【推荐2】Living with an elderly person has both benefits and challenges for everyone involved. But we also need to respect the older people’s need while offering help.     1     Here are some tips.

    2     Communication is the most important element of any relationship. If you don’t communicate, you won’t know each other’s problems and concerns. As a result, you won’t be able to form a relationship respecting both of your unique qualities.

Define boundaries. Both parties need to define boundaries (界限) and come to an agreement about each other’s space and independence. Talk to them about their expectations about your relationship.     3     Discuss use of shared space like the bathroom, kitchen, or living room, including each other’s personal belongings, like dishes, appliances, and even food.

Figure out who pays for what ahead of time. Having finances (财务) decided and agreed upon ahead of time could save you from a headache in the future.     4     So if you start out knowing who pays for what, have it written down. Also, consider the cost. If you will be covering the cost of your elderly relative, be informed about the costs.

Give the person respect as an individual and appreciate their wisdom and life experiences.     5     You can ask your elderly person questions about their life, what they think, and what they care about. As you’re the younger person with less experience, you can also talk to them and ask them for guidance on issues relating to both of you.

【推荐3】When you want to buy or rent a house, you are expecting not only the good quality of the house but also the nice neighbours who live near you. Almost everyone agrees that it is helpful to live with some good neighbours. However, the standard of good neighbours is different from people to people. In my opinion, a good neighbour should be someone who respects your life, is ready to help others and concerned about the environment in the neighbourhood.

First of all, it is very important for your neighbour to respect you life. Just imagine, if you have a neighbour curious (好奇的) about you, especially your personal life, and tries to know more about it by whatever means, what will you feel? What is more, he or she may also talk with others about your life. Do you want to live with him or her anymore? The answer is definitely negative. You will feel very uncomfortable to have such kind of people in your neighbourbood and you may move as soon as possible.

Next, what you should consider is that a good neighbour is always willing to give you a hand when you need him or her. For example, if you are not at home and someone suspect (可疑的) tries to unlock your door, your neighbour who sees it should call 911, and it will help you to protect your property (财产).

Finally, a good neighbor should be concerned about the environment, especially around your neighbourhood. He or she should throw all the rubbish into garbage and keep the place clean, because a good environment can make people who live in it comfortable and relaxed all the time.

【推荐1】Because of the development of agriculture, the area of land affected by sand has gradually increased. During the 1950s and 1960s the land affected by sand expanded on average into 1,600 square kilometers per year. By the 1990s, the area had reached 2,500 square kilometers per year. This kind of situation is particularly serious in many regions upwind(逆风的) from Beijing. Fengning City in Hebei Province and Duolun City in Inner Mongolia lie to the north of Beijing, and in the last 50 years the population of these two cities has grown by 2 to 3 times. In order to obtain more resources, the inhabitants have been busy with heavy farming, tree-cutting and keeping animals. The result is that the soil which has sustained damage, and the sand layer below the earth is now exposed on the ground and the ground is rapidly being controlled by the spread of sand.

China has already noticed this problem, and has take measures to save the land. Nowadays, some land used for farming has returned to forestland and grassland. The Chinese government announced that it would invest more than RMB 600,000,000 to control Beijing’s sandstorms in the coming years. Only by decreasing the damage caused by man and restoring the natural environment will it be possible to well control the sources of the sand and dust. We hope in the not-distant future, we will solve the problem successfully and effectively.