Paul: Hi, Bill! Have a look atmy house in the country. I'm sure you can enjoy yourself.

Bill: I'd love to.But I hear that the food is not delicious, and your house is not good. Is it so?

Paul: No, that's not true. Go and see!

Then Bill goes to the countryside with Paul.

Bill: Why do you live in a hole in the field? You should come and live in the city. You would live in a nice house made of stone. You would have better food to eat. You must come and see me at my house in the city.

Paul: Thanks! Maybe you are right. I'll visit your house one day.

Several days later Paul goes to Bill's house in the city. The house is big and beautiful. They are sitting in the sitting-room, having a big dinner comfortably. Suddenly, there a great noise.

Bill: Run! Run! The cat is coming!

Paul: Oh, no! It's terrible! Both the house and the food are nice, but I do not like living in the city. I enjoy living in my hole in the field, for it is nice to be poor but happy than to be rich but afraid.

    My name is Paul Miller. I was too fat before, but now I do not have this problem. My doctor tells me to jog(慢跑). So early every morning I run for two miles before breakfast. I do not run fast, but I do not stop to rest.

    People call me a jogger. There are many joggers on my street. We often run together in the park or along the road. Jogging helps to keep us strong and healthy.

    Jogging is very popular in the United States. People like to feel well and look nice. Some people do not jog, but they do not get fat. They work hard on their jobs and they do not need to run before they go to work.

    Do you want to jog? Go to your doctor first. Your doctor can tell you something about jogging. My doctor tells me to eat only three meals a day. I feel healthy and my doctor is happy because I jog every day and I do not eat anything before or after meals.

C

    One night, when I was eight, my mother gently asked me a question I would never forget. "Cindy, my company wants to promote (升职) me but needs me to work in Brazil. This is like your teacher telling you that you've done well and allowing you to skip (跳) a grade, but you'll have to leave your friends. Would you say yes to your teacher?" She gave me a hug and asked me to think about it. I was lost in thought. The question kept me wondering for the rest of the night. I had said "yes" but for the first time, I realized the difficult decisions adults had to make.

    For almost four years, my mother would call us from Brazil every day. Every evening I'd eagerly wait for the phone to ring and then tell her everything happened during the day. A phone call, however, could never take her place and it was difficult not to feel lonely at times.

    During my fourth-grade Christmas break, we flew to Rio to visit her. Looking at her large empty apartment,   ▲    It was then I started to understand the difficult choices she had to make. She needed to think about both family and work. Faced with difficult decisions, she used to tell me, you wouldn't know whether you make the right choice, but you could always make the best out of the situation, with a positive attitude.

    Back home, I reminded myself that what my mother could do, I could, too. If she managed to live in Rio all by herself, I, too, could learn to be independent. I learn how to take care of myself and set high but achievable goals.

    My mother is now back with us. But I will never forget what the experience has really taught me. I've learned a lot because of this separation. There are lots of difficult decisions that we have to face in our life. We need to have a positive attitude no matter what happens.

    Mike is a factory worker. He is often very tired after a day's work. His wife(妻子), Jenny, has no job, so she stays at home to cook the meals. Every day he can have his dinner when he gets home from his factory.

    One day, Mike came home very late because he was very busy in the factory. He was very hungry when he got home.

    He was not happy when he found his dinner was not ready. He was very angry with his wife. He shouted out, "I'm going out to eat in a restaurant." "Wait for five minutes," said his wife. "Why? Do you think that dinner will be ready in five minutes?" asked Mike.

     "Of course not," she answered. "But I can be ready to go with you in five minutes."

    Hello, everyone! I'd like to tell you something about a famous scientist named Qian Xuesen. He was born in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province on December 11, 1911. After he graduated from Shanghai Jiao Tong University in 1934, he got a chance to study in USA. After he graduated, he became a teacher as well as a researcher who studied rockets and missile theories.

    When he was 44, he returned to his motherland and the country's space research was almost a blank. In 1956, he set up the first research institute of rockets and missiles. He made such important contributions to the missile and space programs that he was honored as "The Father of China's Missiles". The Chinese people are proud of him.

    He passed away on October 31, 2009 at the age of 98, but all the Chinese will remember him forever. His devotion to his country was expressed in his saying, "My career is in China, my success is in China and my destination is in China!" When someone said he could make much more money if he stayed in the United States, he laughed and said," My family name is Qian, but I don't like qian." His spirit encourages us to love our country and devote ourselves to science.