Think of life as a game in which you are playing with five balls in the air. You name them work, family, health, friends and spirit and you keep all of them in the air. You will soon understand that work is a rubber ball. If you drop it, it will bounce(弹跳) back.

    But the other four balls, family, health, friends and spirit, are made of glass. If you drop one of these, they will be broken. They will never be the same. You must understand that and try to have balance in your life. How?

    Don't look down on your worth by comparing yourself with others. It is because we are different and each of us is special.

    Don't let other people set goals for you. Only you know what is best for yourself.

    Don't give up when you still have something to give. Nothing is really over until the moment you stop trying.

    Don't be afraid of difficulties. It is by taking chances that we learn how to be brave.

    Don't shut love out of your life by saying it's impossible. The quickest way to receive love is to give it; the fastest way to lose love is to hold it too tightly; the best way to keep love is to give it wings.

    Don't run through life so fast that you forget not only where you've been, but also where you are going.

    Don't be afraid to learn. Knowledge is a treasure you can always carry easily.

    Don't use time or words carelessly. You can't get them back. Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery(秘密), and today is a gift; that's why we call it "the present". Life is not a competition, but a trip, step by step.

    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.

    Do you think horseback riding is easy? Well, you are wrong. Horseback riding is one of the most challenging sports in the world today.

    As you know, a horse has the instinct to run away when afraid. When he becomes puzzled, he becomes afraid. When your silent communication is confusing, he does not ask you to repeat what you have said. Instead, he runs forward, he jumps to the side, he kicks out, or he freezes in place. Most of the time, however, you won't know your communication is confusing until it is too late. When he runs forward, you will fall back. When he jumps to side, you will fall the other way. When he kicks out or freezes in place, you will fly over his head.

    If you want to be good at horseback riding, you must practice. Being ridden does not come naturally to horses. They have to be trained. For example, to ask them to go forward, you usually tap them with your heels. But, if you get on untrained horses, they won't know that a tap means go. Instead, they will most likely run around like a wild animal out of fear.

    Contrary to popular belief, horseback riding does take skill. If you believe horseback riding doesn't take skill, you most likely have only ridden at a farm that provides a well-trained horse. To me, that is not actual riding. And although it may seem easy to you, you were not the person to teach that horse that a saddle is not frightening. You were not the person to fall off that same horse at the beginning of his training. When horses are first taught to be ridden, all they do is run, kick out, and rear, which is the act of standing on their back legs only.

    The human brain remembers negative experiences more easily than positive ones. Our brains have developed this way because threats, like dangerous animals, had a more immediate effect on our ancestors' survival compared to positive things like food or shelter. As a result, you likely know what makes you unhappy, but do you know what makes you happy?

    Research suggests that our level of happiness depends partly on factors we cannot control—our genes and our life circumstances. But our level of happiness is also shaped by the choices we make. If you've been chasing wealth, fame, good looks, material things and power, you may be looking for happiness in all the wrong places. Psychologists suggest that the following habits make people happier.

    People who form close relationships tend to be happier than those who do not. The number of friends we have is not important. What matters is the quality of our relationships. Relationships that bring happiness usually involve the sharing of feelings, mutual respect, acceptance, trust and fun.

    People who exercise regularly improve both their physical and mental well being. Some research has shown that exercise can be as effective as medication in treating depression.

    When we are so interested in an activity we enjoy that we lose track of time, we are in a state of flow. The activity could be making art, playing piano, surfing, or playing a game. People who experience flow in their work or hobbies tend to be happier.

    People are more likely to be happy if they know what their strengths are and use them regularly, People who set goals and use their strengths to achieve them tend to be happier. People are especially happy when they can use their strengths to serve the greater good.

    People who think positively by being grateful, mindful and optimistic are more likely to be happy. Being grateful means being thankful, Bejing mindful means being open to, focusing on and enjoying the experiences of the present moment. Being optimistic means being hopeful about the future.

    If you are taking vitamin supplements to reduce your risk of heart disease or cancer, a group of health experts want you to know that those vitamins may actually increase your risk of cancer.

The US Preventive Services Task Force came to this conclusion after reviewing dozens of studies. Nearly half of adults in the US take at least one vitamin or mineral supplement on a regular basis. These pills are advertised as a way to promote general health. In some cases, producers promote them as cancer fighters and heart protectors.

    Studies in animals and in laboratory dishes suggest that oxidative(氧化性的) stress contributes to diseases like cancer and heart disease. If so, there is a reason to believe that antioxidants—including beta－carotene, vitamins A, C, and E—could be useful as preventive medicines.

    But when the Task Force examined the medical evidence on vitamins, it found "inadequate(不充分的) evidence" to support the claims that vitamin and mineral supplements benefit healthy adults.

    "Cardiovascular(心血管的) disease and cancer have a significant health impact in America, and we all want to find ways to prevent these diseases，" Dr. Virginia Moyer, who heads the Task Force, said in a statement. But so far, she added, the medical evidence does not show that taking vitamins is helpful in this aspect.

    However, the Task Force did find "adequate evidence" that people with a raised risk for lung cancer actually increase their risk further by taking beta－carotene, a precursor of vitamin A.

The Task Force recommendations of taking vitamins regularly apply to healthy adults aged 50 and older who don't have "special nutritional needs". The advice does not apply to children, women who are pregnant or may become pregnant, people with chronic illnesses, or people who have to take supplements because they can't get all their essential nutrients from their diet.

Born in France, but raised in Spain,linguistics and literature professor Juan José Ciruela Alférez from the University of Granada is passionate about Chinese literature and has been doing some research about it. With painstaking effort, his Spanish translation of a Chinese classic was published last year. 

Ciruela said translating the novel was an interesting challenge. In recent years, many Chinese works have been introduced to Spain. However, as most of them had been translated first into English and then from that language into Spanish, much of the originality,was lost. For this reason, when the Spanish publishing house Kailas contacted Ciruela to translate it directly from Chinese, he accepted the mission immediately, even if it presented difficulties like a heavy workload within a short time limit.  

"I encountered various difficulties, especially at the beginning of the task," said Ciruela in an interview. "This novel, in particular, needs a prior reading process in which the translator gets into the plot and the characters, since at first it is difficult to enter the world that the novel constantly raises. So I read the novel first in Chinese, paying attention to all those details and how all of that could be translated in a way that the Spanish readers would understand."

For Ciruela, the most important criterion when translating is fidelity(忠诚) to the original text. While it is true that one cannot always be strictly faithful, he believes translators should not be too far from original texts. For example, the translation of culturemes (expressions of culture in language) is quite complicated due to the cultural gap between Spanish and Chinese. Ciruela believes that these must always be appropriate to the specific function they perform within the text, in each specific case and moment.