For most people, adopting (收养) a pet is one of the best decisions that they can ever make in their lives. In addition to giving an animal a home and a loving family, the owner will find the company of a pet brings more happiness than expected.

For someone like Maria, having a pet was very suitable. She was all alone after moving to a new apartment in Brazil, which made her feel lonely.

So when she found a cute black puppy named Chips, she knew she had to take him home. Maria thought that Chips would be able to fill the emptiness that she had been experiencing from living all alone.

Maria was right. Once she took the puppy home, they immediately bonded. However, as Maria had to work during the day, she was worried about leaving Chips home alone in her apartment. She was also worried that his crying would upset her neighbors.

One night, when she returned home, outside her door was a package with a folded note attached to it. Maria knew that she was in trouble. She hoped that she would not be evicted (驱逐) from her new apartment because of Chips. She loved Chips so much, and she was afraid that she might have to get rid of him because he made too much noise whenever she was away. Maria was frightened and wondered who could have left it at the door because she had little contact with the people in the building except her neighbor, Angelia. In fact, they only said hello few times.

However, when she noticed the names on the folded note, she found that it wasn’t addressed to her but to her dog, Chips, and that it was “written” by another dog named Corote. Maria opened the package first and found a few toys for pets.

Curious, Maria opened the note and started reading it.

With Chips following her, Maria knocked at Angelia’s door.       

Jack was a bright and curious child, always eager to learn new things and explore the mysterious world about science. However, he often found himself in disagreement with his mother. His mother was always busy with her work and she didn’t have enough time to learn about his interests and passions.

One day, Jack came home from school feeling particularly excited. He just found a sci-fi book about an adventure on the moon. Upon arriving at home, he couldn’t tear himself away from the book. He read and read until it was dark. Having finished reading it, he couldn’t wait to share it with his mother, only to be told that he should focus on more practical subjects like math and history, which would help him get into a good college and have a successful career.

Jack couldn’t understand why his mother didn’t see the value in what he was doing. He felt that she was holding him back and not allowing him to pursue his true interests. “Why can’t you see how important this is to me?” Jack asked his mother angrily. “I’m never going to be happy if I have to spend my life doing things that I show no interest in just because they are practical or make you proud.”

The once peaceful home was filled with tension and anger. His mother’s voice grew louder as she shouted, “You can’t just do whatever you want! You should be responsible for your future!” Jack, fueled by his own frustration, shot back, “I am tired of you always telling me what to do! I am not a child anymore! You only care about your own feeling! You never thought about my feeling!” They were so caught up in their own anger and hurt that they failed to see how their words and actions were affecting each other.

Jack rushed into his bedroom and locked the door heavily.

When Jack heard his mother’s words, regretful tears rolled down his face.

One morning in spring four students were walking to school.

There had been a rain, and the ground was very soft. Water was dropping from the trees, and the grass was wet.

The four students walked along, one behind another, because the pathway was narrow (狭窄的) and the mud (泥) on either side of it was deep. They walked, talked and laughed.

As they were passing through some small trees, they heard a great fluttering (拍翅膀) over their heads and a weak chirping (鸣叫) in the grass by the roadside.

“Tweet! Tweet! Tweet!” came from the leafy branches above them.“Cheep! Cheep! Cheep!” came from the wet grass.

“What is the matter here? ” asked the first student, whose name was Speed. “Oh, there are two young birds. Maybe the storm has blown two of the little ones out of the nest. They are too young to fly, ” said the second student, whose name was Hardin.

“What a pity! They'll die down there in the grass,” said the third student Martin.

“Oh, well! We still need to hurry to school. We're going to be late,” said Speed. “Why should we bother? ” After Speed's words, the first three students walked on, talking and laughing as before.

But the fourth student, whose name was David, stopped.

All were surprised to find that David was not with them when the roll call (点名) was made.

In a small town, there lived a young girl named Emily. She had a deep passion for table tennis and dreamed of becoming a professional player. Despite her young age, she was determined to work hard and make her dream come true.

From the moment when Emily picked up a table tennis paddle, she was impressed by the sport. She spent every spare moment practicing her shots, focusing on her footwork and mastering different techniques. Each time she stepped on the court, she was eager to improve and pushed herself to the limit. Unluckily, Emily faced a visual impairment (缺陷) that threatened to slow her progress. She was born with a condition that affected her sight. Some people doubted her ability to play table tennis and said, “Emily, your impairment is a disadvantage. It is impossible to play table tennis well!”

But Emily refused to let their doubts consume her. With solid determination, Emily turned her impairment into strength. She used her other heightened senses to her advantage, relying on touch and sound to anticipate her opponents’ moves. While others relied on sight, she developed an incredible sense of intuition (直觉) and strategy.

Emily finally excelled in table tennis, achieving incredible milestones and representing her town in many competitions. She became an advocate of the sport in her town. However, Emily decided not to settle for winning in her comfort zone but to challenge for something higher. She joined a training team guided by a world-class coach, which brought together the world’s top table tennis players.

In the training team, Emily went through a series of trials. She carried out high-intensity training. She needed to improve not only the batting skills but also perseverance and the sense of teamwork. Her coach often encouraged her and said, “Anyone, regardless of ability, could find success.”

A few years later, Emily’s efforts paid off. She got her chance. As a member of the national team, she took part in an important international competition. That was the stage for her to show her skills, and it was also the important moment for her to realize her dream.

In the competition, Emily found herself facing a strong opponent, Lily.

After the competition, Emily’s story spread throughout the table tennis community.

I like staying overnight at my Gramma’s house — that is, until Gramma starts telling me how wonderful my cousin Maya is. Then it’s Maya this and Maya that until I don’t ever want to hear another word about her.

That’s why I wasn’t too excited when Gramma called me on the phone to “come on over and bring your pajamas.” When I got there, it was worse than I’d expected. There, in Grandpa’s big leather rocker, sat Maya, all dressed up and formal-looking and wearing fancy shoes as if she’d just been to a party.

“Surprise, Kristen!” Gramma said. “Your cousin Maya and her parents have traveled in from the East Coast on business. Maya gets to stay with us this afternoon.” Gramma chattered away about how excited she’d been for this surprise get-together, and how cousins ought to get to know each other better.

I hung my baseball cap in the closet and set my backpack by the stairway, all the time smiling and nodding as if I’d been waiting forever for this chance to spend an afternoon with Maya. Grandpa’s chair squawked (咯咯叫) as Maya rocked back and forth. It’s the chair I like best in the house, the one I usually sit in. I sat down on the sofa across from her.

Shortly, Gramma went off to the kitchen to “see about some lunch,” she’d said. That left me stuck in the living room with rocking Maya.

She was still small but taller than I’d remembered her from her last visit four years ago. She was good at small talk, though, and was chatting away about how nice it was to see me again. But I could tell that she didn’t really think so. The last time she was here, we’d had hours of fun together building caves out of Gramma’s sofa pillows.

After that, I’d heard about her only through Gramma’s tales. Maya taking piano lessons. Maya learning math. Maya, Maya, Maya. Now Maya was here, looking great with the latest haircut and a fancy dress.

Glancing down at my jeans and my old sneakers, I wished I hadn’t come.

“How do you know all these things about me?” I asked.