"Haibao, the mascot(吉祥物) of the 2010 Shanghai World Expo, is very cute, "said Gu Hui, a school kid. "I want a big toy like the mascot."

    Haibao looks like the Chinese word ren, which means people or a person. The name, a typical lucky one in Chinese tradition comes from the Chinese phrase "Si Hai Zhi Bao" —the treasure of the four seas. It also means the treasure of Shanghai, which lies beside the sea.

    Haibao's blue curly(卷曲的) hair looks like the waves of the sea. Its smile is a sign of the healthy spirit of China. Those thumbs-up(翘拇指) will welcome millions of people to Shanghai from around the world. Its big feet show China has the ability to host a successful Expo.

    Haibao was created by two artists, one from the mainland(大陆) and the other from Taiwan. The design is about people living together in the city. The designers want it to fit the theme of the Shanghai Expo, that is, a good life should be created by all the people and people should have harmonious relationships(和谐关系) with nature and society, so that life in cities would be better.

    Surely the mascot will become the lucky symbol and cultural remark of Shanghai Expo.

    Look at the Sky from the Bottom of a Well

    There is a frog(青蛙). He lives in a well(水井) and he never goes out of the well. He thinks the sky is as big as the mouth of the well.

    One day a crow(乌鸦)comes to the well. He sees the frog .

    The frog asks, “Where are you from?”

    “I fly from the sky.” the crow says.

    The frog feels surprised and says, “The sky is only as big as the mouth of the well. How do you fly from the sky?”

    The crow says, “The sky is very big. You always stay in the well, so you don't know the world is big.”

    The frog says, “I don't believe it .”

    But the crow says, “You can come out and have a look by yourself.”

    So the frog comes out from the well. He is very surprised. How big the world is!

    On a sunny day of September, I sat with my friend in a well­known coffee shop in a neighboring town. As we enjoyed our coffee, a young man wearing glasses entered and sat at an empty table beside us. He called the waiter and placed his order, saying, “Two cups of coffee, one of them there on the wall.” We heard this order with rather interest and found that he was served with only one cup of coffee but he paid for two. When he left, the waiter put a piece of paper on the wall, saying “A Cup of Coffee”．

    While we were still there, two other middle­aged men entered and ordered three cups of coffee, two on the table and one on the wall. They had two cups of coffee but paid for three and left. This time also, the waiter did the same. He put a piece of paper on the wall saying, “A Cup of Coffee.” It was something special and perplexing for us. We finished our coffee, paid the bill and left.

    After a few days, we had a chance to go to this coffee shop again. While we were enjoying our coffee, a poorly­dressed man arrived at the shop. As he seated himself, he looked at the wall and said, “One cup of coffee from the wall.” The waiter served coffee to this man as usual. The man had his coffee and left without paying.

    We were amazed to watch all this, as the waiter took off a piece of paper from the wall and threw it into the dustbin. Now it was no surprise for us — what was happening was very clear. The great respect for the men in need shown by the residents(居民) of this town made our eyes in tears.

    Recently, Donald Trump has been chosen to be the Person of the Year by Time. But who is the Person of the Year in your heart?

    Katrina, 13, England

    In my eyes, the Person of the Year must be British actor Alan Rickman. I love him because of his beautiful voice in the movie Alice in Wonderland. The most successful character he has made is Severus Snape in the Harry Potter movies, who loves Lily till the last second of his life. In 2016, he died at the age of 69. The author of Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling said he was a perfect actor and a wonderful man.

    Henry, 13, Portugal

    The Person of the Year must be Antonio Manuel de Oliveira Guterres. He was the former premier of Portugal (葡萄牙总理). And now he is the new Secretary-General (秘书长) of the United Nations. Before him, eight persons have taken this job. In my opinion, the UN Secretary General always plays an important role in developing international relationships. I think that he is worth offering the job and will make something great to the world.

    Zhang Xiaoning, 15, China

    I think Guo Chuan, the famous Chinese sailor, can be Person of the Year. Guo broke many world records with his sailing boat. He often sailed around the world alone. He had strong spirit. Whatever difficulties he met, he never gave up. He went missing at sea earlier this year. But he still lives on in my heart.

    Michael, 12, France

    The person I want to choose would be Teresa May, the new Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Since the UK left the European Union, many people thought that the UK would be in a mess. However, May made an effort to "save the UK". She has done a good job. It is said that she has dealt with the chaos (混乱) of the English political parties (政党). She has also solved a lot of problems and showed her abilities to the world. She has been praised as the second Margaret Thatcher (撒切尔) for her hard work.

    Devon Gallagher, a college graduate from Philadelphia, wants the world to know exactly where she's been during her worldwide vacation in a special way.

    The traveler, who was born with a congenital bone disease (先天性骨病),lost her right leg at the age of four. Although she had a hard time at first, she now thinks that nothing can stop her living her best life.

    To spread that message, Gallagher shares photos of her travels around the world online, and writes her location across her artificial leg (假肢)before taking a picture. Now she has been taking pictures across Europe, all with the well—known locations written on her artificial leg.

    "I get a new leg every two years and I can choose the design (设计)on it. One day I had a sudden idea to get a chalkboard," Gallagher said, "My mum and grandmother didn't like the idea, but my friends liked it and told me to go for it, so I did."

    Gallagher said people often stared when she was writing on her leg, but once she shared the photos, she received only positive feedback (正面的反馈). "My leg hasn't stopped me doing anything I've wanted to do, and I've been able to keep up with my peers (同龄人)and lead a pretty great life."

    Gallagher shows us that you should never let anything stand in the way of your dreams. And if you run into difficulties, get creative with it because if life gives you an artificial leg, make art.