One day my grandfather gave me a gift — a piggy bank. It had an opening through which one could put money in, but the opening was not big enough to reach in and get the money out. The only way to get at the money was to break the piggy bank open. My grandfather explained that was the whole idea: the piggy bank would help save my money so that, at the end of the year, I might have enough for that bike I dreamt about. He asked if I would put some of the money he gave me into the piggy bank. I agreed immediately and promised that I wouldn’t break it open until I could afford my dream bike.

Whenever he gave me a little bit of money, he would say, “This is for spending. But you can save some and put it in the piggy bank if you want to save it up.” When he gave me larger amounts, it was clearly for saving in the piggy bank. For some time, this worked fine. I loved shaking the piggy bank and hearing the sound of the coins. As it became heavier, I grew more excited, dreaming about buying my new bike, and all the adventures I could have on it.

Whenever I wanted to take some money from the piggy bank to buy delicious ice-creams or beautiful pens, I would imagine riding my bike on the street, and thinking of that, my thoughts about ice-creams or pens went away. So for almost six months, I only put money into the piggy bank without taking any out. I thought I wouldn’t break my piggy bank for anything. But one day something unexpected happened. I saw a piece of news on the television that a serious earthquake (地震) had happened in a nearby province. As many houses were destroyed, a lot of children became homeless. Seeing their shabby clothes and crying faces, I was sleepless that night.

When I was little, I lived in a house with a beautiful garden full of all kinds of Bowers. There was nothing I enjoyed more than sitting in the garden with my mother reading stories to me. When I was old enough to read, I enjoyed reading stories aloud to her.

I would never forget one day when I was in the third grade. I bad been picked to be the princess in the school play, and for weeks my mother had rehearsed (排练) my lines so hard with me. But however easily I acted at home, the moment I stepped on stage, every word disappeared from my head. Finally, my teacher took me aside, explaining that she had written a narrator’s (解说员) part to the play, and asked me to change roles. Her word, kindly expressed, still hurt, especially when I saw my part go to another girl.

I didn’t tell my mother what had happened when I went home after school that day. But she sensed my pain. Instead of suggesting we practice my lines, she asked if I wanted to take a walk in the garden.

It was May and roses were blossoming and, under the trees, we could also see yellow dandelions (蒲公英) in the grass, as if a painter had painted our garden with red, yellow and green. I watched my mother casually bend down by one dandelion. ”I think I’m going to dig up all these weeds,” she said, pulling it up by its roots. ”From now on, we’ll have only roses in this garden. ”

“But I like dandelions,” I protested, “All flowers are beautiful-even dandelions.” “Yes, every flower is beautiful in its own way, isn’t it?” she asked thoughtfully. I nodded, pleased that I had won her over. “And that is true of people too,” she added. “Not everyone can be a princess, but there is no shame in that.” Relieved that she had guessed my pain, I started to cry as I told her what had happened. She listened and smiled to me gently.

Para 1: “But you will be a beautiful narrator,” she said.

Para 2: After the play, I took home the flower.

Asad was a 13-year-old boy who was very honest and hardworking. Recently, he had entered a new school, so he had no friends yet. On Monday morning, he was nearly late for school. The night before, his family attended his cousin’s wedding and reached home late, which was why he couldn’t get up on time as usual.

At school, Asad could not pay attention to anything and wanted the bell to ring so that he could buy something to eat. After a few hours, when the bell rang, Asad quickly opened his schoolbag to find his money, but just then he remembered that he had left for school in a hurry in the morning and forgotten to take money. He looked under his books, hoping to find some money but there was nothing.

Not knowing what to do, he walked out of the classroom and sat on a bench in front of the canteen. He saw a few of his classmates there, among them was Fahad. He was one of the richest kids in his class, but he was a very arrogant(傲慢的)boy who thought everyone else was a loser. But as Asad was new, he didn’t know much about Fahad.

When he went towards Fahad and asked if he could borrow some money for his lunch, Fahad laughed a lot and said, “I knew you were a loser, maybe a beggar?” Fahad laughed out so loud that other kids also heard and made fun of the situation. He didn’t answer Fahad, and slowly walked back towards an empty bench.

When he reached the bench, he noticed something lying near it. It was a wallet. He picked it up and recognized it as Fahad’s, as he remembered Fahad showing it to his friends and telling that his uncle bought it for him from the UK. There was quite a lot of money inside for a kid.

At first, Asad wanted to keep it a secret and punished Fahad.

Then Fahad said, “Why are you giving back?”

In 1989, fresh out of high school, I had the difficult task of choosing a career path before college started in three months. In those days in Pakistan, there were limited choices: becoming a doctor or an engineer, or entering the financial world after getting a business degree. I wasn’t interested in engineering, so that I was left with medicine or business. I couldn’t decide.

My uncle suggested that I do a work placement(实习) to experience it for a month in an international company followed by a month in a hospital. After that, I could make a decision. It seemed like a good idea.

I was accepted for a month’s placement at a foreign bank in Karachi. I got a feel of how the world of finance functioned, made new friends, and generally enjoyed the mostly easy­going work surroundings.

