People give gifts in almost all countries. Gifts mark festivals and other important events. Some gifts are expensive, or they may take months to create. Others are of less ______, such as birthday cards.

Gift-giving is often a process of exchange.______ you receive a birthday gift from someone, that person usually expects a birthday gift from you ____ . In some cultures, there are certain rules about gift exchange. In Pakistan, for example, there is a tradition called “taking giving”. It _____ this way: You give the newly-married couple a gift, and they “repay” you with a gift of higher value. Then you give the couple   ____   gift. This one should be worth the difference between the first two gifts. The gift exchange continues, _____ the same way.

In many ancient cultures, people made offerings to their leaders to show their loyalty (忠诚). The Nubians in ancient Egypt are a good   ____ . They brought gold to the Egyptian kings. Traditions like these ____   today in some parts of the world. In parts of Africa, for example, farmers may give gifts to the local leaders to ____   them for protection.

Today presidents ____   bring gifts when they visit a foreign leader. Leaders bring gifts to make relationships between ____   stronger, not to emphasize (强调) the power of the gift receiver.

Gifts can ____   send special messages. For example, gifts can tell people that we are thinking of them and that we want them to feel ____ . Sometimes a gift makes us remember the giver. The gift keeps the ____ of a special person and a special relationship alive.

There is no doubt about the good side of gift-giving. That is why some people don’t _____ the idea that modern gift-giving is very wasteful. It is clear that there is an emotional benefit to people who exchange gifts. That is surely enough of a reason for the tradition to continue.

I am very interested in meeting good friends from France, the UK and other European countries.

I am a loving, caring, understanding and outgoing guy and I hope to get to know people, cultures and languages in other countries. I check mails often and I am good at English and French. So I will welcome all emails.

nibangwa@ yahoo. com

Thanks for stopping by.

I am a Japanese teacher in Australia, looking for a penfriend for my classes in Japan. I have 2 classes of 26 students, so 52 in total, who I would like to find a pen- friend for.

Please contact me if you can help.

Love 123 @ sina. com

Thanks.

My name is Li Fang. I am a lady aged 22, loving, caring, sporty and musical. I am planning to go for my studies in the United States so I need someone who can show me the way and how to do things and be a friend when I am there.

I am Chinese and hope to hear from you.

Thank you so much.

jelbit@ yahoo.com

Hello, we are from Spain, near Barcelona city.

Our students are 12 〜16 years old and they would like to build friendships with a school with similar age characteristics.

They need to practice English. They speak Spanish and Catalan as mother languages.

We are expecting to hear from you.

Foreign Languages Department Tel：13912371550

A friend invited us to help serve dinner at Tent City. A number of tents were set up for the homeless in that area.

I took my two boys with me. They were 9 and 5 at the time. They had a lot of questions because this whole thing challenged their common ideas about how people lived in the world.

“ Why don’t they have homes?”

“ Why don’t they get food the way we do?”

We talked about why people end up in this type of situation and how important a safety net is for them. I explained that many times, the only safety net is other people who are willing to share some of their time and care.

The people we served were different in age from the young to the elderly. Many of them were missing teeth or had dirty clothes. Surprisingly, they were quite thankful that I had brought the boys. Many said how fun it was to have active, joyful children around.

After dinner, I saw my older son sitting together with several elderly gentlemen who were talking about sports in front of a small television set. He was having a great time sharing and hearing stories. As some people returned to their tents, I heard him tell them, “ Thanks so much for coming to dinner with us.” I could see through their facial expressions that his simple words touched them greatly. I hugged him a little tighter as we left to go home because it touched me too.

It reminds us that treating people with respect (尊重), no matter who they are, can lift all of us up.

Are you sometimes a little tired and sleepy in the early afternoon? Many people feel this way after lunch. They may think that eating lunch is the cause of the sleepiness. Or, in summer, they may think it is the heat. However, the real reason lies inside their bodies. At that time—about eight hours after you wake up—your body temperature goes down. This is what makes you slow down and feel sleepy.

Scientists have tested sleep habits in experiments where there was no night or day. The people in these experiments almost always followed a similar sleeping pattern. They slept for one long period and then for one short period about eight hours later.

       In many parts of the world, people take naps (小睡) in the middle of the day. This is especially true in warmer climates (气候), where the heat makes work difficult in the early afternoon. Researchers are now saying that naps are good for everyone in any climate. A daily nap gives one a more rested body and mind and therefore is good for health in general. In countries where naps are traditional (传统的), people often suffer less from problem such as heart disease. Many working people, unfortunately, have no time to take naps. Though doctors may advise taking naps, employers do not allow it!

If you do have the chance, however, here are a few tips about making the most of your nap. Remember that the best time to take a nap is about eight hours after you get up. A short sleep too late in the day may only make you feel more tired and sleepy afterward. This can slao happen if you sleep for too long. If you do not have enough time, try a short nap—even ten minutes of sleep can be helpful.