My best friend, Connie, is two years older than me. We spend a lot of time together.

    Connie has long dark brown hair and her eyes are big and round. People say she is 1 and looks like a doll. When we go out, people often 2 that I am older than her because she is shorter and slimmer (苗条的).

    Connie is positive（乐观的）even when things go 3 . Last week she got her examination 4 , which were not very good. I thought she was going to be 5 . Instead, she simply decided to do better the next time. Then, every day after class, 6 teachers are free in their offices, she will ask them for help.

    Connie gets on well with others. Everyone in my family 7 her, even my younger brother. When you hear her laugh, you will naturally（自然地）laugh 8 . When I feel unhappy, I will talk to Connie and she will make me feel 9.

    I think my 10 with Connie is very valuable, and I hope we will always be best friends.

    A boy called Mike had many friends, and he was proud of it. Whoever he met, he would like to show off how popular he was at school.

    One day, his grandpa said to him, “Mike, I know that you don't have as many friends as you think. Many of them are not true to you.”

    Mike thought maybe his grandpa was right. However, he wasn't sure how he could test whether his schoolmates were real friends or not, so he asked his grandpa. The old man answered, “I have just exactly what you need. It's in my room. Wait a minute.” The old man left, soon returning as if(好像) carrying something in his hand, but Mike could see nothing there.

    “Take it. It's a very special chair. Because it's invisible, it will be hard for you to sit on it. However, if you manage to sit on it, you can use the chair's magic power to tell who your real friends are.”

    Mike took the strange invisible chair to school. At break time he asked everyone to form a circle, and he put himself in the middle, with his chair.

    “Nobody moves. You're about to see something amazing,” said Mike. Then he tried sitting on the chair. Having difficulty seeing it, he missed and fell to the ground. Everyone had a pretty good laugh. “Wait, wait,” said Mike, making another try. But again he missed the chair.

    Mike didn't give up. He kept trying to sit on the magic chair. Finally, he did it. This time he felt himself in mid-air. Then he experienced the magic that his grandpa had been talking about. Looking around, Mike saw George, Lucas and Diana holding him up, so he wouldn't fall. But some schoolmates whom he had regarded as friends had done nothing but made fun of him. Mike was quite thankful to his grandpa, who helped him test who his true friends were.

    Do you know the story about Vince? It was a true story. Vince was an English boy and he was eight years old. He didn't like soap or water. Three or four times a day his mother said to him, “Vince, your hands are very dirty again.” Go and wash them. ” But Vince never washed them well. He only put his hands in the water for a few seconds and then took them out again.

Vince's uncle and aunt lived in another city. One day they came to stay with Vince's parents, and they brought their small son, Toby, with them. Toby was seven years old and he didn't like soap or water, either.

    The boys sat with their parents for a few minutes and then they went outside. When they were pla­ying, Vince looked at Toby's hands and then went back to Toby's parents and said proudly (骄傲地）， “Toby's hands are dirtier than mine, ”

    “Of course they are，”Toby said angrily. “You are one year older than I am, ”

    Larry and Jo Ann were an ordinary couple. Like any other couple, they made efforts to make ends meet (收支相抵) and do the right thing for their children. They often argued about what was wrong with their marriage and who was to blame (责备). They wanted to make changes.

    "You know, Jo Ann, I've got a magic chest (衣柜) of drawers. Every time I open them, they're full of clean clothes," Larry said. "I want to thank you for filling them all these years."

    Jo Ann stared at her husband and felt strange. This wasn't the first time Larry had done something strange recently, so Jo Ann forgot it quickly. But it happened again a few days later.

    "Jo Ann, that was a great dinner," Larry said one evening. "I appreciate all you have done in the past 15 years. You have cooked lots of delicious food for me and the kids. "

    Jo Ann was growing worried. "What's wrong with my husband?" she wondered.

    Day in and day out, Larry continued his praise.

    Over the weeks, Jo Ann grew more used to her husband's unusual behavior. Her step was now a little lighter and she didn't seem to get upset as often.

    Larry has never told Jo Ann the reason for his change in behavior. So it will likely remain one of life's mysteries. But it's one I'm thankful to live with.

    You see, I am Jo Ann.

    When I was young, I lived in Scotland with my parents. I had a good time there.

    One morning, I ran to the garden, and said to the old Scotsman who worked there. "Today I am going up the mountain for berries."

    "No, no, Missey, not today." he said, "It will rain."

    "No, it will not rain." I said, "The sun is up. The cook says it will be fine. The glass in the hall does not say rain."

    "Tuts, tuts." said the old man, "I care for no suns, or cooks, or glasses. The pimpernel (海绿) says it will rain, and so it will rain. Flowers, Missey, always tell the truth. When they say rain, go and get your umbrella."

    Sure enough, by noon the rain was pouring down. After that, I looked with great respect at the tiny flower, sometimes brickred, sometimes blue, which could tell about the weather. But the pimpernel is not the only plant that is a weather prophet.

    If you go into the garden, and find the African marigolds shut after seven o'clock in the morning, you may be pretty sure that there will be a rainy day. There is a little single marigold which shuts up in a hurry if the sky becomes clouded. It is called the "rainy-marigold".

    Most plants which we call "weather prophets" shut up for rain. But some plants open for rain. The cause of the opening and closing is probably the difference in light. Most likely these plants shut their flowers because there is too little light.

    But you know there are some plants which become smaller in a strong light and love the shade. You will find that most shade-loving plants, as the verbenas, do not close for rain.

    Lilies, tulips and other flowers that love the sun shut for rain. Tulips are careful not to open their cups very wide in the morning if it is likely to rain. The roses make no change. They seem not to fear wet.

    On the whole, you may be pretty sure, if you go into your garden, and find many flowers as tulips, marigolds and morning glories shut, it will be a stormy day, unfit for picnics or long walks.