We thought we had it all—a beautiful house, three healthy children and one more on the way, two cars — and we loved it. We spent money like it was going out of style. Then, the market turned and my husband's job as a bigwig(大人物) at a construction company was gone. The company was closing down for ever.

    We both started looking for jobs right away, but there weren't any to be found. With each passing day our panic increased and we continued to work together in order to pull our family through. The more we pulled together, the closer we got. I felt feelings of great love for my husband that I hadn't felt in years.①

    That's why it was so hard for me to watch him blame himself for our present situation. I knew that he had no control over the economy, however, he constantly degraded (降低…身份)himself and his spirit sunk lower with each unkind comment. I continually asked him to stop, but he seemed to want to punish himself for not having a job.②

    Finally one afternoon I pulled him aside and said, “We have four healthy children. That's what's important. That makes you a rich man.”

    “But what if we lose the house? They'll hate me—you'll hate me.” he replied.

    I smiled at him and put my hands on both sides of his face to make him look me in the eye.③

    “If we live in a cardboard box on the empty place across the street I will be happy—as long as I have you.” I smiled again as I realized that I wasn't saying it. Somehow, in all the struggling together I had found that deep love for him that I had on the day we said “I do.”

    I could see relief wash through him as his shoulders and neck relaxed and the tension left his body. He held me close and we were able to talk and plan and dream together in a way that we hadn't in quite some time. ④

    We are still struggling financially, but I consider us well-off because we have something that money can't buy and no one can take away from us.

    Teachers in some secondary schools in Britain are worried that their job may become impossible shortly unless something can be done to restore discipline in the classrooms. In the problem schools, mostly in large cities, a small minority of teenage pupils disturb lesson to such an extent that the teacher can no longer teach their classes effectively.

    Some people consider that the permissive (随意) nature of modern society is responsible for such kind of behavior. Small children who are continuously encouraged to express themselves without reservation are naturally unwilling to accept school discipline when they grow older. Furthermore, modern teaching techniques) which appear to stress personal enjoyment at the expense of serious study work, might be teaching the child to put his own interests before his duties to the community in which he lives.

    Perhaps the problem can be solved by improving facilities for the moral guidance of these difficult children or by better cooperation between the schools and the parents—for the parents may be mainly responsible for the bad behavior of their youngsters. Violence at home, violence and crime on TV make some children turn violence themselves.

    But some of the teachers believe that there ought to be a return to more “old fashioned” methods. At present, in some school teachers are even not allowed to punish a child who does something bad and wrong. Physical punishment is not permitted now. People are too soft on children these days. It seems that children can do whatever they like at school while the teachers can't do anything to punish them. I don't know why the schools authority abandoned some of the effective punishments that worked well. Things like that didn't happen when we were at school because the teachers kept those problem students under control by using a stick.

    Can you imagine how great the United Kingdom is? The queen of Britain, Queen Elizabeth II, is also the queen of other 16 countries, including Australia, New Zealand, Canada and Jamaica. Her face is seen on stamps and coins all around the world.

    Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor was born in London on April 21st 1926. Her parents were George, the Duke of York, and Elizabeth, the daughter of the Earl and Count-ness of Strathmore. As a child, Princess Elizabeth lived with her parents and younger sister in London and Windsor. Every summer, she traveled to Scotland to visit her mother's parents. She was interested in all sorts of sports, but her favorites were horse riding and swimming. She was also fond of acting, art and music.

    As princess Elizabeth grew older, she started to play a part in British public life. When she was 14, she broadcast a radio message to all the children of Britain and the Common-wealth(共和国). Two years later, she carried out her first public engagement, and started to go on official tours shortly after that. After a tour to South Africa in 1946, she married Philip Mountbatten. The couple had four children: Prince Charles, born in 1948, Princess Anne, born in 1950, Prince Andrew, born in 1960 and Prince Edward, born in 1964.

    After her father died, Princess Elizabeth became Queen Elizabeth II in a ceremony held in London in 1953. As a queen, she has many duties, and leads a very busy life. She travels throughout the world, meeting the leaders of other countries, and attends a large number of official functions. She also holds a meeting every week with the British Prime Minister. Every year, on Christmas Day, she broadcast a message to the people of British and the Commonwealth, talking about her hopes for the future.

    Queen Elizabeth has been on the throne for more than 40 years and has become one of the most famous women in the world. Lots of people in British believe that she tries hard to understand her people and be a good queen. More than her title, this quality has earned her much love and respect.

    Of all the things we eat and drink, water is the most important. Not all people realize this, but it is quite true. The human body can live without food for a long time, but two or three days without water usually result in death.

    Many people do not understand how much water the human body needs, but many people do not drink enough, especially in the hot weather. Most people drink when they are thirsty but often need more water after exercises.

    65 to 70 percent of the human body is water. Water is important in several different ways. Most people need five to seven litres of water every day, but we need not drink this amount because a lot comes from the food we have. If we don't have enough water, however, we will feel tired and many become ill. Do you know what the best drink is? Yes, you are right. Cold water!

    You probably know who Marie Curie was, but you may not have heard of Rachel Carson. Of the outstanding ladies listed below, who do you think was the most important woman of the past 100 years?

    Jane Addams (1860-1935)

    Anyone who has ever been helped by a social worker has Jane Addams to thank. Addams helped the poor and worked for peace. She encouraged a sense of community(社区) by creating shelters and promoting education and services for people in need. In 1931, Addams became the first American women to win the Nobel Peace Prize.

    Rachel Carson (1907-1964)

    If it weren't for Rachel Carson, the environmental movement might not exist today. Her popular 1962 book Silent Spring raised awareness of the dangers of pollution and the harmful effects of chemicals on humans and on the world's lakes and oceans.

    Sandra Day O'Connor (1930-present)

    When Sandra Day O'Connor finished third in her class at Stanford Law School in 1952, she could not find work at a law firm because she was a woman. She became an Arizona State Senator(参议员) and in 1981, the first woman to join the US Supreme Court（高等法院）. O'Connor gave the deciding vote in many important cases during her 24 years on the top court.

    Rosa Parks (1913-2005)

    On December 1, 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama, Rosa Parks would not give up her seat to a white passenger. Her simple act landed Parks in prison. But it also set off the Montgomery bus boycott. (抵制行动) It lasted for more than a year, and kicked off the civil-rights movements. "the only tired I was, was tired of giving in." said Parks.

    It was many years ago. I was a young dad sitting on the couch reading a fairy tale to my little girl. She sat next to me with her head on my arm as I told the tale. When it came to the end I finished with those famous words: "And they lived happily ever after." As I looked over to her with her wavy(鬈曲的), brown hair and big, innocent eyes I could see the smile on her face and I never wanted it to end. Then it dawned on me that the ending of the book was what I wanted for her. I wanted her to "live happily ever after".

    Still, deep in my heart I knew that this couldn't always be so. I knew that there would be times when her heart was broken. I knew there would be times when she cried in grief and I couldn't comfort her. I knew there would be times when all she felt was fear, sadness, sorrow, and despair. As I stroked her hair and smiled at her I hoped that those times would be brief and that she would have joy in her life more often than not. Living happily ever after, though, seemed out of the question.

    It takes me a lot of years to realize that it is possible to live happily ever after. You just have to do it "one day at a time". Happiness you see isn't some reward that you get at the end of your journey. Happiness isn't something that depends on what life you own. Happiness is something you create in your life choice by choice and day by day.

    The truth is happiness comes when you love. Love is a gift from God. It is love that mends broken hearts. It is love that heals grief. It is love that gives us joy. Choose to "live happily ever after, one day at a time".