Six years ago at the age of 35,I suddenly decided I wanted to learn the cello（大提琴）.Straight away I rented an instrument and appeared before Wendell Margrave,professor of musical instruction.

    "You can be as good as you want to be,"Margrave said rather mysteriously.On a piece of paper he drew the notes E and F.He showed me where to put my fingers on the neck of the cello and how to draw the bow.Then he entered my name in his book: 10 am,Tuesday.Tuesday followed Tuesday,and soon it was spring.

Thus began my voyage out of ignorance and into the dream.E-F,E-F,we played together—and moved on to G.It was a happy time.I was again becoming something new,and no longer trapped as the same person.Surely the most terrible recognition of middle life is that we are past changing.We do what we can already do.The cello was something I couldn't do.Yet each Tuesday this became less and less true.Riding home on the bus one snowy night and learning the score of Mozart's C-Major Quintet(莫扎特的C大调五重奏),I felt the page burst into music in my hands.I could by then more or less read a score,and was humming（哼唱）the cello line,when suddenly all five parts came together harmonically（和谐地） in my head.The fellow sitting opposite stared.I met his glance with tears,actually hearing the music in my head for the first time.Could he hear it too, perhaps?No,he got off at the next stop.

    As the years slipped by,my daughter grew up,playing the piano well.My goal was that she and I would one day perform together.I also wanted to perform in public with and for my peers,and to be secretly envied.I continued to play,to perform,but it is not the same.Before,when I heard a cello,it was all beauty and light.Now,as the TV camera gets close to Rostropovich's face,I recognize that his smile shows his incredible determination.Even for him,the cello is a difficult instrument that doesn't respect your ambitions.I picked up my cello and practiced.As good as I wanted to be,I am as good as I'm going to get.It is good enough.

    I discovered that inside the-wonderful box lived an amazing person whose name was Information Please. There was nothing she did not know.

    One day my mother went out. I accidentally hurt my finger when I was playing with a hammer. I walked around the house sucking my finger, finally seeing the telephone. Quickly I dragged a chair over and climbed up.

    “Information Please, ”I spoke into the receiver. A click or two and a small clear voice spoke into my ear. “Information.”

    “I hurt my finger…”I cried into the phone.

    “Isn't your mother home?” came the question.

    “Nobody's home but me.” I sobbed.

    “Are you bleeding?” the voice asked.

    “No,” I replied, “I hit my finger with the hammer and it hurts.”

    “Can you open your icebox?” she asked. I said I could.

    “Then take a little piece of ice and hold it to your finger.” said the voice.

    After that, I called “Information Please” for everything. I asked her for help with my geography and she told me where Philadelphia was. She helped me with my math. She told me her name was Sally.

    Then, there was the time my pet canary（金丝雀）died. I called “Information Please” and told Sally the sad story. “Why is it that birds sing so beautifully and bring joy to all families, only to end up as a pile of feathers?” She listened, then said quietly, “Paul, always remember that there are other worlds to sing in.” Somehow, I felt better.

    One day when I called “Information Please” again, a different voice answered “Information.”

    I asked for Sally. “Are you a friend?” she said.

    “Yes,” I answered.

    “I'm sorry to have to tell you this,” she said. “She died five days ago.” Before I could hang up she said, “Wait a minute. Did you say your name was Paul?”

    “Yes.”

    “Well, Sally left a message for you. The note said, ‘Tell him I still say there are other worlds to sing in. He'll know what I mean.'” I thanked her and hung up. I knew what Sally meant.

    Our world natural park is one of the most famous parks in the world. Millions of visitors from different countries visit this park every year. In order to protect it, please do as follows：

    Protect the natural and cultural heritage. Don't damage or deface any buildings, displays and other facilities. Take care of all plants. Put rubbish in the bins provided.

    Take care when you are going up and down steps or stairs and when you are walking nearby the waters.

    Please buy tickets before entering the scenic spot. One ticket is only for one person. Adult：＄60 per ticket. Children over 6 and under 18, half price. People over 60 and children under 6 are free.

    If you are going into the wooded and hilly lands, for your own safety, please go with three people at least and don't take any tinder(易燃物）along with you. The hill is steep so please take care of yourself.

    This scenic spot is the reserve of water source: No fishing, swimming, washing and any behaviors that are harmful to the water source. Meanwhile, please follow the management rules of the scenic spot conscientiously.

    Opening time：From Monday to Friday, 8：00 a. m.～18：00 p.m.；From Saturday to Sunday, 6：00 am.一24：00 p. m.

    Small animals such as rabbits, peacocks, squirrels, frogs must be taken care of: None of them shall be killed.

