The Thanksgiving Day ,the fourth Thursday in November, is coming in America. But do you know something about the annual(每年的)Macy's Thanksgiving Parade(游行) in New York?

    There are thousands of bystanders(看热闹的人)and millions of television viewers. The Parade is as traditional as turkey. The year 2016 was the 90th year of Macy's parade. It featured 15 huge balloons in the shape of cartoon and pop culture characters, 1,200 dancers and cheerleaders, 900 clowns(小丑),10 marching bands and nearly 9,000 workers, almost all of whom were volunteers.

    The floats(彩车)and balloons have been getting larger ,more colorful and more surprising since Macy's immigrant (移民的) workers organized the first Thanksgiving Day Parade.

    In 2016, school children were invited to the Macy's parade studios(画室) outside New York City, for a first look at several just completed floats.

    Bella was excited to be there. “I think it's great because I get to see all of these floats before anyone else does in the parade,” said Bella.

    John Piper is the president of Macy's Studio. He said his work was fun all the time. “It's a lot of work. All year long, the artists at Macy's Studio all build these floats. We create them from scratch(涂抹). I have the finest carpenters(木匠), metal workers, painters all cooperating(合作) together,” said Piper.

    The floats were supposed to advertise for commercial sponsors(赞助商) for the start of the Christmas season. But Amy Kule, the event producer said, “ And the floats are used to keep the beauty and the majesty(庄严)of the parade. A Thanksgiving parade is always about giving back and entertaining(娱乐). But most importantly, it's about leaving it for the next generation.”

    If we were asked exactly what we were doing a year ago，we should probably have to say that we could not remember. But if we had kept a book and had written in it an account of what we did each day, we should be able to give an answer to the question．

    It 1s the same in history．Many things have been forgotten because we do not have any written account of them. Sometimes men did keep a record of the most important happenings in their country, but often it was destroyed by fire or in a war．Sometimes there was never any written record at all because the people of that time and place did not know how to write．For example，we know a good deal about the people who lived in China 4,000 years ago，because they could write and leave written records for those who lived after them．But we know almost nothing about the people who lived even 200 years ago in Central Africa，because they had not learned to write．

    Sometimes，of coures，even if the people cannot write，they may know something of the past．They have heard about it from older people，and often songs, dances and stories have been made about the most important happenings, and these have been sung，acted and told for many generations，for most people are proud to tell what their fathers did in the past．This we may call”remembered history”．Some of it had been written down. It is not so exact or so valuable to us as written history is，because words are much more easily changed when used again and again in speech than when copied in writing．But where there are no written records，such spoken stories are often very helpful．

    When I was ten years old I went to the USA to visit some family friends. I noticed something funny about the way everyone spoke English.

    One moment! I remember very clearly was at the beginning of the holiday, when my friend asked me if I wanted to order “French fries”. I couldn't imagine what they were. She was amazed that I had never tried them and she ordered a portion for us to share. When the waiter brought us some chips, I asked her where the French fries were. She pointed at the plate of chips! Later that week she said she was going to buy some “chips” from the supermarket. She came out with a packet of crisps（薯片）! How come?

    During that holiday we were also offered “biscuits” with our lunch. This was a very strange idea to me, because in England biscuits are sweet. I later realized that “biscuits” in America are salty snacks. What we call “biscuits', they call “cookies”.

    I was also embarrassed when a stranger told me she liked my “pants”. I wondered how she could see them! My mum then told me that they call “pants” what we call “trousers”, the outer clothing that you wear on your legs instead of inside clothing!

    I was disgusted when I saw an “eggplant” pizza on the menu in a restaurant. But I was puzzled how eggs can grow on plants. My dad ordered this pizza and it was covered in aubergines（茄子）. “They call aubergines 'eggplant' in America!” he told me.

    I think part of the excitement of learning a language is learning about the differences that exist in how it is spoken in different places.

    As we all know, there are plenty of different parks to visit in the UK. All theme parks in Britain have cafes, restaurants, picnic areas and gift shops, so you'll still have plenty to see and do when you and the kids have been on enough rides. There are usually smaller “funfair” rides and games as well, so younger children won't get bored. Several theme parks also have other attractions next to them, e.g. water parks often open all year round, unlike the theme parks.

