Can you cut an apple with a playing card? Can you write with one hand and ________ with the other? Well some people can, and they all show their ________ talents on the television program—China’s Got Talent.

The TV program is getting more and more ________ in China. Many people watch it every week ________ they wonder how talented one can be.

Talent shows ________ in Britain. And now there are ________ shows in lots of countries around the world. China’s Got Talent is the newest, but it ________ others. When people show their special talents, they also ________ their most touching or funniest stories. Most of them don’t want to be famous. They want to make their family ________ and want to make others laugh, too.

We all have a ________. It may be big or small. What’s your talent? Maybe you can be the next star on China’s Got Talent!

An old woman opened her window and looked out.What a sunny day! But she was surprised there was a man in the front of her garden (花园). The old woman looked at him and said to herself, “ he is eating grass (草), why?” She went out from her garden and said to him, “Are you very hungry? Why don’t you go to work and get some food ?” The man looked at her and said, “I don’t like working, I just like eating. Now I am hungry, but I have nothing for my breakfast.You see, I am eating grass. Can you give me some food?”

The old woman said, “Come to the back door of my house.” The man was very glad. He thought he could get some food from the old woman. So he went with her quickly. The old woman opened the back door and told the man, “Look, the grass here is longer than that in the front of the garden. Just enjoy it here.”

If you are a big fan of reading, you may want to learn about the following four well-known writers.

	Shakespeare (1564~1616) was born in England. He liked reading and wanted to be a writer. He read many different kinds of books when he went to school. He became a famous English writer of plays and poems. He wrote about thirty-eight plays, 154 short poems and a few long poems in his life. One of his popular plays is Romeo and Juliet.
	O. Henry (1862~1910) was a famous American writer of short stories. He didn’t go to school for long because of his poor family. However, he tried to teach himself. He learned to write short stories when he was in prison. He wrote 11 short stories in his life. He, with Maupassant and Chekhov was called “Three Great Short Stories Masters”. People like his stories because most of them end with interesting changes.
	Lu Xun (1881~1936) was born in Zhejiang Province, China. When he was 17, he went to Japan and finished his school. At first, he hoped to be a doctor to help the Chinese people. When he was 24, he began to try writing because he wanted to teach people about the society. He wrote 3 famous novels and was called “The Father of Chinese Literature”. One of his famous works Cry out is in the Chinese book of Grade 7.
	Ba Jin (1904~2005) was one of the most famous writers in the 20th century. He was born in Chengdu, China. In 1927, he left his family and went to Paris. With the help of other writers, he became a great writer at last. At the age of 27, he wrote a novel named Family and it was made into a play by Cao Yu. It is also popular with people all over China.

Saturday, March 24th

We arrived in the hot, wet city—Bangkok (曼谷). This is our first trip to Thailand. All the different smells make us want to try the food. We are going to eat something special for dinner tonight. The hotel we are staying in is cheap, and very clean. We plan to stay here for a few days, visit some places in the city, and then travel to Chiang Mai in the North.

Tuesday, March 27th

Bangkok is wonderful and surprising! The places are interesting. We visited the famous market which was on water, and saw a lot of fruit and vegetables. Everything is so colorful, and we took lots of photos there! Later today we will leave for Chiang Mai. We will take the train to Chiang Mai and stay there for two days, and then catch a bus to Chiang Rai.

Friday, March 30th

Our bus ride to Chiang Rai was long and boring. We visited a small village in the mountains. The village people here love the quiet life—no computers or phones. They are the kindest people I have ever met. They always smile and say “hello”. Kathy and I can only speak a few words of Thai, so smiling is the best way to show our kindness. I feel good here, but we must go home. I hope to be able to come back next year.