At exactly eleven Sir Percival knocked and entered, with anxiety and worry in every line of his face. This meeting would decide his future life，and he obviously knew it.

    "You may wonder, Sir Percival,”said Laura calmly, “if I am going to ask to be released (免除）from my promise to many you. I am not going to ask this. I respect my father's wishes too much.”

    His face relaxed a little, but one of his feet kept beating the carpet.

    "No, if we are going to withdraw. (退出）from our planned marriage, it will be because of your wish, not mine.

     “Mine?” he said in great surprise. “What reason could I have for withdrawing?^'

    "A reason that is very hard to tell you," she answered. "There is a change in me.”

    His face went so pale that even his lips lost their color. He turned his head to one side.

    "What change?" he asked, trying to appear calm.

     “When the promise was made two years ago,” she said, ⁴⁴ my love did not belong to anyone. Will you forgive me, Sir Percival, if I tell you that it now belongs to another person?”

    “I wish you to understand, “Laura continued, “that I will never see this person again, and that if you leave me, you only allow mc to remain a single woman for the rest of my life. All I ask is that you forgive mc and keep my secret."

    ‘I will do both those things, “he said. Then he looked at Laura, as if he was waiting to hear more.

    "I think I have said enough to give you reason to withdraw from our marriage, “she added quietly.

    “No. You have said enough to make it the dearest wish of my life to marry you, ” he said.

    I was never very neat, while my roommate Kate was extremely organized. Each of her objects had its place, but mine always hid somewhere. She even labeled(贴标签) everything. I always looked for everything. Over time, Kate got neater and I got messier. She would push my dirty clothing over, and I would lay my books on her tidy desk. We both got tired of each other.

    War broke out one evening. Kate came into the room. Soon, I heard her screaming. “Take your shoes away! Why under my bed!” Deafened, I saw my shoes flying at me. I jumped to my feet and started yelling. She yelled back louder.

    The room was filled with anger. We could not have stayed together for a single minute but for a phone call. Kate answered it. From her end of the conversation, I could tell right away her grandma was seriously ill. When she hung up, she quickly crawled(爬under her covers, sobbing. Obviously, that was something she should not go through alone. All of a sudden, a warm feeling of sympathy rose up in my heart.

    Slowly, I collected the pencils, took back the books, made my bed, cleaned the socks and swept the floor, even on her side. I got so into my work that I even didn't notice Kate had sat up. She was watching, her tears dried and her expression one of disbelief. Then, she reached out her hands to grasp mine. I looked up into her eyes. She smiled at me, “Thanks.”

    Kate and I stayed roommates for the rest of the year. We didn't always agree, but we learned the key to living together: giving in, cleaning up and holding on.

    Once upon a time, a daughter complained to her father that her life was unhappy and that she was tired of struggling all the time.

    Her father, a chef, took her to the kitchen. He filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Once the three pots began to boil, he placed potatoes, eggs and coffee beans in them. After 20 minutes, he took them out, putting the potatoes and eggs in a bowl and the coffee in a cup. Turning to his daughter, he said, “Look closer, and touch the potatoes.” She did and noted that they were soft. He then asked her to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg. Finally, he asked her to taste the coffee. Its good smell brought a smile to her face.

    “Father, what does this mean?” she asked. He then explained that the potatoes, the eggs and the coffee beans were in the same adversity (逆境)—the boiling water. However, each one reacted differently.

    The strong and hard potato became soft and weak in boiling water. The egg was fragile, with the thin outer shell protecting its liquid until it was put in the boiling water. Then the inside of the egg became hard. However, the coffee beans were unique. After they were exposed to the boiling water, they changed the water and created something new. “Which one do you want to be like?” he asked. “When adversity knocks on your door, how will you respond?”

    In life, challenges happen to us all, but the only thing that truly matters is what happens within us.

    A new study of 8,000 young people in the journal of Health and Social Behavior shows that although love can make adults live healthily and happily，it is a bad thing for young people. Puppy love（早恋）may bring stress for young people and can lead to depression. The study shows that girls become more depressed than boys, and younger girls are the worst of all.

    The possible reason for the connection between love and higher risk of depression for girls is “loss of self”. According to the study, even though boys would say “lose themselves in a romantic relationship”, this “loss of self” is much more likely to lead to depression when it happens to girls. Young girls who have romantic relationships usually like hiding their feelings and opinions. They won't tell that to their parents.

    Dr Marianm Kaufman, an expert on young people problems, says 15% to 20% young people will have depression during their growing. Trying romance often causes the depression. She advises kids not to jump into romance too early. During growing up, it is important for young people to build strong friendships and a strong sense of self. She also suggests the parents should encourage their kids to keep close to their friends, attend more interesting school activities and spend enough time with family.

    Parents should watch for signs of depression—eating or mood changes—and if they see signs from their daughters or sons，they need to give help. The good news is that the connection between romance and depression seems to become weak with age. Love will always make us feel young, but only maturity(成熟) gives us a chance to avoid its bad side effects.

    Sunrise Hike

Saturday, October 21, 6:45 am—7:45 am

    Enjoy sunrise from the hilltop as you learn about wildlife, plants, history and forest. Ages 8 and up; under 18 with an adult. To register (报名)by phone, call 630-933-7248.

    Meet in the parking lot on the west side of Greene Road south of 79^th Street. Dress for the weather, wear comfortable shoes and bring water.

    Trick or Treat

Saturday, October 28, 9:00 am—11:30 am

    You and your family are invited to join the YMCA for a Halloween hike up Badger Mountain! Make sure to wear your Halloween costumes (戏装)!

    Free shirts for the first 200 kids registered. Remember to take away your shirt by 11:30 am or it will be given away.

    Cost: Trick or Treat is a FREE event.

    Discovery Hike

Thursday, October 26, 1:00 pm—4:00 pm; Ages 3-8

    Fall is pumpkin time. Listen to a pumpkin story and learn how pumpkins grow. Then we will head out on the path in search of a little pumpkin just for you and maybe, we will find the great pumpkin along the way. $7 per child.

    Harvest Day Camp

Monday, October 31, 8:00 am—5:00 pm

    Harvest Camp is an opportunity for children aged 5-13 to find the wonder of autumn at Keystone Science School and enjoy all the fun the Halloween season offers. We'll explore the ways our natural environment has changed from summer to fall. As always, our programming is focused on building skills, knowledge and confidence. Cost: $0.00.

    Welcome to Adventureland!

    Everyone loves Adventureland! The Parks and Exhibitions were built for you to explore, enjoy, and admire their wonders. Every visit will be an unforgettable experience. You will go away enriched, longing to come back. What are you going to do this time?

    The Travel Pavilion

    Explore places you have never been to before, and experience different ways of life. Visit the Amazon jungle village, the Turkish market, the Tai floating market, the Berber mountain house and others. Talk to the people there who will tell you about their lives, and things they make. You can try making a carpet, making nets, fishing…

    The Future Tower

    This exhibition shows how progress will touch our lives. It allows us to look into the future and explore the cities of the next century and the way we'll be living then. Spend some time in our space station and climb into our simulator (模拟装置) for the Journey to Mars!

    The Nature Park

    This is not really one park but several. In the Safari Park you can drive among African animals in one of our Range Cruisers: see lions, giraffes, elephants in the wild. Move on to the Ocean Park to watch the dolphins and whales. And then there is still the Aviary to see…

    The Pyramid

    This is the center of Adventureland. Run out of film, need some postcards and stamps? For all these things and many more, visit our underground shopping center. Come here for information and ideas too.