Dick was born in a poor family. His father had a small boat and went fishing in the morning and sold the fish in the market in the afternoon. Then he bought some food for his family. When winter came, they were often hungry. One morning the hungry man fell into the river and wasn't found. Dick's mother left her three-year-old son without saying good-bye. His aunt had to look after him.

    Twenty years passed. Dick became a tall, strong man. He found work on a farm. He worked hard and wanted to get more money. He often went to see his aunt with some nice presents. The woman was very happy but one day she died in a traffic accident. The young man was very sad. After he buried her, he decided to buy a beautiful tombstone (墓碑)for her. He went to town and came in a shop, but all the tombstones were too expensive. He asked, "Do you sell an old tombstone, sir?" "Yes, we do, sir," answered the shopkeeper. "Is it as expensive as the new one?''

    "No, it's much cheaper," said the man. "But another name was engraved(刻) on it." "It doesn't matter," said Dick. "My aunt couldn't read."

    "Listen carefully to what I say,"  the time traveler said, "I shall tell you something that you will not agree."

    "Why will we not agree?" I asked.

    "Because the science and mathematics you know are not correct," he said. "You believe there are only three dimensions(三维空间)-length, breadth(宽) and thickness."

    "There is nothing to argue with that, "  the youngest member of our little group said.

    "Exactly!"  the time traveler answered, "But there is also a fourth dimension - time."

    "We all know about time, " another member of the group said. "Time passed."

    "I do not agree,"  the time traveler said, "Length, breadth and thickness do not pass. They stay in the same place in space.  We move about them. I can prove that time is the same. It does not pass. We move in time the same way that we move in breadth, length and thickness."

    None of us believed the time traveler, and we argued with him for many hours.

    "If we could travel back in time,"  the scientist said, "We could do things to change the future."

    "If we could travel forward in time," the doctor(博士) said, "we could do things that change our present."

    The time traveler smiled, "It is clear," he said, "that there is only one way I can show you that I am right. We must do an experiment. Please wait here."

    He left the room and soon returned, carrying what looked like a clock.

    "This is a model of a time machine. It took me two years to make it," the time traveler said. "I want all of you to understand that when I start the machine, it will immediately travel in time and disappear from the present."

    He turned to the youngest of all. "Give me your hand," he said.

    The young man put out his hand. The time traveler took it and placed it on the machine. Immediately, there was a sudden wind, and the little machine disappeared.

    I was certain this was not a trick, but the doctor was not so sure.

    "Are you asking us to believe," he said, "that the machine is now in a different time?"

    "Certainly! In my laboratory, a full-size machine is almost complete. As soon as it is complete, I shall send myself on a journey through time. Would you like to see my machine?"

    "Are you serious about this?" the doctor asked.

    "I have never been more serious about anything," the time traveler said, "Come."

    We followed him to his laboratory. There, we saw the actual machine, not quite complete, but large enough for a man to sit in.

    Mike always loves ships. When he was older, he said, “I'm going to be a soldier.” But his eyes were not very1and he did not get in.

    Then he said, “I'm going to2a small boat and I'm going around the world.” But boats were very expensive, and Mike did not have enough3

    Last summer Mike found a swimming4near his house. The lessons did not cost very5 and Mike began going to the school at every end of the week and having6. Now he is a good swimmer.

    Last week a little boy said to him, “You're a very good swimmer. How do7learn to swim so well?”

    “I'm not good at all,” Mike said and he smiled. “8 I'm in the water, I say to myself, “There are 9fishes behind me!” Then I'm very afraid, and I10quickly.”

    I once knew a man who was rich in his love for birds, and in their love for him. He lived in a grove full of all kinds of trees. He had no wife or children in his home. He was an old man with blue and kind eyes, and a voice that the birds loved.

    While he was at work in the grove, the birds came close to pick up the worms(蠕虫) in the fresh earth he dug up. At first, they kept their distance from him, but they soon found he was a kind man, and would not hurt them, but liked to have them near him.

    They knew this by his kind eyes and voice, which tell what is in the heart. So, day by day their faith in his love grew in them.

    All the birds of the grove were soon his fast friends. They were on the watch for him, and would fly down from the green tree tops to greet

him with their chirp(叽叽喳喳叫).

    When he had no work to do, he took bread with him, and dropped the pieces on the ground. Down they would dart(俯冲) on his head and feet to catch them as they fell from his hand.

    He showed me how they loved him. He put a piece of bread in his mouth, with one end of it out of his lips. Down they came like bees at a flower, and flew off with it piece by piece.

    When they thought he slept too long in the morning, they would fly in and _______.

    They went with him to church, and while he sang his hymns in it, they sat in the trees, and sang their praises.

    So the love and trust of birds were a joy to the old man all his life long.

Jane didn't have friends at school, but that was not a problem to her. She liked to do things all by {#blank#}1{#/blank#}(她自己), such as reading a book in the library or playing computer games at home. She never felt {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(孤独的;寂寞的).

One day, Jane's teacher, Ms Murphy, {#blank#}3{#/blank#}(鼓励) Jane to make more friends at school. But Jane didn't agree with her and asked, "Why? I don't think I need to have a friend." Ms Murphy {#blank#}4{#/blank#}(解释;说明) the importance of friendship to Jane. "Friends are people who care about you," she said. "They are always willing to give you a hand when you are in 

{#blank#}5{#/blank#}(问题;烦恼). Reading can make you happy. The Internet can give you any information you need. But only friends can make you feel {#blank#}6{#/blank#}(温暖的). They should be the most important wealth in your life."

Jane told Ms Murphy that she was not good at making friends with other people. She did not know {#blank#}7{#/blank#}(是否) others would like her or not. Ms Murphy gave her many good {#blank#}8{#/blank#}(建议). In the end she said, "Be kind, Jane. I think soon you will have your own {#blank#}9{#/blank#}(圈子) of friends." Thinking twice, Jane {#blank#}10{#/blank#}(点头) with a smile on her face. Ms Murphy was such a good teacher. She was the first person that Jane wanted to make friends with!