I once had a friend who was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and the news that he might only live up to six months was a great shock to him, his family, and his friends. However, in spite of the serious illness, he was initially determined to look into all available treatments that might cure or extend his life. I think that when you find yourself in such situations, you tend to look up every possible way for hope of saving your life.

    As months went on and his health grew worse, I noticed an unexpected change in attitude that came over him. He had also been a happy person with a cheerful personality, but rather than give in to discouragement and self－pity, he took comfort in God and humanity. His talks focused on others rather than himself, and he spoke of the afterlife as something he was prepared for, believing that his concerned ancestors, including his mother and father, were there waiting for him.

    During the last few months, weeks, and days of his life, he was kindly cared for by family, friends, his loving wife, who looked after both his physical and emotional needs, and workers from a local hospice (安养院) came to the home to regulate his medication and provide any other needed support. He didn't complain about his fate, and he willingly allowed others to serve him.

    Indeed, one might think why God allows death and suffering in our world, but for me, such experiences taught me to value family more and kindness for others. You often can't learn these important attributes in the lap of luxury, and perhaps, such an experience is the greatest and final gift the illness can give those left behind.

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    You may like chewing gum (口香糖) after meals to stop your breath smelling bad; or your mother might use a special neutralizer (调理剂) to protect her permed hair (烫发). But have you thought about the chemical principles behind such everyday actions?

    On March 2, the Senior 3 students from the IB (International Baccalaureate, 国际文凭) classes at Beijing Huijia Private School presented their discoveries, all in fluent English. This kind of seminar is held every year to show the achievements of the IB chemistry experiment lessons offered by the school. IB is a qualification based on a common curriculum (课程) for students aged 16-18 in any country and is recognized by universities everywhere.

    "Once I saw an advertisement for xylitol (木糖醇) gum," recalled Zhang Xinju. "Suddenly an idea came to my mind: are there any chemical reactions when the xylitol is working on our teeth?"

    Zhang and his partner Bu Xuan visited several hospitals to try and find out. "Doctors know that xylitol can protect teeth, but few could explain how the chemical reactions happen," said the 17-year-old boy.

    Presenting the results of their research in English to an audience of Chinese and foreign judges was never a problem for the students.

    "Textbooks for IB students are in English, and our teachers speak in English," explained Wei Duan and Han Yu, whose research topic was "The Acid-Base Reaction (酸碱反应) in the process of Hair-Perming".

    "In Senior 1 we often referred to Chinese textbooks, but we found we could understand and express it all in English by the second year."

    Lu Jiang, the school's IB chemistry teacher and China's only IB vice-examiner, is proud that her students can apply scientific theories they learn in class to daily life.

    "You might have learned these facts from you kindergarten teachers, but few think about the theories behind them," Lu said. "This kind of practice is intended to develop the scientific thinking they will need in their future studies."

    Hidden from the noise of Washington, D.C., Hillwood Museum is a special treasure. It contains (包含) one of the finest personal collections (收藏) of Russian and French art in the world.

    Hillwood Museum was once the home of Marjorie Merriweather Post. She was a rich businesswoman. She owned one of the largest food companies in the United States. She was also very interested in collecting beautiful French art and furniture.

    She moved to Russia in the 1930s as her third husband, Joseph Davies, became the American ambassador (大使) in Moscow. Marjorie Merriweather Post had a love for Russian art as well. She bought the house in Washington in 1955 and she wanted to make it into a museum after her death. Many art experts helped Mrs. Post create its fine collection.

    Hillwood has many rooms which are filled with her treasures. Visitors can see beautiful music boxes from the eighteenth century and colorful paintings of European princesses (公主). Experts say the ancient wood and gold furniture from France is some of the finest ever made. Visitors can even look at Mrs. Post's jewels and clothes.

    The museum also has several beautiful gardens. One is designed like the gardens in Japan. It has a bridge and visitors can watch flowers floating in the water. Flowers are also grown all the year in a special glass building or greenhouse. These flowers are placed in the house throughout the year.

After a walk, visitors can rest at a nearby eating place. They can also buy objects to remember this special museum.

    The fence was long and high. He put the brush into the whitewash and moved it along the top of the fence. He repeated the operation. He felt he could not continue and sat down.

    He knew that his friends would arrive soon with all kinds of interesting plans for the day.

    They would walk past him and laugh. They would make jokes about his having to work on a beautiful summer Saturday. The thought burned him like fire.

    He put his hand into his pockets and took out all that he owned. Perhaps he could find some way to pay someone to do the whitewashing for him. But there was nothing of value in his pockets—nothing that could buy even half an hour of freedom. So he put the bits of toys back into his pockets and gave up the idea.

    At this dark and hopeless moment, a wonderful idea came to him. It filled his mind with a great, bright light. Calmly he picked up the brush and started again to whitewash.

    While Tom was working, Ben Rogers appeared. Ben was eating an apple as he walked along the street. As he walked along it, he was making noises like the sound of a riverboat. First he shouted loudly, like a boat captain. Then he said “Ding－Dong－Dong”,“Ding－Dong－Dong” again and again, like the bell of a riverboat. And he made other strange noises. When he came close to Tom, he stopped.

