1 . Sugar Goldtree was my Grandma. I loved her. Everyone called my grandma “Sugar”. Every time I heard it, I would smile a huge smile.Grandma Sugar had a small house with a large garden. She worked all year long preparing that garden. She would always tidy the garden carefully. She would till the soil until it was like fine sand.

Grandma Sugar would tell me that if we plant the corn in one place this year, then the next year we would need to plant it in another spot. She would always say,“Fill your garden with flowers, The bees will buzz (嗡嗡地飞) around your head when you are picking those nice little cucumbers (黄瓜). After all, they helped to make our plants so beautiful.”

“We are about ready to plant some sunflowers,” Grandma Sugar said, handing me a packet of seeds. I carefully placed the seeds in rows, and covered them with soil, stepping on top of the soil to pack it down. Grandma Sugar sat at the edge of the garden making signs to put at the end of each row, with a date on it. Each year we would keep those signs in a book with photos of me and Grandma Sugar in our garden.

Grandma Sugar had a whole basket of seeds to plant. One by one,we planted rows of corn, beans, cucumbers, onions, lettuce and tomatoes. In the middle of summer, I would run down to the garden with a basket. Grandma Sugar would yell (大赋),“Pick a salad from the bed, little sugar!”

Growing up in the garden was wonderful. I remember Grandma Sugar and her garden. I learned a lot of lessons in that garden.

We live in Bedford, a town near London. My father is a hard-working pilot, so he doesn’t have much time to look after us.

When I was a kid, my mum liked to make breakfast food for dinner every now and then. And I remember one night in particular, when she had made breakfast food after a long, hard day at hospital.

On that evening so long ago, my mum placed a plate of eggs, sausage and terribly burnt biscuits in front of my dad. I remember waiting to see if anyone noticed. Yet all my dad did was reach for a biscuit, smile at my mum and ask my brother and me how we had been doing at school. I don’t remember what I told him that night, but I do remember watching him put butter and jelly (果酱) on that biscuit and eat every bite!

When I got up from the table that evening, I remember hearing my mum apologize (道歉) to my dad for burning the biscuits. And I will never forget what he said, “Honey, I love burnt biscuits.”

Later that night, I went to kiss my dad good night and I asked him if he really liked his biscuits burnt. He wrapped me in his arms and said, “Your mum is really tired after a hard day’s work. Besides, a little burnt biscuit could never hurt anyone. We have been married for 17 years. She always cooks for me. Don’t put the key to your happiness in someone else’s pocket but into your own. ”

4 . Family is the most important thing in the world. Sometimes it can be hard to get along with family members but you love them. How can you have a better relationship with your family members?     1    

●Spend more time together.

Think about how much time you spend with your family already. Is it enough?

    2     Arrange time when you all have freedom to do things together. Go on a picnic, visit a museum, go to a sports match and so on.

●Improve yourself.

Perhaps they complain about your grades, your attitude or your lack of goals; don’t assume it’s all nagging. Some of what they are saying is most likely for your own good, and they’re trying to protect you from life’s hardships and encourage you to be the best you can be.     3    

●Be as independent as you can.

For example, don’t ask your father to wake you up in the morning.     4     Or, don’t expect your parents to help you out all the time, especially not as an adult.

    5    

If your parents come home late at night after work, try to make a simple dinner for them, instead of making your mother cook for you again. If your brother or sister is not doing well at school, show him or her how to succeed with the subjects.

5 . Mary, a reporter from History Weekly, is interviewing Malcolm, the curator (馆长) of the Powell Cotton Museum.

Mary: Hello, I’m Mary. Nice to meet you.

Malcolm: Hello, I’m Malcolm. I’m the curator of the Powell Cotton Museum. Welcome.

Mary: Could you show me around the museum?

Malcolm: Sure, come in.

Mary: So who started this museum?

Malcolm: The museum was built by an Englishman called Powell Cotton. He was born in 1866 and died in 1940.

Mary: Who was he?

Malcolm: He was an adventurer, explorer and hunter.

Mary: So which countries did he visit?

Malcolm: He visited mostly Africa but also parts of Asia as well, including Ladakh and some parts of India.

Mary: Did he have a favorite country?

Malcolm: I don’t know about a favorite country, but certainly his favorite continent was Africa.

Mary: What was his longest trip?

Malcolm: His longest trip was thirty months and that was in 1903 to Africa.

Mary: What is your favorite thing in the museum?

Malcolm: My favorite thing is this lion. This is the same lion that attacked Powell Cotton in 1906. He survived because the local Africans killed the lion.

