My name is Peter. I was born in Paris. When I was three, my family moved to London. We stayed there for one year then my dad had to move to New York. We spent about two years there. I moved to Shanghai last May and I like the new country very much.

    I study at an international school in Shanghai. There are people from nearly all parts of the world. I like my school very much and I can learn many things. I love learning Chinese and keep practising it with my classmates. After school, my favourite sport is football. I like drawing and painting, too.

    Shanghai has four seasons and l like spring best here, because I can go out in the evening and play with my friends. In my hometown, the summers are hotter than Shanghai but the winters are not so cold as they are here.

    Shanghai is like a small world where all kinds of people and food can be seen. I like being part of it and I am very happy to stay here.

    One day when Jack was walking in the park, he saw a woman, who lived a few miles away, sitting on a bench(长凳) with a dog beside her. The dog was looking up at the woman.

    Jack walked up to the woman and said, "Hello, Sue, how are you? May I sit and talk with you for a while?" "Of course, please sit down," Sue said. Jack sat down next to Sue on the bench, and they talked quietly together. The dog continued to look up at Sue, as if waiting to be fed.

    "That's a nice dog, isn't he?" Jack said, pointing(指着) at the animal.

    "Yes, he is. He's handsome. He's a bit of a mixture(杂交品种), but that's not a bad thing. He's strong and healthy."

    "And hungry," Jack said. "He hasn't taken his eyes off you. He thinks you've got some food for him."

    "That's true," Sue said. "But I haven't."

    They both laughed and then Jack said, "Does your dog bite?"

    "No," Sue said, "He's never bitten anyone. He's always gentle and friendly."

    Hearing this, Jack decided to hold out his hand and touched the animal's head. Suddenly it jumped up and bit him.

    "Hey!" Jack shouted. "You said your dog didn't bite."

    Sue answered in surprise, "Yeah, I did. But this is not my dog. Mine's at home."

    As a rule, we have a test about some usual things in our life every two months. During my second month of nursing school, our teacher gave us a pop test as usual.

    I was a serious, hard-working and careful student, so I passed the questions easily until I read the last one, "What is the first name of the woman who cleans the school?"

    I thought this was sure some kind of joke. I saw the cleaning woman several times. She was tall, dark hair and in her 50s, but how would I know her name? I handed in my paper, leaving the last question blank.

    Before the class ended, one student named Nancy asked our teacher if the last question would count toward our test grade. This was also all the students' question. We all wondered why he gave this question in the test, because we all felt it meaningless.

    "Certainly," said our teacher. "In your life you will meet many people. All of them are important. They should get your attention and care, even if all you do is smile or just say an easy 'hello' ." We all kept silent after hearing this.

    I've never forgotten that special lesson. I also learned her name was Dorothy.

    There was once a little grey planet mat was very sad. The people living there didn't look after it. They polluted me whole planet so much with rubbish that there were no plants or animals left.

    One day, a little boy was walking on the planet when he passed a cave (洞穴) and noticed a small red flower inside. The flower was very sick, almost dying, so the boy carefully dug up the flower with roots, soil and everything. Then he started looking for a place where he could look after it. He searched all over the planet, but everywhere was so polluted that there was no place the flower could possibly live in. Then he looked up at the sky and noticed the Moon. It seemed to the boy that maybe the plant could live there. So the little boy put on his astronaut suit, and climbed into a spaceship. He put the little red flower in the back, and they went to the Moon.

    Far away from all that pollution, and with the boy visiting it every day to take care of it, the flower started to grow. The flower was so well cared for that it soon germinated, giving birth to others, and these other flowers spread onto other flowers. Before long, the whole Moon was completely covered with flowers.

    That's why, whenever the little boy's flowers open up, for a few minutes the Moon turns red, like a warning light. Maybe it's telling us that if we don't look after our planet, the day will come when flowers will only be able to grow on the Moon.

    Larry and Jo Ann were an ordinary couple. Like any other couple, they made efforts to make ends meet (收支相抵) and do the right thing for their children. They often argued about what was wrong with their marriage and who was to blame (责备). They wanted to make changes.

    "You know, Jo Ann, I've got a magic chest (衣柜) of drawers. Every time I open them, they're full of clean clothes," Larry said. "I want to thank you for filling them all these years."

    Jo Ann stared at her husband and felt strange. This wasn't the first time Larry had done something strange recently, so Jo Ann forgot it quickly. But it happened again a few days later.

    "Jo Ann, that was a great dinner," Larry said one evening. "I appreciate all you have done in the past 15 years. You have cooked lots of delicious food for me and the kids. "

    Jo Ann was growing worried. "What's wrong with my husband?" she wondered.

    Day in and day out, Larry continued his praise.

    Over the weeks, Jo Ann grew more used to her husband's unusual behavior. Her step was now a little lighter and she didn't seem to get upset as often.

    Larry has never told Jo Ann the reason for his change in behavior. So it will likely remain one of life's mysteries. But it's one I'm thankful to live with.

    You see, I am Jo Ann.

    It's the Chinese New Year today. Sam gets a red packet from his grandma. That's his favourite part of the festival. He gets four dollars and goes shopping in Chinatown.

    There are a lot of interesting things on the streets — fireworks, lion dances and delicious foods. Then Sam sees an old man. The man sleeps in the street. He doesn't wear shoes. "He doesn't have a home. What a poor man!" Sam thinks.

    At a toy shop, Sam wants to buy a toy Monkey King. But it's six dollars. Sam wants to go back home and get more money. On the way, he sees the old man again. "Why not give the four dollars to him? He can use the lucky money to buy some hot food and drinks," Sam thinks.

    He gives the money to the old man and goes back home. His grandma knows his story and gives him a big hug (拥抱). What a good boy!