In the 1950s, a female swimming athlete set a goal for herself. She decided to swim across the English Channel before she retired. If she could make it, she would be the first person in the world who did it.

    On that day, she jumped into the sea without any hesitation and swam towards the opposite bank.

    In the journey, she faced heavy fog, heavy rain and heavy waves. Though she was very tired, she carried on swimming.

    But in the end, she gave up. And what she didn't know at the moment she gave up was that the opposite bank was only I mile away.

    Later people asked her about the reason. And she said: "The reason why I gave up is that I could not see the destination which I was so close to."

    Too many success stories have been lecturing us about courage and persistence(坚持). But they never told us where to find courage and persistence.

    You can have courage only when you know where your goal is. You can manage to persist only when you know where your goal is, and prepare yourself well mentally(心理上).

    Courage and persistence never fall from the sky. They come from weighing between input and output.

    A life without goals is like a ship without a compass. It goes nowhere. There is no courage or persistence in a life without goals.

    Most musicians agree that the best violins were first made in Cremona, Italy, about 200 years ago. These violins sound better than any other violin. They even sound better than the violins made today. Violin makers and scientists try to make instruments like the Italian violins. But they aren't the same. Musicians still prefer the old ones.

    Some people think it is the age of the violins. But not all the old violins sound wonderful. Only the old violins from Cremona are special. So age cannot be the correct answer.

    Other people think the secret to those violins is wood. The wood must be from certain kinds of trees. But the kind of wood may not be so important. It may be more important to cut the wood in a special way. Wood for a violin must be cut very carefully. It has to be the right size and shape. The smallest difference will change the sound of the violin.  Musicians sometimes think that it is the secret of the Italians. Possibly they understood more than us about how to cut the wood.

    Size and shape may not be the answer either. Scientists can make new ones which are exactly the same size and shape. But the new violins still do not sound as good as the old ones. Some scientists think the secret may be the varnish (清漆). Varnish is what covers the wood of the violin. It makes the wood look shiny. It also helps the sound of the instrument. But no one knows what the Italian violin makers used in their varnish.

    Johnny is a lovely fish. He lives in the sea. He is very lonely. He wants to find a friend. And the friend looks like him. Johnny sees an ink fish. The ink fish has eight legs. He doesn't look like Johnny. So Johnny goes away.

    Johnny meets a shark. He wants to say hello to the shark. But the shark opens his big mouth and wants to cat him. Johnny runs away quickly.

    Johnny is tired and hungry. He wants to have a rest. Then he sees a round fish. She says to him." Hello! Would you like to be my friend?"

    Johnny answers," Of course! But you are round, I am fat. You don't look like me." The round fish says," But we are both fishes."

    Johnny thinks and says," You are right. Let's be friends." They become good friends.

    It is a fine Sunday morning. Ann and her mother are on a big bus. There are many people on it. Some of them come from America, and some come from England and Canada. They are going to the Great Wall.

    There are only two Chinese on the bus. One is the woman. She is driving the bus. The other is a young man. He is their guide and can speak English very well. Now he is talking with an American girl. Other people are listening to them. They are very interested in the Great Wall. They want to see it very much.