I can't help thinking about the face of that little beggar girl all the time．I can see the glad light filling her eyes when I laid the dime(一角硬币)in her little dirty hand．

    How much I had thought of that dime，too! Grandpa gave it to me a whole month ago，and I had kept it ever since in my red box upstairs；but those sugar apples looked so beautiful，and were so cheap—only a dime apiece(每个)一that I made up my mind to have one．

    I can see her—the beggar girl，I mean—as she stood there in front of the store，in her old dress，looking at the chocolates laid all in a row．I wonder what made me say, “Little girl，what do you want?''

    How she stared at me，just as if nobody had spoken kindly to her before．I guess she thought l was sorry for her, for she said．“l was thinking how good one of those gingerbread rolls would taste，I haven't had anything to eat today．''

    Now，I thought to myself, “Mary Williams，you have had a good breakfast and a good dinner this day，and this poor girl has not had a mouthful．You can give her your dime；she needs it a great deal more than you do．''

    I could not resist(抗拒)that little girl's hungry look—so I dropped the dime right into her hand，without waiting for her to speak，walked straight away．

    A heavy rain hit a small village. The floods (洪水) started to rise. A priest (神父) was praying (祈祷) in a church (教堂). The flood was almost above his knees. A rescuer (救助者) shipped to the priest and said, “Godfather, come up or you will die.” The priest said, “No, I'm sure God will save me. You may leave for others.”

    After a while, water covered his shoulder, the priest had to move onto an altar (祭坛). This time a policeman came over in a yacht (游艇) and said, “Come up or you will die!” The priest said, “No, I have to keep my church. I believe God will save me. You just go and save other people.” A moment later, his church was flooded. The priest had to hold firmly (牢固地) the cross on the top of the church.

    A helicopter (直升机) was flying over him where a pilot put down a rope ladder and shouted, “Godfather, come up! This is your last chance! We don't want you to die!” But he said firmly, “No, I have to keep my church. I believe God will save me. You just go and save other people. God will be with me.” Great flood soon came over. The priest was killed.

    The priest went to Heaven (天堂) where he saw the God. He asked angrily, “God, I served you honestly, but why didn't you save me?” The God said, “Didn't I? The first time I gave you a ship and you refused. The second time I gave you a yacht you refused again. The third time I sent you a helicopter you still didn't accept. So I thought you wished to stay with me in a hurry.”

    In fact, the obstacles (障碍) in our life are because we are stubborn (顽固) and ignorant(无知).

    Twenty years ago, I drove a taxi for a living. One early morning, I went to pick up a passenger at 2:30 a. m. When I arrived to collect my passenger, I saw a small woman in her eighties standing before me. I took her suitcase to the car and then returned to help the woman. She took my arm and we walked slowly towards the car.

    She kept thanking me for my kindness. "It's nothing," I told her. "I just try to treat my passengers the way l would want my mother treated."

    "Oh, you're such a good man," she said. When we got into the taxi, she gave me an address, and then asked, "Could you drive me throughout the downtown (市中心)?"

    "It's not the shortest way," I answered quickly.

    "Oh, I'm in no hurry," she said. "I'm on my way to hospice (末期病人安养所). I don't have any family left. The doctor says I don't have very long time." I quietly shut off the meter (计价器). For the next two hours, we drove through the city. She showed me the building where she had once worked, and the neighborhood where she had lived. Sometimes she asked me to slow down in front of a special building and she would sit staring into the darkness, saying nothing.

    As the day broke, she suddenly said. "I'm tired. Let's go now."

    We drove in silence to the address she had given me.

    "How much shall I give you?" she asked.

    "Nothing," I answered.

    "You have to make a living," she said.

    "Oh, there are other passengers," I said.

    Almost without thinking, I bent down and gave her a hug. She held onto me tightly and said, "You gave an old woman a little moment of happiness."

In my classroom last Thursday, I sat next to a girl who was coughing. I covered my mouth to protect myself from the cold. However, the moment (时刻) I got home, I knew those germs (细菌) had got to me. I had a headache. My mum took my temperature. Sure enough, I had a fever. I was asked to drink as much water as I could. My dad asked me to stay at home until I got better. I was feeling down because I had a science test the next day, and I didn't want to miss it.

The next day, my dad took me to the doctor's. The doctor said I had the flu. He advised me to get a lot of rest and take some medicine. While at home last Friday, I slept most of the day. When I woke up, I tried to study for my science test. However, I couldn't stay awake long enough to study. At that moment, resting was more important than studying.

After being home from school for four days, I finally felt better and returned to school. My teacher, Mrs. Jenkins, gave me the science test I had missed earlier. She sent me into another classroom to finish it. The science test was much too difficult for me, but at least I was feeling healthy enough to take it. Great!

Michael is a sports lover. In the "Playing Sports" unit, he has learned the knowledge about various sports. Basketball is his favorite. He often devotes an hour to playing basketball after school. He thinks sports can make people strong and healthy. One day, his school announced(宣布）that there would be a basketball game. He was very excited and prepared for it. He practiced with his teammates every day. They trained hard to enhance their skills. They learned from each other, and encouraged one another during the practice sessions. Michael also made sure to take good care of his body, getting enough rest and eating properly to be in the best condition for the game.