Beethoven had an ugly face and a very 1 temper(脾气), but people 2 him to their homes.When he lost his temper, they forgave(原谅)him.He was often poor and ill during his life.After one illness, he suddenly 3 himself deaf.At that time he was 4 31.What a blow it was on him!

    5 this didn't stop Beethoven 6 on in his life.He went on 7 much music. He wrote long pieces and short pieces, happy ones and 8 ones.During his life, he composed(作曲)about 300 pieces. 9 people's surprise, he wrote some of his best and most beautiful pieces 10 he became deaf.Many of them are known and loved all over the world.

    "Tumbling(翻跟头) time!" I called out. My group of children stood up before the blue mats (垫子). Megan walked 1 into the back of the line (队伍). She didn't talk with anyone. The other children had learned tumbling moves months ago, 2  Megan was still working on them.

    One day before class, Megan's father told me, "I'm thinking about taking Megan out of class." " 3 ?" I asked. He said, "She isn't doing as well as the other children. I don't want her to hold them back (妨碍进展)."

    "I don't think you're right," I said. "Megan 4 this class, maybe more than the other children. I didn't start out as a winner. I started to practice tumbling at age 8, just like Megan. When I look at Megan, I see 5 . she works hard. Sir, your daughter may 6 win a competition, but I think there's something more 7 than becoming a winner. That is her self-respect (自尊). I think if she keeps 8 she can do the tumbling moves well."

    As I said these words, Megan looked at me. 9 eyes were full of tears. Her father also said in tears, "Thank you so much." He turned to Megan and said, "Honey, it's time for your 10 . I'm sure you can do pretty well."

    Later, Megan did really well in tumbling. More importantly, she never stood at the back again.

Dear Helen,

I had a great time in Hong Kong. I spent five days there. Let me tell you what I did. Today I went shopping with my aunt but I didn't buy anything. The things were too expensive.

Yesterday I took a boat trip around the famous Victoria Harbor(维多利亚港). I took lots of photos.

The day before yesterday I went to the zoo. I saw some monkeys there. Oh, I also bought some gifts there. On Thursday I went to the bird market. I saw many kinds of birds from all around the world. On Wednesday my aunt took me to the beach. We lay on the beach and enjoyed the sun. On the beach I met my friend. We played happily on the beach. What about your trip? I hope you have a great time in Toronto.

Yours,

Zhao Pei

2024r is the 21st year of a free library in a mountain village in Shaoyang, Hunan Province 77-year-old Yang Guangxun started the "Ziqiang Library". 

Yang was born in this village and become a book lover when he was very young. He owned over 300 books at home. When he retired in 2002, he and his wife sometimes went back to the village for they didn't need to work any longer. Learning village children often had trouble finding enough books to work, Yang decided to give away all his books to start the library in August 2003. He hoped everyone in the village will make their lives rich through reading.

Over the past 21 years, Yang has given away plenty of money to buy more books for the library. With 6 reding rooms, it now stores over 54,000 books and has 30,000 visitors every year. Since Yang and his wife don't always live in the village, they invite relatives and friends to work as volunteers and take care of the library. There are 16 volunteers working in the library all year round as the library is open every day, from 9:00 a. m. to 6:00 p. m.

Thanks to the library, many villagers fall in love with reading, and many students get great grades or get into universities. They all think reading is the best thing in the world.

As summer comes around, outdoor activities are getting more and more popular. One of {#blank#}1{#/blank#} is bike riding, or biking. The biking craze (热潮) is now sweeping through China.

Wang Jing is a student from Hangzhou. She {#blank#}2{#/blank#} exercised before because she didn't like sports much. But since her hometown hosted the Asian Games in 2023, her interest in sports has {#blank#}3{#/blank#} a lot. She has realized the benefits of sports {#blank#}4{#/blank#} is now a big fan of biking.

"I feel free and peaceful {#blank#}5{#/blank#} I ride," Wang said. "Biking allows me to experience the beauty along the road and the world seems to slow down," she added. Wang is only one of those who are deeply in love with biking. In {#blank#}6{#/blank#} like Chengdu and Beijing, thousands of people have started to join in the biking craze.

Will the craze in China last for a long time? The {#blank#}7{#/blank#} is "Yes." Thanks to the craze, there have been events like group rides and bike festivals. These create a sense of community {#blank#}8{#/blank#} bikers. They share road information, biking experience and sometimes even meals. They are just like a{#blank#}9{#/blank#} family. As biking has become a lifestyle, experts {#blank#}10{#/blank#} that this biking craze will continue. They expect a sharp increase in the number of bike riders.

"Dear stranger, I'm inviting you to hear my goals I've never shared with anyone before. I would like to be active. I want to achieve ..."

This message {#blank#}1{#/blank#}(write) on a sanitary bag of a high-speed train by a college girl. The next day, a passenger in the same seat discovered the message. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} passenger posted it online with a reply, "How {#blank#}3{#/blank#}(luck) we are to meet across time and space! I hope you can do well in the interview (面试). I wish you all the best." This communication {#blank#}4{#/blank#} (catch) people's attention and touched their hearts. 

Under the post, people shared their views, and many college students also expressed their {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (feel) about school interviews. Later, the college girl {#blank#}6{#/blank#} left the message on the sanitary bag read the post and shared why she did it. She wrote her thoughts on the bag {#blank#}7{#/blank#} she was nervous on her way to an important school interview. The good thing is that she has been admitted (录取) to her dream school. And she thanked the stranger for his encouragement {#blank#}8{#/blank#}(polite) and hoped other students could go to their dream schools, too. "If the sanitary bags {#blank#}9{#/blank#} messages are intact (完好无损的) and clean, we won't replace them." said one of the staff, "We hope these special notes on sanitary bags can brighten {#blank#}10{#/blank#} (passenger) journeys."

So what do you do with the sanitary bag when you take the high-speed train? Have you ever had any special communication with strangers?