【推荐1】A few weeks ago, we attended a lesson given by our classmate Wu Ruijie who talked about some of her experiences in America. It was very interesting and lively, we all listened carefully and were moved by the lesson.

During the lesson, she shared some stories about her daily life in the United States with us and some culture shocks(文化冲突) that she experienced. I still remember the story she told which took place in the New York subway. One day, she was talking to her Chinese friend on her mobile phone while a black woman was standing beside her. She often used a Chinese word whose pronunciation was similar to the rude N-word, so the black woman started to very angrily glare at (怒视) her. This was only one of her stories.

Ms. Tang also shared a story she had experienced when she was in Australia. On a hot sunny day, while she was walking on the street holding an umbrella to protect her from the strong sunlight, suddenly a man behind her said to her, “is it raining?” The reason is that in Australia people don’t use umbrellas on sunny days, so the man thought it was strange and asked Ms Tang.

Through the embarrassing stories, we can see many differences from country to country to decide how we should face these situations when we go abroad. Here are some suggestions: First, we should respect everyone wherever we are. Second, learn some local culture before you get there. Third, if you make some mistakes, you should explain the reasons. Finally, keep a kind heart at all times.

All in all, culture shock is not a big deal as long as we treat others kindly. Please pay attention to learning Western culture.

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【推荐2】In Canada you can find dogs, cats, horses etc. in almost every family. These are their pets.     1     Before they keep them at their houses, they take them to animal hospitals to give them needles so that they won't carry disease. They have special animal food stores, though they can get animal food in almost every store.     2     When you visit people's homes, they would be very glad to show you their pets and they are very proud of them. You will also find almost every family has a bird feeder in their garden. All kinds of birds are welcomed to come and have a good meal.     3     Nobody is allowed to kill any animals in Canada.     4     If you killed an animal, you would be punished. If an animal happened to get run over by a car, people would be very sad about it.

    5     One of them might be: Their family tie is not as close as ours. When children grow up, they leave their parents and start their own career. Then the old man will feel lonely. But pets can solve this problem. They can be good friends and never leave them alone.

    1     “Even though the computer is widely used today, Chinese people should not forget the skill of writing with hands, because it is part of our country’s culture”, said a Chinese government official (官员).

The computer has become a very useful tool to help people write. As people use computers more often than before, many of them have difficulties writing Chinese characters (字) correctly.     2     Many experts see these mistakes as a result of using the computer.

Nowadays, China is trying to help students and teachers to improve their writing with the help of information technology (科技). With the technology, it is hoped that teachers can write their teaching contents on the blackboard and students can respond by writing, too.

The Chinese character test shows that nowadays, many college students’ handwriting has become worse. Many college students do not know how to write words or sentences in Chinese character in the right way.     3     They might be able to tell the general (大概的) form of a certain character. However, if you ask these adults to write the character in detail (详细地) on paper, they can’t.     4    

In the national language teaching course, we can solve this problem with the use of certain technologies.     5     For example, we may ask students to finish their homework by writing with hands instead of typing(打字).

【推荐3】On January 14, a dance show entitled “Poetic Dance: The Journey of a Legendary Landscape Painting” (只此青绿) was staged at Chongqing Grand Theater, to show respect to the famous painting “A Panorama (全景) of Mountain and River” (千里江山图), by Wang Ximeng, a genius painter from the Northern Song Dynasty, became a great success judging from the comments of the audience, many of whom travelled a long distance from neighboring regions to experience the beauty of the dance show.

When modern people meet a Northern Song young painter

The “poetic dance” brings people the inner world of the ancient painter Wang Ximeng from the view of a modern researcher of the Palace Museum who unfolds the painting scroll, making the audience lost in the charm of legendary traditional Chinese artwork.

According to Xie Suhao, who plays the character, it is not to tell people how great the painting is, but to guide people into an immersive (沉浸式的) and exciting experience of the painting and the traditional Chinese culture. The dancers also hope to create a sincere performance to show respect to the cultural relics (遗产) protection workers who have made great effort to protect ancient artworks.

