Eighty-year-old retired tailor, James McKay, spent Saturday night in prison after hitting 30-year-old Keith Smith over the head with his walking stick. McKay's wife, Laurene said that, while McKay is usually a（n）1 and pleasant person, he had been driven to this act of2 by literally getting wet just once too often. He could no longer3 it.

Smith lives above the McKays. He is a（n）4 gardener, and also a fish collector. Unfortunately, the water he5 over his balcony（平台）every day ended up on the McKay's floor, or too often, on the unsuspecting McKays themselves.

"For the last two weeks, since Smith moved into the flat above us, we dared not go onto our6 ," said Laurene. She added that it wasn't only the water7 their balcony from Smith watering his plants that8 them, but also the way he cleaned his fish9 . "We'd be sitting there happily reading our newspapers, when suddenly so much water would come from above that we'd be as wet as if we had10 with our clothes on! We could hardly11 the smell of fish!"

And on Saturday evening it was just too12 , "It was James' birthday," Laurene recalled, "and it was such a beautiful night to enjoy the starry night13 . I made him a birthday cake. The candles were a great sight as you can14 , but James didn't get to blow them out." Instead,

Smith15 one of his larger tanks over his balcony and both the McKays and the cake were wet through. "I have never seen him move so fast and I couldn't stop him. He was up there in a（n）16 ."

Smith is not going to take things further with the police. He has also17 to change his ways from now on. And what of James McKay? As he left the18 station,a large crowd of supporters sang him "Happy Birthday". "Definitely the most exciting birthday ever!" said the19 old man. "The best since my20 , I'd say!"

Last weekend I made my first visit to a remote village, home to one of our students, Tombe. Another teacher and I walked for two and a half hours to get there—first, up a mountain from where we had fantastic views, and then down a shaded path to the valley below. When we arrived at the village, Tombe's mother, Kiak, saw us coming and started crying "ieee ieee". We shook hands with all the villagers. Everyone seemed to be related to Tombe.

Tombe's father, Mukap, a man with a strong jaw and a wrinkled forehead, led us to his house, a low, round bamboo hut with no windows, with a door just big enough to get through, and with grass sticking out of the roof—this shows it is a man's house. Such housing is dark inside so it took time for our eyes to adjust. Fresh grass had been laid on the floor and there was a platform for Jenny and me to sleep on. There was a fireplace in the centre of the hut. The only possessions I could see were one broom, a few saucers, a kettle, cups, pans, and a couple of jars.

Mukap built a fire outside and laid stones on it to heat. He then placed the hot stones in an empty oil drum with kau kau（sweet potato）, ripe corn, and greens. He then covered the vegetables with banana leaves and left them to steam. It smelled delicious. We ate inside the hut sitting round the fire. I loved listening to the family talking softly to each other in their language, even though I could not participate much in the conversation. Luckily, Tombe interpreted for us.

Later. I noticed a can standing upside down on the grill（烤架）over the fire. After a while. Tombe threw it out of the doorway. Tombe told me that the can was heated to dry out the leftover food. His family believes that leftovers attract bad spirits in the night, so any leftover food is dried up in a can and the can is then thrown out of the hut.

We left the village the next morning after many goodbyes and firm handshakes. My muscles were aching and my knees shaking as we dragged ourselves down the mountain towards home. That evening I fell happily into bed. It was such a privilege to have spent a day with Tombe's family.

A lot of people admired our neighbor. One day a delivery truck unloaded a large 1 system at their house. And the kids discussed the new sound equipment my neighbor had just bought. Meantime, we were living in a house decorated 2 and dressing our kids in second-hand clothes. We lived a 3 life. 

My poor mother-in-law, in town for a visit, got to hear my complaints that night. "I feel so 4 sometimes," I told her, as we 5 the table after dinner. "I know we're doing the right thing, living frugally (节俭的), saving money, but it feels so hard. There're so many things I'd like to 6 , so many things I'd like to do, but we just can't."

She 7 as she folded a cloth napkin in silence. Then she turned to me and said, "When you make a comparison between yourself and others, it's easy to 8 what you don't have. But there's one thing you two do that many other couples may 9 to do. You two often go out together and take time to focus on your 10 . And that's a very important thing."

