Mr Hunt came from a poor family. He had three brothers and two sisters. His father worked hard but wasn't paid much. And his mother did all the housework at home. They were both able but they couldn't get enough money for their family.

    Mr Hunt was at school for only three years and he had to stop to help his parents though he was good at his lessons. When he was sixteen, he came to the city and began to work in a small factory. He learned from an old worker and became a skilled worker. The old worker liked him and married his daughter to him. The young man did not have his own house and had to live with his parents-in-law. His mother-in-law always thought he was poor and often chattered(喋喋不休).So the young man tried to save everything and hoped to have his own house.

    It was one fine Sunday. The old woman wanted to have a picnic on top of the hill. She told Mr Hunt to drive her car. But sometimes she told him to turn left and sometimes to turn right. The young man had to listen to her. At a crossing, the lights were red but she made him turn left. The policeman stopped them and told the young man to give his license to him.

    "If I did wrong, sir," said Mr Hunt, "it was my mother-in-law's fault. She was driving the car though she sat behind me!"

    Our new neighbours are the Browns. They have two children, a boy and a girl. The boy is Jack and the girl is Alice. Jack is 11, and he is one year older than me. Alice and my sister Nancy are 8 years old.

    At weekends, Nancy and I like to go to play with Alice and Jack. Both Jack and I really enjoy playing computer games. Sometimes the girls join us, but the games they enjoy are different from the ones we like.

    There is a big park near our houses. Sometimes, when the weather is fine, the four of us go for bike rides there. We often stop at the huge playground to have some fun. Jack and I like to play basketball, but the girls prefer to sing and dance.

    Our families often have dinner together. On some days, they come over to our house and on other days, we go over to theirs. Mr Brown and his wife cook really well.

    Nancy and I are very glad to have the Browns next door. It's great to have friends living so near.

    Lisa was a single (单身的) mother who lived with her little son. She lost her job two years ago and they had a very hard life. Her heart was broken every time her son asked, "Can I have some more bread and butter please, Mommy?"

    One day, when her son asked the same question again, she decided to prepare a big meal for him with the only 6 dollars in her hand. She went to the supermarket, bought some food and cooked at home. Lisa was a shy mother, but she was strong-minded. "It's time to make a change," she thought. She was good at writing. To make some money, she began to write articles for magazines day and night.

    Things went better. The food bank started to give her some free vegetables every month. Her son finally had enough to eat. Once he told Lisa that the dishes she made were delicious. Suddenly. an idea came to Lisa's mind, "Why not share my recipes (食谱) on the Internet?" She did. Many people liked her recipes and she became popular.

    Soon after that, some reporters interviewed(采访) her and asked her to write a book on cooking. When Lisa got the money for the book she wrote, she had a good sleep for the first night during the two years. Now Lisa has a well-paid job and a beautiful home, but she'll never forget the days when she worked hard for a good life.