【推荐2】It was a cold winter day. A woman drove up to the Rainbow Bridge tollbooth (收费站). “I’m paying for myself, and for the six cars behind me,” she said with a smile, handing over seven tickets. One after another, the next six drivers arriving at the tollbooth were informed, “Some lady up ahead already paid your fare.”

It turned out that the woman, Natalie Smith, had read something on a friend’s refrigerator: “Practice random kindness and senseless acts of beauty.” The phrase impressed her so much that she copied it down.

Judy Foreman spotted the same phrase on a warehouse wall far away from home. When it stayed on her mind for days, she gave up and drove all the way back to copy it down. “I thought it was beautiful,” she said, explaining why she’d taken to writing it at the bottom of all her letters, “like a message from above.” Her husband, Frank, liked the phrase so much that he put it up on the classroom wall for his students, one of whom was the daughter of Alice Johnson, a local news reporter. Alice put it in the newspaper, admitting that though she liked it, she didn’t know where it came from or what it really meant.

Two days later, Alice got a call from Anne Herbert, a woman living in Marin. It was in a restaurant that Anne wrote the phrase down on a piece of paper, after turning it around in her mind for days.

“Here’s the idea,” Anne says. “Anything you think there should be more of, do it randomly.” Her fantasies include painting the classrooms of shabby schools, leaving hot meals on kitchen tables in the poor part of town, and giving money secretly to a proud old lady. Anne says, “Kindness can build on itself as much as violence can.”

The acts of random kindness spread. If you were one of those drivers who found your fare paid, who knows what you might have been inspired to do for someone else later. Like all great events, kindness begins slowly, with every single act. Let it be yours!

【推荐3】Last week I went to a different grocery store. When I was just to check out, the person in front of me at the checkout was using a WIC card to check out and it kept telling her that it wasn’t working .A manager came over and told her to come to a different register(收音机)；maybe this one was the problem. After I checked out, I noticed she was still there, trying to get her card to work.

It was obvious that the young woman was getting anxious about the purchase so I offered to pay for her purchase. She was shocked. She thanked me and I went on my way with a smile from her.

Everyone needs a helping hand sometimes and you never know when it will be your turn. Today I found that it was indeed my turn.

I went boating north of the city. It was a very hot, sunny day so I brought a large bottle of sports drink, thinking it would be plenty to drink. I didn’t have a clear expectation of the drain(消耗)which the heat would have on me.Because I got back to shore, I realized that I had finished the bottle. I still had to get back, load the boat on the car, and it would be at least a 10-minute drive to somewhere to buy more to drink. When I got back to shore and managed to drag my boat to the car and get it tied, I was very hot and thirsty. So, I swallowed my pride and asked a family picnicking nearby if they had an extra bottle of water, which they gladly gave me. That bottle of water wasn’t a big deal to them, but it meant a great deal to me.

The little things that can be done for others don’t usually seem important to the people doing them , but it can be huge to the receivers. Many thanks to all the joyful givers who don’t think twice about helping others.

【推荐2】Chinese people love food made of flour, whether it be dumplings, or flatbread. In the hands of skilled artisans(手艺人), flour is made into lovely models of people or animals to be enjoyed and played with, which brings a unique kind of pleasure. This art form is called dough figurine(面塑). Among the various art styles of dough figurines, Beijing’s Dough Figurine Lang is a unique folk art, which is filled with the rich history and customs of the capital city. Their delicate and lovely handicrafts are storytellers of old and new Beijing. In 2008, it was included in the list of national intangible cultural heritage.

It was created by Lang Shao’an. Most of the dough figurines are animals and characters from legends, historical stories, and local operas. The finished product is either put at the end of a thin stick, or on a table for display. Some are mostly for children to eat or play with, with simple forms and vivid decorations, while some are delicate pieces of artwork for display only. For this reason, during the making process, they are often mixed with additives(添加剂)to prevent them from breaking up, being eaten by insects or growing moldy. Over the course of his long career, Lang Shao’an developed a set of skilled fingers with an elegant artistic sense.

Lang Jiaziyu, born in 1995, is the third-generation inheritor of Dough Figurine Lang. When he was 15, he created Beijing Olympic Mascot-shaped dough figurines which were highly praised. He looks a bit more fashionable than other folk artisans. In his skilled hands, pop culture icons such as figures based on Marvel comics characters and Chinese mythological figure Nezha with smoky makeup, are resonating with young people.

Like most of the other intangible cultural heritage handicrafts in China, Dough Figurine Lang does not get as much attention from the public. Many young people are unwilling to take the time to master a skill that does not make money, which has led to a decline in the number of those who are devoted to the handicraft. Good handicrafts need the devotion of artisans from one generation to another.

【推荐2】I’m a travel addict. I think it is very exciting to go to new places, experience different situations and see unfamiliar things. Here’s what I have come up with about why travel is so fascinating.

To start with, whether we know it or not, every day is filled with anxiety about things that we don’t need to worry about in the first place. Going to new places is a chance to keep away from our everyday worries. For example, after a whole day at work, I am often exhausted and start to worry about things. However, the moment I get on the train or bus to my next destination I forget all my tiredness and worries. Next is one of the most important parts in travel: movement. I always take along books to read on my train trips, but in the end, only about five pages or so ever get read, because I was just busy enjoying the things outside the window. Just the ability to move is exciting. Movement also means that we are going to new places and seeing new things. But why is that important? Because people and ideas could help us to learn about new things and grow, especially when we don’t have the burden of everyday worries. I have never gone on a trip and come back as the same person; I have always changed and grown through travel.

So take every type of trip you can, at every chance you get, and you will not only experience more of the world, but will become a happier person with a richer set of experiences.

【推荐3】I believe in the power of science fiction, not just for its capacity to turn dreams into reality, but also for its power to bond together those who share a common view of the future. For me, that’s true for my relationship with my dad. Some fathers and sons bond over sports, fishing or hunting, but my dad and I bond over Star Trek(星际迷航).

When we’re driving along some dark streets in Indiana, going at a slow speed with stars dimly shining, both of us are thinking of it, without needing to say a word. All these imaginations of other universes have together created a private universe for my dad and me.

Gene Roddenberry, creator of star Trek, once said, “Science fiction is a way of thinking and a way of logic. It allows people to look directly at important subjects.” Science fiction has influenced more than just my relationship with my dad, but has also helped me shape my own hopes for the future. I’m now a science writer.

Science fiction also has been a source of joy for my family, making me an optimist while enabling me to think critically about the danger of technology. Thank those authors who have shared their visions. The world and my family are better for it. Thank my dad, because he helped me realize the truth of Tennyson’s words, “For I dipped into the future, far as human eyes could see, saw the vision of the world, and all the wonder that would be.”