An old friend from the US whom I was looking forward to staying with telephoned from the airport to tell me that he had arrived. I was still at the 1  at that time, but I had got everything ready for his arrival. After letting him know where my house was, I told him that I had left the  2under the doormat(门垫),  3  I was likely to be home rather late. I told him to go into the 4 and help himself to food and drink. Two hours later my friend 5 me from the house. At the moment, he said, he was listening to some of my records after having just had a truly wonderful 6 . He had found a cooker and  7  two eggs and he helped himself to some cold chicken from the ice box. He said he was drinking a glass of orange juice and he hoped I would 8him. When I asked him if he had reached the house without difficulty, he answered, "I was not able to find the key,  9 luckily, the living-room windows Just by the apple tree were left open and you know what I could do." I listened to all this in 10 . In front of my living-room there was no apple tree at all.

    This is a   1 of my family.  2   Frank, I am twelve. I study(学习) in No.2 Middle School. This is my father.  3  name is Dale Brown. He is a teacher in my school. He teaches English. And this is my mother. Her name is  4  . She is a  5 , too. Who's that woman  6my father? Oh, she is my aunt. She is a nurse. My grandparents aren't in the photo.   7 are in the USA. I  8  a dog.   9name is Dick. I love my  10 very much.

    We live in a forest in Zambia(赞比亚). There aren't any neighbor 1nearby. And this community school is about an hour's drive from our home. It 2169 students from Grade 1 to Grade 7. There are four teachers in the school. They are volunteers and they teach students 3 getting any money. But sometimes students will give 4 teachers some chicken and corn. There are over 70 languages in Zambia. English is the most popular and 5 of the students can speak English.

    There is no running water in the school and the water pump(水泵) is broken. Teachers and students can't 6 it for two months. So they have to 7 their water from a nearby river. During school holidays, it always rains 8 and the grass grows taller and taller. When school opens again, students will 9 the grass and the school ground.

    Most children in Zambia go to the community schools 10 other schools are too far for them to go. They like their schools and they love their teachers.

    Last autumn, my 80-year-old grandmother was having problems with her heart. My family sent her to the1.

After a careful examination, a famous doctor told my grandmother, "You have such a2 heart condition that you should have an operation."

    "But the complications (并发症) can happen." the doctor3my grandmother and looked at her worried face.

The doctor went on to say that she would have a 40 percent possibility of having a heart trouble 4the operation, a 35 percent possibility of being unable to stand up, and even 20 percent of5on the operating table because of her old age.

    My grandmother was terribly surprised and quickly said, "Doctor, since you're talking about these 6, I have one for you: there is a 100 percent possibility that you won't operate on me!"

    7these words, my grandmother got up and8the doctor's office.

    The next day, my grandmother went to9doctor's office. There she was also told she needed an 10. The doctor also said that her11might cause some problems. 12 he was quite sure about the success of operation.

    My grandmother might be brave, but she is not silly. She then asked the doctor, "If I am your mother, what will you13?"

    The doctor walked up to her, smiled, put his arms14her, and said, "Mom, let's have the operation!"

    My grandmother had the operation and came out15! Her positive attitude (乐观的心态) added many wonderful and happy years for her and enjoy living with my family.

The Tradition

    Luis's whole family meet every June to celebrate Grandpa's birthday. Before everyone sits down to eat, each person has to tell a personal story they have about1. Some family members tell the same story year after year. Luis, for example, had his usual story about the time Grandpa taught him how to take care of a vegetable garden.

    The stories are a tradition. And now that most of the grandchildren are old enough to 2, the tradition could go on for quite a while. Last year, it took three hours. Luis tried hard not to yawn (打哈欠) as he listened to all the same old stories.

    This year, Uncle Frank and Aunt Teresa have dinner ready early and call everyone to eat.

    "What about the 3? Luis asks.

    "There's just not enough time this year, with so many people," Uncle Frank says.

    After hearing this, Luis feels relieved (如释重负). But he also feels a little4as he sits down at the long dining table. Without the tradition, Grandpa's birthday feels like any other holiday the family share.

    Luis looks at the plate of vegetable salad. "You know, I wouldn't know how to pick a tomato right if it wasn't for Grandpa," he says softly.

    "I wouldn't know how to drive a car," says Aunt Teresa.

    "I wouldn't know how to turn a paperclip into a safety pin," adds Uncle Felix. "That sure saved the day at Edna's wedding (婚礼)!" Everyone laughs and smiles at each other at the reminder of that well—known family story.

    It was a 5birthday. Conversations run like water, and the food is wonderful. But something tells Luis that next year, the tradition of telling stories will6.