1 . Once upon a time, a daughter complained to her father that her senior high school life was unhappy and that she was tired of struggling with homework all the time.

Her father, a chef, took her to the kitchen. He filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Once the three pots began to boil, h placed potatoes, eggs and coffee beans in them. After 20 minutes, he took them out, putting the potatoes and eggs in a bowl and the coffee in a cup.

Turning to his daughter, he said, “Look closer, and touch the potatoes.” She did and noted that they were soft. He then asked her to take an egg and break it. After puling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg. Finally, he asked her to taste the coffee. Its good smell brought a smile to her face.

“Father, what does this mean?” she asked. He then explained that the potatoes, the eggs and the coffee beans were in the same adversity (逆境)—the boiling water. However, each one reacted differently.

The strong and hard potato became soft and weak in boiling water. The egg was fragile, with the thin outer shell protecting its liquid until it was put in the boiling water. Then the inside of the egg became hard. However, the coffee beans were unique. After they were exposed to the boiling water, they changed the water and created something new. “Which one do you want to be like,” he asked. “When adversity knocks on your door, how will you respond?”

In life, challenges happen to us all, but the only thing that truly matters is what happens within us.

3 . At eleven, I decided to learn to swim. There was a pool at the YMCA offering exactly the opportunity. My mother continually warned against it, and kept fresh in my mind the details of each drowning in the river. But the YMCA pool was safe.

I had a childhood fear of water. This started when I was three years old and my father took me to the beach.The huge waves knocked me down and swept over me.

The pool was quiet. I was afraid of going in all alone, so I sat on one side of the pool to wait for others. Then came a big boy. He yelled, “Hi, how’d you like to be ducked?” With that he picked me up and threw me into the deep end.I landed in a sitting position, and swallowed water. But I was not frightened out of my wits—when my feet hit the bottom, I would make a big jump to come out of the surface. It seemed a long way down. I gathered all my strength when I landed and made what I thought was a great spring upwards. Then I opened my eyes and saw nothing but water. I tried to yell but no sound came out. I went down, down, endlessly.

When I came to consciousness, I found myself lying on the bed in the hospital.

I never went back to the pool. I avoided water whenever I could. This misadventure stayed with me as the years rolled by.It deprived(剥夺) me of the joy of boating and swimming. Finally, I decided to get an instructor. Piece by piece, he built a swimmer. Several months later, the instructor was finished, but I was not .Sometimes the terror would return. 

This went on until July. I swam across the Lake Went worth.Only once did the terror return. When I was in the middle of the lake, I put my face under and saw nothing but bottomless water. I laughed and said, “Well, Mr Terror, what do you think you can do to me?” I had conquered my fear of water.

4 . I remember that it was a fall morning when the orchestra (管弦乐队) teachers came into Miss Newell’s third-grade classroom. “You have hands for the viola (中提琴),” Miss Ciano told me. I was excited because my hands were finally good for something. I told my parents I wanted to play, and naturally, they agreed.

Since I first touched the viola, I haven’t been able to put it down. Ignoring the difficulty, I am pulled closer to it each day.

Classical music is truly my best friend. It is the trusted friend of every man, woman and child. Various feelings are expressed in classical music. I discovered that when I was eleven and played a cello concerto (大提琴协奏曲) of Bach in a competition, the first movement was joyful, but the second movement was mysterious and full of pain. From the piece, I learned that music expresses not only feelings, but also sudden mood changes. By listening to classical music, I know that someone else shares these feelings. Since I am lucky enough to be able to play classical music, I am comforted by it when I am upset. It gives me a way to escape from my problems for a short period. Classical music can express my joy, sadness and anger.

Now look back at that fall day in the third grade and think how gullible I was for believing that anyone, even music teachers, could tell whether hands were perfect for a certain instrument. I’m certain they told me I had “ viola hands” not because they were fortune-tellers (算命师), but because there was a lack of violists in our district. Classical music is one of the best things that ever happened to mankind. If you get introduced to it in the right way, it will become your friend for life.

5 . Ranjan and Summer were good friends. They went to the same school and were in the same class.

Ranjan was not strong. He could not play football or other games with boys of his age. All that he did was to watch Summer and other boys play. He usually went with them to the playground. When they ran off to play, he would sit under a tree and read storybooks. Books became his best friends. The reading made him successful in all the exams. He always stood first in the class.

Summer was tall and strong. He spent most of his time running, swimming or riding bicycles. He was an extremely good player in every game. He was a member of the school’s football team and cricket team. The PE teacher thought he would make it big in the game when he grew up.

One day, the two friends went for a walk. Ranjan got tired soon. “I have no strength. What is the use of all this knowledge if I am not healthy? I would give away all my knowledge if I could be half as healthy and strong as you,” said Ranjan.

Summer was surprised and replied, “So you are not happy with yourself too? I always wished I could have done as well as you did in the studies. I even thought I could have given away my sporting skills for better grades in those exams.” The two friends looked at each other and cried out at the same time. “The grass looks greener on the other side of the hill.”

6 . A man was employed to paint a boat. He brought paint and _________ and began to paint the boat as the owner wanted. While painting, he _________ there was a hole in the body of the boat and decided to repair it. When he finished painting, he received his _________ and left.

The next day, the owner of the boat visited the painter and _________ him with a cheque(支票), much higher than what he was paid for the painting work. The painter was _________.

“You’ve already paid me for painting the boat, sir! he said.

“This is not for the paint job. It’s for repairing the _________ in the boat.”

“Ah! But it was such a small service.” the man said. “Certainly it’s not worth paying me such a high amount for something so _________!”

“My dear friend,” the owner said, “You don’t understand. Let me tell you _________ happened. When I asked you to paint the boat, I _________ to mention the bole. When the boat dried, my kids took it and ____________ a fishing trip. They did not know that there was a hole there. I was not at home at the time. So when I ____________ and noticed they had taken the boat, I was hopeless. Imagine my ____________ and joy when I saw them returning safely from fishing.”

“Then, I examined the boat and found that you had repaired the hole! You now see what you did? You ____________ the life of my children!”

Each of us has a moral duty to offer help, wipe tears, listen carefully and repair all the “hole” we ____________ in our life journey, because a small act will make a big ____________ in the future.

7 . Ways to make a great first impression

You’ve heard it a million times already. But it really does take but a few seconds to make that all-important first impression（印象）. Here are some easy ways for you to impress your classmates or teachers.

*    1    

Before you shake hands with somebody, make sure that your hands are clean. The hand-shake should not be too strong or weak. Most people use their right hands, unless they have a reason to use the left.     2    

*Be on time

When meeting someone for the first time, arriving on time is as important as breathing. You may have an excuse, but that will leave the person who hardly knows you with a bad impression.     3     It’s better to be hanging around the place than be stuck in traffic.

*Introduce yourself and ask for names

Make sure you properly introduce yourself. Ask for their name in a polite way.     4    . This will increase the chances of their remembering your name in the future. Always remember to stand up when greeting someone and be sure to introduce them to anyone you’re with.

*Make good conversation

To get the most out of your discussion, try to find something common between the two of you.     5    . A person will feel more comfortable with someone they can relate to（产生共鸣）.

I’m very pleased to write to you, I know you’re an expert in English learning.

Yours,

Li Hua