    If you have any trouble in visiting our world natural park, please call 477-866-7044. Our staff will do our best to help you.

    Adopting (领养) a new pet should be an exciting and rewarding experience. But just as all families are different, so are all pets. Learn what to consider before you find your new furry family member.

    All pets require their owner's time, so Theisen, an expert in pet care, says how much time you can give to the pet is the top thing to consider. "If you adopt a 4-year-old cat, she's not going to need the same amount of care as a 9-week-old dog". says Theisen.

    Like dating and finding the perfect partner, you want a pet that shares your interests and activity levels, particularly if you're looking for dogs. "Consider activity levels in the family," says Theisen. "If you're a couch potato, or in other words, a homebody, look for a pet that matches that activity level."

    Some dogs, like Dalmatians and Terriers, can be loud and noisy and demand a more active lifestyle and room to be outside; they might not fit as well in close living situations as more sedentary pets. The Humane Society of the United States encourages potential owners to research books and websites and talk to other pet owners when considering adopting a new pet.

    Theisen says that potential owners should go beyond the first impression of loveliness and watch how the animals interact with them. "There are dogs that will jump to the gate to meet you," says Theisen. "And there are dogs that sit there with their sad doggy eyes — you know they're not going to be high-energy dogs".

    Some exotic pets, like tortoises and parrots, are likely to live longer than dogs and cats — and even their human owners. They can also grow to be much larger than they were when they first came to live with their owners. Owners should make sure that their living situations should be continually updated and also prepare for the animal's future.

    Imagine being given the opportunity to wake up to lions, eat your meals with monkeys, and even share your bath with bears, all from the comfort of a unique new lodging experience. The Jamala Wildlife Lodge opened its doors in January 2015, which was set up in an effort to educate visitors about aiding the survival of many of the world's endangered species. "It's great for the animals; they're going to get more space. It's great for the viewing public; they're going to get more things to see. It will be great for tourism and just for the local community," said Richard Tindale, the owner and operator. Spreading across three locations in the National Zoo, the 18 rooms, which range from giraffe tree houses to jungle bungalows, offer a fantastic experience with wildlife.

    The Giraffe Treehouse

    The Giraffe Treehouse is set among the giraffe enclosures (围场), and the Jungle Bungalows are luxurious individual suites which are next to either lion, cheetah (猎豹), brown bear, or Malaysian sun bear enclosures.

    The Ushaka House

    Housing up to 26 people, the Ushaka House is built around the monkey enclosure and has a builtin aquarium which offers private views of some of the zoo's sharks.

    The Burley Griffin House

    Only meters from the edge of Lake Burley Griffin, the indoor and outdoor entertaining areas have splendid views across the lake to Black Mountain.

    The Shark House

    The Shark House has its own little jetty (码头) and it comes out over the shark tank here and so the people who stay in the room will be able to go to their bedroom and pat the shark.

    Location

    Located in the heart of Australia's political capital, the Jamala Wildlife Lodge at the National Zoo and Aquarium is just ten minutes from Canberra's central Business District.

    Maybe it's because it was our first purchase as homeowners. The salesman must have spotted just how green we were, so he began persuading. And soon he led us to a classic leather chair. All these years later, I remember he used words like rich and handsome, the thing every living room needed.

    We believed him. So we bought that chair — just less than $100, a great deal in the 1970s for a young couple!

    How we loved that chair! It always occupied a place of honor in our various living rooms, moving with us from our first tiny house to our beloved new house.

    Somehow, conversations were better on that chair, and life was more fun around it. Three daughters spilled their secrets on it. Old friends seemed to be attracted by it on those wonderful occasions. Crazy as it sounds, that leather chair seemed to have — well, powers. All for good.

    At first, we didn't really care that the leather was showing signs of wear or that it had lost its sheen (光泽). But in our most recent move, when the chair was moved in our new living room, it suddenly looked terribly lonely sitting close to newly painted walls and a couple of shiny new tables.

    My husband and I tried but still we couldn't ignore the rough spots. Our chair had a skin disease. Even our adult kids raised eyebrows, urging us to at least remove the chair to some dark comer of the room. Neither of us could imagine such a retirement for it.

    So we had an inspired idea. We'd call in an upholsterer (修理工) to give our old chair a whole new life. Our friend Joe studied the chair and then took out a simple leather conditioner. He explained that although it wouldn't work miracles, it would definitely get our weary chair looking younger again. It certainly doesn't look new, but its seat and back are shining, and some of its deeper wrinkles have lightened.

    Best of all, it's back in the living room, looking like a wise old friend to the furniture around it. And, yes, there it will stay.

    Because some things, like some people, just deserve a happy old age.