Michael Perham (born on 16^th March, 1992 in Hertfordshire, England) is a boy who, at the age of 17, became the youngest person to sail around the world in the 50 feet racing boat, completing his journey on 7^th August, 2009. He started the world trip on the 15^th of November 2008 from Portsmouth, England.

    Just six days after Michael Perham set sail from Portsmouth, he started having serious problems with the boat, which he was unable to fix himself on the sea. He had to stop in Portugal. Just one day later, he set sail once again, with the hope of breaking David Dick's world record for the youngest person to sail around the world.

    Michael met many challenges（挑战） along the way, including rough seas and knock-downs in the Southern Ocean, terrible loneliness and fighting storms, but the largest difficulty Michael faced was the boat itself. It caused one problem after another. Funnily he celebrated his birthday in March last year among the dolphins in Indian Ocean.

    Michael Perham has entered the record books after becoming the youngest person to sail around the world. The teenager already holds the record for being the youngest people to sail across the Atlantic, aged just 14.

    Michael Perham plans to create the Sail Michael Fund to encourage young people to take to the water. He is also aiming to take part in the 2012 Olympics.

My mother's loving hands

    Night after night, she came to help me sleep, even long after my childhood years.

    I don't remember1it first started making me a little angry-my mum's hands pushing my hair that way. But it really made me uncomfortable, for they2rough(粗糙的)against my young skin. Finally, one night, I3her, "Don't do that anymore. Your hands are too rough！”She didn't say anything, 4she never did it again.

    Years later, I missed my mother's5and her goodnight kiss on my face. I'm not a little girl any more. My mum is6her mid-seventies, and her rough hands are still doing things for my family and me.

    Now my own children have7. It was late on Thanksgiving Eve. As I slept in my bedroom, a familiar hand ran across my8to push the hair from my head. Then a kiss, ever so softly, touched my brow(额头).

    Taking my mum's hand, I told her how9I was for that night I shouted at her. But my mum didn't know what I was talking about. She had forgotten it long ago.

    That night, I10with a new appreciation(感激)for my mother's caring hands. And the guilt(内疚)that I had carried around for so long was nowhere to be found.

Mom and dad are two of the most important people in your life. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}. If your mom loves to read，you may like to take a book wherever you go，just like she does.

But many kids can't get on well with their parents. The kids don't think that their parents can understand them. Some kids always say their parents are too strict with them. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}? Here are some tips.

Spend more time together. Don't spend so much time playing computer games or watching TV. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}. Go out to do something，try some new games，or just read a book together.

Share your feelings and ask for help. Many kids want their parents to help them when they feel upset，but your mom and dad may not know that you are having a problem. Tell them what's the matter with you and they will be glad to help you.

{#blank#}4{#/blank#}. You don't have to be perfect(完美的)，but if you do your best，you'll make your parents happy.

Mum and I were just going out when it began to rain. We had to stay at home, and I {#blank#}1{#/blank#} (feel) quite bored. Mum got an idea. She suggested {#blank#}2{#/blank#} (teach) me to make dumplings. I thought it could be fun, so I said OK. Mum cut the meat and cabbages into small pieces {#blank#}3{#/blank#} (quick) . Then she showed me how to mix them with salt and oil. "Mixing is the {#blank#}4{#/blank#} (important) of all the steps," she said. I also made some other {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (prepare) with her help. When everything was ready, Dad came back home from his office. Together the three of {#blank#}6{#/blank#} (we) wrapped (包) the dumplings. {#blank#}7{#/blank#} (final) , we cooked them. They were so delicious that I ate {#blank#}8{#/blank#} (many) than twenty. That was the {#blank#}9{#/blank#} (one) time I learnt to make dumplings. It was {#blank#}10{#/blank#} (enjoy) ! I will learn more life skills in the future. 

I started learning English at the 1 of 22. It is kind of 2 to start studying a language. However, age is never a problem if you really want to 3 something.

I was preparing myself to study engineering in the USA. To enter my dream university, I had to 4 a TOEFL score of 90 or higher. After careful thought, I signed up for a six-month program to study English.

It was difficult to get 90 in six months for someone who started learning English from the very beginning, but I decided to have a try. In order to join the 5 ,I moved to a different city and rented (租用) a house with a friend. We were in the same program. We did not have any distractions(使人分心的事物) in 6 house, such as televisions, computers or smartphones.

We had classes every day from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. with a lunch break only. After the classes were over, we had something for dinner and started 7 what we had learned and doing homework. We would study 8 we became sleepy and usually, we would finish it by midnight.

My friend and I encouraged each other and we did our best.9 , we 10 got perfect TOEFL scores and went to the USA at last.

People are spending much money buying mystery boxes (盲盒) these days. Usually, there are toys in mystery boxes, but now shops are putting food in them. They are "leftover mystery boxes". 

They are more and more popular in China's cities, such as Beijing, Nanjing and Chengdu. The food inside is near its expiration date (保质期) and will be thrown away if no one buys it. 

Each box costs little money but has a lot of food inside. I buy leftover mystery boxes from an app called Too Good To Go. Each box costs about 3 to 5 pounds (27 to 45 yuan), and there are usually three to four things inside. For example, a box I buy from the coffee shop has three kinds of bread and one cake. The box costs 3 pounds but the original price (原价) is around 10 pounds. Every time I buy a mystery box, I feel happier thinking about how much money I can save. Wasting less food is also good for the environment. 

But the boxes also bring me problems. Because I can't choose what's in the box, sometimes I get the same kind of food. Also, the food may not be nutritious (有营养的) enough. I have to make other dishes, such as a salad, to make the meal healthier.