I stopped wiping the table and 11 for a minute. I thought of the movie my husband and I had seen a week earlier. I 12 the bike rides, the hikes and the picnics. Most of all, I remembered how 13 we were together, even after twenty years. How many people can say that? 

I looked around my home in a new 14 . Our refrigerator was too small for a family of six, but it was 15 filled with delicious food. Our kitchen was small and we had no big TV, but we're happy! And that's enough! 

Juleus Ghunta is a published children's author and award-winning poet. But when young, he could 1 read.

He grew up with his three sisters in rural Western Jamaica, raised by their single mother. Life was tough, and proper schooling was out of the question due to 2 resources.

When Ghunta finally went to school, he couldn't 3 on reading. Not only had he been kept home from school as a child, but he had not been 4 to books.

By sixth grade, he could spell his name, but still couldn't make out words or read with 5 . He struggled in school with a deep sense of 6 and worthlessness.

At age 12, a young teacher-in-training 7 a special reading program for 8 students. Ghunta was the first to join. That teacher, whose name he does not 9 now, became Ghunta's unsung hero — the person who changed his life.

The teacher was incredibly kind to him. Under her guidance, Ghunta's reading skills saw marked improvement, and his sense of inadequacy began to 10 .

"She had left me with the gift of literacy," he said. "And a deeper 11 of my talent."

After Ghunta's experience with the teacher, his life course 12 . He graduated with academic 13 and is now the author of two children's books, including "Rohan Bullkin and the Shadows."

Years later, Ghunta returned to his old school and asked the principal and teachers if they knew her 14 , but none did. Carrying this memory, however, he still hopes to find and thank her for seeing his 15 and being a source of light and hope in his life.

In early 2021, I hit a rut in my studies. Although I had been productive early in my graduate career, my long hours and hard work were no longer translating into success in the laboratory, and I felt hopeless about achieving my goals.

As I began to search for the cause of my struggles, I became increasingly aware that my "quiet time" at the lab bench was anything but. Instead of thinking about science, I was watching television or interacting with social media on my smartphone. Although I could mask this inefficiency (低效率) with longer hours, my work felt disorganized. Through reflection, I came to understand my problem.

To make a change, I reduced my connectivity by using a basic mobile phone without an Internet connection during work hours, and removing unnecessary apps from my smartphone when I did use it. Things didn't go smoothly in the beginning, but with time, I started reading papers during long experiments, and began a habit of writing in my down time. These practices have already made success: I am currently preparing a review article for publication with my adviser. I have also felt more engaged in meetings – coming better prepared, asking questions and taking hand-written notes. Perhaps most importantly, I have felt my anxiety about work efficiency disappear and that my disorganized work-life relationship is traded for one with clearer boundaries.

Changing my smartphone habits has also created challenges. Not all my friends have been supportive of my reduced connectivity, and I have missed messages on communication services. Yet these problems have been a small price to pay for increased productivity. So if you find yourself in this situation, I encourage you to build down time and uninterrupted study into your schedule, which could be significant for your success.

Cruz Genet,11, and Anthony Skopick, 10, couldn't agree. Were the birds out on the ice ducks or geese? So on a 1 January evening last year, the two friends ventured onto the 2 pond near their homes, to get a better look. First they tossed a rock onto the ice to3 it. Then they stepped on it. 4 the ice would hold their weight, Anthony took a few steps, then…FOOMP. He crashed through the 5 frozen surface." There was no sound, no crack," he recalled,"I just fell through instantly". Cruz 6 to help his panicked friend. FOOMP— the pond 7 him too.

 The boys were up to their necks in icy water and quickly losing feeling in their limbs. Any chance of their 8 themselves was slipping away. Cruz was sure he was going to die. Anthony's older sister was nearby and started screaming for help.

 John Lavin, a9 driving nearby on his way home, heard her. He quickly 10 . Seeing the boys, he grabbed a nearby buoy (救生圈), 11 off his shoes, and ran into the cold water, chopping(劈) his way through the ice with his free 12 .

 Lavin made his way to Cruz and Anthony and pulled them back to land. When in hospital, doctors discovered that their five- minute 13 in the water had lowered their body 14 nearly ten degrees.

 Fortunately, the boys have fully recovered, though they are still a little awestruck by their 15 neighbor." Just to think," says Cruz," If he weren't there, we could have died."