BOOKS

Last summer vacation I went to Taiwan, China with my parents. Taiwan is really beautiful! The weather is good. It is always warm and humid because the sea is around Taiwan. In the north, it’s cold in winter. But in the south, it’s still warm in winter and you can enjoy the sunshine every day. The typhoon(台风) season is from June to October.

There are many mountains in Taiwan. Ali Mountain is one of the biggest mountains there. We went to climb Ali Mountain one afternoon. There are many trees in the forest there. They are very tall and many of them are really old.

Sun Moon Lake is the largest natural lake in Taiwan. In the lake there are many kinds of fishes.

We also went to the beaches and enjoyed the sunshine. There are many kinds of food in the small towns near the sea. Dumplings with shrimp(虾) in them are my favourite.

Taiwan is a beautiful island, and I love it! I took many photos there. Would you love to see them?

A woman was having some trouble with her heart, so she went to see a doctor. He was a new doctor, and did not know her, so he first asked some questions, and one of them was, “How old are you?” “Well,” she said, “I don’t remember, doctor, but I will try to think.” She thought for a moment and said, “Yes, I remember now, doctor! When I married, I was eighteen years old, and my husband was thirty. Now my husband is sixty, I know, and that is twice thirty. So I am twice eighteen. That’s thirty-six, isn’t it?”

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many people in lockdown （封控）feel lonely and bored.     32     Together with an international team of researchers, Dattilo studied how to make people feel less lonely during the pandemic.     33     More importantly, the activities need both challenges and skills.

“When people are absorbed（沉浸）in what they are doing, they will go into a state（状态） called ‘flow’,” Dattilo explained. Flow can be achieved by doing something important and challenging.

    34    For example, if you’re trying to finish a difficult computer program but your skill level is low, then you’re possible to feel stressed out instead of achieving flow. If it is too easy, then you’ll feel bored and flow will not appear, either. We could balance between the challenge of the activity and the level of your sill.

If you have artistic skills such as playing the piano or painting, they can lead to flow.     35     “When we get to a start of flow, we become absorbed and focused, and we experience enjoyment at the same time,” Dattilo said. “    36    ”.

“We hope this research will help people live fuller, happier and healthier lives.” said Dattilo.

A boy was sent by his parents to a boarding school (寄宿学校).     52     he was sent, this boy was a very excellent student in his class. The boy changed a lot when he went to the boarding school. He     53     less interested in studying. His grades started dropping.

And sometimes he even felt like leaving the     54    . All of this was because he missed his parents and he often felt lonely and unhappy. His parents worried about the boy so much     55     his dad decided to go to his school and talk with him. The father began asking him some questions     56     his classes, teachers and sports.

After some time, his dad said, “Do you know     57     I am here today, son?” The boy answered back, “To check my grades?”

“No, no,” his dad replied, “I am here to tell you that you are the most     58     person in my life. I want to see you happy. I don’t care about grades. I care about you. I care about     59     happiness. YOU ARE MY LIFE!”

These words moved the boy to tears and he hugged his dad for a long time without     60     a word.

Now the boy had everything he wanted. He knew there was someone on this earth     61     cared for him deeply. And today this young man is in college at the top of his class and no one has ever seen him sad!