Bruce shook his money box again.

    Nothing! He carefully counted the coins that lay on the bed. All that he had was $24.52. The 1 which he wanted was at least $ 90. How on earth(究竟) was he going to get the rest of the 2?

    He knew that his friends all had bicycles. It was hard to hang out(闲逛) with people when you were the only one 3 a bicycle. He thought about 4 he could do. He couldn't get money from his parents, because he knew they had no extra(额外的) money.

    There was only one way to get money, and that was to earn(挣钱) it. He would have to find a job. He decided to ask Mr. Clay for 5.

    "Well, you can start right here," said Mr. Clay. "You see, my windows need cleaning and my car need washing."

     That was the beginning of Bruce's part time(兼职) job. For the next three 6 he worked every day after finishing his homework. He took dogs for walks and cleaned rooms.

     The day finally came when Bruce 7 his money and found $ 94.32. He wasted no time and went down to the shop to 8 the bicycle he wanted. He rode home proudly, looking forward to 9 his new bicycle to his friends. Bruce liked his bicycle very much because he had bought it with his own money. At last, his dream came true, and his parents were 10 of him.

    Canadian Geese are large blue and white birds. When autumn comes, they have to fly south where the weather is warmer. The winters are so cold in Canada that the birds will die if they stay there.

    Last spring, Bill Lishman found sixteen young Canadian Geese on his farm. They had lost their parents. Bill thought, "These young birds won't know what to do in the autumn." He had a small plane and he decided to teach the birds to follow him. All through the summer, he went on short trips in his plane and the young geese flew after him.

    When the cold weather arrived in the autumn, Bill flew to Virginia in the United States, 600 miles south of his home in Canada. The geese followed him all the way. Bill left the geese in Virginia and he returned home.

    This spring, Bill was waiting for the birds to come back. They didn't arrive, so Bill flew to Virginia to get them. He looked for them for two weeks, but he couldn't find them. When he arrived back home, he found the geese waiting for him. They had found their way home without him!

    A lion is tired very much and sleeps on the ground one day . A cat runs after a little mouse . The mouse runs around and comes to the lion . The mouse sees the lion and he is very afraid (害怕的) . “ I' m very sorry . Please let me go . I can help you some day . ” The lion sleeps well and feels happy now . He says , “You can help me ? You are too small . But I am happy now . You can go . ” The mouse goes .

    One day , the lion is in a cage(笼) . He can't get out . The little mouse sees the sad lion . He bites (咬)  the cage with his teeth . Soon the lion goes out . “Am I right ? ” says the mouse , “ A small animal can help a big one sometimes . ”

    Today, after 10 days of medical treatment, for the first time, I went out alone to meet a motherly lady who I had met during my stay in a program. She had been unwell recently and I lived alone. Her sons live in foreign countries.

    After I called her and told about my plan to visit her, she started becoming excited and happily planning food at once. Nowadays, she has a lady cook coming by to help her but she does part of the work herself with her bandaged leg.

    I reached her home alone after being guided a couple of times by her before. I carried little things (snacks, books etc.) for her. She had been waiting for some time when I arrived. We talked about different things from health to her life and mine, from past to future, from food to travel etc. During the discussion, her care for me became clear when she made warm suggestions or supported me.

    During the last few months, she had struggled with health and housework. She had got over those difficulties and here she was telling me how all of us must face some problems. She had seen a few people facing worse problems in the hospital and mentioned about their cases and was grateful for her present condition which was manageable.

    She wanted to gift me something—she kept thinking of a dress, watch, footwear etc. whatever was new and great in her home. I kept refusing but finally took the footwear out of politeness.

    She loved the snacks I had brought and wanted to eat them with her tea. I was quite happy to see the child like interest.

    While I was spending time with my motherly friend, the following thought kept coming back to me-probably this is why I have lived through the 10 days in this city. The time I spent with her seemed so much needed. I felt the deep peace it could bring to me and that brought such a big joy!

Be a Friend

Friends are important (重要的). {#blank#}1{#/blank#}. Friends are people you know and like. Do you know how to make friends with others? Here are some good ideas.

{#blank#}2{#/blank#}.

Introduce(介绍) yourself to others. See if they want to be friends with you. Then ask questions and know each other.

Have fun together

You can play sports or games with your friends. What is your favorite thing to do? {#blank#}3{#/blank#}.

Help each other

How do you feel today? {#blank#}4{#/blank#}. When your friend is not happy, cheer him or her up (鼓励). And ask your friends for help if you need.

Do you know this? Friends do not have to be the same as you. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} They may like different things. So what are your friends like? Tell us about them please!