My mom isn't fancy like other moms.They wear fancy clothes and drive fancy cars. My mom wears her gardening clothes when she walks me to school.　

When fancy moms laugh，their laughs sound soft and whispery. You can hear my mom's laugh from down the hall. I show her how to laugh quietly and she practices. But before long she starts laughing even harder than before.

 At the talent show，my mom cheers loudly，“Bravo，everyone！Bravo！”instead of clapping politely the way fancy moms do.

For our class hike（徒步旅行），parents are invited. At breakfast I go over my rules for Mom，“Please don't whistle. Don't laugh loudly. No clapping. And stay in line.”

 The other moms show up wearing fancy jackets and sneakers. My mom wears cutoffs，a floppy straw hat，and her old hiking boots.

We hike along，all in a line. Soon Mom starts to whistle her hiking songs，She'll Be Coming Round the Mountain.I shake my head at her. She stops and whispers，“Oops. Sorry，Jane.”

 We keep hiking. Everything is perfect until…

 Our teacher，Ms. Steele，stops and points，“A snake！”All the moms hold their kids hands and back up，except my mom.“Watch out！It might be poisonous（有毒的）！”Ms. Steele says.

 The other moms shuttle back some more. However，my mom steps forward and says，“Hmm. Let's see what kind it is. Nope，it's not poisonous.”

 I shut my eyes.I know what's coming next. Mom makes a sudden attack.“Got it！”she says. The other moms scream，not sounding fancy at all.

Kids gather around as Mom examines the snake.“It's OK to touch，”she says.

 Everyone's too scared，but I go first.“snakes aren't slimy，”I tell them. Right away，others line up. A couple of the fancy moms come up to touch the snake's tail.

 Later，Ms. Steele tells us to draw our favorite part of the hike. After a while，I look around quickly. Everyone's picture is of Mom and me with the snake.

 As we hike back to the bus，I squeeze Mom's hand.“I'm glad I didn't tell you my don't-catch-snakes rule.”She smiles. But soon，she's whistling her hiking songs again！

 I start to make her silent，then stop. Instead，I take a deep breath and sing out too. Everyone joins in，even the fancy moms.

    I once had a hard time making a living in France. Three years ago, I moved to a new neighborhood and felt an intense(强烈的) need to meet people so I went to the cinema. Outside the cinema was a woman with long gray hair who had a strong smell and was asking for money. I reached for my wallet to give her a Euro and then something made me stop and enter into conversation with her. I said, “Look, all the women going to the cinema here on a Tuesday night are seeing a film that can change your life. I'd rather buy you a ticket than give you money.”

    She hesitated（犹豫） for a moment and then came in with me. She hid behind me because, she said, the people running the theater didn't like her. I got her a ticket and she sat next to me. There were about 80 women there; I noticed some of them were turning around and looking at me with expressions of surprise and curiosity(好奇心).

    I encouraged the woman I had bought the ticket for to come the following night to an event where there would be many representatives(代表) of various social services. I thought they could be of some help to her. She did come and I was able to direct her to an agency that helped women in her situation. At the same time, a woman came toward me and said, “Are you the person who bought a ticket for the woman outside the theater asking for handouts?” When I said yes she said, “I want you to come to the community center where I work. I want the other employees there to meet you.”

    This was the beginning of a deep friendship and colleague relationship. I now have a great job and have more work than I've ever had in my 20 years in France. And the woman I took to the cinema that night? I learned that she was not homeless and that she was a secretary.

A

    An old woman walked into a clothes shop. She asked the salesgirl to let her have a look at a new dress on display, but the girl stood still behind the counter, taking no notice of the request.

    The old woman spoke to the girl again, raising her voice a bit, but still received no answer. The old woman looked closely at the girl and nodded to her, “I am too old to see well.” I can't even tell a plastic (塑料的) model from a real girl.”

    On hearing this, the salesgirl shouted at the old woman, “ What? Did you call me a plastic model?”

    The old woman was greatly surprised. “On, dear me,” she said. “The model can speak. Then it must be a robot of a new type.”

    A poor man worked for a rich man. The rich man made the poor man work all day, but didn't give him enough food. So the poor man often felt hungry.

    One day, when the poor man was having breakfast, the rich man came in and said to the poor man, "It's very troublesome to come back for the other meals. So I want you to have your breakfast, lunch and dinner together now before you go to the fields. ""How can I eat three meals at breakfast time?" the poor man thought but he said, "All right. He finished his meals and went out. Two hours later, the rich man went out for a walk, he saw the poor man sleeping under a tree. He was very angry and said, "Why don't you work in the fields?" The poor man sat up and said with a smile," I've already had my dinner and you know very well that after dinner it is time to go to sleep."

    A zero-waste life is a lifestyle that hardly creates any rubbish. So, a zero-waste theme store is about 1 people with a number of everyday, practical and pleasant zero-waste products to help them start on a one-stop, zero-waste life journey.

    "Zero waste" or "danshari" was first 2 by a French woman Bea Johnson. "Live a life and try not to create any rubbish; use different methods to protect the earth." she said.

    Yu Yuan, 27, is 3 attracted by this idea.

    She and her boyfriend have lived in Beijing for many years. And earlier she used to be a customer without thinking a lot. 4 she saw a video about "zero waste"

    The 5 is about a family of four, and the rubbish they produce every year is placed in a jar.

    After watching the video, Yu wanted to 6 this zero-waste lifestyle with her boyfriend.

    Yu says that a zero-waste life 7 the 6R principle --Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Repair, Recycle and Rot (腐烂）.

    Over August-October when Yu followed the principle of zero waste 6R, she and her boyfriend Joe Harvey both 8 only two cans of rubbish.

    Now, the couple have opened a small 9 called The Bulk House in Nanluoguxiang, Beijing, to support a zero-waste life.

    At the store they use environmentally friendly products. For example, they use wood products to replace 10 ones and prepare cloth bags printed with zero-waste logos for customers. Most of the products sold in the store can be reused, and a small number of 11which are not recyclable can degrade (分解). The store 12 has secondhand books and audio-visual CD/DVDs.

    For used toiletries things like soap and toothpaste that are used for cleaning yourself) there is a company which accepts them, and the couple regularly mails their waste to it.

    Yu says that those who were once not 13 in the zero-waste lifestyle have gradually changed because of curiosity. The zero-waste lifestyle, she adds, is for everyone.

    "It's 14 us at our fingertips." Yu expects some of her friends to 15 her on the road to zero waste. As the saying goes, many hands make light work.

    Jack is 10 years old, and i am his pencil. I'm Jack's helper.

    Jack's pencil box is my home. I have some friends here. They are seven crayons, a ruler and a pencil sharpener. Because Jack loves me, I'm the king(国王) in the pencil box. My friends and I are happy every day.

    Today, I am not happy because a pen comes in. It's new and beautiful. It's a music pen. It can not only write but also sing. But I'm old and I can only help Jack to write. Jack likes it so much! The new pen is his helper now. It's the new king. What can I do now? Shall I go to a new home?