One of my wonderful memories is about a Christmas gift. Unlike other gifts, it came without wrap(包装).

    On September 11th, 1958, mum gave birth to Richard. After she brought him home from hospital, she put him in my arms, saying, “I promised you a gift, and here it is.” What an honor! I became four years old a month earlier and none of my friends had such a baby doll of their own. I played with it day and night. I sang to it. I told stories. I told it again and again how much I loved it!

    One morning, however, I found its bed empty. My doll was gone! I cried for it. Mum wept(哭泣) and told me that the poor little thing had been sent to a hospital. It had a fever. For several days, I heard mum and dad whispering such words as “hopeless”, “pitiful”and “dying”, and all these words sounded ominous.

    Christmas was coming. “Don't expect any presents this year,” Dad said, pointing at the socks I hung in the living rooms. “If your baby brother lives, that'll be Christmas enough.” As he spoke, his eyes filled with tears. I had never seen him cry before.

    The phone rang early on Christmas morning. Dad jumped out of bed to answer it. From my bedroom I heard him say, “What? He's all right?”He hung up and shouted upstairs. “The hospital said we can bring Richard home!”

    “Thank God!” I heard mum cry.

    From the upstairs window, I watched my parents rush out to the car. I had never seen them so happy. And I was also full of joy. What a wonderful day! My baby doll would be home. I ran downstairs. My socks still hung there flat. But I knew they were not empty：they were filled with love!

    Look to many of history's cultural symbols, and there you'll find an ancestor of Frosty, the snowman in the movie Frozen. It appeared on some of the first postcards, starred in some of the earliest silent movies, and was the subject of a couple of the earliest photos, dating all the way back to the 1800s. I discovered even more about one of humanity's earliest forms of life art during several years of research around the world.

    For example, snowmen were a phenomenon in the Middle Ages, built with great skill and thought. At a time of limited means of expression, snow was like free art supplies dropped from the sky. It was a popular activity for couples to leisurely walk through town to view the temporary works of chilly art. Some were created by famous artists, including a 19-year-old Michelangelo, who in 1494 was appointed by the ruler of Florence, Italy, to build a snowman in his mansion's courtyard.

    The Miracle of 1511 took place during six freezing works called the Winter of Death. The city of Brussels was covered in snowmen—an impressive scene that told stories on every street corner. Some were political in nature, criticizing the church and government. Some were a reflection of people's imagination. For the people of Brussels, this was a defining moment of defining freedom. At least until spring arrived, by which time they were dealing with damaging floods.

    If you fear the heyday of the snowman has passed, don't worry: I've learned that some explosive snowman history is still being made today. Every year since 1818, the people of Zurich, Switzerland, celebrate the beginning of spring by blowing up a snowman. On the third Monday of April, the holiday Sechselauten is kicked off when a cotton snowman called the Boogg is stuffed with explosive and paraded through town by bakers and other tradesmen who throw bread to the crowds. The parade ends with the Boogg being placed on a 40-foot pile of firewood. After the bells of the Church of St. Peter have rung six times, representing the passing of winter, the pile is lit. When the snowman explodes, winter is considered officially over—the quicker it is burnt down, the longer summer is said to be.

    What would work be like if you had no boss?Imagine you could make all your own decisions and no one told you what to do.

    A Swedish software company,Crisp,decided to get rid of their CEO.First,they needed to find out what a CEO actually did.Then they shared those duties among staff and board members,which is exactly what they did.And the employees believes it's been a good change.An employee named Heinrik Kniberg says the company can now act faster,"If you want to get something done,you stand up and start driving that.Workers are also more active and satisfied."And any big decisions are made during the all-member meetings several times a year.

    So,if it's working well for Crisp,could this model become more widespread? Online retailer（零售商）Zappos tried out a similar plan but had unpleasant results.Almost a fifth of its staff decided to leave,and CEO Tony Hsieh admitted that "self-management is not for everyone".Mr Houston,founder of file-sharing service Drew Dropbox,says that total freedom doesn't always feel good,because you no longer know what you're supposed to do,what is important and you're bumping up against other people."

    Would you like to work somewhere with no boss?

    Julian Beever is a well-known British artist. His drawings have appeared on the streets of London, Paris, Tokyo, New York and many other cities around the world. Beever creates what looks like a three-dimensional design (三维设计). From animals to heroes to buildings, the paintings are wonders for our eyes to see.

    In his book Pavement Chalk Artist, Beever shares some of his most attractive and humorous pieces. Here are the examples you will find in the book.

    Philadelphia Eagle, created in the USA, is a huge drawing with an eagle (鹰) landing on an American national flag. Meeting Mr. Frog was created in Spain and is about a realistic- looking (样子逼真的) frog sitting on a lily pad (睡莲叶子). Swimming Pool in the High Street is about a woman relaxing in a swimming pool sinking into the middle of the street.

    Along with an introduction about his background, Beever shares information about his time at home in the UK and abroad. With a fun story coming after each piece of art, this 112- page book is really worth another look.

    With golden sunshine and a gentle breeze（微风）, autumn is the most beautiful seasons in the year. This is a great time to go outside and have fun. Go to a valley to see red maple trees, go and pick fruit in an orchard or find an open field to fly your kite in.

    However, for many high school students, these great activities may be just a dream. With plenty of work to do, they spend all their hours indoors, struggling for a high mark in their exams. Of course, study is one of the most important things for teenagers. But life is definitely much more than that.

    Sometimes we spend so much time studying that we forget how to make life wonderful. In doing so, we lose the real purpose of life —to be a valuable and happy person. To enjoy just how great it is to be alive, we have to put down our books and pens and look around us. Students, take some exercise to improve your health, talk with your parents and friends for understanding and walk around outside to refresh（振作）our body and mind.

    Going out and enjoying the beautiful countryside often helps our creativity in our work. Chinese craftsman, Lu Ban created a saw to help woodworkers. But if he hadn't walked outside, he would not have been inspired by a kind of toothed（锯齿状的）grass. We could also suppose if Newton hadn't rested under that apple tree, then he wouldn't have been hit by an apple, and his classic（经典的）theories would not have come out.

    Going out is not only a break from hard work, but a chance to add to life experience. So come on, give your brain a good rest. Step out of the books and get your bag ready for an autumn outing. We are sure you will get much more than knowledge from the exciting journey.

    In today's society, almost half of all marriages in America end in divorce, which means many children have divorced parents, and 1 am by no means a rare case. There are plenty of other people understanding the difficulty of having separated parents and living in two households. Despite this, people who haven't personally experienced divorce really have no idea what it's like.

    My parents have handled divorce and joint custody(监护) well, at least better than expected. Occasionally my parents put up the curtain to block my brother and I from the reality and I will get a glimpse of the not-so-bright-and-sunny reality, the fact that my parents simply don't like each other, let along get along. They try to make sure my brother and I don't overhear the argument and do their best to keep my brother and I out of their issues.

    Last Mother's Day I woke up at my dad's house with a text message from my mom saying, "Call me when u can." I rolled out of bed and dialed her number. On the other end of the phone I could hear my mom's trembling voice. "Your dad isn't letting me have you until 7 tonight." I knew Mother's Day was important to her and me. I began to get angry with my dad, but I told myself that getting mad and fueling my mom's anger towards my dad wouldn't help. Later my father told me that he had planned to spend time with my grandma and step-mom for Mother's Day, which I understood and accepted but I also understood why my mom wouldn't accept it.

    While having divorced parents is difficult, I have learned a lot about how to deal with conflict from an early age and I've been blessed with an extremely large family, which is an amazing network of support.