There is an old style out there of young girls talking endlessly on the phone with one another. It's an idea that is far from untrue in many families. I remember being a twelve-year-old and spending some quality time on the phone with my girl-friends, even though we'd seen each other at school. I didn't really have anything to talk about, I guess, but I think I was just happy to have someone else to talk to and that someone wanted to talk to me.

    We call this phenomenon (现象) of girls going on forever over the regular phone “girl talk”. And these days, girl talk has spread far beyond the old phone-teens communicate with each other pretty much nonstop through cell phone, texting，online chat. Is girl talk a good thing? According to experts, it can be-in limited quantities.

    Girl talk has its place. But too much of it, especially the kind during which problems are talked about endlessly can be not such a good thing. Psychologists (心理学家) think that too much of that kind of talking can lead to emotional problems such as depression (沮丧) and anxiety. Girls, much more so than boys, will always think of a problem and get worried, making the problem worse other than solving it. The best way is to try to guide the conversation toward something positive, or to do something about the problem rather than sit around and chat about it endlessly.

    It seemed like a typical November day, a month after my grandmother had passed away. I was frustrated by everything that was going on around me.

    I was mad and confused about everyone especially when I saw a young girl walking through the store holding her grandmother's hand. The little girl was begging her grandmother for ice cream just like I used to when I was young. I was jealous of the little girl, because she had something I didn't have anymore — a grandmother by her side.

    I had to force myself to ignore the little girl. She was just too happy for me and that was unacceptable at that time in my world.

    I went to the cash register to pay for my things. It was then that my anger quickly shifted from the little girl to the cashier. She took my things to another register. When the cashier gave me my change I didn't say thank you. I simply took my change and left.

    Feeling tired and hopeless, I began walking to my car. As I stood in a public parking lot a million questions formed in my mind. Why did this happen to me? Aren't we supposed to get signs from the people that passed on? Why didn't I feel her presence anymore?

Suddenly, a woman driving right by my side rolled down her window. "Excuse me, excuse me, excuse me," she said loudly. Thinking she was going to ask for my parking spot, I simply pointed to my car. "No, excuse me," she said again.

Then I felt I had no choice but to see what this annoying lady wanted. She reached to the very bottom of her bag and handed me a three-page booklet. "It looks like that you need this," she said calmly with a smile on her face.

I looked down at the used booklet and there were some big bold letters on the front cover reading, "What Hope for Dead Loved Ones?" By the time I looked up she had gone.

    I felt a sense of relaxation as I read the first page. It explained how people pass on and that their spirit remains with us. It was the first time since my grandmother passed away that I had felt her with me. I didn't know whether to laugh or cry, but I knew that I finally felt happiness from a stranger.

    Two graduates from Cambridge University in the United Kingdom found themselves about to graduate, yet with loans to pay off. The pair decided to begin a strange, year-long project to battle their debt.

    The men, Ross Harper and Edward Moyse, set up the website BuyMyFace.com last October as a way to get rid of the £50,000 they shared as student loans. The idea behind the project was to earn money by selling their faces as advertising space every day for a year. Each day, they advertise a different business by painting the brand's name or logo onto their faces and upload the pictures to the homepage of BuyMyFace.com, adding a link to the advertiser's website and including a short piece of text about it. After they paint their faces and publish them on the website, Harper and Moyse go out to highly populated areas such as music festivals and theme parks to maximize their faces' exposure. They hope more people will pay attention to the advertisements on their faces.

    At this time, Harper and Moyse have advertised their faces for over four months without skipping a day and they're more than halfway to their goal. Though they first started charging a minimum of about £1.60 per company, the prices have risen as their popularity increases. For advertising space during the rest of April, they range between £250 and £750. Terri L. Rittenburg, associate professor of marketing at the University of Wyoming, said that she had heard of people tattooing (纹身) logos on themselves before, but this idea is much better. According to her, at first the idea would be new and unusual and attract attention. People are interested in this particular style of advertisement and would like to try what they advertise. But she is unsure how long it would last.

    At least for now, companies that have bought Harper and Moyse's faces have written positive comments on the pair's website. “We had a three percent increase in website traffic on the very day and for two days more afterwards,” said one of the companies.

