Last October, while tending her garden in Mora, Sweden, Lena Pahlsson pulled out a handful of small{#blank#}1{#/blank#}(carrot) and was about to throw them away. But something made her look closer, and she noticed a{#blank#}2{#/blank#}(shine) object. Yes, there beneath the leafy top of one tiny carrot was her long-lost wedding ring.

    Pahlsson screamed{#blank#}3{#/blank#}loudly that her daughter came running from the house. "She thought I had hurt{#blank#}4{#/blank#}I)," says Pahlsson.

    Sixteen years{#blank#}5{#/blank#}(early), Pahlsson had removed the diamond ring{#blank#}6{#/blank#}(cook) a meal. When she wanted to put the ring back on later, it was gone. She suspected that one of her three daughters — then ten, eight, and six — had picked it up, but the girls said they hadn't. Pahlsson and her husband{#blank#}7{#/blank#}(search) the kitchen, checking every corner, but turned up nothing. "I gave up hope of finding my ring again," she says. She never replaced it.

    Pahlsson and her husband now think the ring probably got{#blank#}8{#/blank#}(sweep) into a pile of kitchen rubbish and was spread over the garden{#blank#}9{#/blank#}it remained until the carrot's leafy top accidentally sprouted (生长) through it. For Pahlsson, its return was{#blank#}10{#/blank#}wonder.

    A teahouse is a special house which primarily serves tea and other light refreshments. Its function varies widely {#blank#}1{#/blank#} (depend) on the culture. In China, a teahouse is a place {#blank#}2{#/blank#} people gather to enjoy tea, chat and socialize. It {#blank#}3{#/blank#} (consider) as a symbol of Chinese tea culture and people's leisure lives.

    Chinese teahouses enjoy a long-standing history. They developed from tea stands in the Western Jin Dynasty, {#blank#}4{#/blank#} (take) shape in the Tang Dynasty, developed {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (gradual) in the Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties and became booming in modern times.

    In the Song Dynasty, teahouse existed all over cities and villages, {#blank#}6{#/blank#}a rate comparable with that of restaurants. The owners preferred to decorated their teahouses with paitings of celebrities and rare and precious plants {#blank#}7{#/blank#} (attract) customers. In the Ming and Qing dynasties, the number of teahouses went beyond that of restaurants, gaining more {#blank#}8{#/blank#} (popular) and becoming more famous. Later, the acculturation of Western culture forces traditional Chinese teahouses to take on {#blank#}9{#/blank#} new look. After reform and opening-up, with the rapid development of the economy and {#blank#}10{#/blank#} (evidence) improvement of people's living standards, teahouses flowered in China.

    A few years ago, after a long morning of sightseeing in New York, my children and I took a rest on one of the park {#blank#}1{#/blank#} (bench) in Central Park.

    "Look!" my son said, {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(point) to a nearby rubbish bin. That's when we saw our first raccoon (浣熊). Quite at home in the big city, he paid us no attention, concentrating only on finding a {#blank#}3{#/blank#} (taste) lunch. He sorted through a few options before coming out with a wrapped sandwich {#blank#}4{#/blank#} (hold) between his paws.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (surprise), rather than run away, he jumped down and walked casually to a spot on the path, not a metre from where we sat. The children were spellbound, the raccoon providing better{#blank#}6{#/blank#}(entertain) than any museum. He glanced at us, perhaps checking to see {#blank#}7{#/blank#}we were about to steal his lunch.

    {#blank#}8{#/blank#}delicate fingers, he peeled back the layers of plastic wrap until the half-eaten sandwich {#blank#}9{#/blank#} (uncover).

    Then he surprised us all. Instead of starting his food, he turned to a nearby pool of water and {#blank#}10{#/blank#} (dip) his paws in. With a casual air, he rubbed his paws together underwater for a moment, brushed his fur, then started gracefully picking at his meal.