Mr. Harris taught sixth-grade science. On the first day of class, he gave us a talk about an animal called" birdcat", which died out during the Ice Age. He passed around a skull（头骨） as he talked. We all took notes carefully and later we had a test.

    When he returned my paper the next day, there was a big red"×" through each of my answers. I failed! There must be some mistakes! I wrote down exactly（确切地）what Mr. Harris had said. Then I learned that everyone in the class had failed. Why? "Very simple, "Mr. Harris said, "I made up all that 'birdcat'. But there had never been any such animal. So the information in your notes was not correct. Did you think you would get good grades for that?"

    However, we felt that was unfair. What kind of a test was this? And what kind of a teacher was he?

    Mr. Harris added, "I have told you many unbelievable things about this animal, such as the size, the color, but none of you have questioned. I hope you will learn something from this lesson. Teachers and textbooks are not always correct. In fact no one is." He also told us not to let our minds go to sleep, and to speak up if we thought he or the textbook was wrong.

    Up to now Mr. Harris' class gave me and my classmates something just as important: to look people in the eye and tell them they are wrong.

    When I was about 12, I had an "enemy", a girl who liked to point out my shortcomings（缺点）. Sometimes she said I was thin. Sometimes she said I was lazy. Sometimes she said I wasn't a good student. Sometirmes she said I talked too much, and so on. I tried to put up with（忍受）her as long as I could. At last, I became very angry. I ran to my father with tears in my eyes.

    He listened to me quietly, and then he asked, "Are the things she said true or not? Mary, have you ever wondered what you're really like? Go and make a list of everything she said and mark the points that are true. Pay no attention to the other things she said. "

    I did as he told me and I was very surprised to discover that about half the things were true.

    I took the list to my dad. He refused to take it. "That's just for you," he said. "You know the truth about yourself better than any other people. When something said about you is true, it will be helpful to you. Don't shut your ears. Listen to them all, but remember the truth and do what you think is right."

    Many years have passed. The situation often appears in my mind. In our life we often meet with some trouble and we often go to someone and ask for advice. For some advice you will treasure（珍惜）all your life！

    On 26 February, I got an email from my friend David, asking me to go to Tanzania to train their software engineers. The company is located in Dares Salam, a beautiful coastal city to the west of the Indian Ocean. I stayed for about two weeks in that city last time I was there. During my stay there, David took me to the nearby beach and we had a wonderful walk along the coast which had left a deep impression on me. I was impressed by the ocean water and the deep blue sky.

    After more than 19 hours of air travel, I was finally here at Dares Salaam Airport. The temperature here was high as usual- over 30 degrees. I felt short of breath because of the unbearable heat in this tiny hall. When I finally got my turn, I handed my passport to the officer in front of me, He had a close look at my passport. Then he asked the purpose of my stay, I told him I just wanted to travel here.

    "Where do you want to visit?" he asked again.

    "Dares Salsam."

    "What's your job?" he asked.

    "I'm a software engineer.

I will never forget this experience that I had. I still love this country.

    For years I went to school by bus, so I met many "familiar" strangers. We took the same bus but didn't know each other's names. I used to think it was impossible for us to be true friends. How wrong I was! Smiles from the "nameless" people have changed my thought.

    The first time on the bus, I saw different faces. As days went on, we hatted like old friends.

    But I felt it a pity that I was unable to set up the same friendship with a silent girl in the front of the bus. Her old clothing suggested that she didn't have much money, but she always took a cup of water for the driver. I guessed she was a kind girl. But why did she sit in silence instead of talking with us? Why did she never reply to our friendly greetings? Couldn't she smile?

    Then, one evening, I got the answer. I walked to the park nearby and found the girl sitting alone under a tree, lonely and sad. I greeted her with the same warm smile that had shown to her all these months, but this time her face turned red, then a shy smile appeared. As soon as she began her first words, I understood why she hadn't spoken to us before. Talking was hard for her.

    I heard her story. Her parents worked hard somewhere. She lived with her disabled grandparents. She said, "I can't express myself very well. Most of the time, I can't say what I want to say I have no friends but. You always smile at me like an angel… so I also want to smile." That evening, we exchanged our names and we said goodbye like old friends.

    The smile is the key to opening the door of heart; it can break the cold walls in front of us.

    Tony loves his grandma. She often tells him stories about Santa Claus(圣诞老人).

    Today is December 24. Tony's grandma takes him to Kevin's Store to shop. She gives Tony fifty dollars and says, "Take the money and buy something for someone who needs it. I'll wait for you in the car."

    Tony thinks of everyone he knows: his family, friends and classmates. Then he thinks of Bobbie. Bobbie sits behind Tony. He doesn't have a warm coat. Tony knows it because Bobbie never goes out to play in winter. So Tony buys a blue coat for him. It looks really warm.

    In the evening, his grandma helps Tony put the coat in a Christmas box, and writes, "To Bobbie, From Santa Claus" on it. "Santa always helps people but never lets them know," Tony's grandma says. They put the box in front of Bobbie's house and then go back home.

    That night Tony knows Santa Claus is real, and they are on his team(队伍).