6 . “Where is the light?” My dad used to ask me the question when I was little. It’s one of those questions that parents often use to find out how smart their young children are. During my teenage years, my dad jokingly told me that he thought I was going to be dimwitted(愚蠢的) because I pointed at him whenever he asked me where the light was.

Dad is from a rural area about 230 kilometers north of the capital Manila, and where most people live off the land, raising and selling livestock and poultry. His father, an artist and street magician, died when he was very young. To make ends meet, his mother went about town and washed laundry in various households. My dad found himself alone—lack of nurturing (养育) and love, short of family bonds.

Dad loved reading and always looked for opportunities to educate himself. One day, when my father was 16 and out of work, a stranger saw him sitting under a tree, absorbed in a book. He approached Dad and asked him why he wasn't in school. Dad replied that he had no money for college. The stranger saw his desire to study and recommended him to University of the Cordilleras as a working student. He also gave Dad a job in a local factory. Thanks to the warm-hearted stranger, Dad got his Bachelor of Arts degree, then went on to study law and became a successful lawyer. He wrote a widely-read textbook on Philippine law.

Looking at my father now, I can see how he was able to overcome so many obstacles. He is by nature a hardworking man, pouring his energy into his career without forgetting his family. He values education—when we were younger, he would tell me and my brother to constantly seek improvement in ourselves through learning.

Like a light, he shines with dignity and respect because of his achievements, but his light radiates the brightest for maintaining our family as a cohesive (有凝聚力的)unit with love and faith as its foundation.

There are times when my dad kids around and asks me, using my childhood nickname, “Sasi, where's the light?”

I just smile, and point at him.

8 . At a medical laboratory clinic in Waterloo, Ontario, an elderly woman sat on the edge of a waiting room chair loudly singing out the Celine Dion’s tune My Heart Will Go On. I was there with my father, who was getting a routine blood test when the woman arrived. She settled into the seat directly across from my dad. The position made it seem as though she was sitting forward to engage in conversation with him. She smiled at him, and he smiled back.

I was concerned about how my dad would react to the possible interact on his space. He was 77 at the time and had been living with Alzheimer’s for several years. He was a brilliant introverted man. When he was healthy, he considered it wholly bad manners to bring undue attention to oneself. I couldn’t help but think that this melodic little woman was playing with fire.

Her singing began gently, like a quiet hum. I glanced over at dad. His smile was gone, and he was staring right at her. She was staring back. I couldn’t read his expression, but it seemed to be something like confusion.This wasn’t an unusual state for him, and I wondered whether he was actually seeing her at all or if he was lost somewhere deep in his mind, not really aware of her presence at that point. Or maybe he was trying to establish whether this was someone he should know. Her singing slowly got louder. By the time she got to the chorus — “Near, far, wherever you are…”, dad looked a little shocked. Still, I watched for any sign of an annoyed outburst. Instead, his face softened, and the tension eased in his brow. He no longer looked confused.

People say that Alzheimer’s is a thief, which it steals your loved ones slowly, day by day. There is so much heartbreaking truth in that statement. But certain experiences with my dad have allowed me to see a side of him that I never knew existed. In an unexpected way, that’s what happened to me that day in the clinic. When her song ended and the waiting room became silent, the woman opened her eyes. My dad was still looking directly at her. “That was beautiful,” he said. And she smiled and said, “Thank you.”

10 . Once there was a small boy called Shankar who belonged to a poor family.

One day, he was walking through the forest, carrying some wood. He saw an old man who was very hungry. Shankar wanted to give him some food, but he did not have any food with him. So he continued on his way. On the way, he saw a fox who was very thirsty. He wanted to give him some water, but he did not have any water for himself. So he went on his way ahead.

Then he saw a young man with a dog who wanted to make a fire but did not have wood. Shankar learned about his problem and gave some wood to him. In return, the man gave him some food and water. Now he went back to the old man and gave him some food. Then he found the fox and gave some water to him. The old man and the fox were very thankful for Shankar’s help. Then Shankar went on his way happily.

Unluckily, one day Shankar fell down the hill. He was in pain but he couldn’t move and no one was there to help him. But the old man who he had helped before saw him, and quickly came and pulled him up the hill. Shankar had many wounds on his legs. The fox whom Shankar had given water to saw his wounds and quickly went to the forest and brought some herbs. The old man helped to put the herbs on Shankar’s wounds. After some time, Shankar got well. All were very happy that they were able to help each other. If you help others, then they will also help you.