【推荐1】Before Christmas Eve in 1870 Richard Wagner and his wife, Cosima, had agreed not to buy each other Christmas presents. They were simply too poor. But Wagner was planning a surprise gift.

For more than two months he had been crafting a piece of music to be performed outside Cosima’s bedroom door on Christmas morning. He had based it on themes later to be used in his opera Siegfried, plus a little nursery song he had written for their children two years earlier. He completed the Siegfried Idyll three weeks before Christmas and arranged for conductor Hans Richter to choose the members of the small orchestra. Richter conducted secret rehearsals, first in Zurich then at a hotel in Lucerne.

Wagner invited philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche to the final rehearsal on Christmas Eve at the Hotel du Lac and they arrived together at the Wagners’ home in the village of Trihschen. There they found Cosima decorating the Christmas tree and preparing presents for the children.

At seven o'clock on Christmas morning the musicians arrived and quietly arranged themselves on the stairs outside Cosima’s room. They began to play.

“As I awoke to the light of dawn,” Cosima said later, “my mind passed from one dream into another. Familiar sounds from Siegfried came to my ears. It was as if the house or more accurately our entire being, was rising up in music and going up to heaven. Sacred memories, birdsong and sunrise, interwoven with music from Siegfried calmed my heart and I came to realize that I was not dreaming, and yet was experiencing the most wonderful one of all dreams. Now at last I understood all of Richard’s writing in secret.”

And yet Wagner had kept his promise not to buy his wife a Christmas present. December 25th was Cosima’s birthday.

【推荐3】The human body is made up of over 75%water, and we cannot live without water. Keep in mind that water is healthy and necessary for leading yourself towards better health.

Your own personal need for water can vary greatly due to exercise, weight and temperature.    1     .By drinking water on a regular basis you can replenish (补充)the water in your body.

By the time you are thirsty you have already lost two or more cups of the body’s water supply.    2    . Whenever you exercise, you need more water. Due to exercise, your body loses quite a bit of water. For each pound lost, you need to drink two cups of water.

    3    . By drinking a glass of water before you go to sleep, you can wake up with your body functioning as it should be. When you are sick, you need more water than at any other time.    4    . Therefore, you feel more thirsty than usual when you have a cold. You can try to prevent this by drinking more water at times when you become sick.    5    . You should keep a bottle of water with you at all times and drink it throughout the day. You should also teach yourself to drink water instead of other drinks that don’t include the things that your body needs.

【推荐2】One sunny afternoon in the autumn of the year 1861, a soldier lay in bushes by the side of a road in western Virginia, America. He lay at full length upon his stomach, his head upon his left forearm. His right hand loosely grasped his gun. But for the slight rhythmic movement of his back, he might have been thought to be dead. He was asleep at his post of duty. But if found, he would be dead shortly afterward, death being the legal punishment for his crime.

The sleeping soldier was a young Virginian named Carter Druse. He was the son of wealthy parents, an old child. His home was but a few miles from where he now lay. One morning he rose from the breakfast table and said seriously:’ Father, the Union army has arrived at Graton. I am going to join it. ‘

The father lifted his head, looked at his son a moment in silence, and replied,’ Go Carter, and whatever may occur, do what you consider to be your duty. Virginia, which you betray, must get on without you. If we both live to the end of the war, we will speak further of the matter.’

So Carter Druse, bowed to his father and left the home of his childhood. His bravery won him his selection for his present duty at the extreme post. Nevertheless, he fell asleep, exhausted. What good or bad angel came in a dream to awake him from his state of crime, who shall say? He quietly raised his forehead from his arm and looked between the bushes.

His first feeling was a great artistic delight. On the cliff(悬崖) was a man sitting on a horse, straight and soldierly. The face of the rider turned slightly away; he was looking downward to the bottom of the valley.

Fully awake and keenly alive now, Druse cautiously (谨慎地) pushed the gun forward through the bushes and covered a spot of horseman’s breast. A touch upon the trigger(扳机)   and all would have bene well with Druse. At that moment, the horseman turned and looked in his direction—seemed to look into his very face, into his eyes, into his brave heart.

Druse grew pale; his whole body shook. His hand fell away from his weapon, and his head slowly dropped until his face rested on the leaves.

The duty of the soldier was clear—the man must be shot dead. But no –there is a hope; he may have discovered nothing—perhaps he is but admiring the beauty of the landscape. Druse looked downward. He saw some foolish soldiers watering their horses in the open!

Druse fixed his eyes again upon the group of man and horse in the sky, and again it was through the sights of his gun. But this time his aim was at the horse. In his memory rang the words of his father,’ Whatever may occur, do what you consider to be your duty.’

He fired.

Ten minutes had passed when a Federal officer came to him cautiously.

‘Did you fire?’ the officer whispered.

‘ Yes.’

‘ At what?’

‘A horse. It was standing on the rock. You see it is no longer there. It went over the cliff.’

‘ The soldier’s face was white, but he showed no other sign of emotion. Having answered, he turned away his eyes and said no more. The officer did not understand.

‘See here, Druse,’ he said, ‘ It is no use making a mystery. I order you to report. Was there anybody on the horse?’

‘Yes.’

‘Well?’

‘My father.’