More than anything else in the world, Lion liked being King of the jungle. He walked around, showing off his power and pride.

Each day Lion took a long lazy sleep under the shade of his favorite tree. He always dreamed of weaker animals bowing(鞠躬) before him.

    One day Mouse ran through the jungle and tripped over（被……绊倒） Lion's huge paws. Lion woke up with a start. ＂How dare you wake me up!＂ he shouted angrily. Lion grabbed(抓住) Mouse with one paw. ＂On the second thought, I'm in the mood for the snack, and you'll make a delicious meal.＂ he said.

    Mouse cried out, ＂King Lion, please spare（饶恕）me! If you let me live, I'll always remember your kindness. And, some day, I might be able to help you.＂

＂How could such a powerless little mouse ever help me?＂ That thought made Lion laugh so much that he decided to let Mouse go. A week later, Lion was walking through the jungle on the way to his favorite tree when he stepped onto a hunter's net. The net scooped him up. No matter how he twisted(扭动) and turned, he couldn't escape.

    When Mouse heard Lion's frightened shouts, he raced to help. Mouse quickly chewed（咬）through the ropes to make a hole in the net. Soon, Lion moved out and was free. Lion looked down at the little mouse. ＂Thank you for saving my life,＂ said Lion, smiling his widest smile. ＂I was mistaken. You are not a powerless little mouse. You are a great friend!＂

    Do you know any 9-year-olds who have started their own museums? When Theodore Roosevelt was only nine and two of his cousins opened the "Roosevelt Museum of Natural History". The museum was in Theodore's bedroom. It had a total of 12 specimens(标本). On display were a few seashells, some dead insects and some birds' nests. Young Roosevelt took great pride in his small museum.

    Born in New York in 1858, Theodore Roosevelt was not always healthy. "I was a sickly, delicate boy, "he once wrote. Roosevelt had a health condition called asthma (哮喘). He often found it hard to breathe. Instead of playing, he watched nature and then read and wrote about it.

    Roosevelt's interest in nature sometimes got him into trouble. Once, his mother found several dead mice in the icebox. She ordered him to throw them out. This was indeed "a loss to science", Roosevelt said later.

    Because Roosevelt was often sickly as a boy, his body was small and weak. When he was about 12, his father urged him to improve his body. Roosevelt began working out in a gym. He didn't become strong quickly. But he did decide to face life's challenges with a strong spirit. That determination stayed with Roosevelt's whole life. And finally his body did get strong. As an adult, he was an active, healthy person. He enjoyed adventures and loved outdoors.

    In 1900, at the age of 41, Roosevelt was elected Vice President. A year later, President Mckinley was shot and killed. Roosevelt became the 26th president of the USA. At 42, he was the youngest leader the country had ever had.

    Eric didn't know he was going to help a blue whale today. As soon as he finished his homework, Eric jumped onto his bicycle and rode off in the direction of the beach. While he was riding along, he thought about the blue whales. He hoped he would see them again today.

    After he got to the beach, Eric hid his bicycle behind a bush (灌木丛) so that no one could see it from the road. Then he ran down onto the sand. The sky was growing dark. Eric frowned (皱眉). If it rained, he wouldn't be able to see the blue whales because they would stay in deeper water. He hurried along the beach to the rocks. They were the best place to watch me blue whales because of their height. Before Eric reached the rocks, he felt a drop of water on his head. "Oh, no! Now the blue whales will stay in the deep water and l won't be able to watch them!"

    But just then he saw a large shape on the beach. It was a young blue whale! The whale had come too close to the shore and got stuck (被困) on the beach! At first the blue whale didn't move at all and Eric thought it was dead. Then he saw its tail move weakly. Eric turned and ran through the rain as fast as he could back to his bicycle. He had to get help to get the blue whale back in the water soon, or it would die and Eric couldn't let that happen…

    Mrs. Liu lives in the countryside, and she doesn't know Guangzhou very well. One day, she goes to Guangzhou, but she can't find her way. Just then, she sees a man near the bus stop. "I can ask him the way." She says to herself. Then she goes over to the man and asks, "Excuse me, will you please tell me the way to Zhongshan Road?" The man smiles with no words. He doesn't know Chinese. He is Japanese. Then he puts his hand into his pocket (衣袋) and takes out a piece of paper and lets Mrs. Liu look at it. On the paper are these words, "Sorry, I can't speak Chinese."

    Mike and Julia always wanted to be sure they were doing the right thing before they made important decisions.

    When they wanted to buy a car, it took a long time for them to decide which one to buy. They looked at all the different cars carefully. It had to be the right size, the right color and the right price. Finally, they chose the car they wanted.

    When they went out for dinner, it always took a long time before they chose what to eat. They carefully read the menu and discussed all the choices together. They were patient and never in a hurry.

    After a while they had a baby boy, they were happy and called him Jordan. Jordan smiled a lot, but he didn't make any noise. He never cried. All their friends said, "He's such a nice quiet baby!"

    Jordan learned everything that other babies learn. He learned to walk. He learned to go to the bathroom by himself. He learned to sleep in the bed. He learned to sit on a chair and eat at the table. However, he didn't learn how to talk and he still never cried. But Mike and Julia didn't worry about it too much. They just waited. They were confident Jordan would talk one day.

    One day, while eating dinner, Jordan suddenly said, "Mother, I think the soup needs a little more salt."

    Mike and Julia were surprised, "You can talk!" said Julia.

    "Of course I can talk!" said Jordan. "After all, I am three years old."

    "Why didn't you talk before?" asked Mike.

    "I didn't need to," said Jordan. "The food was always good before."