Yours,

Li Hua

2 . China is one of the world’s ancient civilizations and has the earliest outstanding bronze casting technology. Here we’ve created a list of 4 museums where you can gain an in-depth understanding of Chinese bronze.

Sanxingdui Museum

Address: Sanxingdui Ruin Site, 133 Xian Road, Guanghan, Deyang, Sichuan province

Hours: Comprehensive Gallery (the first exhibition hall): 8:30-18:00; Bronze Gallery (the second exhibition hall): 8:30-18:30. Last tickets sold at 17:00. Closed on the morning of Chinese New Year’s Eve

Ticket booking: 0838-5651526

General admission: Gallery ticket 80 yuan

Note: Children shorter than 1.2m (including 1.2m) can visit the gallery free of charge. The ticket must be used on the day it is sold and authorizes one visit to each gallery.

National Museum of China

Address: East side of Tian’anmen Square, Dongcheng district, Beijing

Hours: 8:30-17:00 (no entry after 16:30)

General admission: Free (passport required for entry), Closed Mondays (except for national holidays)

E-mail: webmaster@chnmuseum.cn

Shanghai Museum

Address: 201 Renmin Avenue, Huangpu district, Shanghai

Hours: 9:00-17:00 (no entry after 16:00), Closed Mondays (except for national holidays)

E-mail: webmaster@shanghai-museum.org

General admission: free (a max of 8, 000 admitted daily)

Hunan Museum

Address: 50 Dongfeng Road, Changsha, Hunan province

Hours:   9:00-17:00 (no entry after 16:00), Closed Mondays (except for national holidays) and the eve of Chinese New Year

Tel: (+86-731) 8415833, 84475933

E-mail: web@hnmuseum.com

General admission: Free (passport required for entry)

3 . The first time ever I realized that plastic was a serious matter for our planet was during a road trip in Western Australia, almost 12 years ago.

We________at a supermarket along the Coral Bay coast to buy some groceries and the lady at the counter told us they didn’t sell any shopping bags in order to prevent plastic in the________and to help preserving the endangered turtles living in that area. After a first reaction of surprise, we________all our shopping in our arms and left.

This was just one of the many experiences I’ve lived that made me more________about my impact and pushed me to adopt different habits to live and________more sustainably.

Our trip to Borneo was another life-changing________that has strengthened my resolution to a zero-waste lifestyle. While traveling in some Asian countries, we came to know that________drinkable water was always a challenge. So we had to travel with our water bottle, and we________to avoid using plastic during our trip.

Besides, we were also________impressed by our stay on Libaran Island. A sustainable turtle conservation________and the community had made big efforts to________ the beaches and creatively re-use plastic for ten years. Despite that, the shore is________daily with tons of plastic coming from the tides.

Facing this global issue________, raised in me a feeling of sadness and anger that soon turned into________: to do as much as possible to reduce plastic in our life. Small changes can________a difference!

A Father’s Day Surprise

“Mano, do you know when Father’s Day is celebrated?” Ali asked his sister.

“Yes, it is going to be celebrated on June 19 this year. Yesterday my friend and I were talking about it.” Mano replied.

“Do you have any idea how we should celebrate this day and make it memorable for Dad?” Ali asked.

“Hmm... I was thinking about it too and have some ideas.” Mano answered excitedly. “What are you kids talking about?” their mum asked, entering their room.

“Mum, we were wondering about how to celebrate Father’s Day.” Mano said.

“Oh, I am surprised you kids remembered! Well, I am thinking of cooking some favorite dishes for your father. You both should think of ways to decorate the house beautifully.”Mum said.

“That would be great!”said Mano and Ali together. Both of them got up smiling, thinking of hundreds of ways to celebrate Father’s Day. Mum went to the kitchen, and Mano and Ali started doing their homework. But soon Ali noticed Mano deep in thought so he asked what the matter was. “Ali, I was thinking that our parents do everything for us and in return they want nothing. Isn’t it bad that we never think about them and are always concerned about our needs?” Mano replied. “Sometimes we are so busy with our lives that we don’t pay proper attention to our parents. We should listen to whatever they say properly and answer them. We must also study hard to get good grades.” Ali nodded.

