After Columbus discovered the New Continent(新大陆) and 1 back to his motherland, Spain, he was warmly 2. But not everyone felt  3 at Columbus' Success. Some people thought Columbus was only a 4 and what he had done could be done by any other seaman. One day, at a dinner, some self-important men did what they could to 5 Columbus unhappy, saying that he had only done the 6 thing in the world. Hearing this instead of jumping up angrily, Columbus took an 7 from a dish and asked,“Look, here, gentlemen, is there anyone here who can make this egg stand upright?” They tried one by one but none could. Then the egg 8  back to Columbus. He broke it a little, put the egg on the table and it stood upright. “What can be easier than this, gentlemen?” he said, “Now you will say it's so 9 that everybody can do it. Of course, because I have shown you now.” They looked at each other and talked 10.

    I live on the twelfth floor of a building. One afternoon I am coming home from a friend's house. It is just after four o'clock. I get quickly into the lift and press Button(按钮) 12.

    The lift starts to go up, but very slowly. And then, half way up, it suddenly(突然) stops between two floors. I couldn't understand it. I press(按)an all the buttons from 1 to 14. I call for help very loudly. But nobody answers.

    Then suddenly the lights go out, and I am alone in the dark. I start to cry and beat the walls of the lift. I cry and cry until I have no voice left. Then, I feel hopeless, and press all the buttons with my open hands. And all at the same time, there is a bell far away. It rings and rings. It is the fire alarm(火灾警报). I think the whole building is on fire. I say to the God quietly, “Just get me out of here. I'll never be bad again.”

    Just then, I realize the lift is moving very slowly. On the ground floor it stops, and the door opens. A man is standing there. “How long have you been there? It is good that you press the alarm bell. But haven't you learned to read at your school? ” He points at a small piece of paper on the wall beside the lift. It says： “Attention (注意)： This lift will be stopped for repairs between 4 pm and 5 pm on Thursday, March 13.”

    Terry Fox was only seventeen when he got a cancer (癌症). He must have felt hopeless when the doctor said his right leg would have to be cut off 6 inches above the knee.

    But to everyone's surprise, Terry Fox made up his mind to become a long-distance runner and do something about the cancer. What a dream!

    Although it seemed impossible, Terry decided to run across the whole country. He hoped to raise one million dollars for cancer research. Few believed he would make it. Anyway, on April 12, 1980, Terry Fox began his Marathon of Hope. For the first days of his marathon, Terry Fox was alone. He started running at 4:30 am. Day by day, people began to realize that something big was happening on the lonely road. As people saw Terry, they stopped and donated (捐赠) money for cancer research.

    However, his health took a rapid turn for the worse several months later. He had to give up his marathon on September 1, 1980. Terry died three months later, at the age of 22. In his short life, he raised $24 million for cancer research—one dollar for each person in his motherland.

    Since his death, the yearly Terry Fox Run, first held in 1981, has grown to be the world's largest one-day fundraiser (筹资活动) for cancer research.

In the eyes of many foreigners, Chinese are the best hosts and the worst guests in the world. They're not really bad guests but because the guest-host relationship in China is much different than in some Western countries it appears they are not nice guests. And Western guests sometimes look rude in the eyes of Chinese guests.  

　　In China guests are almost like gods. Whenever I enter a Chinese person's home there is always fruit on the table for me and someone is quick to bring me a cup of tea or water. In the West generally the guest is not a god. Acting according to the host's way of doing things is usual behaviour for a guest. 

　　My wife's mother is a very kind elderly Chinese lady who doesn't smoke. When I see some of her guests smoking in her house, as a non-smoker I feel unhappy. Usually I want to stop them directly but I must realize that she must not do that. In most North America homes if you are a guest and the hosts are not smokers, you should not smoke in their house. At the very least you could ask "Is it OK if I smoke?" But don't be surprised if they say "No, you can't smoke." In our culture if you smoke in their home you are a bad guest, but if they don't allow you to smoke in their house they are not a rude guest.

　　Guests in China also have special habits. Some Western people may not adapt to these habits very soon. Thankfully my wife is Chinese so whenever we visit a Chinese family she tells me to buy them a gift. However giving a gift to a host is not always necessary in my country. So if you invite international guests to your home don't be too surprised if they don't bring you a gift. 

　　In China you probably won't need to change the guest-host relationship very much because you will probably only be the host and Chinese are naturally very good hosts. If Western hosts invite you to their house, try not to be too surprised if their style of treating you is not what you have expected.