When US musician Bob Dylan was announced as the winner of this year's Nobel Prize for literature last month, many people took to social media to suggest that Leonard Cohen was the only other living songwriter who deserved(值得)the honor.

    Sadly, on Nov 7, the deep-voiced Canadian artist died at the age of 82.

    Many tributes(称赞)were written for Cohen, who had just released his 14th album, You Want It Darker, on Oct 21st. “Leonard Cohen is as important today as he was in the 1960s,” Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on in a statement. “ His ability to describe human emotion made him one of the most influential and lasting musicians ever.”

    Cohen's most famous song, Hallenlujah, in which he compared physical love to a need for spiritual connection, has been recorded hundreds of times by different musician since it was first released in 1984.

    And Cohen's song Bird on a Wire(1969) could be considered a perfect epitaph(墓志铭)that he wrote for himself. As the song's first line goes, “Like a bird on a wire, like a drunk in midnight choir(合唱团), I have tired in my way to be free.”

    “Cohen writes words that explain what it means to be human. I've read poetry that has as much beauty as Cohen's work, but in the world of music, Cohen is a rarity,” US singer Jennifer Warnes told Austin American-Statesman newspaper. ‘He describes things that go on inside a heart and what it feels like to be here.”

    Along with his spirituality, Cohen's dry, deep voice also helped his popularity. In 2006 he spoke with the NPR radio station about how he got his interesting voice—apparently it was “500 tons of whiskey and a million cigarettes.”

    But he never forgot to work on the instruments that made up his songs, even though he was most famous for his lyrics (歌词)and voice.

    “There is no difference between a poem and a song,” Cohen said in 1969 interview with the New York Times newspaper. “Some were songs first and some were poems first and some were written at the same time. All of my writing has guitars behind it, even the novels.”

    “When people talk about Cohen, they fail to mention the melodies(旋律), which to me, along with his lyrics, are his greatest genius,” Bob Dylan told the New York magazine.” They give a lift to every one of his songs. As far a I know, no one comes close to this in modern music.”

    The morning had been a disaster. My tooth was aching. And I'd been in an argument with a friend. Her words still hurt: “The trouble with you is that you won't put yourself in my place. Can't you see things from my point of view?” I shook my head stubbornly—and felt the ache in my tooth. I'd thought I could hold out till my dentist came back from holiday, but the pain was really unbearable. I started calling the dentists in the phone book, but no one could see me immediately. Finally, at about lunchtime, I got lucky.

    “If you come by right now,” the receptionist said, “the dentist will fit you in.”

    I took my purse and keys and rushed to my car. But suddenly I began to doubt about the dentist. What kind of dentist would be so eager to treat someone at such short notice? Why wasn't he as busy as the others?

In the dentist's office, I sat down and looked around. I saw nothing but the bare walls and I became even more worried. The assistant noticed my nervousness and placed her warm hand over my ice-cold one.

When I told her my fears, she laughed and said, “Don't worry. The dentist is very good.”

    “How long do I have to wait for him?” I asked impatiently.

    “Come on, he is coming. Just lie down and relax. And enjoy the artwork,” the assistant said.

    “The artwork?” I was puzzled.

    The chair went back. Suddenly I smiled. There was a beautiful picture, right where I could enjoy it: on the ceiling. How considerate the dentist was! At that moment, I began to understand what my friend meant by her words.

What a relief!

    Herbal medicine (草药), which has been used for medicinal purposes, is the use of plants to treat diseases. Many herbalists use the entire plant, from the flowers, stems, leaves, and roots, in the form of everything from teas to pills. These plants contain natural, chemical things that can treat the body for a variety of diseases- such as allergies, asthma, rheumatoid arthritis, migraine, chronic fatigue, and cancer, among others.

    Nowadays an increasing number of people prefer to adopt these plants to treat their diseases because, compared with chemical medicine, herbal medicine has its own advantages. Herbal medicine and remedies (治疗) are more effective than chemical medicine for certain diseases. The chemical medicine given by a chemist could have certain negative side effects. However, many of the herbal medicine and remedies do not have negative side effects. If any, they are softer than chemical medicine. Obesity is the cause of many of the health problems. Herbal medicine can help weight-loss more effectively and improve overall health.

    However, the cure using herbal medicine and supplements (营养品) would take some time, and therefore people are supposed to possess enough patience. Worse still, herbal medicine contains a variety of ingredients (成分) and people have to be sure that their body agrees with the ingredients and that it is not allergic (过敏).

    A point worth mentioning here is herbal remedies and medicine for certain illnesses may have negative side effects. These side effects may not be shown at once, but would take months or even years. In the early stages, if the herbal medicine is not agreeing with you, it is wise to stop using it.