The Climb to the Top

    My life as a kid was a sweet life. I lived in a beautiful house with the beautiful surroundings in Puerto Rico. There was one particular thing I loved and it was a huge tree that was in my backyard. As a child, I used to climb the tree every day. Every time I went, I climbed higher and higher, reaching new branches, obstacles, and pathways on my way up. One day, I reached the top and I could see my island. I felt I was on top of the world, and nothing could stop me. Then, there was the day that seemed like the end of my life. This specific day changed my life forever.

It was a nice summer day. After breakfast, my family headed to the park to see my baseball game. In the evening we went to a carnival (嘉年华) in my town. My grandma was selling blankets under a tent. Suddenly, the mood of the day changed when my parents took me to my grandma's tent. Still to this day, I remember the exact words my dad said to me, "Son, how would you like to move to the United States?" I couldn't believe what he said. I then ran away from him as the tears rolled down my cheeks. My perfect life was being taken away from me.

    Two weeks later, we arrived at New York in late July, and my aunt and uncle drove us to Springfield，Massachusetts where we lived for seven years. Once we got there, I met my mom's family for the first time. September came and school started. I was afraid to go to a new school and make new friends. Most kids ignored me and some tried to talk to me, but I couldn't understand them or say anything. My first year in the United States was not fun or easy but I worked hard and got through it.

    Now that I'm grown, I look back on the journey that I've been through: living in a new place with no friends, new language, and new schools. Despite all those problems, I still remembered that special tree. That tree taught me to never give up and reach higher. I have beaten every difficulty that I have met in life and I just kept moving forward. My perfect life was never taken away from me; it has just started.

    I was driving my newly acquired motorcycle across the vastness of North Dakota when all of the sudden it froze up on the road. I would later be told the belt had slipped and this caused one of the pistons(活塞)to break a cylinder(气缸)head, or something like that.

    Anyway, I sat on the side of the road for what seemed like hours. I even pretended to have been in an accident, which didn't help. Finally, a young man pulled over and offered me a ride, but given that he already had two motorcycles in the back of his truck, he could only take me.

    He drove me to the next town, where I asked to be dropped off Rather than drop me off, he waited while I asked around if anyone could help me to pick up my motorcycle. One elderly gentleman was working and said that I could use his pickup! Can you imagine that a stranger gave me the keys to his pick up. It was quite an experience, I must say. So, as I drove back 20 miles to get my motorcycle, the gentleman who first stopped to help me followed me. We both put the motorcycle in the back of the truck and then I followed him another 50 miles or so and we both unloaded the motorcycle at his place. Then, he followed me back to the small town so I could return the man's truck. I didn't have much cash on me, maybe $40, but I gave it to the man for the use of his truck.

    Two strangers helped rescue me from spending the night on the side of the road in ND. I don't recall their names, but when I close my eyes I can see their faces as if it were yesterday. Thank you, strangers. You may be reading this right now.

    I have three kids and a great husband and I'm enjoying a career that I find challenging and fun. This feels like "Success" to the outside world. But there is still a voice in my heart asking if this is who I truly am. Only in silence do I hear the self and wonder who that person might be.

    So I booked a trip to find out. I travelled, for the first time, without my husband or kids. I went to Iceland with a friend, who shares an appreciation for wilderness and silence.

    For six days, we were immersed in wild, raw scenery and real weather—all kinds of weather. Climbing a mountain against rain and returning to a tent for a simple meal reminds you how little you actually need. And how strong it feels to be uncomfortable sometimes.

    I found silence in Iceland，and time to consider the me outside of career and the me outside of kids as I shared stories with strangers.

    When I stopped talking and just listened，I became more generous. I 1earned that choosing to be generous can create more space, more food and more warmth.

    But I didn't really gain any better appreciation of what I want from life or my job. I suspect the anxiety that drove me to seek silence in Iceland was losing sight of my ability to choose gratitude and joy，and to be present in the challenges I set in my career and my family.

    I came home to noise，rush and love; with no less confusion on who I want to be. I know the answer isn't waiting out there on the top of a mountain in Iceland. The answer is in front of me with every step on my own 1ife's path, and in every choice I make.