A rewarding experience for the performers of the poetic dance

Which kind of body language can express the characters most correctly? According to Zhang Han, who plays the character of Wang Ximeng, to capture the essence (精华) of painting Wang Ximeng in a natural, lively way, he went to a teacher expert in Chinese blue-green landscape (风景) painting to learn how to draw “A Panorama of Mountains and Rivers”. From line drawing to coloring, he gradually felt a stronger and deeper connection with the character. “Sometimes, I failed to get myself out of the character and just cannot stop crying. Such immersive experiences make me even more deeply respect the character,” said Zhang Han.

As Ximeng painted in the center, more characters appeared on the stage, presenting a painting that starts with and ends in charming shades of blue and green. Thus, “A Panorama of Mountains and Rivers” painting has been given a new meaning of life.

【推荐1】When June 18th, November 11th and December 12th come every year, people always buy a lot of things online, because they will be much cheaper than usual. I also want to buy something for myself, my family and friends.

This year, I bought a blue bag for my mother because her old bags are all black. For my father, I bought a wallet (钱包). The third Sunday in June is Father’s Day. This year, it falls on June 19th. Of course, the wallet was a present for Father’s Day. It was my sister’s birthday three days later. She was only six years old. She likes playing with dolls (玩偶), so I bought her a lovely doll. My best friend Chen Jie often helps me with my study. What did I buy him? He likes playing basketball, so I bought a basketball for him.

What about myself? I want to buy a camera, but I don’t have enough (足够的) money. I must save money. I’m sure I’ll buy it on November 11th.

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【推荐2】“It’s over! Thank goodness!”

School was over and I was tired. I sat in the front of the school bus.

Janie, the driver, always tries to break the uncomfortable atmosphere (气氛) by talking. I try to listen politely, but usually I’m busy thinking about my day. On this day, however, her talk was worth listening to.

“My father’s ill,” she said. I could see worry in her eyes. I had never seen her like this before. She always meets students with a smile.

With a sudden feeling of interest, I asked, “What’s wrong with him?”

With her eyes wet and her voice unusual, she answered, “Heart trouble.” Her eyes lowered as she continued, “I’ve already lost my mum, so I don’t think I can stand losing him.” I couldn’t answer. My heart ached for her.

I sat on the seat thinking of the great pain my own mother was thrown into when her father died.

I saw how hard it was, and still is, for her. I wouldn’t want anyone to go through that.

Suddenly I realized Janie wasn’t only a bus driver, which was just her job. She had a whole world of family and cares too.

I shouldn’t have been so selfish. I paid no attention to Janie because she was a bus driver. I had judged (判断) her by her job and considered her as an unimportant person.

Understanding people is an art.

【推荐3】After giving a talk at a high school, I was asked to pay a visit to a special student. An illness had kept the boy home, but he had expressed an interest in meeting me, and it would mean a great deal to him, so I agreed.

During the nine-mile drive to his home, I found out something about Matthew. He had muscular dystrophy (肌肉萎缩症). When he was born, the doctor told his parents that he would not live to see five, and, then they were told he would not make it to ten. Now he was thirteen. He wanted to meet me because I was a gold-medal power lifter, and I knew about overcoming (克服) difficulties and going for my dreams.

I spent over an hour talking to Matthew. Never once did he complain or ask, “Why me?” He spoke about winning and succeeding and going for his dreams. Clearly, he knew what he was talking about. He didn’t mention that his classmates had made fun of him because he was different. He just talked about his hopes for the future, and how one day he wanted to lift weight with me. When we finished talking, I pulled out the first gold medal I won and put it around his neck. I told him he was more of a winner and knew more about success and overcoming difficulties than I ever would. He looked at it for a moment, then took it off and handed it back to me. He said, “You are a champion (冠军). You won that medal. Someday when I get to the Olympics and win my own medal, I will show it to you.”

Last summer I received a letter from Matthew’s parents telling me that Matthew had passed away. They wanted me to have a letter he had written to me a few days before:

My mum said I should send you a thank-you letter for the picture you sent me. I also want to let you know that the doctors tell me that I don’t have long to live anymore, but I still smile as much as I can, I told you someday that I was going to the Olympics and win a gold medal, but I know now I will never get to do that. However, I know I’m a champion, and God knows that too. When I get to Heaven, God will give me my medal and when you get there, I will show it to you. Thank you for loving me.

Your friend,

Matthew