When I was twelve years old, my family lived next to a forest. Every evening, mockingbirds(知更鸟) would come and rest in the trees and sing. I enjoyed 1singing so much that I decided to catch a young bird. In this way, I 2 hear it sing for me every day.

    I finally managed3 one and put it in a cage. At first, the bird was very frightened, so it fluttered(扑腾)in4 new home all the time. Several days later, it was used 5 in this new home.

    The next day, the little bird's mother flew to the cage with 6food in her mouth. The baby bird looked very happy and ate everything 7the mother brought to it. I was so happy to see this, for the mother knew how to take care of her baby8than me.

    But9the bird morning, I found it died. I was terribly10and cried at once. I didn't know 11happened.

    Arthur Wayne, my father's friend, was a famous ornithologist(鸟类学家). She 12my father at that time.13she knew the whole thing, she explained to me," If a mother mockingbird finds her baby14in a cage, she will bring it poisonous berries(毒梅).She thinks it's better for her baby to die than to lose freedom."

Since then I 15any living animal in a cage. All living things have a right to live free.

My classmate Thomas is 13. He is a basketball1 in our school.He can play basketball well.Thomas thinks basketball is2 interesting game.So he plays3 with his friends after school.He4 basketball games onTV.too.He plays basketball really5 .We like to play basketball6 Thomas.

Thomas eats well.He has good7 habits.He8 an apple and two eggs for breakfast.He9 eggs are healthy.For lunch.he eats rice,chicken10 vegetables.Thomas likes fruit and he always eats some strawberries11 lunch.In the afteroon,he likes12 and salad.But his teacher doesn't13 Thomas to eat hamburgers.He doesn't wantThomas to get 14 .In the evenimg.Thomas eats some vegetables for dinner.

So Thomas is15 .

We should learn from Thomas.

Last semester, I joined the school's Geography Club, and it has been an exciting journey! In the club, we have various activities like solving puzzles and d{#blank#}1{#/blank#} skills like map reading. Our club members are a group of energetic t{#blank#}2{#/blank#} who love exploring（探索）the world.

One of our recent projects was creating a p{#blank#}3{#/blank#} on "The Wonders of the World?" . We worked in groups, and I was lucky enough to be in a good team. We researched（研究），designed, and finally showed it, which received a lot of praise from our club members.

During our meetings, we also p{#blank#}4{#/blank#} for quiz competitions. It's rocky, but when we celebrate our s{#blank#}5{#/blank#}, it feels just amazing. Our club leader always says, "Mind the geography, and you'll go places!"

Life isn't always smooth. Everyone has a hard time in their life sometimes. However, some people make life better for themselves and1 for others. Why? They know how to take advantage of the difficulties. This is especially2 for Bradford and Bryan.

When they were young, Bradford and Bryan Manning were found to have a（n）3 . The doctor said they would go blind over a period of time. Now in their thirties, the brothers have both4  their central vision（视力）. They see mostly from the corner of their eyes. But while the two brothers may be going blind, their hope of helping others who have problems seeing is getting 5 !

The two brothers love soft clothes. While shopping for clothes, they often have to use their sense of 6 to choose what they want. Because they can't see things clearly, they have 7 a great sense of touch. This helps them to find the softest materials.

As a result, they 8 a clothing company called "Two Blind Brothers". The purpose of the company is to make the softest clothing in the world and 9 all the profits（利润） to help fight blindness. They also offer jobs to blind workers who have difficulty making a living. Now the company is known to more people. Many 10 are glad to buy its products for they love the story behind the company.

As you can see, when life closes a door, it can always open a window, for you, and for others.

Michael is from Michigan, the US. He first came to China 10 years ago, and his 1 for coming here was quite interesting. Back in the US, he 2 a video game about a Chinese story called Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Through that 3 story, he became very interested in Chinese culture and Chinese history. As a result, he 4 to start learning Chinese.

5 he came here, something fantastic made him want to stay here. He worked here and soon he will have a new 6 here. He and his wife (妻子) will live in Qingdao.

For him, China is about the people. When he first came to China, he 7 a Chinese family. The hosts are 8 and he now thinks of them as his Chinese parents.

"For those people wondering about coming to China, maybe they should take 9 advice," Michael said. "10 , the first choice is Beijing. It's a wonderful city with a long history, rich culture, friendly people and 11 food. I also really want to recommend (推荐) Xi'an, another 12 place."

There are so many cities in China. 13 no two cities in China are alike. They all have different cultures, though they are in the same country. So no matter (无论) where foreign visitors visit, they will have great 14 .

"I really 15 everyone to come here and see for themselves what the Chinese people are like, and what the country is like. And I'm sure they will love it," said Michael.