A     

    There was a beautiful garden. Every year the king would go to the garden to decide(决定) which flower was the most beautiful one. 

    For the last few years, the rose was always Number One. Because of this, the rose Gulaab became arrogant. It would never let birds stay on its flower. Then all the birds started staying away from Gulaab.

    Behind Gulaab, there was a little yellow flower. People called it Junglee. Junglee wasn't more beautiful than the rose, but it welcomed the birds to stay on its flower. All the birds in the garden liked it.

    This year the king went to the garden as before. The gardener(园丁) pointed at the rose and said to the king, “Your favorite flower, my king.”

    Of course, the king also saw the yellow flower behind it and asked, “What flower is that?”

    “Oh! That's Junglee, a wild flower.”

    “I didn't see a flower like it before. There are so many birds on it. I think it's much more beautiful than the rose. It will be the King Flower of this year!” said the king.

    I left my hometown in London last year and now I have enjoyed working in this small city in China. Learning a foreign language opens you up to the culture and history of a country. So in order to know more about China. I started to learn Chinese.

    But at times, I found myself in funny situations. When I greeted strangers in China, they began to talk a lot and very fast. They asked me questions about everything. But all I could do was to look at them with a blank face. I had no idea what they were talking about. Were they just being kind, funny or impolite? Many people want to make friends with me. But I am a bit upset when I find out the reason why they need a foreign friend. They say they want to practice their English. I don't need friends like this. I like friends to share nay feelings and ideas with.

    However, the more Chinese I learn, the more similarities I find it has with English. In English, thick—skinned is to describe a person who doesn't care for criticism(批评). I was surprised to find that houlianpi in Chinese means the same. And both languages share some common idioms(习语). For example, "look on with folded arms" means xiushoupangguan, and ''burn the boats" is similar to pofuchenzhou.

    I'm still on my journey to learn Chinese. I believe that sometimes you have the most fun on a journey.

    Imagine moving to a new country. There you know almost no one and you don't speak the language. Eighty years ago, my grandmother, Jean Rizzi, did just that.

    Like so many immigrants from Europe, her first stop in America was Ellis Island, in New York. The immigration station on Ellis Island opened 125 years ago. From 1892 to 1954, over 12 million foreigners entered America through Ellis Island.

    My grandmother's journey started near Naples, Italy. Her father got a job in New York years earlier. After he saved enough money, he sent for his family to join him. In November 1936, his wife and three kids got on a ship to New York. At just 8 years old, my grandmother didn't know what to expect. "I was nervous," she says. "But I was also excited about finally getting to see my new home in big city."

    For nearly two weeks, they were at sea and couldn't see any land. They all stayed in one small room on the boat.  When the boat arrived at Ellis Island, my grandmother thought the journey was over. But she and her family still had to be examined by doctors. Finally, they were off to their new home in Queens, New York. My grandmother still lives there.

    Ellis Island is now a popular tourist attraction in New York. More than 3 million people visit it each year. To immigrants like my grandmother, the island is a symbol of freedom and the American dream.

    On the first day in her new house，Mouse wrote a letter to her old friend.

    On the way to the post office, Mouse saw Beaver. He gave Mouse a big smile.

   "Perhaps I should say hello, "thought Mouse." Beaver's teeth are so long and sharp（锋利的）. Beaver wouldn't make a good friend. Not like Vole, whose smile was kind." So Mouse left without saying hello.

    After lunch, Mouse heard a knock on her door. Then she peeked（偷看）out the window. It was Squirrel.

   "Perhaps I should invite her in for tea, "thought Mouse." But Squirrel talks a lot. Squirrel wouldn't make a good friend. Not like Vole, who always listened." So Mouse didn't open the door.

    That night, Mouse looked at a picture of herself and Vole. She thought back to the first time she met Vole. She remembered feeling afraid-afraid of Vole's eyes and Vole's large size.

    In fact, Vole had seemed so different that Mouse almost decided Vole wouldn't make a good friend.

    Mouse realized something." I made a mistake!" she cried.

    The next morning, Mouse made some cakes and put them in a basket.

    She went to Beaver's house first, and next to Squirrel's house.

    When Mouse returned home, she was smiling. She went to her desk and wrote a letter to Vole.

    One day a king went to a faraway place in his country. When he came back, his feet hurt a lot. "There are too many small stones on the roads. They hurt my feet. You should cover every road with leather(皮革)," he told his men. Of course, it would cost a lot of money. One of his men was very smart. He told the king, "Why not cut a little piece of leather to cover your feet?" The king was surprised, and he agreed to the man's idea. He asked his men to make a pair of leather shoes for him.

    Maybe this is not the beginning of leather shoes. But it teaches us a lesson of life: if you want to make this world a happy place to live in, the best way is to change yourself, not the world.