't too bad at first. But the problems began when I agreed to live in so that I would be there if my boss had to go out for business in the evening. We agreed that if I had to work extra hours one week, she'd give me time off the next. But unfortunately, it didn't often work out. I was getting extremely tired and fed up, because I had too many late nights and early mornings with the children.

    One Sunday, I was in the park with the children, and met Megan who used to go to school with me. I told her about my situation. She suggested that I should do a course and get a qualification（资格证书）if I wanted to work with children. I didn't think I would be accepted because I didn't take many exams in school. She persuaded me to phone the local college and they were really helpful. My experience counted for a lot and I got on a part-time course. I had to leave my job with the family, and got work helping out at a kindergarten.

    Now I've got a full-time job there. I shall always be thankful to Megan. I wish I had known earlier that you could have a career, even if you aren't top of the class at school.

    High school plays a major role in shaping up your future and your whole development. Extracurricular (课外的) activities along with the studies can be very helpful. Make yourself take part in various activities and at the same time try to stand out in your studies. When you move out to college these efforts that you put in may count for a lot.

    High school is not just about books or classes. Schools always provide opportunities for students to socialize (社交). There are various group tasks designed which allow the students to learn to work together.

    High school is the right time for you to discover yourself and bring out some of your hidden talents. In your lessons, you may find that you are better at English than you were earlier or have grown an interest for Math. High school also provides many other opportunities for students to take part in. These help develop leadership skills and management skills at an early age, which in turn is a way of preparing students to manage and plan their careers (事业) better.

    Balancing all activities is an experience in time management. If you have taken up a part-time job along with your high school you would have to arrange your time for studies, and extracurricular activities. Such management can go a long way in teaching you to manage things better when you take up a job. Moreover, they help build your character. You would be better prepared for additional stress that you may feel sometimes.

    When at high school you should pick up your classes wisely. Depending upon what you like and your career plan you should choose suitable classes. Doing something that you hardly like may get you very low grades as well as lose valuable time. Take up interesting and challenging classes that would allow you to put in those extra efforts.

    A culture's values can be mirrored by its humor. Humor has been evaluated by many great minds such as Thomas Hobbes, who, In"On Nature", disliked humor," Laughter is nothing else but sudden glory arising from sudden thought of feeling far better than others." He thought humor to be a negative quality of human narrow-mindedness.

    However, Mordechai Gordon, PhD of Education, insists," Humor allows us to view the world from an angle that is amusing rather than serious." I agree with Gordon. Learning to look at the world through humor is important.

    In the United States, every four years an election occurs. Without humor as a way to express their feelings, how would Americans be willing to support the election? Television shows like "The Daily Show" have become important parts of American culture. They are mothering the masses by unconsciously inputting politics into our mouths. They make politics fun.

    Of course, politics is only one type of humor. Social humor helps people through the twists and turns of the human condition. American pop culture promotes an unhealthy self image. On the topic of self-image, Hari Kondabolu stands out. He has a joke about the popular musical group "The Pussycat Dolls", describing their hit song "Don't Cha" as a negative representation of women. He points out an obvious offence in American culture.

    A study from Loyola University of Maryland has shown that humor is one determining factor for selecting a mating partner. Amongst other things, mates look for an outstanding funny bone in a potential partner.

    Of course, humor is not always used for good purposes. Humor can be linked to vulgarity（粗俗）and racism, but, like everything else, it has potential to unite human beings by allowing us to laugh at ourselves, our failures and our connection with one another.

    Though life may seem tough and depressing at times, all I have to do is look in the mirror at my increased wrinkles（皱纹）to know that there is a comedy out there that even Chaplin wasn't aware of.

    With that in mind, remember to laugh with humanity and sometimes at humanity.

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    When Kate's paintings were on show in London，a poet described her paintings as “a ribbon (丝带）around a bomb”．Such comments seem to suggest Kate had a big influence on the art world of her time．Sadly，she is actually a much bigger name today than she was during her time．

    Born in 1907 in a village near Mexico City，Kate suffered from polio（小儿麻痹症）at the age of seven．Her spine (脊柱)became bent as she grew older．Then，in 1925，her back was broken in several places in a school-bus accident．Throughout the rest of her life，the artist had many operations，but nothing was able to cure the terrible pain in her back．However，the accident had an unexpected side effect．While lying in her bed recovering，Kate taught herself to paint．

    In 1929，she got married to Diego Rivera，another famous Mexican artist．Rivera's strong influences on Kate's style can be seen in her early works，but her later works from the 1940s，known today as her best works，show less influence from her husband．

    Unfortunately，her works did not attract much attention in the 1930s and1940s，even in her home country．Her first one-woman show in Mexico was not held until 1953．For more than a decade after her death in 1954，Kate's works remained largely unnoticed by the world，but in the 1970s her works began to gain international fame at last．

    During the cold winter days, there are some interesting festivals in the world. Look at the following ones.

    Harbin Ice and Snow Festival

    Place: China

    Time: January 5 to February 5

    People build incredible things out of ice and snow, decorating them with lights.

    The Carnival of Venice

    Place: Italy

    Time: between February and March

    One of the most beautiful festivals in the world, people wear masks and elaborate costumes to hide differences among classes, and there are contests for the best costumes.

    Holi Festival

    Place: India

    Time: late February/ March, on the last full moon day

    Hindus and Sikhs, in India, Nepal, and Sri Lanka celebrate the main day of this incredibly fun 16-day festival by throwing colored powder and water at each other.

    Sundance Film Festival

    Place: Utah, the US

    Time: end of February

    The largest independent film festival in the US. Watch both feature films and shorts. You need to buy a ticket.

The Amazing Penguin Rescue

    The summer of 2016, the ship MV Treasure sunk, creating an oil spill. Thirteen hundred tons of fuel oil were flowing right in the middle of the African Penguins' habitat. Soon the oil covered about 20, 000 penguins. Without swift help, the seabirds would have no chance for survival. Volunteers were showing up by the thousands and I also took part in what was the largest animal rescue operation ever.

    A warehouse was turned into a rescue center near the habitat and hundreds of pools were built to hold about 100 oiled birds each. When walking into the center, I couldn't believe my ears. I had expected to walk into a chorus of honking and squawking (叫声). Instead, the center sounded like a library. The penguins were dead silent. My heart ached for the painful birds. Cleaning them all seemed like an impossible task. But we had to carry on like doctors in an emergency room. There was no time for doubt. Cleaning oil off a penguin wasn't easy. Even with more than 12, 500 volunteers, it took a month to bathe all 20, 000 birds at the center.

    While volunteers were busy bathing the oiled penguins, another crisis (危机) was developing. Oil from the spill had started moving north. Tens of thousands of penguins were in the oil's path. But we already had our hands full with 20, 000 recovering birds. If any more birds were oiled, we wouldn't have enough resources to save them.

    One researcher came up with an idea: What if the penguins were temporarily moved out of harm's way? Experts decided to have a try. Volunteers rounded up the penguins and released them 500 miles away. The hope was that by the time the seabirds swam home, the oil would be gone. The plan worked! Another 20, 000 penguins were saved.

    The entire penguin rescue took about three months. More than 90% of the oiled penguins were successfully returned to the wild. Looking back on the rescue, I am still amazed by the work of the volunteers. What I could hardly believe was that we accomplished an impossible task.