A

    Jim comes from the U.S. He is now living in China. He gets up at about 6:30 and has breakfast at 7:00. After breakfast, he says goodbye to his parents and leaves home at 7:30. He usually walks to school. He gets there at 7:55. He has his first class at eight.

    Morning classes are over at 12:10 and he has lunch 10 minutes later. After lunch he plays with his friends.

    Afternoon classes begin at 1:30. Usually there are two lessons in the afternoon. The y finish at 3:30. Usually he plays games or other things at school, and he gets home at about 5:15. He has dinner at six and then does his homework and then watches TV. He goes to bed at about 10:30.

    One day, a woman walked into a pet store to buy a bird for her Thanksgiving Day party. The guy said, “We only have one parrot. But I think you do not want it because it can talk…”

    The woman said happily, “That's great. I've always wanted a talking bird.”

    So the guy said, “Since you are a nice lady, I'll give it to you as a gift.”

    And the lady went home and put the bird on her bed and walked out of the room. But as soon as she walked into the kitchen, the bird started to speak dirty words as loud as it could. The woman walked back into the room thinking, “I can't have this at my party!” So she took the bird and put it in the fridge.

    A few hours later, while the woman was eating, she remembered that her bird was still in the fridge. Quickly, she opened the door and found it was shivering. Then she took out the bird at once. She said to the bird, “I'll keep you out of there if you don't use that language again. Do you agree with me?”

    The bird nodded and asked, “Can I just ask a quick question?” The lady nodded and said, “Yes, you may.”

    The bird pointed at the turkey behind him and asked, “What did he do?”

    My mother is a teacher, and I grew up with the challenges (挑战) a teacher faces. I often asked her, “Why do you teach?  What keeps you teaching? ”The answer was always the same. “There is always that one child, that one moment that is worth it. ”

    Now, I am a teacher, too. But different from my mother, I teach students challenging activities outdoors. And when my mother asked me the similar questions, my answer was, “It's that one child, that one special moment.”

    One of those moments happened recently. I was working with a group of girls in a four-week programme. Everything went on well through the “Team” events and we were moving on to a “High” one called the Wire(钢索) Walk.

    In the Wire Walk, each girl had to climb up the pegs(木桩) in a tree to a wire, 8 meters high, and then walk across it. Of course, everything was safe for sure. When I asked who would try, a few girls raised their hands, and they finished the Wire Walk with little difficulty.

    But when it was Susie's turn, it seemed that she didn't really want to. I asked Susie if she was ready. She answered softy, “I suppose.”

    Now, Susie was at the foot of the tree. She started to make the long reach for the first peg. The other girls cheered for her. Then I found Susie was becoming nervous with every step. I realised she would not go much further.

    Susie was halfway up. Then she stopped and held the tree tight(紧紧地),  looking very afraid. Her eyes were closed. With her face against the tree, she cried, “I can't.”

    The other girls sat in silence. I talked quietly to Susie, trying to relax her. I talked for a long time till I ran out of words.

    “I will still be your friend no matter what, Susie!” Mary broke the silence.

    To my surprise, Susie lifted her head and looked up to the wire. Then she turned to look down at Mary and smiled. Mary smiled back.

    Finally, Susie made it all the way across that wire. When she returned to the ground, the first hug she looked for was from Mary.

    We all cheered.

    Moments like this keep me doing what I do. The young hearts continue to fill me with courage.

    In 1978, I was working as a nurse in a small town about 270km away from Sydney, Australia. I was looking forward to having five days off from duty. Unluckily, the one train a day to my home in Sydney had already left. So I thought I'd get a ride.

    I waited by the side of the highway for three hours, but no one stopped for me. Finally, a man walked over and introduced himself as Gordon. He said that although he couldn't give me a lift, I should come back to his house for lunch. He noticed me standing for hours in the November heat and thought I must be hungry. I was doubtful as a young girl but he promised me I was safe, and he also offered to help me find a lift afterwards. When we arrived at his house, he made me sandwiches. After lunch, he helped me find a lift home.

    Twenty-five years later, while I was driving to a nearby town one day, I saw an elderly man standing in the glaring heat, trying to get a ride. I thought it was another chance to repay(回报) someone for the kindness I'd been given many years earlier. I pulled over and picked him up. I made him comfortable on the back seat and offered him some water.

    After a few moments of small talk, the man said to me, "You haven't changed a bit, even your red hair is still the same."

    I couldn't remember where I'd met him. He then told me he was the man who had given me lunch and helped me find a lift all those years ago. It was Gordon.