A 17-year-old boy, caught sending text messages in class, was recently sent to the vice principal's office at Millwood High School in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The vice principal, Steve Gallagher, told the boy he needed to focus on the teacher, not his cellphone. The boy listened politely and nodded, and that's when Mr. Gallagher noticed the student's fingers moving on his lap. He was texting while being scolded for texting. “It was a subconscious act,” says Mr. Gallagher, who took the phone away. “Young people today are connected socially from the moment they open their eyes in the morning until they close their eyes at night. It's compulsive.”

    A study this year by psychology students at Covenant College in Lookout Mountain, Ga., found that the more time young people spend on Facebook, the more likely they are to have lower grades and weaker study habits. Heavy Facebook users show signs of being more sociable, but they are also more likely to be anxious, hostile or depressed. (Doctors, meanwhile, are now blaming addictions to 'night texting' for disturbing the sleep patterns of teens.)

    Almost a quarter of today's teens check Facebook more than 10 times a day, according to a 2009 survey by Common Sense Media, a nonprofit group that monitors media's impact on families. Will these young people get rid of this habit once they enter the work force, or will employers come to see texting and 'social-network checking' as accepted parts of the workday?

    Think back. When today's older workers were in their 20s, they might have taken a break on the job to call friends and make after-work plans. In those earlier eras, companies discouraged non-business-related calls, and someone who made personal calls all day risked being fired. It was impossible to imagine the constant back-and-forth texting that defines interactions among young people today.

    Educators are also being asked by parents, students and educational strategists to reconsider their rules. “In past generations, students got in trouble for passing notes in class. Now students are skilled at texting with their phones still in their pockets,” says 40-year-old Mr. Gallagher, the vice principal, “and they're able to communicate with someone one floor down and three rows over. Students are just fundamentally different today. They will take suspensions rather than give up their phones.”

    My parents knew their wealth: each other, their six children, and their faith. They tried to live simple lives so that they could have time for what was most important.

    They didn't busy themselves buying a bigger house, because that would mean working harder to pay the monthly mortgage(按揭贷款), working overtime or taking a second job. Who would go running with me then? Who would read stories to me?

    They didn't burden themselves with buying an expensive car because that would mean worrying about installment(分期付款) bills. Besides, walking to the shopping centre every Saturday afternoon with me gave my dad his needed exercise, and made me feel so special.

    One of my heart's delights was seeing Dad and Mom in their bedroom at night, after our nightly family prayer. The lights were turned off, and I'd see the figure of my father seated on his old chair and Mom standing behind him, gently massaging his shoulders. I'd hear them talk about what happened during their day. Even as a child, I sensed their quiet pleasure in being together.

    My question today: Could they have done this rich practice each night and nourished(滋润) their marriage if they had been busy paying for expensive clothes for themselves or their kids, or if they had been worrying about monthly bills for new hi-tech equipment? I don't think so. And I've made a choice: I don't want that of life either.

    I've never been the kind of person to say, “it's the thought that counts” when it comes to gifts. That was until a couple of weeks ago, when my kids gave me a present that blew me away.

    For years now, I've been wanting to sell our home, the place where my husband and 1 raised our kids. But to me, this house is much more than just a building.

    In the front room, there's a wall that has hundreds of pencil lines, marking the progress of my children's growth.

    Every growth stage is marked in grey, with each child's name and the date they were measured. Of all the objects and all the memories, it's this one thing in a home that's the hardest to leave behind. Friends I know have returned home after work only to discover their wall of heights has been freshly painted over. A new paint job wouldn't normally be greeted by tears, but erasing that evidence of motherhood hurts more than it should. Our kids grow in so many ways, but the wall is physical evidence of their progress, right there for everyone to see.

    Over the years, I've talked about how much I would hate leaving that wall behind when I moved, even though the last marks were made 10 years ago when my kids stopped growing.

    So one day, while I was at work, my children decided to do something about it.

    They hired Jacquie Manning, a professional photographer whose work is about capturing (捕捉) the beautiful things in life, from clear lakes and skies to diamonds and ballgowns (舞会礼服).

    She came to our house while I was at work, and over several hours, took photos of the hundreds of drawings and lines, little grey fingerprints (手印), and old marks. Somehow, she managed to photograph all those years of memories perfectly. Afterwards, she put all the photos together into one image, transforming them into a beautiful history of my family.

    Three weeks later, my children's wonderful gift made its way to me—a life-size photo of the pencil lines and fingerprints that represents entire lifetimes of love and growth.

