I have spent almost a third of my life in China, living and working in this beautiful country. In a sense, China has been and is still my second home But in those past years I ha d never been to Quzhou.

Some days ago, for the first time in my Chinese life, I stepped into the beautiful city of Quzhou. My impressions of Quzhou city were as I always thought: green countryside, rainy sky, wet air. That was what I imagined for years the south of China would be. When we finally arrived, I was impressed by the elegant (优雅的) city.

Next day we were taken to visit some places not far away from the city. I was not aware of the direction of our short trip, but when we arrived at Lanke Mountain and got out of the car, I thought that we had been taken to a fairyland (仙境) : the light rain over the green and thick plants, the silvery sky like a heavy blanket and the mystery (神秘) of this mountain made me feel like being part of a picture.

Jiulong Lake was our next step. The mystic atmosphere (气氛) of this place was so strong that I decided to watch the view standing at the top when I stepped into the small boat to sail upstream. Sometimes we were so close to the mountain that we could clearly see the red soil under the plants. I was thinking of the joy to be in a place like Jiulong Lake and how it would be to live among those hills for a while.

    The final leg of the day's journey was a primary school. We were welcomed by the smiles on the faces of many young pioneers. The energy of the hundreds of kids made me feel younger for a while, so educated, so polite and so warm that I had no doubt about the future generations of Quzhou people. The people seem to me the best of Quzhou and they will remain in my memories forever.

Love is a two-way street

    A father sat at his desk and looked at his bills when his young son rushed in and announced, "Dad, because today is your birthday and you're 40 years old, I'm going to give you 40 kisses, one for each year!"

When the boy started making good on his word(履行诺言), the father shouted, "Andrew, don't do it now. I'm too busy!" The boy soon fell silent as tears fell from his big blue eyes. Feeling sorry, the father said, "You can finish later." The boy said nothing but quietly walked away. That evening the father said, "Come and finish the kisses now, Andrew!". But the boy didn't. Unfortunately，a few days later after the father's birthday, the boy had an accident and died. His sad father wrote, "If only(要是.....该多好) I could tell him how sorry I am for my thoughtless words, and how much my heart is hurting. "I Love is a two-way street. We must warmly accept any loving act, or others will take it as a "NO" and it can leave a scar(伤痕). If we don't receive love, our life will lose its true meaning. Nothing is more important than accepting love from those who are near and dear to us.

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What do you think of your school? Have you ever expressed your ideas to your teachers or the headmaster? The following are the posts in an online chat room. Students from different schools have written down their thoughts.

My son, Kevin, loved wrestling (摔跤运动) as he was growing up. When he entered high school, he showed a lot of athletic ability. Even as a freshman wrestler, we could see the hope of his future, and he went on to improve each year. As a senior, he'd become the leader of a team that set an unbelievable record. Just as we expected, he went into the state tournament (锦标赛). 

Then he won four matches and ranked number one. Here we were, in the finals of the state tournament, ready to win our championship—we still didn't have a state championship when his high school career was over. 

Unluckily, his last match didn't go well! I felt terrible, and I was unwilling to accept what had just happened and unable to believe it. I painfully watched Kevin as he shook hands with his opponent (对手) and stood calmly as the judge raised his opponent's hand in victory. Then he quietly walked out of the gym. 

A few weeks later, I received a letter from Kevin's school. In the letter, the principal praised Kevin's devotion to his team, his respect to his opponents and his spirit of competition. After I read this, I cried. 

For years, I had watched every single match where Kevin had wrestled in high school, but I hadn't noticed all the outstanding qualities that his principal (校长) mentioned. I always focused on the wins. And when he didn't get that final win, I was especially hurt and disappointed. I'd failed to realize that Kevin was working hard to achieve victories, but always performing with character no matter whether he won or lost. 

At that moment, my son became my mentor (导师). He taught me that winners in life appreciate the pursuit more than the victory itself.