【推荐1】Get up at 6 a.m., arrive at the hospital one hour earlier to help patients check in, and accompany patients during consultations... In recent years, the patient escort has emerged as a new occupation, and those who have taken on this career are known as “people who sell time”. 26-year-old Zhang Tian is one of them.

September 4, 2022 was a lucky day for Zhang Tian. On this day, Zhang Tian saw a video about patient escorts on a short video platform. The daily routine of patient escorts shown in the video fascinated her and inspired her to take this on as a business. She browsed through many platforms and searched for information and found there indeed exists a certain demand for patient escorts, especially for the elderly, children and pregnant women. Since she had never engaged in this kind of work before, she spent two days in major hospitals in Wuhan, in order to familiarize herself with all the departments on different floors, as well as the processes of medical consultations and preparations for surgery.

After the preparations, Zhang Tian posted a video of self-introduction on major social media sites, talking about the help and services a patient escort provides, as well as some tips for a quick and convenient medical consultation. At first, she was a little worried that her video would go unnoticed. However, after she uploaded the video, it got over 100 likes and she received her first offer as a patient escort.

The memory of her first task is still vivid in her mind. She received a phone call on September 9 from a man whose father was seriously ill and might need surgery. He wanted Zhang Tian to accompany his father through his consultation and treatment. Zhang Tian made all the preparations before meeting her first client and did a very good job despite her nervousness.

“Later, the family expressed their gratitude to me over and over again, which warmed my heart and gave me a sense of achievement,” Zhang Tian said.

【推荐3】D. Mike Miles hadn’t had a stable job in years. He bounced around from temporary agency to temporary agency, never sure when his last day would be. Sometimes, he lost a job with less than a day’s notice. This was not due to a poor work ethic (职业道德) - from arriving early to staying late, Miles said he did everything he could to leave good impressions on employers in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, in the US. But because Miles had a criminal record, he was always cut loose when it was time to let staff go.

“It was like walking on eggshells. You just never knew when you’d be gone,” he said.

After his release from prison in 2007, Miles struggled to find stability – both mentally and financially. During this time, he lived in his mother’s house and she helped him raise his daughter. When his mom passed away two years later, Miles said he became more determined than ever to create a healthy environment for his family.

“I’m all she has, and she’s all I have,” he said. “I had to build a whole new relationship with my daughter, while building a whole new life for myself.”

It wasn’t until October 2015, nearly a decade after he got out of prison, that a cousin told Miles about a food company that hires people who have difficulty finding jobs.

Hoping this would clear up what felt like a thick cloud of uncertainty over his future, Miles submitted an application. He got an interview and soon after that, began his new job. His work involves everything from food production to maintenance (保存), not to mention it pays a livable wage of $15 an hour. He said it’s the best job he’s ever had.

Miles’ story is rare in Lancaster, where the poverty rate is around 30 percent – about double the national average. This figure annoyed Charlie Crystle, the co-founder and CEO of the company that gave Miles his job.

Crystle said he wanted to inspire other companies and entrepreneurs (企业家) to rethink their current practices and ignite（引发）conversations about minimum wage and employment opportunities for everyone, including ex-offenders (有犯罪前科的人).

Beyond providing employment and livable wages, the company also helps employees deal with the many challenges of reentry into society. This means anything from helping them find housing and health benefits to changing their schedules.

Miles is now saving for a house. “It doesn’t have to be a big house,” he said. “I just want to be stable.”

【推荐1】Grand Canyon National Park

Located entirely in northern Arizona, the park covers 277 miles of the Colorado River and adjacent uplands. One of the most spectacular examples of erosion anywhere in the world, Grand Canyon is unmatched in the incomparable vistas (远景) it offers to visitors on the rim. Grand Canyon National Park is a World Heritage Site.

The Village and Desert View on the South Rim are open all year and park entrances remain open 24 hours a day. North Rim facilities open mid-May and close mid-October. Park entrances remain open 24 hours a day during this time. Hours for visitor centres and businesses vary throughout the year.

The park produces a Pocket Map with a North Rim and South Rim edition that contains a map and information about services, facilities, and park ranger programmes. It is available in French, German, Japanese, Italian, Spanish, Korean, and Chinese. A hiking brochure is available for those planning to hike one of the park’s main trails down into Grand Canyon. Obtain publications at entrance stations, visitor centres, or at the website.

Many of the facilities at Grand Canyon are historic and built before current accessibility standards were set. The terrain (地形) is rugged with narrow, rocky trails and steep cliffs. Visitors using wheelchairs or having visual impairments may need assistance. For more information about accessibility in Grand Canyon National Park, see the website.

Fees collected support projects in the park. Admission to the park is $35 per private vehicle; $30 per motorcycle; and $20 per person entering the park via Grand Canyon Railway, park shuttle bus, private rafting trip, walking, or riding a bicycle. The pass can be used for seven days and includes both rims. Pay fees at park entrance stations or at some businesses outside the park. Every year the National Park Service offers entrance fee free days. For complete fee information, including Annual, Active Military, Senior, and Access passes, visit the website.

Grand Canyon National Park incorporates sustainability into all aspects of its operations. Use your refillable water bottle to fill up on free Grand Canyon spring water at major trailheads, visitor centres and grocery stores. Please recycle-recycling containers are conveniently located and as common as trash bins. Discover what else you can do to protect the environment while travelling here and beyond at the website.

【推荐3】Good education is expensive. Some countries today have proven that belief to be wrong, though. If you're dreaming of having your university education in a country outside your motherland, do not be afraid to apply to study in the below-listed countries as everything about your education can be achieved with little or nothing.

Germany

Kenznow.com

All the public universities in Germany do not ask for any education fees except administration fees which are quite affordable, no matter what your status. The English language is common in Germany and most of these universities teach with English so it will be easier to get along as an international student.

Norway

Wikipedia.org

Want to achieve your post-graduate degrees? Even if you aim to achieve an undergraduate, Norway is a good option because you will not have to send a penny to anyone. This is possible because of the government's financing of the education from tax income. The only problem is that most of the top universities in the country teach with their mother tongue and as a foreigner, you have to familiarize with the language enough to pass a required test.

Turkey

Turkeydiscoverthepotential.com

Public universities, called 'Devlet Universiteleri' in Turkish, are totally free of tuition costs. After payment of an affordable basic fee, the rest is free absolutely. Some of these institutions teach in English while some in French and German.

Italy

Gooverseas.com

Italy offers almost free education to international students. When you have to pay as little as&850 per year for quality education, then it is quite cheap. Besides, Italy has so much cultural heritage and history that students can learn about.