In 1834, the clock tower in London was burned down. People planned to build a new clock which would be the biggest and best in the world. So the clock had to be big and keep very good time. The big clock was made in two years. Five more years later the tower was finished. Then people put the big clock in the tower, and made it ring out for the first time on July 11, 1859.

   In order to give the big clock a good name, people held a meeting. Someone wanted to call it the Queen of Bells, and someone thought Victoria was good. At last, a man named Benjamin Hall stood up. He was a big man. Before he started to speak, someone shouted, “Why not call it Big Ben?” Everybody laughed and agreed with him.

   From then on, Big Ben became its name. And it also became a famous building of London. People all over the world write to Big Ben. They even send birthday presents—bottles of oil-to help keep Big Ben running. Big Ben is not only a clock but also a dear friend of people.

    A life coach is somebody who helps you reach all kinds of personal and professional goals(目标). Each of us has the ability to be our own life coach. Here is some advice about how to be your own life coach:

    Pay attention to your relationships with others. Ask yourself the following questions: How do you deal with disagreements? When was the last time you showed your family members that you care for them? Your relationships with friends, family members and teachers show a lot about the kind of person you are.

    Face the fears about the future. Now, imagine that one of your good friends told you that he or she was not strong enough to go back to school. We often give better advice than we are willing to take ourselves. Remember that even the most successful people were probably told that what they wanted to do was impossible. ①但是他们坚持努力工作，永不放弃。

    Develop your talents. ②If you want to achieve your goals, you will have to spend more time developing the talents you already have. And you should also uncover (发现)any hidden talents that you haven't discovered yet. So you can take classes in subjects that you are interested in, even if you have no experience.

    Be thankful. Take some time to be thankful for the things you do have. Remember positive (积极的) things. Think of the best days you have had in the past month or year. Remember special parties, vacations and holidays. Thank for the wonderful people you have in your life.

    Terry Fox was born on July 28, 1958 in Canada．He was a determined little boy who never liked to miss a day of school．Fox enjoyed playing baseball and basketball very much in his free time．In secondary school he won the Athlete of the Year Award． He wanted to be a physical education teacher．

    Terry Fox's future changed in 1977 when doctors told him there was cancer in his right knee．To stop the spread of cancer, doctors amputated (截肢) most of his leg．Fox learned how to use an artificial leg, and three weeks after the operation, he was walking．

    Terry Fox made a plan to raise money for cancer research by running across Canada．His goal was to raise $1 from every Canadian．People said it was a crazy idea but Terry could not be stopped．He started his running on the Atlantic coast in Newfoundland in April 1980 and planned to finish on the Pacific coast in September．

    The people of Newfoundland were welcoming and generous．Fox was treated to many meals at people's homes．A small town of 10,000 people raised $10,000．Fox ran about 45 km each day．He ran through Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec and Ontario．As he ran he gave speeches about cancer and how the money he collected would go to finding a cure for cancer．The 8,000 people in the town of Gravenhurst donated $14,000．By the time he ran half-way across Canada he had raised $11.4 million．

    At the end of August he thought he was getting a bad cold and stopped running for a few days．Doctors said the cancer had come back and was now in his lungs．Terry went into hospital for treatment．People kept donating money．There were 24 million people in Canada in 1980．Over $24 million had been raised by February 1981．Terry had met his goal．The treatment did not cure Terry． He died on June 28, 1981．That September, the first Terry Fox Run was held in Canada．Terry Fox Runs are now held yearly in 60 countries and millions of people have taken part．More than $ 360 million has been raised for cancer research．The donations for cancer research don't stop．His dream lives on．

    In a school, you may hear a student saying in Chinese,“我对汉语很感兴趣。“ but you're not in China. You're in a foreign country. Like the student, many foreigners are learning Chinese. But it's not easy. The Chinese use a different character(汉字) for each word. People have to memorize about 600 characters before they can do even basic reading and writing. For foreigners, it's hard to memorize them. And the following chart shows the top 3 difficulties for foreigners while learning Chinese.

    However, Chinese is more popular around the world today. The long history and colorful culture of China attract many foreigners to learn Chinese. With the rapid development, China is staying ahead in many fields and is playing its role in the world.

    Chinese is becoming a global (全球的) language and its popularity has risen around the world. Many countries set up Chinese courses in their schools.

    For example, in the UK, students used to choose between Spanish, Latin, French and other foreign languages. But now schools encourage their students to study Chinese. The increase in popularity of Chinese has been surprising. 1031 people took Chinese language exams in 2001, and the number was 2062 last year, while 2561 people chose Spanish. It's predicted that studying Chinese in the UK could overtake (超过) Spanish in less than five years.

    Just like the foreigners do, we also learn foreign languages. Different languages carry different cultures. So exchanges are necessary. By learning a foreign language, we not only have a useful tool of communicating, but experience a new culture, what's more important, learning a foreign language well will help us tell our own stories to the world.

    Is your life ruled by love or by fear? Love and fear are two opposite feelings that shape our life in very different ways. Most of us are controlled by both of them. However, even a tiny change towards love and away from fear can bring more happiness. Here are some suggestions towards love.

    Cultivate Gratitude(培养感恩之心)

    Gratitude makes us feel happier. If you remember to be thankful for the blessings(赐福)of your life, you will feel more connected to yourself and others. When you let worries go and have gratitude instead, love appears quickly.

    Test the Reality of Fear

    Sometimes fear can be like a cloud that keeps out the sunlight. A simple way to deal with fear is to test its reality. Write down three things that you're afraid of. Then look at each point and ask yourself,  "Is this fear really grounded(基于) in reality? "I know when I do this, I often find that fears aren't reasonable.

    Take Action

    Taking action is the best way to control fear. For example, if you are not feeling well, but you don't go to a doctor, you may imagine that you are having a serious health problem.

    Once you've been to a doctor, talked about the problems and dealt with them one by one, your fear will become smaller and even disappear.