Jack is in Grade Three now. He is a polite boy and studies hard. He is good at his lessons and can answer all the questions in class. His teachers and classmates like him except Henry. They're deskmates. Henry likes playing and often fails the exams. His father is a dentist (牙医) and makes a lot of money. The boy thinks he lives in the richest family in the town. So he looks down upon (瞧不起) others and laughs at them. Of course he has few friends.

    Jack is busy all the time. His father is a shoemaker. The man works hard but he still can't buy enough food for the family. He tells Jack to help him after school, so Jack has to do all his homework at school.

    One summer afternoon, on his way home, Jack met his sister Lily.

    The girl carried a heavy box in her arms without wearing shoes. Jack carried it for her. Henry saw them and said to Jack, "You father is a shoemaker, but your sister has no shoes!"

    "I don't think it's strange," replied Jack. "Your father is dentist, but your little sister has no teeth!"

    Jay Chou was born(出生) on January 18th,1979, in Taiwan, China. He grew up with his mother, and was a quiet and shy kid. He didn't do well in study, so people thought(认为) he would never be successful(成功) in life.

As a small child, Jay took a great interest in music. His mother sent(送) him to learn the piano when he was only three years old. He loved it and kept on practicing. When he was in high school, he could play the piano quite well. At the same time, he showed his talent for writing songs.

    Before Jay became a singer, he worked as a songwriter. For two years, he spent most of his time writing for singers. Some of them were very famous, like Coco Less and Jacky Cheung. Jay released(发行) his first album(专辑) in 2000 and soon he got quite popular.

    Now Jay is one of the most famous singers in Asia. However, he is still shy and doesn't speak clearly when he sings or talks, but he has a lot of fans. Most of his fans like him because he is really good at music and never follows(仿效) others.

Fonzie is a 3-metre-long dolphin (海豚). Joe was 3 years old when their story began. After Joe was born, he had a problem with heart and doctors operated (动手术) on him. When he was 3, he got another operation. However, this operation didn't go well—he couldn't move the left side of his body. The doctors didn't think he could get better. Deena, Joe's mother, took him to different places for therapy (治疗), but it wasn't successful. 

Joe liked staying in the water and Deena thought swimming could help him. Then one day Deena took Joe to a special place. There, people could swim with dolphins. Joe met Fonzie for the first time and their story really started. Soon, Joe wanted to see Fonzie every day. Joe loved playing with him and feeding him. Joe's mother told him always to feed Fonzie with his left hand, so Joe had to practice his left side more and more. Slowly, he got better and better. Joe always put a smile on his face from then on. Deena saw that the little dolphin helped her son a lot. So, she and her family worked together and built Dolphin Care for people with health problems. 

Joe once said Fonzie was a great friend to him. They shared a lot of good times together. After Fonzie died (死亡) , Joe was really sad and missed him very much. Joe will never forget the good relationship they had.

Almost all cultures(文化) celebrate the end of one year and the beginning of another year in some ways. Different cultures celebrate the beginning of a new year in different ways, and at different times on the calendar.

In Western(西方的) countries, people usually celebrate New Year at the midnight on December 31st to January 1st. People may go to the party, sometimes dressed in formal(正式的) clothes, and they may drink champagnc(香槟) at midnight. During the first minute of the new year, people cheer and wish each other happiness for the year ahead. But some cultures like to celebrate New Year by waking up early to watch the sunshine better. They welcome the new year with the first light of the sunrise.

Many cultures also do special things to say goodbye to bad luck at the beginning of the new year. For example, in Ecuador, families make a big doll and burn it to show the bad things from the past year are gone and the new year can start. Other common traditions to keep away bad luck in a new year include(包括) throwing things into rivers or seas, or sayıng special things on the first day of the new year.

Other new year traditions are followed to bring good luck in the new year. One Spanish tradition for good luck is to eat grapes on New Year's Day. The more grapes a person eats, the more good luck the person will have in the new year. In France, people eat pancakes for good luck at New Year. In the United States, some people eat black- eyed peas(黑眼豆) for good luck— but to get good luck for a whole year you have to eat 365 of them.

I a m a middle school student in Henan， China. Last year， the marathon（马拉松）in my hometown took place in July, a very1 month. I didn't2 the marathon because I thought it was difficult to run in such hot weather. But on my way home from school, I saw a disabled（残疾的）boy running in the3 ．I felt very worried． Then I4 him to see if he needed my help. "I should stay behind him, so I should run slowly." I said to5 .

After some time, I couldn't see the front runners and in the end I could6 see the disabled boy. He was the last runner! I thought he was7 at all sports games. "8 can he finish the marathon?"I wondered.

I watched as he slowly9 forward（向前）with difficulty． I would move forward a little， and then I would10 and wait for（等待）him． Then we would go on moving a little.

As I watched him try to11 faster, my heart began to beat faster, too. I wanted him to stop. But at the same time, I12 that he wouldn't.

I was so touched（感动的）and my13 were wet（湿的）．He was so great！ For him，it wasn't about beating the other runners or winning something, but it was about14 what he had decided to do.

Later in my life, when I think things are too15 , I will think of the boy——————the last runner.  By the way, he made it to the finish line that day.

A little stream ran down from a high mountain far, far away through many villages and forests, until she reached a desert (沙漠). The stream then thought, "I've been through thousands of millions of difficulties. I should have no problems crossing this desert!" But as she started her journey, she found herself slowly disappearing into the sand. After many tries, she still failed and was very unhappy. "Maybe I can't reach the ocean in the end." she said sadly to herself.

At this time, a deep voice came, "If a breeze (微风) can cross the desert, so can a stream." It was the voice of the desert. But the little stream replied, "That's because a breeze can fly, but I cannot." "That's because you can't give up what you are. If you like to do it, let yourself evaporate (蒸发) into the breeze. It can take you across, and you can reach the ocean." said the desert.

"Give up what I am now and disappear into the breeze? No! No!" The little stream could not accept this idea. After all, she had never experienced anything like it before.

"The breeze can carry the vapor (蒸气) across the desert and let it leave as rain. The rain will form a stream again to continue its course." explained the desert very patiently.

"And whether you're a stream or vapor, your nature never changes." continued the desert. Hearing this, the little stream rushed into the open arms of the breeze, which carried her to the next stage of her life.

The course of our lives is like the experience of the little stream. If you want to overcome the difficulties in your life to get success, you should also change the way you used to be.