The month passed rapidly, and soon I began working at a leading hospital in Karachi. The experience couldn’t have been more different. The hospital had a stressful environment. The days started early (at 7 am, compared to 9 am at the bank), and were filled with endless duties. And the night calls! This was crazy, working all day, through the night, and again the next day.

I began thinking about my two experiences. The bank had offered a more relaxing atmosphere, better working hours and less stress. The hospital was full of excitement, but studying and training were difficult. It seemed that the business choice was going to win out.

Near the end of my month at the hospital, I was driving home after an especially busy night call. In front of me was a public bus, with college students sitting on the top. As the driver weaved through (穿梭) traffic, I could see the boys shaking from side to side.

Suddenly, a boy fell off the back of the bus.

The next day, when I went to the hospital to see the boy, all his family got up, with grateful smiles on their faces.

Surprises are beautiful because they come without waiting. It was not so true for Nancy though. She was sure her younger sister, Kate, was planning a surprise for her birthday. Opening the curtains of her bedroom window, she hungrily drank in the fresh morning air. Nancy was turning 30 today. “Keep calm. It’s only your 30th birthday.” she thought to herself, quickly glancing at the mirror and looking away. She never liked looking at the mirror. It always reminded her of what she had suffered. She didn’t want to think of the past and all that it had done to her.

Over these years she had worked at different factories and cleaned the floors at big hotels where perfumed men and women floated easily. Ever since their parents died, her only goal was to educate Kate. Nancy didn’t go to her dreamy university. Her emotions came running back to the present. Quickly, she wiped her tears and rushed to the door.

“A sister is a little bit of childhood that can never be lost.” Kate was her dream, her hope, her happiness and her precious possession. She meant everything to her. Kate was so outstanding that she was admitted to Harvard University. And today, Nancy was sure Kate would surprise her with a gift like she did every year. Nancy imagined the freshly baked chocolate cake that would welcome her. Her tongue was eager to lick up the soft, brown cream and her teeth were ready to bite it. She heard the sound of Kate’s footsteps coming towards her. She waited smiling.

It seemed like an endless wait. Finally, she heard her younger sister approaching her room. Her eyes lit up, steps turned into a spring and her heart was pounding. She sniffed the air to catch a breath of the chocolate cake but she couldn’t. “Maybe it is not chocolate flavor this time.” she imagined with pride. Her sister was a grown-up now. She could surprise her with something else.

Kate walked into her room empty-handed.

Kate handed her a brown envelope.

One weekend in July, Jane and her husband, Tom, had driven three hours to camp overnight by a lake in the forest. Unfortunately, on the way an unpleasant subject came up and they started to quarrel. By the time they reached the lake, Jane was so angry that she said to Tom, “I'm going to find a better spot for us to camp” and walked away.

With no path to follow, Jane just walked on for quite a long time. After she had climbed to a high place, she turned around, hoping to see the lake. To her surprise, she saw nothing but forest and, far beyond, a snowcapped mountain top. She suddenly realized that she was lost.

“Tom!” she cried. “Help!”

No reply. If only she had not left her mobile phone in that bag with Tom. Jane kept moving, but the farther she walked, the more confused she became. As night was beginning to fall, Jane was so tired that she had to stop for the night. Lying awake in the dark, Jane wanted very much to be with Tom and her family. She wanted to hold him and tell him how much she loved him.

Jane rose at the break of day, hungry and thirsty. She could hear water trickling (滴落) somewhere at a distance. Quickly she followed the sound to a stream. To her great joy, she also saw some berry bushes. She drank and ate a few berries. Never in her life had she tasted anything better.

As she picked her way carefully along the stream, Jane heard a helicopter. Is that for me? Unfortunately,the trees made it impossible for people to see her from above. A few minutes later, another helicopter flew overhead. Jane took off her yellow blouse, thinking that she should go to an open area and flag them if they came back again.

8 . Lydia was a smart girl，very smart. She loved being with her friends，going shopping and doing what every other girl likes to do. There was only one ____ that made Lydia self-conscious(敏感):She was ____. One autumn day Lydia and her best friend Judy were taking the train to do one of their favorite ____: shopping. As a normal child，Judy, both caring and patient, spoke to Lydia in ____ language all the time. The train continued to make its occasional(临时) stops when a boy，no older than fifteen years old，sat in the ____ across from Lydia. Lydia couldn’t help but notice how often the boy would ____ over at her to watch her move her ____ rapidly. This was one of the things that made Lydia unhappy.

“Why must everyone stare at me?” Lydia asked her best friend，trying to ____ the boy’s stare. “Doesn’t he ____ that I am deaf? There is no need to stare at me. He is probably thinking that I am very ____ or disabled. I _____people who prejudge(预先判断)others!” Lydia had become quite ____ ...

___, the train came to a pause, waking up the boy in deep thought then. He got up, ready to get off at his ____. Instead of hurrying off the train, however, he ____ to Lydia casually and stared to _____his hands as she had just moments before. “Excuse me，but I couldn’t help but notice that you don’t like it when people stare at you. I’m ____ I made you uncomfortable. To be honest，just because of that，I ____ to get to “talk” to other ____ in here. I feel self-conscious and different，so I was _____when I saw you. I thought maybe we could be friends.” With that，the boy walked off the train.