When I was a little girl, I remember when my dad was doing housework, he would ask me to help around, so we could have time for a talk. I never saw my dad drinking or taking a night out. All he did after work was taking care of our family.

I grew up and left home for college and since then, my dad had been calling me every Sunday. And when I bought a house several years later, my dad painted it by himself in the summer heat. All he asked was to talk to him, but I was too busy in those days.

Four years ago, my dad visited me. He spent many hours putting up a swing for my daughter. He asked me to have a talk with him, but I had to prepare for a trip that weekend. During the trip, I received a call. My father was in the hospital. I bought a plane ticket at once. And on my way I was thinking about all the chances I missed to have a talk with my dad. Before I arrived at the hospital, my father had passed away. Now it was he who didn’t have time for a talk with me.

After his death, I learned much more about him and even more about myself. All he ever wanted was my time. And now he has all my attention every day.

Paper, as one of the four great inventions of our country, can be seen everywhere in our life. Although it is very common, it can always play an important role when we need it.

The invention of paper ended the complex(复杂的) history of ancient writing and greatly promoted(促进) the spread and development of culture.

Paper is an important invention in ancient China. Writing was developed gradually from ancient times when people depended mainly on writing instruments for making ropes. At first, oracle bone(甲骨) was used as a writing material. Bamboo, wood and silk were also discovered and used during the Spring and Autumn Period. But as silk was too expensive and the bamboo pieces were too heavy, paper was produced. Thanks to the invention and popularization of paper, people could no longer use stone, wood, metal and other materials to record writing or pictures, and a large amount of ancient information was spread and preserved.

Paper is quite useful in our life. It is the carrier of writing and printing. Painters use it to describe the beauty of the world, writers use it to tell the warmth of the world, and educators use it to spread knowledge.

It is also used for packaging(打包). Harder cardboard is used to pack things, such as delivery boxes(快递盒). Of course, it can also be used for other purposes, such as printing paper, toilet paper, and so on.

All in all, paper plays a significant role in our lives and is used for all kinds of purposes: to write, to paint…