Today, with the development of society, people all over the world almost have the same hobbies That is to say, we are not very different in some way. However, cultures are still quite different. In the East and in the West, social rules are not the same.

    In the East, it takes a long time to become someone's friend. People are very close to their friends. When people from the West meet you, they will call you a friend right away. That doesn't mean they are close to you.

    When people from the East meet you, they want to know about your age, your salary (薪水) and whether you are married or not. For people from the West, these are not polite questions. They think such kind of questions violates their privacy (隐私).

    Family is important for everyone. However, in the East, kids live with their parents for a long time. They still listen to them after they grow up.

    In the West, independence is very important. After their kids grow up, they leave home. They don't have to listen to their parents.

    In the East and in the West, people think differently, too. People in the West think less and act more. In the East, people notice relationships between things, and they often keep their opinions quiet.

Have you ever seen the film Forrest Gump (《阿甘正传》)? There's 1 famous saying in it: "Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know2 " The surprise is part of the fun. It is not only from the chocolates you find in the box but also the process of opening the box. Now blind box toys have become very popular since they 3 to China. Blind box toys are hidden inside the same packaging. So, the buyers don't know what is in the boxes until they open 4 . The most popular toys in the blind boxes are cute characters that come 5 pop movies, comics and cartoons. There 6 a few special ones in many common boxes. "Maybe the next one is a gold toy. My wish is 7 another box." said one buyer. As a result, people will open more blind boxes and hope for a better result.

Besides expecting good results, people also enjoy the surprise and uncertain mysteries. "Opening a blind box like opening a birthday gift is an enjoyable surprise for our simple daily lives," said a 8 girl. "When I open these simple little boxes, I feel disappointed at one, but I feel 9 at another." A fear of the unknown is always a part of the box opening process, and waiting for the uncertainty is 10 part of the fun.

Ellen Yung had a busy day at work! She put a cast on a broken arm and used a bandage to cover a deep cut. Ellen is a doctor for 1 . Kids can get sick at any time easily，so pediatricians（儿科医生） often work long hours. They have hard jobs. 

Ellen's husband works long hours，too. Steve is 2 hard—working firefighter. He takes his job3 than any other firefighter. At the fire house，he makes sure that all the tools work properly. He checks the fire trucks and hoses. If 4 a fire，he will try his best 5 people from hot flames（火焰） and smoke. The firefighters all work together to put out the fire. 

At home，the Yung family works together，too. Hanna，6 daughter，often sets the table for dinner and makes a shopping list each week. She will be happy to help with housework 7 she has no time. Hanna says，"To me，housework means family working together. "A short time ago，Zac，their son，wanted a new computer，but the family needed a new washing machine. They could only spend money buying one thing. Both cost the same，so they 8 to choose. The family discussed their needs. Finally，they agreed 9 buy the washing machine. Zac still wants a computer. Ellen has promised to save some money each week to buy Zac a computer in the future. "Yeah，10 great family!I love my family，"said Zac happily. 

Do you have good friends? What kind of friends do you like to make? Some students are sharing their opinions with us.