【推荐1】Several years ago, a cousin I had lost touch with since I was a teenager dropped by my house. At the living room entrance, he stopped in dead silence, his eyes fixed on the bookshelves covering the entire back wall. “Have you read them all?” he asked me, almost frightened. “Yes,” I said, “just about.” He shook his head in silence, as if this was a feat (技艺) that had demanded some effort. As for him, he had had to leave school at fourteen, working wherever he could. His family did not have books. I only ever recalled seeing the comic book Tarzan lying around on the table.

I often recall this scene with my cousin with unease. It hides another violent one. I was between fifteen and eighteen years old. I must have blamed my father for “not being interested in anything”, for reading only Paris-Normandie, the local newspaper. Usually so calm and tolerant regarding the rudeness of his only daughter, he replied seriously, “Books are good for you. But as for me, I don’t need them to live.”

These words stretch across time, fixed inside me, like a pain and an unbearable reality. I understood very well what my father meant. Reading Alexander Dumas, Flaubert, Camus would not have served any practical purpose in his work as a cafe owner. On the other hand, in the future he hoped for me, he vaguely knew that books held weight, and that they formed part of a defining package — “cultural baggage” — that included the theatre, the opera and winter sports — a superior social world. I understood all that and it was unacceptable. I refused to think that the world of books would stay forever closed to the human being who was dearest to me.

As I think about reasons for reading, my father’s words come back to me insistently, like a personal and unsolvable contradiction. No, to read is not to live but I have always lived with books.

【推荐3】How To Find Spring Fashion Trends

Fashion changes faster than most people can keep up with.     1    . Keep yourself at the forefront by paying attention to designers and social media, shopping early and knowing the basics of spring fashion.

Look through fashion magazines to get fashion ideas. Magazines like GQ, Vogue, and Cosmo are generally considered “taste makers”.     2    , and often bring excellent runway shows together. To keep ahead, make notes about the fashion trends that keep popping up in different magazines.

Find your favorite fashion blogs. What’s on the catwalk isn’t necessarily what’s on the streets, so I also like getting inspiration from travel blogs, fashion blogs, and smaller designers. Many brands, designers, and fashionistas post their inspiration online, as well as recommendations on where to find the best new fashions.    3    .

Explore social media. More and more often, people are using the Internet to broadcast their personal fashion recommendations, which is a great way to get a pulse on spring fashion. Sites like Tumblr and Pintrest have specific sections devoted to fashion.

    4    . If you’ve got friends in Miami, they will experience spring fashion a lot faster than you might in the cold Chicago. Check out your friends’ pictures or go online and look up southern fashion blogs to get ahead of the game before the snow melts.

Make your own spring trends. Having confidence in yourself and rocking your outfit is more important than following any trend. Sometimes you still can’t figure out what spring fashion trend to follow.     5    . Trends aren’t as exaggerated as they used to be because people are more into developing their own personal styles, which is more permanent and empowering.

【推荐1】When the phone finally stopped ringing and the house lay still with grief, I filled my home with the sweet smell of peach pie to mask the scent of worry that still lingered.

The weekend after Dad’s diagnosis (诊断), Mom had sent the same text to each concerned relative and friend: Jay was diagnosed with Pick’s disease. We are going back to the doctor for more information. Then Mom put down the phone, rubbed her forehead, and suggested that we go for a drive. On the interstate, we passed a board with clear red letters: “Fredericksburg peaches, the best fruit you can find in Central Texas.” Mom went to negotiate with the stand owner.

Now in our kitchen, the sweet smell of peach juice drifted into the living room and pulled Dad away from the football game on TV.

“Oh! You got peaches?” He eyed the fruit with childish glee (欢快).

“Here,” I handed him a knife. “We’re making peach pie.”

I showed him how to peel the skin off. As I made pie dough, he asked questions: How long does it take to bake? Are you adding sugar? How many peaches? What should I do with the seeds? Showing him how to slice and measure and mix in a calm, firm voice, I suddenly felt grown up.

The summer had reversed our roles; now, I was the adult. I stayed home all summer and cooked his dinner, washed his T-shirts and helped him make phone calls. I stayed up late thinking about him and monitored him like an anxious caretaker.

The same day, before the afternoon drive and peach pie, I had held my tears as I read the diagnosis for Pick’s disease: four to ten years, depending on how fast the damaged proteins overpower Dad’s brain. I decided then that I would be grateful for just four more years with Dad, enough for him to see me become an adult for real.

【推荐2】Whether it’s his boyish good looks, or the characters he represents, Hollywood actor Paul Rudd just seems very likeable. So it was no surprise that the father of two stepped in to offer some support to a young 12-year-old boy called Brody Ridder who had an empty yearbook when only two friends and one teacher signed it.

His mom, Cassandra Ridder, was understandably upset for her son, who had already experienced bullying at school, and took to social media to share his story and shine a light on this sort of harassment. After all, the way kids are bullied comes in so many different forms, and not being included can be so painful.

And it was equally heart-breaking that the 6th grader wrote in his own yearbook, “I hope you make more friends-Brody Ridder.”

At first the story was shared among small parenting groups. Then a 17-year-old student, Joanna Cooper, found out about Brody’s empty yearbook, “I’m going to get people and we’re going to sign his yearbook. No kid deserves to feel like that,” shared the 11th grader.

So she gathered friends to go to Brody’s school and fill the pages of his yearbook with their signatures. Thankfully, older students in Brody’s school also decided to take action and sign the youngster’s book.

The news quickly caught the eye of Rudd. The Ant-Man star sent a package of gifts to Brody, as well as a letter.

“It was great talking to you the other day. It’s important to remember that even when life is tough that things get better. There are so many people that love you and think you’re the coolest kid there is-me being one of them! I can’t wait to see all the amazing things you're going to accomplish. Your pal Paul”

Adorably, the two texted each other: Brody shared with Rudd that he was his favorite superhero and in true Rudd style, he simply answered: “And you’re mine.”

【推荐3】Michael King had just taken out the money from the bank to cover a business debt he owed. For whatever reason, he was so careless that he accidentally left his wallet on the top of his car before starting the engine and heading home.

Meanwhile, Steve Harrison，who was heading in the opposite direction noticed something floating in the wind. Quickly realizing it was cash, he pulled over and caught it. He found King's wallet as well.

After pulling into a supermarket parking lot, Harrison counted the money — one hundred $100 bills and three singles for a total of $10,003. Though it might have been highly attractive to use the windfall, Harrison used his own money to pay for his shopping list.

Then Harrison tracked down King and returned his money and wallet.

“I never took seriously the idea of keeping it,” Harrison told the Times. “It's just simpler to do the right thing. Once I realized that there was an ID involved, I knew I would return the money.”

When the two arranged to meet, King couldn't afford to give Harrison a financial reward. Instead, he presented Harrison with a jar of homemade applesauce (苹果酱) — which he told Harrison was made with love and care by his family. And King isn't stopping there with his appreciation. Harrison has been promised home-smoked fish, homemade blackberry jam, and many more tasty treats in his future, which is a special form of currency that leaves a good taste in anyone's mouth.