Jill Jones got a new job in a different part of the city. She had to go to work every day by train.

    There was only one other person on the train with her. He was a well-dressed man reading a newspaper. Suddenly, about halfway through the journey, the man began tearing（撕） his newspaper into hundreds of small pieces. Then he picked them up, opened the window and threw them all out. Then he sat down, closed his eyes, and slept for the rest of the journey again.

    The next day, Jill got on the same train. The same well-dressed man was there, reading a newspaper. As before, about halfway through the journey, the man began tearing his newspaper into hundreds of small pieces. Then he picked the pieces up, opened the window and threw them all out. This done, he sat down, closed his eyes, and slept for the rest of the journey. This happened every day for a week.

    At last, on Friday, Jill spoke to the man. "Excuse me, sir," she said, "I don't want to be rude, but I must ask you a question. When we are halfway through our journey, you tear your newspaper into hundreds of pieces and then throw them all out of the window. Please tell me, sir. Why do you do this?"

    The well-dressed man smiled. "There is a simple reason," he said. "I like to sleep for part of the journey, but I cannot sleep if the train is full of elephants. So I throw the pieces of paper out to the elephants. It stops them from coming into the train."

    "But there aren't any elephants on the train," Jill said. "I know," the man said. "It works well, doesn't it?

    I'm Mike. Jim is my best friend. We are both 12 years old in 2017. We are at the same age. We study in the same school but in different classes.

    Jim is a kind person and he can often make friends easily. When I feel worried or unhappy, I can always go to him. He always gives me some advice and he always helps me with my problems. A famous saying goes like this, "A friend in need is a friend indeed."

    Both Jim and I like reading. So we often go to the school library after class. There are many books and magazines. The school library also offers good service. For example, the air conditioner(空调) is always on and you can drink free drinks there, We really like reading books there.

    During the Reading Week, we always ask our friends to read interesting books. Every year, we have two long holidays. When we're on holidays, we usually go to different places.

    In a word, it's lucky to have such a friend sharing interesting things together.

    Ron, a teacher at the skydiving school, was surprised when he saw the grey haired man drive up to the airfield. He was more surprised when the man said that his name was Walter and asked if he could take skydiving lessons. Ron asked Walter how old he was and Walter replied that he was 60. Ron explained to Walter that anyone over 50 had to be checked by a doctor before he could learn to jump from a plane.

    "I'm afraid you should have thought about that before coming here." Ron said, "I'm sorry, but I can't let you start learning without a letter from your doctor.

    Walter smiled, "Here's a letter from my doctor. He asked me to take lots of tests and he said that I was fine. "

    So Walter was able to join the skydiving school. He came to all the lessons and worked very hard, although the other students were much younger than him, mostly about 30. Soon it was time for him to make his first jump. Ron asked him if he was feeling OK. Walter replied that he had never felt better. However, he added that there was something he should have told Ron earlier. Ron asked what it was and Walter smiled. Then, just before he jumped, he told Ron that he wasn't 60. Ron asked how old Walter really was and Walter told him he was 75!

    Walter's first jump from a plane was six years ago and yesterday he made his eighteenth jump. "I should have started skydiving a long time ago!" he said.

    Walter has lots of other hobbies. He enjoys riding fast motorbikes and climbing mountains. Last year he was saved by a police helicopter in Wales.

    Walter's daughter Betty worries about him, "I think he should stop all these activities. But my mother says that as long as he's happy, it's OK."

    Once upon a time, an old woman had two large water pots. Each hung on the end of a pole (杆子) which she carried across her neck. One of the pots had a crack in it while the other pot was perfect, From the river to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full. And the other pot was always full. The perfect pot took pride in its talent. But the poor cracked pot felt sad for its own disadvantages.

    One day by the river the cracked pot said to the woman, "I feel bad about myself, because the crack in me causes water to come out all the way back to your house."

    The old woman smiled and said, "Why are there flowers on your side of the road, but not on the other pot's side? That's because I have always known about your crack. So I planted flowers on your side of the road, and every day while we walk back, you water them. For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate my house. There would not be this beauty without you. Each of us has our own cracks. But the cracks make our lives so interesting and beautiful."

    So, to all the cracked pot friends, have a great day and remember to smell the flowers on your side of the road!