    China is a big country, and there is no simple answer to the question “When is the best time to visit China? ” There are two best times to visit China, depending on your preference.

    October

    Things to do: hike on the Great Wall, photography tour

    Places to visit: Beijing, Xi'an, Shanghai, Guilin, Jiuzhaigou, Chengdu

The best time to go to China is early autumn (October).

    Most of China has warm temperatures, and the summer rains have stopped (apart from around HongKong and Sanya) so it's pretty dry. The autumnn colours are also amazing. It is quiet at tourist attractions for most of the month, as the summer holiday travel crowds have gone. But try to avoid October 1st -7th, which is the Chinese National Day holiday, as attractions, transport and hotels are packed with Chinese tourists and prices go up a lot.

    Late Spring (April to May)

    Things to do: appreciate flowers, Li River cruise, ethnic festivals

    Places to visit: Beijing, Xi'an, Guilin, Huangshan, GuiZhou, Zhangjiajie

    The second-best time to travel to China is probably in April and May, when the flowers are in bloom and the temperatures are warming up. In late spring, temperatures across China are getting into the 20s (℃), except the extreme northwest and northeast. While the North of China is still dry, the summer rains have already begun in the South. This could actually improve the view in the form of mountain fog in mountainous areas like the Li River and the Yellow Mountains.

    Ethnic festivals in GuiZhou are concentrated in April and May, such as the Sisters' Meal Festival. If you are interested in Miao and Dong ethnic cultures, this is a good time to visit.

    Travel prices are average: cheaper than June to October, but more expensive than the lower season from November to March.

    Maybe ten-year-old Elizabeth put it best when she said to her father. “But, Dad, you can't be healthy if you're dead.”

    Dad, in a hurry to get home before dark so he could go for a run, had forgotten to wear his safety belt — a mistake 11.5% of the US population make every day, according to a survey in 2015.

    The percentage doesn't seem so bad, but the big question is why still so many people ignore it when every day there are reports about car accidents and casualties (a death toll of 37461 in 2016).

    There have been many myths about safety belts ever since their first appearance in cars some forty years ago. The following are three of the most common.

    Myth Number One: It's best to be “thrown clear”of a serious accident.

    Truth: Sorry, but any accident serious enough to “throw you clear”is also going to be serious enough to give you a very bad landing. And chances are you'll have traveled through a windshield (挡风玻璃) or door to do it. Studies show that chances of dying after a car accident are twenty-five times greater in cases where people are “thrown clear.”

    Myth Number Two: Safety belts “trap” people in cars that are burning or sinking in water.

    Truth: Sorry again. but studies show that people knocked unconscious (昏迷) due to not wearing safety belts have a greater chance of dying in these accidents People wearing safety belts are usually protected to the point of having a clear head to free themselves from such dangerous situations, not to be trapped in them.

    Myth Number Three: Safety belts aren't needed at speeds of less than 30 miles an hour (mph).

    Truth: When two cars traveling at 30 mpb hit each other, an unbelted driver would meet the windshield with a force equal to diving headfirst into the ground from a height of 10 meters.

    News China

    Circulation (发行量): 1 Year, 12 Issues

    Cover Price: $47.88 Price For You: $19.99

    Product Description: News China is the English edition of China Newsweek. The magazine covers the latest Chinese domestic news in politics, business, society, environment, culture, sports and travels, etc. It is the first comprehensive news magazine for readers interested in China.

    Better Life

    Circulation: 1 Year, 12 Issues

    Cover Price: $44.55 Price For You: $15.00

    Product Description: Designed for those who have a strong interest in personal lifestyle, Better Life is America's complete home and family service magazine. It offers help with food, recipes, decorating, building, gardening, family health, money management, and education.

    Apple Seeds

    Circulation: 1 Year, 9 Issues

    Cover Price: $44.55 Price For You: $33.95

    Product Description: Apple Seeds is an award winning magazine filled with stories for kids aged from 7 to 9. The cover is very soft, providing durability (耐用性) that allows each issue to be enjoyed for many years to come. Besides, there is a big surprise for you—it's being sold at a more favorable discount than usual.

    Humor Times

    Circulation: 1 Year, 12 Issues

    Cover Price: $36.00 Price For You: $11.95

    Product Description: Humor Times is for those who love to laugh! Full of cartoons and humor columns, it shows up in your mailbox once a month and keeps you smiling all year round! In today's world, you need a reason to laugh. So let's find it in Humor Times.