On May 12, 2008, a strong earthquake (地震) happened in Wenchuan, Sichuan Province, China. For all of us Chinese, it is a day that we will never forget in our lifetime.     24    

That year, Zhang Lei was studying in a high school in a town in Sichuan. He remembered that it was Monday that day. He felt something was wrong while he was having P. E. in the morning.     25     So, he decided to go home. When he came to his bike, he found it was broken.

He had to walk home. Looking at the black clouds over his head, he couldn’t feel any peace in his heart. He walked faster and faster. Suddenly, the ground (地面) began to shake.     26     He thought there was something wrong with him. After about 10 seconds, the earth began to shake even harder. There was a big noise in the air. It was too terrible. He knew he must stop moving forward. So he crouched (蹲下) down. After a few minutes, all was normal.     27     At this moment, the earth shook again, and his father shouted, “Hurry up! Run to the field.” He ran out together with his parents.

Luckily, they lived far from Wenchuan.     28     Later, he knew the earthquake caused many people’s death in Wenchuan.

We often have a lot of stress in our life. Sometimes it’s useful. As the saying goes, “No pressure, no power (力量).” For example, it can help us get good grades in an exam. But if we are always under the pressure, it may be bad for our health. So, how should we deal with it?

Talk to others. When we are stressed out, we should go to our family or friends for good communication. This can make the stress become less and help us find out the ways to relax. As a result, we will feel better.

Do something relaxing. Find a quiet place and don’t think about anything. Read our favorite books, listen to our favorite music or sing our favorite songs. Of course, we can also go to the cinema to enjoy a wonderful movie. If someone likes staying at home, it will be a good idea to do some housework.

Do sports. Go outdoors to breathe (呼吸) the fresh air and do sports such as walking, swimming, or mountain climbing. Sports are of great help to us. When we are stressed out, we also have the problem of muscle tension (肌肉紧张). Doing sports can make the muscles move and return to normal. I have a friend. She had a lot of pressure every day. A doctor told her to jump rope when she was under a lot of pressure. She followed the doctor’s advice. When she felt worried, she started to jump rope. A few months later, she felt much better. Now she is completely different from the past.

Stress in our life sometimes is useful. But if we are always under the     29    , it may be bad for our health. So, how should we deal with it? First, talk to others. When we are stressed out, we should go to our family or friends for good     30    . Second, do something relaxing. For example, find a quiet place and don’t think about anything. Third, do sports. Doing sports can make the muscles move and return to     31    . I have a friend who had a lot of pressure. A doctor told her to     32     rope when she was under a lot of pressure. When she felt worried, she started to jump rope. A few months later, she felt much better. Now she is     33     different from the past.

As we grow up, we communicate with others more often. Do you have difficulty getting on with others? Do you know communication skills are very important in our lives? Good communication skills allow us to understand others and to be understood by others easily. These days, a boy called Li Qin is popular online because of his interesting remarks (评论) to his fans.

Li Qin was born in 1955 in Shanxi. He once spent seven years in the college. He started writing in 1977. He has written lots of popular books and people of all ages enjoy reading them.

Here are some communication skills.

No 1. ________

As the saying goes, “We have one mouth and two ears, so we should listen twice as much as we speak.” Each of us should listen more to others. Never stop others till they finish their talk. When we can be good listeners, we can get close to each other.

No 2. Use your body language.

In this way, you can express (表达) yourself better. When you are talking with others, you are not just using words, but also using expressions. It is very useful because it can help you make yourself easily understood.

No 3. Choose the suitable form (形式) of communication.

You should make others feel comfortable, so that they are willing to talk to you. For example, some serious talks are best done in person, not on the phone.

Of all the reasons of being a volunteer, the best one might be to help others. But there are still many other reasons. Maybe you always love animals.     40     maybe you want to share your success and joy with others. Volunteering gives you a way to share all of these with others. Another great     41     is that volunteering can help with your future job. Now many employers (雇主) care     42     how many volunteer experiences you have. While volunteering you can also learn many things about teamwork and communication.     43     having fun is also a good reason to volunteer. People may volunteer for different reasons, but they will always get more     44     they expect.