In the old days, children were familiar with birth and death as part of life. Now this is perhaps the first generation of American youngsters who have never been close by during of the birth a baby and have never experienced the death of a family member.

    Nowadays when people grow old, we often send them to nursing homes. When they get sick, we send them to a hospital, where children are forbidden to visit terminally （晚期的）in patients— even when those patients are their parents. This deprives（剥夺）the dying patient of family members during the last few days of his life and it deprives the children of an experience of death, which is an important learning experience.

    Some of my colleagues and I once interviewed and followed about 500 terminally in order to find out what they could teach us and how we could be of more benefit, not just to them but to the members of their families as well. We were most impressed by the fact that even those patients who were not told of their serious illness were quite aware of its potential（潜在的）outcome.

    It is important for family members, and doctors and nurses to understand these patients' communication in order to truly understand their needs, fears and fantasies （幻想）. Most of our patients welcomed another human being with whom they could talk openly, honestly, and frankly about their trouble. Many of them shared with us their great need to be informed, to be kept up —to —date on their medical condition and to be told when the end was near. We found out that patients who had been dealt with openly and frankly were better able to cope with the coming of detach and finally to reach a true stage of acceptance before death.

    After suffering through many months of unemployment  (失业). my wife and I moved this week from Colorado to Ohio. where she was starting a new job. Not knowing anybody there. we were pretty concerned about how we'd get our entire home unloaded (卸下) without killing ourselves.

    We made a phone call to hire (临时雇用) a couple of college students to help with all the heavy lifting once we got there. But one neighbor after another stopped by to help us. What ? Have we moved to some other country ? Maybe we've died and gone to heaven!     

    Unloading actually became fun and joy because there were so many wonderful new friends to help when we worked. The more people helped. the easier the work became. We were afraid the job might take days for the two of us alone. but it was finished in a few hours. Many total strangers would either walk by the sidewalk or drive by to ask us if we were moving in. Many were happy that this old house that had sat empty for so long was coming to life again. We were invited to an outdoor meal yesterday by neighbors on the same street.

    All the time. my brain was resting on this new sense of hope that people can be so friendly to strangers. Among all the conversation were lots of offers to help each other in all kinds of ways. It's wonderful to live in such a kind little town. I feel so grateful to be here. and wish the rest of the world could see how an entire community can model  (做榜样) what it's like to help each other.

    Dieting to lose weight has become very popular in recent years. People have become more health conscious and try to take better care of their bodies by eating more healthily and exercising more regularly to lose any unnecessary fat that they may have.

    Not only are people being more careful about what they eat, they are also concerned with how they eat and how their meals are prepared. People are taking more time for each meal. Many avoid the so-called "plastic" fast-food hamburgers and choose to eat a salad or a sandwich of more healthful ingredients(营养成分) in a quiet restaurant with a more leisurely atmosphere. At home, they also try to take enough time to eat a relaxed dinner without phone or TV interruptions.

    While dieting may be viewed as beneficial, it has also become a serious problem for Americans, particularly for young women. Dieting for them has actually become a psychological addiction. They eat so little that they can lose as much as fifty percent of their total body weight, and although they look like skeletons, they still insist that they are fat.

    The current wave of exercising, dieting and the problems produced have caused many organizations to begin educating the public. Many schools, hospitals, health organizations, newspapers and magazines, for example, are offering classed, printing booklet articles and so on, to inform the public of the way to exercise and diet, of the dangers of dieting too rapidly, and of the places people can go for medical help if they find themselves on the road to "diet addiction".

Reasons to visit St.Louis

Whether you're traveling alone, with a friend or with the whole family, there's a nearly endless selection of activities you'll want to experience—so many that it's hard to decide where to go first.

Missouri Botanical Garden

    You could easily spend an entire day making your way through the 79 acres(英亩)on display here. The gardens also boast(以拥有……而自豪) seasonal exhibits, such as the summer Lantern Festival—taking place through July—that showcases beautiful works of light each year.

4344 Shaw Blvd, 314-577-5100, missouribotanicalgarden. org.

St. Louis Art Museum Free

    There are more than 33,000 works on display here, including the recent addition of 225 donated pieces of feature work by American artists and more than 200 pieces from Asia. The museum is free, and special exhibits are free on Fridays.

    I Fine Arts Drive, 314-721-0072, slam. Org
St. Louis Science Center Free

    With a wealth of displays to keep kids and adults alike entertained and learning all day, the center boasts an impressive 700 hands-on exhibits, including a fossil dig site, water tables in the discovery room, electrical energy demonstrations, and cyber activities.

    5050 Oakland Ave, 314-289-4400, slsc.org

St. Louis Zoo Free (Free for some attractions)

    The zoo includes beautiful naturalistic displays and boasts plenty of activities to keep kids excited, from feeding exhibitions and safaris(游猎), to sea lion shows and conservation talks.

    One Government Drive, 314-781-0900, stlzoo.org.

    Trip 1 Black Bear Count

    There have been fires in this area in the last few years and the Office of the National Park is not sure how many black bears are still living. Some bears have been seen since the fires, and the office has asked for young people to help count them. The entire trip will last three hours. Booking is necessary.

    Cost: Free                   When: May 8

    Trip 2 Garland Valley

    Bring your drink and lunch for this walk in a beautiful area of the Blue Mountains. Garland Valley is close to the town of Garland but is part of the National Park. Many wild animals live in this area, including many rare birds. This is a great walk for bird-lovers. The trip lasts four hours. Booking is necessary.

    Cost: $ 15                  When: May 8, May 15

    Trip 3 Flashlight Adventure

    Put on your warm clothes, bring a flashlight and a pair of glasses, and come for a night walk along the Dungog Valley. A guide will lead the tour. You will see many of the animals on this trip. The guide will tell you about the lives of the animals you see. Numbers are strictly limited on night trips, so be sure to book early. This walk lasts two and a half hours.

    Cost: $ 12                  When: May 8, May 15, May 22

    Equipment to be needed:

    Please bring enough water and food for all walks

Wear good walking shoes—no high heels.

    Wear a hat for day walks.

    Dress warmly for night walks.

    Children must be with an adult.

    Make sure your flashlight works well and bring extra batteries for night walks.

    Follow all instructions from guides during the walks. The mountains are a dangerous place.

    Bookings:

Booking for the above trips can be made by telephone (893—4847) or on the Internet at www.Bluemountaintour.com.

    Taking on the task of producing a short movie might seem like an impossible feat, but if you can assemble a good team and if you break down each stage of production into small blocks of tasks, you'll come to realize that producing a small-scale movie isn't too bad. Just follow these steps and you'll be on your way to Kevin Smith-like fame in no time.

    Assemble a production crew. If you run out of friends or people you can get to work for screen credit, offer people “points”, which is a percentage of the movie profits.

    Get a director of photography. You need someone who knows a lot about films cameras to make the movie come out right. Local film schools are the best place to find them.

    Assemble the props and costumes. Costume shops and local theater groups can definitely help you here. But you can also borrow from friends and family or check out thrift stores for bargains.

    Choose filming locations. Make sure you have permission from the owners of the property you choose to film on.

    Get the film processed. Find the right processor with the help of your director of photography. You may need to send the film to Los Angeles for this.

    Edit the film. You need to find someone who can transfer your film to video and arrange the completed scenes in the right order. You can likely find one in the same place as your director of photography,

    Obviously, this is just a basic overview—the thing about producing a short independent movie is that the whole process is unpredictable. You can only set yourself up for the basics, but as long as you know things will go wrong every day, at least you'll be prepared to deal with the difficulties.