In a small room, Jenny was lying in bed waiting for an operation (手术), nervous and worried. To her surprise, a new patient was sent into the room. After a kind greeting (打招呼), they began to talk. The 80-year-old newcomer was named Susan. She had two children. Her son was boss of a big company and her daughter worked in a TV station. As her children were too busy to take care of Susan, she lived in an old people's home. Susan was proud of her children who had wonderful jobs and made a lot of money. Jenny really envied (羡慕)Susan. Compared with Susan, Jenny was nothing but an ordinary (普通的) woman from the countryside. Her children were just ordinary workers.

Soon, it was supper time, Jenny's daughter cooked several dishes which were her favorite. Jenny invited Susan to share her supper, but she did not accept the invitation. Susan was expecting her daughter when she received a call. Unfortunately (不幸), her children couldn't come to visit her. Worse still, Susan had missed the mealtime in the hospital. She lay in bed, disappointed and silent. Jenny's daughter offered to buy her some food but she had no appetite (食欲) at all.

The next day, Jenny and Susan would go through a series of regular medical checks (一连串的常规检查) before the operation. Jenny's daughter took care of her carefully while Susan was still alone. Out of sympathy (出于同情), Jenny's daughter helped to queue up (排队), fill in different forms and register (挂号) for Susan. For several days in hospital, even during her operation, Susan's children didn't come. Susan really envied Jenny as her daughter looked after her all the time until she recovered and moved out of hospital.

Care from the loved ones can really make one happy and encouraged, especially for old parents. So don't forget to look after your parents even while you are busy working.

Ben and Tim are good friends. They were very active before. They played games together outdoors a lot. But now Tim is not active any more. He has some bad habits. He watches too much TV and plays too many computer games. Ben worries about him.

Ben sends his friend a poem:

You can be a couch potato and watch TV all day.

But don't do that. There is another way!

Move your body, get out and have fun.

Fresh air, a bike ride, playing in the sun!

Tim gets home from school. There is a letter at his front door. It's Ben's poem! He reads the poem and he laughs. He writes a poem back to his friend:

Your poem is funny,

But I feel really lucky.

With a true friend on my side,

My world will be open wide.

Let's meet tomorrow at six o' clock,

And we can go for a good walk.

On the evening of July 31, 2024, a great moment happened at the swimming event of the Paris Olympics. Pan Zhanle, a Chinese swimmer, won the gold medal in the men's 100- meter freestyle(自由式).

Before the competition, the Chinese team faced a lot of 1 . The past results were not very good and many people didn't 2 they could win. But Pan Zhanle was 3 and ready to fight.

When the race started, Pan Zhanle jumped into the water 4 . In the first 50 meters, he showed 5 power and took the lead. His strokes(划水动作) were powerful and his breathing was regular.

In the second half of the race, it became very6 . Other swimmers tried hard to catch up, but Pan Zhanle 7 his lead with great skills and strong will.

Near the end, everyone was very nervous. Pan Zhanle swam as fast as he could and touched the wall8 with a wonderful time of 46.40 seconds. He broke the world record and won the gold medal.

After the race, Pan Zhanle was very excited. He said in an interview, " There were some unfriendly situations before,9 they made me more determined (决心). I wanted to show the power of Chinese10 !"

Did you have cereal(麦片) for breakfast this morning? If you did, you're not alone. Lots of people eat cereal for breakfast every day. In fact, cereal is popular all over the world. It all started with one man, Will Keith Kellogg. 

Will was born on 7th April 1860, in Battle Creek, Michigan. His first job was as a stock boy at the Battle Creek Sanitarium. A sanitarium is a special place that is a little like a hospital. People who are ill for a long time or who are getting over a serious illness can go there. Will had other jobs as he got older. But when he grew up, he became a manager of the sanitarium. His brother, John, was the chief doctor there. 

One big problem at the sanitarium was the food that the patients eat daily. The patients needed healthy food, but it was also important for the food to taste good. Will was trying to find a good food choice to take the place of the bread, but it wasn't going very well. Then, by accident, Will found something even better. He left some wheat to cook too long. When it was rolled out, it formed large, thin flakes. He asked his brother to serve it to the patients, and they loved it! In fact, they liked it so much that they wanted to eat the flakes even after they left the sanitarium. So in 1894, the creation of Kellogg's Corn Flakes came out. Before long, Kellogg's breakfast cereal was popular in other countries too. Today, there are many kinds of breakfast cereals. But it all started with one man and one idea. 

Will did more than just create breakfast cereal. His company made a lot of money. But he always shared it with others generously. He used much of his money to help children. He also helped some charities(慈善机构) with his money. Will Kellogg died in 1951. But his most famous invention is as popular as ever. 

"Mrs. Harvey is out on a business trip (出差) today," the principal (校长) said.

Now they might not have that math test this morning. Alma thinks that news (消息) is just 1 . Then a new teacher walks into the room. When Alma sees 2 , she feels embarrassed (尴尬的). 

"That's your dad?" 3 Cary. 

"Yes, it is," Alma answers. 

"He is wearing a funny T-shirt," Cary says. 

"Yes, he is " Alma says. 

Alma's father, Mr. Alvarez, says 4 to everyone. He writes his name on the blackboard. Then he smiles and says, "I know you are going to take a math test this 5 . But tests aren't fun."

The kids all look at each other. 

"6 let's sing songs!" Mr. Alvarez says. 

Then the class sing songs. They tell stories, have a snack and Mr. Alvarez shows them 7 to make hats out of colored paper. 

"Your dad is great!" Cary tells Alma. "School is so much better now for he's 8 teacher." But Alma looks worried (担心的). 

On the way home, Alma says, "Dad, but we need to learn."

"I know, but I want your classmates to 9 me," her dad says. 

"Just be yourself," Alma says, "and they will like you."

The next day, Mr. Alvarez dresses like a 10 . "Today we will get back to learning," Alma's dad tells the class. "But don't worry, Learning can be fun." Alma smiles.

Be What's Missing

Where was that cashier(收银员)? Impatient, I quickly looked at my 1 . I hardly had enough time to eat a sandwich and rush back to work. I looked around the nearly empty 2 , but the cashier was nowhere in sight. A woman stood wiping( 擦 ) the far end of the counter( 柜 台 ). She3 me coldly with sad, dark eyes.

I4 , getting angry. I'd been standing there for at least three minutes!

Controlling my anger, I remembered Mom's words. "5 you find yourself in an unpleasant situation, just think about what is missing. If someone is unkind, then kindness is missing. If someone is hateful, then6 is missing. If we will be what's missing, then we'll7 whatever the situation needs."

And here I was in an unpleasant situation. How should I "be what's missing"? What was missing was8 . Maybe I should just jump behind the counter and take9 own order.

Just then the woman walked slowly towards me. "May I help you?" she asked, still10 . She looked so tired. No doubt, she was overworked.

I took a deep breath. With Mom's words ringing in my11 , I gave the woman my order and smiled, "How are you today?"

My question seemed to12 her. She eyed me for a second before answering. "Not too good."

"I'm sorry," I said. "I hope it gets better starting right now." She almost smiled as she looked at me. "Thanks. I hope you're right."

I thought to myself as I ate my sandwich. We're all the same, really. We have problems and anger, we get tired and we hurt. We need to be13 to each other.

After14 , I wiped the table cleaner than usual, and put the tray(托盘) back nicely on the stand. The woman was watching me, a big smile on her face.

"Be what's missing." It15 .