    Whenever you are in Britain, there's likely to be a theme park within one or two hours'drive, bus ride or train journey. Several theme parks even have accommodation (膳宿) so you can stay for a day for two if you want to make a trip into a short holiday.

    Prices for UK theme parks vary considerably; some have an entrance price which allows you to go on all the rides, while in others you have to pay for every ride individually. It can also make a difference whether you go during peak time or not. For example, tickets always cost more during school holidays and weekends than they do during the weekdays.

    Theme parks always get very busy during the summer months, so if you don't like crowds it's usually a good idea to go earlier or later in the year!

    If you're thinking of visiting a UK theme park, it's worth having a look for special offers on tickets. Products such as chocolate bars and cereals sometimes have “buy one get one free” offers on theme park tickets, so keep a look out in shops and supermarkets.

    Once an old man rose early to read each morning. His grandson wanted to be just like his grandfather, so tried to emulate him every way he could.

    One day the grandson asked, “Grandpa, I try to read just like you do, but I don't understand most of it, and I forget whatever I do understand immediately I close the book. So what good is it for me to read?”

    The grandfather, who was putting coal on the fire, said, “Take this coal basket down to the river and bring me back a basket of water.”

    The boy did as told to, but the water leaked out before he could get the basket home.

    The grandfather laughed, saying, “You'll have to move a little faster.” This time he ran faster, but again the basket emptied. Out of breath, he decided it was impossible to carry water in a basket, and he went to get a bucket (桶). But the grandfather said, “I want a basket of water instead of a bucket of water. You're just not trying hard enough.”

    The boy knew what he was trying to accomplish was impossible. However, he decided to show his grandfather a third time.

    The boy dipped the basket into the river and ran as hard as he could. With the empty basket, he gasped (喘气说), “See Grandpa? It's useless!”

    “So you think it useless?” the old man asked. ''Then look at the basket.” To his surprise, the boy found it washed clean of the dirty coal stains and now clean inside and out.

    “My child, that's what happens when you read the book. You might not understand or remember everything, but the words will change you inside and out. That is the work of reading in our lives.”

What Is Social Media?

    Not many people ask the question “what is social media?” anymore. Social media has been around for years now, and most of us would probably describe it as any Internet medium that can be used to share information with others, including blogs, forums, applications, games, websites and other stuff.

    But let me ask you this: what exactly is so “social” about sitting before a computer setting up a blog and blogging for days without anybody reading it, or scrolling through your Facebook feed of information from 500 friends you barely know? If you ask me, it can be way more anti-social than anything.

    Social media is not a “thing”. It's not just Facebook, WeChat and Weibo It's more of a frame of mind and a state of being. It's about how you use it to improve your relationships with other people in real life. However, we tend to rely on technology and social media so much that it can actually tear apart those relationships.

    Social media isn't about numbers. When someone says “social media,” web giants like Facebook, Twitter, WeChat and Weibo instantly pop into our minds, often because they have more updates, more friends, more followers, more links, more photos, more everything. We tend to get distracted by the number game, thinking “volume, volume, volume”. It's led to a lot of meaningless noise and information overload. As the old saying goes, quality over quantity is usually the way to go. So, social media is not just about lots of people aimlessly pushing around lots of information.

    Social media needs to have an “IRL” factor-an Internet slang standing for “In Real Life”. It should affect how a person thinks or acts offline. After all, social media shouldn't be an end in itself. It was built to enhance your actual social life, in real life. Take for example an event that a person attends because they are invited by the host on Facebook through a Facebook event page. Something like that definitely has the IRL factor. Likewise, a WeChat photo that touches someone so much that they feel the need to bring it up and describe it to someone else during a dinner date also has the IRL factor.

    So, is it really considered to be social to spend an hour scrolling through photos on Weibo, with no thoughtful or emotional effect and no interaction with others? In fact, there is no wall between real life and Internet life where true social media exists. Social media is not a specific place on the Internet or just a thing you use to see what other people are doing. It's all about creating meaningful experiences and relationships wherever you may be.