My best friend, Connie, is two years older than me. We spend a lot of time together.

    Connie has long dark brown hair and her eyes are big and round. People say she is 1 and looks like a doll. When we go out, people often 2 that I am older than her because she is shorter and slimmer (苗条的).

    Connie is positive（乐观的）even when things go 3 . Last week she got her examination 4 , which were not very good. I thought she was going to be 5 . Instead, she simply decided to do better the next time. Then, every day after class, 6 teachers are free in their offices, she will ask them for help.

    Connie gets on well with others. Everyone in my family 7 her, even my younger brother. When you hear her laugh, you will naturally（自然地）laugh 8 . When I feel unhappy, I will talk to Connie and she will make me feel 9.

    I think my 10 with Connie is very valuable, and I hope we will always be best friends.

    Rose is a student from the U. S. She is in Shanghai with her parents now. She doesn't know Chinese, but she is trying to study and speak it. She often tries to speak Chinese with her Chinese friends. Sometimes they don't understand her, because she can't speak Chinese well.

    It's Saturday morning. Rose goes out. She is on her way to the park. She is going there to see a flower fair(展销会). But she doesn't know how to get there. She asks a Chinese boy the way. The boy can't understand her. Then she takes out a pen and a piece of paper. She draws flowers on it, and then gives the picture to the boy and says something about it. The boy smiles and then shows Rose the way to the park.

    Working as a vet(兽医), I met a family who taught me an unforgettable lesson. They came to my clinic with their dying dog, Coco. I examined Coco and found he was old and had a serious illness. I told the family we couldn't do anything for Coco, and euthanasia(安乐死)would be best for the dog.

    On that day, their little boy Eric seemed so calm, petting the old dog for the last time, that I wondered if Eric understood what was going on.

The little boy seemed to accept Coco's death without any difficulty. We sat together for a while after Coco's death, explaining that animal lives are shorter than human lives.

    Eric, who had been listening quietly, piped up:\"I know why. \"

    He said, "People need a lifetime to learn how to live a good life-like loving everybody and being nice, right? The six-year-old boy continued, "Well, animals already know how to do that, so they don't have to stay as long."

    I'd never heard a more soft-hearted explanation as to why animal lives are so short. It has changed the way I live. I see every day as the day that my life could be easily taken away, so I try to live my life to the fullest.

    Most people who work in the office have a boss (老板). So do I. But my boss is a little unusual. What's unusual about him? It's a big dog. Many men have dogs, but few men bring their dogs to the office every day. My boss's dog, Robinson, is big and brown. My boss brings him to work every day. He takes the dog to meetings and he takes the dog to lunch. When there is telephone call for my boss, I always know if he is in the office. I only look under his desk. If I see something brown and hairy (毛绒绒的) under it, I know my boss is somewhere in the office. If there is no dog, I know my boss is out.