In a faraway kingdom, there was a river. It was the home to many golden swans (天鹅). The swans spent most of their time in the river. Every six months, the swans would leave a golden feather (羽毛) as a paying for using the river. The soldiers of the kingdom would collect the feathers and gave them to the king.

    One day, a homeless bird saw the river. "The water in this river seems so cool and nice. I will make my home here," thought the bird.

    The minute the bird landed near the river, the golden swans noticed her. They came shouting, "This river belongs to us! We pay a golden feather to the king to use this river. You can not live here."

    "I am homeless, brothers. I will also pay. Please give me a place to live in," the bird pleaded (乞求). "How can you pay for it? You do not have golden feathers," said the swans, laughing. They added, "Stop dreaming and leave at once." The poor bird pleaded many times. But the arrogant (傲慢的) swans still drove the bird away.

"I will teach them a lesson!" decided the bird, feeling angry.

    She went to the king and said, "Oh, my king! The swans in your river are rude and unkind. I pleaded for a home but they said that they had paid to live in the river with golden feathers."

    The king was angry with the arrogant swans for having driven the homeless bird away. He ordered his soldiers to bring the swans to his palace. In no time, all the golden swans were brought to the king's palace.

"Do you think our kingdom depends on your golden feathers? You can not decide who lives by the river. Leave the river at once or I will kill you!" shouted the king.

    On hearing the king's words, the swans flew away sadly. The bird built her home near the river and lived there happily. She gave homes to all other birds who came to the river.

    Li Lei just graduated from college, he was going for a job interview in Shaoyang. He arrived at the bus station quite early for bus. The bus for Shaoyang would not leave until five to twelve. He saw a lot of people waiting in the station. Some were standing in line; Others were walking around. There was a group of schoolgirls. The teacher was trying to keep them in line. Li Lei looked around but there was no place for him to sit.

    He walked into the station Coffee. He looked up at that clock there. It was only twenty to twelve.  He found a seat and sat down before a large mirror（镜子） on the wall. Just then, Han Meimei, one of Li Lei's friends came in and sat with Li Lei. "What time is your bus?" asked Han Meimei. "There's plenty of time yet." Answered Li Lei. "Well, I'll get you more tea then" said Han Meimei.

    They talked while drinking, Then Li Lei looked at the clock again. "Oh! it's going backward!" he cried. "A few minutes ago, it was twenty to twelve and now it's half past eleven". "You're looking at the clock in the Mirror" Said Han Meimei. Li Lei was so sad, the next bus was not to leave for another hour, since then Li Lei has never liked mirrors.

    A lot of boys and girls in western countries are wearing the same kind of clothes, and many of them have long hair, so it is often difficult to tell whether they are boys or girls.

    One day an old man went for a walk in a park in Washington and when he was tired, he sat down on a chair by a swimming pool. A young person was standing on the other side of the pool.

    "Oh!" the old man said to the person sitting next to him. "Do you see the person with the loose clothes and long hair? Is it a boy or a girl?"

    "A girl," said his neighbor. "She is my daughter."

    "Oh!" the old man said quickly. "Please forgive me. I didn't know that you were her mother."

    "I'm not," said the person. "I'm her father."

    Hello! My name is Carl Smith. I am a junior high school student. I come from England, but l'm in Beijing now. I live with my parents and my two sisters. My parents are English teachers in No. 8 Junior High School. I am in the same school. I like my new school very much. It is nice and my classmates are very kind to me. They like to play with me. I look different from them. I have blue eyes and long brown hair. I speak English well, so many students like talking with me. I am happy here.

    Originally from India, Krunal Shukla had been living in Edinburgh, Scotland for six years when he and his wife started to consider other countries to raise their two-year-old son. "We wanted our son to grow up in a place where he'd have a hot of recreational(娱乐的) activities. Canada was too cold and we weren't interested in Australia so we started to look into New

    "Zealand," Krunal said.

    "After receiving our visas(签证), we arrived in Auckland in March 2009 with on much of a plan. 1 found the job market to be difficult at the time. I have a Master's degree in Accounting(会计) and Finance(财经) and several years of experience as a manager in the financial field. I would spend about four to five hours a day applying(申请) jobs when we first arrived. After several months of searching, 1 approached (到达) the Auckland Chamber of Commerce where I met New Kiwis(新西兰人) Employment Liaison, Sheeam. She gave me a 1ot 0f guidance and helped me to target my job search. Sheeam also trained me through the interview process and within a week I received(得到) a couple of interviews," Krunal said.

    Krunai accepted a job offer as Business Analyst in the Finance Department of West Coast District Health Board in December 2009. He and his family packed up and moved to Greymouth on the South Island.

    He said, "We found housing quite easily and were amazed at how social the community was. In the first week neighbors were coming over and introducing themselves—extremely different to the UK where I hardly knew my neighbor who lived next door to us for six years."

    Krunal is presently on a visa sponsored(担保) by his employer and wants to apply for Permanent Residence(永久居住) in the future.

    "I love my job and it's been an exciting challenge working in the health industry. I've spent years in a commercial setting(商业环境) so I'm learning something new every day. My workmates have been extremely helpful and welcoming. My family has settled in well and we enjoy raising our son in such a safe and secure (安全的) environment. New Zealand is a beautiful country with plenty of chances for young families," Krunal said.