    When used correctly and directed by doctors, herbs can help treat a variety of diseases. But keep in mind that the herbal medicine industry is not regulated, so herbal products are often misleading and may contain additives (添加剂) and that are not listed on the label (标签). Some herbs may cause allergic reactions or interact with other drugs, and some are poisonous if used improperly or at high doses (剂量). Taking herbs on your own increases your risk.

    The Peales were a famous family of American artists. Charles Willson Peale is best remembered for his portraits of leading figures of the American Revolution. He painted portraits of Franklin and Jefferson and over a dozen of George Washington. His life-size portrait of his sons Raphaelle and Titian was so realistic that George Washington reportedly once tipped his hat (脱帽打招呼) to the figures in the picture.

    Charles Willson Peale gave up painting in his middle age and devoted his life to the Peale museum, which he founded in Philadelphia. The world's first popular museum of art and natural science mainly covered paintings by Peale and his family as well as displays of animals in their natural settings Peale found the animals himself and found a method to make the exhibits more lifelike. The museum's most popular display was the skeleton (骷髅) of a huge, extinct elephant, which Peale unearthed on a New York farm in l801.

    Three of Peale's seventeen children were also famous artists. Raphaelle Peale often painted still lives of flowers, fruit, and cheese. His brother Rembrandt studied under his father and painted portraits of many famous people, including one of George Washington. Another brother, Rubens Peale, painted mostly landscapes and portraits.

    James Peale, the brother of Charles Willson Peale, specialized in miniatures (小画像). His daughter Sarah Miriam Peale was probably the first professional female portrait painter in America.

    Everyone can try his best to achieve something. We don't need to be the best, but to challenge the limits of what we are capable of. I gained this belief from my third grade teacher, the most special, honored, trustworthy, and beloved person in my life.

    Mr. Myrus was always perfectly dressed and spoke with the belief that talking to an eight－year－old child didn't mean he had to sacrifice proper statements or grammar. And he was demanding, but he wasn't unreasonable or cruel. He simply felt that no matter what your best was, you should achieve it.

    Luckily enough, I met him again as my eighth grade math teacher. I was not, nor ever will be, gifted in math. I remember my struggles in class. “I don't know the answer,” I would say. "I can't do it!" “Perhaps you don't know the answer,” he would say quietly. “Do you think we might figure it out together? How do you know what you can do if you don't have a try？”

    Mr. Myrus lived around the corner, and I would often stop by to talk while he worked in his garden. I knew there was someone who let me know that if I had really tried, that was enough. “Don't be so hard on yourself,”he'd say.“ Stop blaming yourself. Did you try your best? Well, then you're not a failure,” he often told me these words.

    Mr. Myrus died in 1978. I had never thought about his death. He was too young. I felt sorry. But when I think about him now, I don't feel so sorry. He taught me to be kind, not only to others, but to myself. He taught me my own value. He taught me about honor, about truth, and about doing my best and he also taught me that all feelings and beliefs have dignity and deserve respect. And of all the things I know, I believe that we can't all be “the best”, but we can, each of us, be our best. And I know that's true because Mr. Myrus told me that.

    I was desperately nervous about becoming car-free. But eight months ago our car was hit by a passing vehicle and it was destroyed. No problem, I thought: we'll buy another. But the insurance payout didn't even begin to cover the costs of buying a new car－I worked out that, with the loan, we'd need plus petrol, insurance, parking permits and tax, we would make a payment as much as £600 a month.

    And that's when I had my fancy idea. Why not just give up having a car at all? I live in London. We have a railway station behind our house, a tube station 10 minutes' walk away, and a bus stop at the end of the street. A new car club had just opened in our area, and one of its shiny little red Peugeots was parked nearby. If any family in Britain could live without a car, I reasoned, then surely we were that family.

    But my new car-free idea, sadly, wasn't shared by my family. My teenage daughters were horrified. What would their friends think about our family being "too poor to afford a car"? (I wasn't that bothered what they thought, and I suggested the girls should take the same approach.)

    My friends, too, were astonished at our plan. What would happen if someone got seriously ill overnight and needed to go to hospital? (an ambulance) How would the children get to and from their many events? (buses and trains) People smiled as though this was another of my mad ideas, before saying they were sure I'd soon realize that a car was a necessity.

    Eight months on, I wonder whether we'll ever own a car again. The idea that you "have to" own a car, especially if you live in a city, is all in the mind. I live—and many other citizens do too—in a place that has never been better served by public transport, and yet car ownership has never been higher. We worry about rising car costs, but we'd be better off asking something much more basic: do I really need a car? Certainly the answer is no, and I'm a lot richer because I dared to ask the question.