John is five years old now. He is a good boy. He is very clever and can read very well. But he can't tell the right time by clock. He doesn't say eight o'clock in the morning, twelve o'clock or four o'clock in the afternoon. He always says "breakfast time" for eight o'clock, "lunch time" for twelve o'clock and "tea-time" for four o'clock in the afternoon. His mother wants to teach him to know the time by clock.

    "Can you count, John?" his mother asks him. "Yes. Let me count for you. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, and twelve..." "That's good, John. Now let me tell you to say the time. Now, look! I put the long hand on twelve and the short hand on one. That is one o'clock. If I put the short on two, that's two o'clock. Do you know?"

    "Yes, I do." John tells his mother. "Good. If I put the short hand on four, what's that?" his mother asks and really puts the short one on four. "Tea-time, Mum. And I am hungry."

    A man in Pakistan is now working to help children get an education. When he was a child, he did not go to school because he was too poor.

    It is reported that Pakistan has 25 million children who do not go to school. That is the second ­highest number in the world. Only Nigeria has more. Many Pakistani children must work to support their families.

    Mohammad Ayub was once one of those children. He is now a firefighter. He also manages a small school. VOA recently visited the school in the capital Islamabad.

    Ayub started with just one student in 1982. He saw a boy cleaning cars for days. He asked him, "Why don't you go to school?" The boy answered that his parents were dead and he had to work to help support his five brothers and three sisters.

    Ayub was also an orphan and he, too, had to work to help support his five brothers and three sisters. He said, "When my father died, everyone who came to the funeral said they were sorry, but no one helped." He sold newspapers and did other work to earn enough money to pay school fees for his brothers and sisters.

    Ayub wanted to help the young boy who washed cars, but he did not have enough money to pay the boy's school fees.

    Today, Ayub teaches many children at his school in a public park. Some of the children attend other schools in the morning, but come to Ayub in the afternoon to get help with their homework.

    Ayub has helped a large number of poor children since he began teaching. Many of them come from very poor areas near the park.

    Ayub said," I used to argue with kids who worked ' Why are you washing someone's dishes or their clothes? Why don't you study? ' "

    One of the children he advised to attend classes was Farhat Abbas. Ayub found him working with his friends about 12 years ago. "He followed us back home. He told our parents he wanted to teach us and asked them to send us to his school, "Abbas said.

    Today, Abbas is taking classes at a college and is helping Ayub.

    Many children are out of school, and those who do attend classes often get a poor education. Information gathered by an organization shows half of all Pakistani children in the 5th grade do not understand basic mathematics and cannot read a story in their language.

    A group in Islamabad reports Pakistan spends less on education than any other country in South Asia.

    There were two fishermen named Tom and Jack. They were close pals. One day they went out to catch fish together and have a fish meal in the field. They sat at a distance and started hunting for fish. Tom got a big and beautiful fish in a few minutes. He was so happy and placed the fish in the ice box. He decided to cook the fish in the noon. He spent some more time and caught a few more fish. He decided to make a grand meal with the fish. Also, he froze a few fish to take them back home.

    After an hour or so, Tom went to Jack to see if he needed any help. Jack said no. In a few minutes, Jack caught a large fish. However, he put it back into the lake. Tom was surprised at his act, but he remained silent. Jack caught more big fish, and put them all back into the lake. Very frustrated, Tom angrily asked him, "Are you mad? Why do you put your fish back into the water? They are beautiful and big!" Jack replied, I know they are big, but I don't have the big pan(锅) to cook the big fish! So I'm looking for a smaller fish that fits my cooking pan! God is troubling me today."

    My mom only had one eye. I hated her. I am always angry about it. She cooks dinner for students and teachers. One day at school, my mother sees me and says hello to me. I am so unhappy! How can she do this? I turn back and run away. The next day at school one of my classmates says, "EEEE, your mother only has one eye!" I don't know what to say. I wish my mother to just get away. I say to her at home, "If you're only going to make others laugh at me, just die." She doesn't say a word.

    Many years later, I have family in another city. Then one day, my mother comes to visit me. When she stands at the door, my children laugh at her. I shout, "GET AWAY! NOW!" "Oh, I'm sorry. I have the wrong address(地址)."She says.  A few years later, she dies. Somebody gives me a letter from my mother. It reads: "My dearest son, I think of you all the time. I'm sorry that I should not go to your house and…You see, when you are very young, you lose your eye in a car accident. As a mother, I give you mine. I am glad you can see a whole world for me with that eye. With all my love to you. Your mother. "

    Tom lived by himself a long way from town. He hardly went to town, but one day he went into town to buy a few things. After he bought them, he went into a restaurant and sat down at a table. When he looked around, he saw some old people put glasses on before reading their newspapers. So after lunch he decided to go to a shop to buy himself one pair, too. He walked along the road, and soon found a shop.

    The man in the shop let him try on a lot of glasses, but Tom always said, "No, I can't read with these."

    The man became puzzled (迷惑的) , and he said, "Excuse me, but can you read?"

    "No, of course I can't!" Tom said angrily. "If I could read before, do you think I would come here to buy your glasses?"

    Robert Fredy was general manager of a large hotel in Ashbury Park, New Jersey. One cold day two years ago when he stopped his car at a traffic light, Stephen Pearman; an out-of-work taxi and truck driver, walked up to Fredy's car hoping to earn some change by washing his windshield(档风玻璃) , Like many motorists who try to keep the beggars off. Fredy turned on the wipers to show he wasn't interested.

    Pearman put his head close to the window. "Come on, mister. Give me a chance. I need a job, "he said. Something in Stephen Pearman's voice moved Robert Fredy. In the seconds before traffic started moving again, Fredy handed Pearman a business card and told him to call if he was serious.

    "My friends told me he was just pulling my leg," said Pearman. But I said. No, he's a businessman. I need to give it a shot."

    Two days later, 29-year-old Pearman appeared in the manager's office of the big hotel. Fredy gave him a job and lent him packet money while training him.

    Today, Pearman works full-time setting up the hotel's dining halls for business meetings. In the past two years, he has found a flat, married and repaid Fredy's loans (货款).

    "Mr Fredy gave me a second chance." says Pearman. "And I took advantage of it. I could have just come here a while and left. But there is no future washing wind-shields."

    Fredy always keeps away from the street people, "But Pearman seemed so honest and open, asking for a chance rather than just money," Fredy says. "I don't hand my business card to just anybody. But I'm glad I did in this case."