The next day, all three of them, Mano, Ali and their mum, got busy preparing their surprise celebration for Father’s Day. Mano drew a family picture with her crayons, Ali bought balloons and candles and began writing a poem which he planned to sing that day. In short, a lot of things were being planned and prepared.

Finally, when Father’s day came, both Ali and Mano came home from school and started decorating the house.

Ali and Mano cried out together, “Happy Father’s Day!”

5 . Does stress cause gray hairs? Many people believe that stress can cause your hair to lose its color. In fact, it is an old wife’s tale that being upset all the time can result in hair graying early. Here is a closer look at this situation and why some believe that this old wife’s tale could be true.

As one ages, the hairs on the head also age. In fact, just about everything on the human body begins to show signs of wear after a while. Hairs on the head grow and finally die. They are replaced, but in the process something else happens when old hairs are replaced by new hairs. The color of pigment is also added to them. However, as one ages, this pigment becomes less and less available. At first, hairs will have a limited amount of pigment and they will appear to be gray in color. In time, they will lose all of their pigment and will be white.

Many things are known to cause graying, and genetics is a very powerful factor. If one of your parents turns gray at an early age, there is a good chance that you will too. Some people begin the graying process in high school, while others may be over the age of forty.

If you are whites, you will probably notice graying in your mid-thirties. Blacks may be well into their forties. This is not always true, but it is common practice.

Constant worry and stress can have many bad effects on the human body. It is a known fact that stressful times can cause one to suffer hair loss. It would make sense that if stress can cause these problems, perhaps it also may lead to graying. However, there is no sound evidence to support this. On the other hand, many doctors believe that there may be a link between graying and constant state of anxiety or stress.

An Unforgettable Sports Meet

7 . Over the years, when a book has spoken to me with particular power, I have put pen to paper and sent word off to the author, communicating what their work meant to me.

It all started in my 18th year, when I was entertaining my own imaginations of success as a writer. I was full of high expectations, believing that becoming an author was simply a matter of putting my thoughts onto paper, sending the works to a publisher, and waiting for fame to come. Then came the great disappointment. I wrote to famous children’s author Lloyd Alexander, describing my fruitless yearlong effort at publication and asking him for direction. To my joy, he answered:

“Advice is always very easy to give-but very hard to make it specific and meaningful, since we all have to work in our own ways. When you mention that you’ve been writing for a year without being published, I hasten to tell you that I wrote seven times that long without being published! So, perhaps one piece of advice is: patience.”

I was encouraged by the idea that a well-regarded writer would take the time to offer a bit of advice to an overconfident teen. But Mr. Alexander was not a singular case. I continued to reach out to writers and, truth to tell, I didn’t always receive a reply. But when I did get one, the content was often filled with consideration and even, at times, affection (喜爱).

I think of the American poet William Stafford, who replied to me from Lake Oswego, Oregon. We actually had an ongoing correspondence (通信) for a while. I wrote to him asking if he would be so kind as to autograph (签名) one of his books for me. His reply brought an immediate smile to my face: “I am eagerly ready to autograph and return a book — it makes me feel like an author.”

Many artists draw with pens and brushes, but few “paint” with knives. Wang Jing, a woman from Shenyang city in northeast China’s Liaoning Province,     1    (work) on this novel artform for 27 years.

In 1995, Wang was inspired by an     2    (accident) cut by a knife on a piece of red paper, which left a white line.     3    (use) knives and paper, she then completed a painting of a pair of peacocks.

Unlike traditional paintings, onto which colors are “added”, “knife painters” apply varied pressure on the paper in different directions     4    (create) different colors and tones.

The novel art form was known to few people just after Wang created it. Even Wang herself was not expecting to make     5     something big at the beginning. But thanks to her huge interest in the art form, she has carried     6     it for the past 27 years. Wang has completed hundreds of paintings about Chinese culture, figures, landscape, flowers and birds, of which her favorite is a 2.8-meter-long painting     7     shows 20 lifelike egrets (白鹭).

“Painting on paper with knives needs careful     8    (treat) and each line in the painting is as thin as a hair. Once the marks are left on the paper, they cannot     9    (cover), so it requires the painter to be     10    (complete) concentrated on the work,” said Wang.