A farmer grew some vegetables in his garden. One day his wife was ill and he had no money. He had to sell some cabbages and carrots in the market. The next morning he took two baskets of vegetables to town, but it was raining hard that afternoon and there were few people in the street. When his vegetables were sold out, it was dark. He bought some medicine and hurried to his village.

    On his way home he saw a person lying on the ground. He placed his baskets on the ground and was going to help the person to get up. At that time he found it was a dead man and there was much blood on his body. He was so afraid that he ran away quickly, without taking his baskets.

    The next afternoon the farmer was sent to the police station. Having shown the baskets, an officer asked, “Are these yours? ” “Yes, sir. ” The farmer answered timidly（胆怯地）. “Have you killed the man?” “No, no, sir.” The farmer said in a hurry. “When did you see the dead man?” “About seven last evening. ” “Did you see who killed the man?” “No, sir. ” The officer brought out a knife and asked, “Have you seen it yet?” “No, sir. ” The officer became angry and told the policemen to beat him up and sent him into prison.

    That evening the officer went on trying. Pointing to the knife, he asked again, “Have you seen it yet?” “ yes, sir.” The officer was happy and asked, “When and where?” “I saw it here this afternoon, sir.”

    We spend so much time waiting to be loved, hoping love will find us, and searching for that special love. Unfortunately, that's not usually how life works. Loving yourself is mainly having self-respect, which is the only dependable way to create love in your own life, so you can share it with others. To be able to be loved, you must love and respect yourself as much as you do others. By doing so, you are enabling positive energy and allowing for great situation to occur in your life.

    Bringing joy to other people's lives will help you find joy in your own. In addition, those who you treat well will likely repay you with the same kindness. Gradually, you will start to feel your worth through the smiles of gratitude. However, don't just be very kind to people so you can receive royal treatment.

    Don't punish yourself for something you have done in the past. Instead, look at the mistake as a learning experience. Say to yourself now, “I forgive myself for..." Go to look in a mirror, and say it out loud to yourself. Look at yourself right in the eyes, and speak forgiveness like you mean it. If you do, laugh out loud, realizing that was then and this is now. Every day is a new beginning.

    We all want a nice house, nice things, and someone to share our life with. Find your true wants objectively. Are you eager for power, a religion, or simply a motive? Sometimes, it's easier to hide the truth from yourself, but figuring out what you really want will help you know yourself better. This will hopefully aid you in answering important questions you often ask yourself.

    Write about your experiences, good and bad. When you write down good experiences, allow yourself to feel those feelings. When you remember bad experiences, allow yourself to feel self-compassion(自我同情). Compassion is not self-pity, but rather a willingness to accept one's own pain and regret. Compassion allows us to be present with our pain, so we can acknowledge it and let it go.

Holidays

    Each year, the National Council of Teachers of English（NCTE）presents several awards to recognize outstanding books written for all age levels. Earlier this month at a book awards luncheon（午宴）held during their 107th Annual Convention，they announced the winner of the 2018 Charlotte Huck Award for Outstanding Fiction for Children.

    Dan Santat was named the winner of the 2018 Charlotte Huck Award for his novel AFTER THE FALL, the inspiring epilogue（后记）to the beloved classic nursery rhyme Humpty Dumpty. The Charlotte Huck Award was established in 2014 to promote and recognize fiction that has the potential to have a positive effect on children's lives. The award honors Dr. Charlotte Huck, a professor at Ohio State University who devoted her career to promoting the role of children's books in young people's academic, social, and emotional development. Each year，the committee selects a winner and recommended titles appropriate for children.

    “Charlotte Huck was a supporter for children's books as teaching tools,” says Erika Dawes, chair of the Charlotte Huck Award committee. “Books like these award winners, books that promote imagination, wonder and sympathy, fill a critical need in our classrooms.”

    Jason Chin was named winner of the 2018 Orbis Pictus Award for his book GRAND CANYON, an illuminating（启蒙的）look at one of the planet's most fascinating features. The Orbis Pictus Award, established in 1989, is the oldest children's book award for nonfiction.

    Honor and Recommended Books in each category were also announced at the awards luncheon, where the 2017 winners（Jason Reynolds and Melissa Sweet）delivered speeches. Dan Santat and Jason Chin are invited to speak at next year's Annual Convention.

    Have you ever awakened and felt like you couldn't move? If so, it probably scared you. You may have thought something terrible had happened to you. Actually, many people have this experience on a regular basis. It is called sleep paralysis. Although it sounds scary, it is normal.

    Sleep paralysis happens when a person is falling asleep or waking up. As the person falls asleep, his or her body slowly relaxes. Usually the person's mind relaxes at the same time, but occasionally the mind stays awake longer than the body. As a result, the person can be conscious, or aware, but have trouble moving or speaking. Sleep paralysis can also occur as you wake up. Fortunately, the condition rarely lasts for more than a few seconds. Movement and speech soon return to normal.

    Some people report unusual experiences during sleep paralysis. They may hear, see, or feel things that don't exist. At one time, people thought that ghosts or monsters had entered the room and were holding them down, keeping them from moving. Science has helped us understand that such visions are actually a part of sleep paralysis. Now we know that getting too little sleep, taking certain medications, and changing your sleep schedule can cause sleep paralysis. This condition can be scary if you, but it's just a trick that your mind is playing on your body.

    Fish have different personalities which change as they experience life's highs and lows, according to British biologists.

    Researchers identified different "personalities" in their fish by observing the boldness(大胆) or shyness of individuals, according to The Nature. Like people, some fish are very confident in the face of novelty or conflict, while others are silent and fearful.

    The scientists selected particularly bold and shy rainbow trout(虹鳟鱼), and tested whether they changed their outlook depending on what life threw at them. They arranged some fish to fight and others to watch to see how both the participants and observers responded to victories and defeats. Winning or losing a fight, or even watching fellow fish overcome the difficulties influenced the future behavior of the creatures studied in the lab.

    The researchers made fish compete with much larger or smaller opponents(对手), to ensure that they would win or lose their fights. These bold fish that won their fights tended to be even bolder when later presented with a novel food item; losing their fight caused them to be much more cautious.

    Fish also learn by watching others. Bold fish watching a shy fish exploring a mystery object were much more nervous when later given a novel item for themselves.

    Predictably, shy fish that won a fight also gained more confidence, but surprisingly, shy fish that lost their fights also grew bolder when exploring strange new food, Sneddon said, adding that this could be due to what she calls a "desperado effect"(亡命徒效应).

    The new research suggests that animals can gradually adapt(使适应) their personalities. The results agree with the effects that life experience can have on humans.