    Tom went on whitewashing. He did not look at Ben. Ben stared a moment and then said: “Hello! I'm going swimming, but you can't go, can you？”

    No answer. Tom moved his brush carefully along the fence and looked at the result with the eye of an artist. Ben came nearer. Tom's mouth watered for the apple, but he kept on working.

    Ben said, “Hello, old fellow, you've got to work, hey？”

    Tom turned suddenly and said, “Why, it's you, Ben! I wasn't noticing.”

     “Say—I'm going swimming. Don't you wish you could? But of course you'd rather work—wouldn't you? Of course you would.”

    Tom looked at the boy a bit, and said, “What do you call work？”

     “Why, isn't that work？”

    Tom went back to his whitewashing, and answered carelessly.

     “Well, maybe it is, and maybe it isn't. All I know is, it suits Tom Sawyer.”

     “Oh come, now, you don't mean to say that you like it？”

    The brush continued to move.

     “Like it? Well, I don't see why I shouldn't like it. Does a boy get a chance to whitewash a fence every day？”

    Ben stopped eating his apple. Tom moved his brush back and forth, stepped back to look at the result, added a touch here and there, and stepped back again. Ben watched every move and got more and more interested. Soon he said，“Say, Tom, let me whitewash a little.”

    Tom thought for a moment, and was about to agree, but he changed his mind.

     “No—no—it won't do, Ben. You see, Aunt Polly wants this fence to be perfect. It has got to be done very carefully. I don't think there is one boy in a thousand, maybe two thousand, that can do it well enough.”

     “No—is that so? Oh come, now—let me just try. Only just a little.”

“Ben, I'd like to, but if it isn't done right, I'm afraid Aunt Polly ”

     “Oh, I'll be careful. Now let me try. Say—I'll give you the core of my apple.”

     “Well, here—No, Ben, now don't. I'm afraid …”

     “I'll give you all of it.”

    Tom gave up the brush with unwillingness on his face, but joy in his heart. And while Ben worked at the fence in the hot sun, Tom sat under a tree, eating the apple, and planning how to get more help. There were enough boys. Each one came to laugh, but remained to whitewash. By the time Ben was tired, Tom sold the next chance to Billy for a kite; and when Billy was tired, Johnny bought it for a dead rat—and so on, hour after hour. And when the middle of the afternoon came, Tom had won many treasures.

    And he had not worked. He had had a nice idle time all the time, with plenty of company, and the fence had been whitewashed three times. If he hadn't run out of whitewash, Tom would have owned everything belonging to his friends.

    He had discovered a great law of human action, namely, that in order to make a man or a boy want a thing, it is only necessary to make the thing difficult to get.

    One of the most exciting and interesting international cities to visit is London, England. Here is a look at four free things to do during a vacation to London.

    Visit the Trafalgar Square

    Built more than 200 years ago, Trafalgar Square is a popular gathering place for locals and travelers, too. The area is close to good shopping and dining opportunities, and there are usually some sorts of public events or celebrations going on there during most weekends.

    Wander Along the Thames

    Visitors wanting to see some great architecture, attractions and views should spend an afternoon walking along the River Thames. The best place to start is at the world-famous London Bridge crossing over the river and you can walk all the way to Westminster Bridge a short distance away. Travelers doing this will find themselves passing by a great many historic buildings.

    Explore the Local Markets

    While purchasing items at any of the open markets in London is not necessarily free, walking through them to view the merchants, their products and the other shoppers is of great fun. Some of the popular open markets in London worth visiting include Spitafields Market, Portobello Road Market and Leadenhall Market.

    Visit the British Museum

    One of the top museums in the entire United Kingdom can be found in London, and it charges no admission for entry. This museum is so highly regarded that it is not only popular with locals and tourists, it is also seen as a major and valuable scholarly resource.

    I was born on the 17th of November 1828, in the village of Nam Ping, which is about four miles southwest of the Portuguese Colony (殖民地) of Macao, and is located on Pedro Island lying west of Macao, from which it is separated by a channel of half a mile wide.

    As early as 1834, an English lady, Mrs. Gutzlaff, wife of a missionary to China, came to Macao. Supported by the Ladies' Association in London for the promotion of female education in India and the East, she immediately took up the work of starting a girls' school for Chinese girls, which was soon followed by the opening of a boys' school.

    Mrs. Gutzlaff's comprador(买办) happened to come from my village and was actually my father's friend and neighbor. It was through him that my parents heard about Mrs. Gutzlaff's school and it was doubtlessly through his influence and means that my father got me admitted into the school. It has always been a mystery to me why my parents should put me into a foreign school, instead of a traditional Confucian school, where my big brother was placed. Most certainly such a step would have been more suitable for Chinese public opinion, taste, and the wants of the country, than to allow me to attend an English school. Moreover, a Chinese belief is the only avenue in China that leads to political promotion, influence, power and wealth. I can only guess that as foreign communication with China was just beginning to grow, my parents hoped that it might be worthwhile to put one of their sons to learning English. In this way he might become an interpreter and have a more advantageous position to enter the business and diplomatic world. I am wondering if that influenced my parents to put me into Mrs. Gutzlaff's School. As to what other sequences it has eventually brought about in my later life, they were entirely left in the hands of God.