I grew up on a farm in the small rural (乡下的) community of Catawissa, Missouri, as the sixth of seven children{#blank#}1{#/blank#} In the fall of 1970, he was working on a house when the ladder broke. His back was broken.

    He stayed in the hospital for three weeks. When Dad returned home, he was still in a back brace(支架) and unable to work{#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    One night we heard a car coming up{#blank#}3{#/blank#}Rose was at the door, holding an envelope filled with money. She told my dad she had collected money and was there to deliver it

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} I can still hear her saying, “Archie, whenever someone's baler (干草打包机) is broken, you bale their hay. Someone passes away, Altha is cooking. It's our turn.”

    That evening, this 6-year-old understood what being a good neighbor was, and that because her parents were good neighbors, their kindness would be returned. I learned later my mom's sisters all “adopted” one of us kids to help with Christmas, and we received gift baskets from more than one organization.

My parents were used to being the givers and not the receivers of such generosity (慷慨{#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A. He tried to protest but Rose would have none of it.

B. Besides running the farm, Dad was also a carpenter.

C. Apart from a carpenter, Dad was also running a farm.

D. We kids were always curious about who was visiting.

E. I was too young to realize our family had no money coming in as Christmas approached.

F. It was comforting to be helped when in trouble, but what was important was to help others in return.

G. They had a bit of pride to swallow, but continued all of their lives to show us kids the value of kindness.

To Live Truly in Today

    Here are some suggestions on how we should truly live in today. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}. If we're out in the town, then the shops and other people will surround us. If we're in our kitchen, then our kitchen appliances and the sunlight coming in through our window will surround us.

    Listen to those you meet. When we're with other people and they're talking, how often do we listen? {#blank#}2{#/blank#}. We may be nodding, but our minds may be thinking of financial worries, or we may be waiting for the other person to finish their sentence so that we can jump straight in with what we have to say. None of this is true "listening". In order to truly listen to someone, we must be in the present. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}. Hang on every word, and give them the freedom to say what they wish without judgment. By truly listening, you remain in the present with each passing word.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}. Each day, we have a number of things that we need to do, or that we'd like to do, or simply that we could do. Focus on one day's work at a time, rather than a number of days at once. Find all that needs to be done on that day, and nothing else. If something can be put off, then do so and replace it with something else that is more urgent. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}. Focus on that, and nothing else.

A. Focus on what has to be done today.

B. To be aware of the past and the future.

C. We may even find ways to avoid it altogether.

D. Unfortunately, we don't seem to listen that much at all.

E. Once you know what work is the most urgent, then do it.

F. We must really hear what they have to say and not be distracted by our worries.

G. No matter where we find ourselves, we are always surrounded by our immediate environment.

How Can I Fight Laziness？

    Lazy people will never amount to anything in life. However, laziness can be defeated once a few changes have been made in your mind.

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Many people lack sleep constantly, since they stay up too late and get up too early to prepare for work. These people have little motivation once they arrive home. Laziness works hand in hand with a lack of motivation and a tendency to put off things. By adjusting your sleep schedule to provide a few more hours of meaningful rest, you can fight laziness throughout the day.

    Another way to fight laziness is to change your mind from passive to active. Some people treat their lives as if they were pushed from task to task. Others take a more proactive approach, viewing each task as a challenge they must overcome alone. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    Some people fight laziness by removing the temptations（诱惑） that surround them. A television in the living room may provide entertainment, but watching too much TV often contributes to laziness. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Complete a few tasks and reward yourself with what you enjoy, such as a good dinner or a film.

    Laziness can also be a lasting problem at home. Couples and children may all have different energy levels, but laziness can be spread if not dealt with immediately. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Be the first to collect and wash dishes after a meal. Others in the home may eventually follow your example and perform their own task. It is difficult to practice laziness when you are surrounded by motivated people. 

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Enough exercise and a balanced diet can help you to develop a healthy lifestyle, thus enabling you to have more energy and help lift your spirits.

A. To fight family laziness, set an example.

B. Knowing how to fight laziness is important.

C. One way to fight laziness is to get enough sleep.

D. Finally, taking exercise regularly can help you fight laziness.

E. With strong determination, you will be able to achieve your goal.

F. Laziness sets in when you no longer feel in charge of your own life.

G. Create a reward system for yourself, just as parents do for a child.

    Parents often say that they don't mind what their children do in life just as long as they are happy. Happiness and pleasure are almost universally seen as among the most precious human goods. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    Philosopher Jeremy Bentham believed that all sources of pleasure are of equal quality, but John Stuart Mill disagreed. Mill argued for a difference between higher and lower pleasure. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Lower pleasure, in contrast, requires mere（仅仅的, 纯粹的）senses.

    The entire debate assumes a clear divide between the physical and the mental. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}What will it mean for our ideas about pleasure?

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}Food is usually considered to the lower pleasure. All animals cat, using the senses of smell and taste. It doesn't require ay complex cognition（认知）to conclude that something is delicious. However these people failed to appreciate something that he French food writer Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin captured. That is," Animals feed, man cats, only the man of intellect （才智）knows how to eat."

    Eating shows that the difference between higher pleasure and lower pleasure is not what you enjoy but how you enjoy it. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}Preparing it using the powers of reflection and attention turns it into a higher pleasure.

A. The dining table is a good place to start.

B. Wolfing down your food is a lower kind of pleasure.

C. What's the real difference between high and low pleasure?

D. What happens if the physical and the mental cannot be separated?

E. All philosophers believed that cookery could never be a form of art.

F. Higher pleasure depends on human abilities such as self-awareness or language use.

G. However, disagreements will be caused about whether some forms of pleasure are better than others.

    Taking good notes is a time-saving skill that will help you to become a batter student in several ways. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Second, your notes are excellent materials to refer to when you are studying for a test. Third, note-taking offers variety to your study time and helps you to hold your interest.

    You will want to take notes during classroom discussions and while reading a textbook or doing research for a report. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Whenever or however you take notes, keep in mind that note-taking is a selective process. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    The following methods may work best for you.

    ●Read the text quickly to find the main facts and ideas in it.

    ●Carefully read the text and watch for words that can show main points and supporting facts.

    ●Write your notes in your own words.

    ●{#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    ●Note any questions or ideas you may have about what was said or written.

    As you take notes, you may want to use your own shorthand (速记). When you do, be sure that you understand your symbols and that you use them all the time. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

    Parents and the Young

    It is natural that young people are often uncomfortable when they are with their parents.{#blank#}1{#/blank#} They often think that their parents are out of touch with modern ways, that they are too serious and too strict with their children, and that they seldom give their children a free hand. It is time that parents often find it difficult to win their children's trust and they always forget how they themselves felt when young. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}It is one of their ways to show that they have grown up and they can face any difficult situation. Adults worry more easily. Most of them plan things ahead. Young people make their parents angry with their choices in clothes, in entertainment and in music. But they do not mean to cause any trouble: It just shows that they feel cut off from the adult's world, and they have not yet been accepted into their world. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}And if their parents do not like their music or entertainment or clothes or their way of speech, this will make the young people very happy. Sometimes you are so proud of yourself that you do not want your parents to say "yes" to what you do. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}It is natural enough, after being a child for so many years, when you were completely under your parents' control. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} If your parents see that you have a high sense of responsibility, they will give you the right to do what you want to do.

A. Parents should understand young people.

B. Young people like to live with their parents.

C. Young people like to act without much thinking.

D. They say that their parents don't understand them.

E. All you want is to be left alone and do what you like.

F. If you plan to control your life, you'd better win your parents.

G. That's why young people want to make a new culture of their own.