Last night I was driving from Harrisburg to Lewisburg, a 1of about eighty miles. It was late and I was in a hurry. However, if anyone asked me how fast I was driving, I'd say I was not over-speeding (超速). Several times I got2 behind a slow-moving truck on a narrow road, and I was holding my fists tightly with impatience.

    At one point along an open highway, I 3 a crossroad with a traffic light. I was alone on the road by now, but as I got near to the light, it turned red and I braked to a stop. I looked left, right and behind me. Nothing. Not a car, no suggestion of headlights, but there I sat, waiting for the light to4, the only human being for at least a mile in any5.

    I started6 why I refused to run the light. I was not afraid of being fined, because there was obviously no policeman around, and there certainly would have been no7 in going through it.

    Much later that night, after I8 a group of my friends in Lewisburg and climbed into bed near midnight, the question of why I'd stopped for that light came back to me. I think I stopped because it's part of a contract (合同) we all have with each other. It's not only the 9, but it's an arrangement we have, and we trust each other to10 it: we don't go through red lights. Like most of us, I'm more likely to be11 from doing something bad by the social conventions (社会习俗) that stand by it than by any law against it.

    It's amazing that we ever trust each other to do the right thing, isn't it? I was so12of myself for stopping for the red light that night.

    Mr. Black works in an office. His memory is very poor and often 1 something. One day his son had a cold and he had to 2 him to hospital. When they got there, he remembered that he left his 3 at home. He ran to the telephone box4 and was going to ask his wife to bring the money to him. But there was a woman in it. She was looking up something in the telephone book. He had to stand outside to 5 . About ten minutes passed, she was still in it. His son began to cry on a chair in the waiting room. He was 6. Another ten minutes passed, the woman didn't 7 He was more worried. He thought for a while and knocked at the door. The door 8 and he went in.

    "Thank you, sir," said the woman," I don't 9 anybody up. I had a baby last month and I'm only looking for a good 10 for her in the telephone book."

    "You don't understand me!" I shouted. Then I ran out of the house and got on a bus. I didn't know1it was going. I just wanted to get away from home as2as 1 could.

    I couldn't3what had just happened to me. My mother, the person I believe in, had just read all of my 4 from my close friends! It shouldn't have happened to me. She read my letters and told me not to write to5any more! I couldn't6the tears from falling when I thought about this.

    Later that day, I went to my close7house.8my friend gave me a cup of water, the phone rang.

    "It's your mother," she spoke to me in a low9.

    "Tell her that I'm not here!" I replied. However, my mother heard it. "Tell her not to leave! I'll be right there!" Then she hung up the phone10a "goodbye". In fact, I should say that I was a little11. I couldn't imagine what would happen.

    But to my12, when my mother arrived, "sorry" was the first word she13to me. Her14 told me that she had been crying and her voice told me that she was really tired. "Will you forgive me?" at last she asked. I didn't know what to say. I just15her, and gave her a big hug.

    She held me so tightly. You know, at that time, I felt so warm. I really love you, Mum!

    Once upon a time, a beautiful bird and a tortoise became good friends. The bird lived in a tree by the banks of the river. The tortoise had his1 there too. They are neighbours. Every day, after the bird flew down and had a drink of water, he would dance near the river to make the tortoise friend 2.

    One day, a bird-catcher caught the bird and wanted to take him away to the market. The unhappy bird asked the catcher to allow him to say 3 to his friend, tortoise. The bird-catcher 4 and took him to the tortoise. The tortoise was5 to see his friend a captive(俘虏).

    The tortoise asked the bird-catcher to let the bird go. And the tortoise said if the catcher6, he would give the bird-catcher an expensive 7. The bird-catcher agreed. To his surprise, The tortoise then dived into the water and in a few seconds 8with a nice pearl(珍珠). The bird-catcher was very happy to see it and he let the bird go at once.

    A short time later, the man came back and told the tortoise that a pearl was not enough and planned to catch the bird again if the tortoise doesn't 9 him another bigger and nicer pearl. The tortoise, who had already helped his friend, the bird, to leave the place to a forest far away after being set free, was greatly 10 with this man.

    "Well," said the tortoise, "if you still want to 11 another pearl, give the first one to me and I will fish another one for you." 12 his greed(贪婪), the bird-catcher gave the pearl to the tortoise, who 13 away with it saying, "I am no fool to take one and give two!" The tortoise then dived into the water 14, leaving the bird-catcher without a single pearl.

    We should learn from the short story that greed leads you to have 15.