One morning, I was driving my father-in-law to the airport when a plane flew silently over the road like a big bird, about to touch down at the airport.

    "It's magic," my father-in-law said. I looked at him, without knowing what was happening.

    He was a doctor who gave speeches at colleges and had visited more than 100 countries. He understood better than I why a plane can fly in the sky. It, really, wasn't magic. But now, I realize he was at least right in some way.

    Though flying might not be magic, it's certainly magical. What it brings to our real lives is something found in our dreams.

    But too often, we, especially I forget. I read a sentence a few months ago. It said, "You know you're growing-up when you no longer want a window seat."

    Too often in recent years, I've asked for a seat near the exit row, forgetting the wonders of traveling fast. But sometimes, when the Wi-Fi's not working or my computer has no power, I remember to look.

    I think of one time when I was leaving on a family vacation. Moments after take-off, I started working. But a passenger behind me wouldn't stop talking. "The clouds!" he kept saying, "Look at the clouds!"

I turned around, and saw two men, one who appeared to be in his seventies and the other much younger. The chat continued for 20 minutes until, not patiently, I raised my eyes from my computer screen and looked out of the window.

    The clouds!

    He was right. We were floating through big soft balls of cotton, each in different shapes. They seemed easy enough to touch. The afternoon sun provided all kinds of colors, all against a blue sky. I put away my computer and appreciated(欣赏)them for the rest of the flight.

    I don't remember the work I felt like I had to complete that afternoon. I've never forgotten those clouds.

    Some years ago, Danny gave up his job as a doctor to become a freelance(特约的) model maker, but now he has money trouble. He says that he wishes he'd never 1 to set up his own business.

    "I am now in such a bad situation," says Danny. "I hope I'm 2 working as a doctor. You see, I was 3 with my job, and I didn't have any fun. I said to a few friends that I wanted to go into 4 and they said that they could give me work, so I left the hospital.

    At first, everything was 5: I had too much work to do. I got too many orders every day. And soon I 6a large number of money. I had a really great lifestyle, and when the work was finished, I used to take good 7 in places like the beautiful blue Aegean Sea, Maldives, Hawaii and so on, just to get relaxed.

    Like this, I was busy having fun all around the world, and charged (支付) everything to my credit (信用) cards, but then I began to 8 how much in debt (负债) I was. At last, I had to sell all my office equipment (设备). Now I could do almost 9 even if people asked me. I've had to 10 my business now and I don't know what I'm going to do for money. It just goes to show if you set up your own business, you shouldn't spend money you don't have."

Last Friday afternoon, my parents told me that they {#blank#}1{#/blank#} to take me to the countryside to enjoy the beauty of nature. I {#blank#}2{#/blank#} very happy about the trip. Before the trip, we prepared （把. . . . . . 准备好）everything for it. 

Then the next day, my father {#blank#}3{#/blank#}us to the countryside. Along the way, we enjoyed the beautiful scenery（风景）. The {#blank#}4{#/blank#}are taller（更 高）and greener （更绿）than those in the city. We stopped our car at times and went out to breathe （呼吸）the fresh air. It was so {#blank#}5{#/blank#}. We felt so relaxed. 

Two hours later, we {#blank#}6{#/blank#}the countryside. It was so beautiful there. We saw some farmers working in the fields. We went to help them and they talked to us{#blank#}7{#/blank#} . 

We had {#blank#}8{#/blank#}picnic in the fields. We enjoyed ourselves very much. We all thought the life in the countryside was more interesting than that in the city. We all hoped to live in the countryside one day. 

Many foreigners move to China because of a strong interest in its culture. One man has turned 1 interest into love and this love made him write many books about China. He is William, an American who has lived in China for 33 years, his Chinese name is Pan and he 2 Lao Pan in China.

3 1988, Lao Pan first came to China and worked as a teacher at a university. But Lao Pan did not begin 4 China until he and his family took a 3 month drive around the county. These experiences in China gave him ideas for his books. Since then he 5 thirteen books about China. These books give the world a fuller picture of China and Lao Pan is proud of what he is doing.

Lao Pan's new book 6 his forty seven letters to his family back in America. The letters show China's development in 7 periods. Lao Pan 8 says he loves China so much because of its people. He sees it as 9 life long task to let more westerners know what China is like. He will continue telling the nation's 10 to the world 

The Qixi Festival (also known as The Double Seventh Festival) is a traditional Chinese festival. There is a beautiful story 1 it.

Long, long ago, there was a young man named Niulang. One day, he 2 a beautiful girl — Zhinv, the Goddess's seventh daughter. She had just run away from the 3 heaven (天国) to look for fun on Earth. Zhinv soon fell in love with Niulang, and they got married without 4 the Goddess. Niulang worked in the field and Zhinv wove (织布) at home. They 5 a happy life and gave birth to a boy and a girl. Unluckily, the Goddess soon found out the fact and 6 Zhinv to return to heaven. After Zhinv left, Niulang was 7 upset. With the help of his magic cow, Niulang flew to heaven with his children to 8 his wife. The Goddess discovered this and was very angry. Taking out her hairpin (发簪), she created a wide river in the sky to separate (分开) the two 9 . From then on, Niulang and Zhinv had to live 10 on the two sides of the river. However, their true love 11 all the magpies (喜鹊) in the world, 12 once a year tens of thousands of magpies would fly up to heaven to make a bridge ("the bridge of magpies") for the couple to meet each other. At last, the Goddess allowed 13 to meet each year on the 7th day of the 7th lunar month. That's 14 the Double Seventh Festival started. Today, it is a great 15 for Chinese young people to express their love.