1、1My New RoommateIt was my first day at the instituteI got into the building where 1 was going to liveMy eyes searched carefully from the door of one bedroom to that of another for my name which ought to have been pasted on the door of one of these bedroomsAt last I found itOn stepping into the bedro
2、om I found there was already in it a student who was making his bedHaving exchanged with me a few words of greetings，he resumed his arrangement of bedding and no longer paid any attention to me “What a stuck-up fellow ”I thought and began to survey the room It looked quite similar to any other bedro
3、om in the buildingEven the furniture in all bedrooms was uniformIt seemed my bedroom had already been thoroughly cleaned by my new roommateHe was thin，short and dark-skinnedHis hair looked like a bundle of strawHis dirty clothes and lusterless eyes clearly indicated that he had had a long journeyHis
4、 clothes were made of cheap clothHis coat was too short，and the legs of his trousers were too looseHe wore a pair of unfashionable rubber shoesThus he did not look like a smart freshman at a11.“A yokel,” I concludedThe second time he spoke，his accent told me that he was from the south “May I help yo
5、u get your luggage from the office?”I did not decline his help because I really needed itHe was quick in movement He walked out of the room and was soon far ahead of me in the corridor “A good guy,” I said to myself “I will make friends with him ”I hurried and caught up with him2My English TeacherI
6、like most of my teachers in collegeThey were，for the most part，friendly and competent, willing to help studentsI liked them but I dont remember them very well，except for Mr. Jones，my freshman English teacherHe was an enthusiastic， sensitive man，who knew his subject and was determined that we would l
7、earn it and love it, tooMr. Jones was a tall，slender man in his mid-forties with gray, thinning hairPerched precariously on his nose，his glasses gave him a serious lookBut they didnt remain there long，for he was always either taking them off and polishing their two pieces of glass or putting either
8、of the two earpieces in his mouth when he was meditating a response to some question raised by a studentWhen on his way to our classroom，he always carried two or three books with strips of paper sticking out of them，which were for marking the passages he wanted to read to usI remember, too， his card
9、igan sweatersHe must have had a dozen of themOn rainy days he would have a blue raincoat onBut what is most tenacious in my memory is his smileWhen he smiled，his whole face lit up；his eyes sparkledHis smile made you feel good，at ease，and somehow reassuredThough habitually friendly and at ease with e
10、verybody, he was a bit prim in classroom，and he could be stem on occasionsHe never called us by our first names He obviously enjoyed his work and loved his students，but he kept his distanceHe never deliberately or publicly embarrassed a student by using sarcastic languageNevertheless he could distin
11、ctly reveal his displeasure in his own wayHed look steadily at an offending student for quite a few freezing secondsThat was usually enough for the little culprit to be cowedBut if it didnt work， hed say something to the student in a lowered tone of voiceHe didnt do this often, thoughMr. Jones had p
12、ersonality, integrity, vitality a11 of which made him 3popular；but what I liked most about him was that he was a fine teacher It was true that he cared about his students，but he cared more about teaching them his subjectAnd that meant homework，lots of it，and pop quizzes now and then to keep them cur
13、rent on the readingHe lectured occasionally to provide background information whenever we moved on to a new literary periodAfter a brief glance at his notes，hed begin to move around as he talked to the blackboard to the window, back to the 1ectemBut he preferred discussion，a Socratic dialogueHed wri
14、te several questions on the board for the next days discussion，and hed expect you to be prepared to discuss themHe directed the discussion, but he didnt dominate it：for he was a good listener and made sure we all had a chance to respond, whether we wanted to or notIf he was pleased with a response，h
15、ed nod his head and smileOccasionally hed read a students essay, praising its good points and then winking at the writer as he passed it backBut he was tough-minded，too ，as I suggested beforeHe really nailed you for sloppy work or inattentionWhen you got an A from him，you really felt good，for he was
16、nt an easy graderWe used to complain about his grading standards，usually to no avail, though he would change a grade if he thought he had been unfairMr. Jones was a competent teacherHe knew what he was doing in classroom，and he could conduct his class very wellBut what was more important was that he
17、 made his students fall in love with the course he offeredHe led us to take the initiative in delving into it on out own4Mariak AnagianShe was ninety-two years old when I met her, a gentle，diminutive lady in European dressHer face was deeply lined，and her coarse grey hair had yellowed with the years
18、She spoke softly in a quivering voice in half English and half AmericanHer gnarled hands testified to the years of hard work on the farm in her homelandYet in her dark eyes and in her gentle manner there was a childlike simplicity as she told me her storyI thought“she has the wisdom that comes with
19、years of experience and the gentle purity of a childthat was a wonderful but strange combination of traits ”I knew that l would never forget herHer name was Mariak Anagian When she was a young woman，her homeland was invaded by foreign troopsShe had been keeping house for her father, brothers， husban
20、d，and her two young childrenOne day she returned from the market and found the mutilated（残缺不全的）bodies of her father and one of her brothers on her doorstep They were among the many victims of the warMariaks husband was much older than she，and he soon succumbed to the rigorous demands of field work a
21、nd mental strain，leaving Mariak alone in the world to take care of her two small childrenMany of the towns people helped her, and she was able to produce enough on the small farm to feed her familyShortly after the turn of the century, her daughter married and went to AmericaA few years later，Mariak
22、s daughter sent her some money which enabled her to come to the United StatesThus Mariak came to live in the United States for thirty yearsAs Mariak told her story, her eyes grew large with fear and her breath quickened with excitementThen she weptAfter a short time，she sat silently with her head 5b
23、owedSuddenly, she rose from the chair, lifted her skirt to just above her ankles，and began to dance in short，jerky stepsShe sang almost inaudibly in her native language，but I knew it was a childrens songHer simple melody and simple dance steps were typically those of an average childHer eyes shone w
24、ith youthful gaiety, and her voice was light and happyHer grandson appeared at this time，spoke to her affectionately, and led her away from the roomMy Dormitory Bedroom My dormitory bedroom on the second floor of Bienville Hall is small and cluttered up Its dark green walls and dirty white ceiling m
25、ake it look gloomy and thuseven smaller than it isOn entering the bedroomone would find my bed is right in his way because it takes up half of the roomThe two large windows over my bed are obstructed from view by the golden heavy drapesAgainst the left wall is a large book case extending into the co
26、mer which is behind the head of my bedThe bookcase is crammed with piles of sheets of paper, books，and knickknacks Wedged in between the bookcase and the wall opposite the bed is a small grey metal deskNear the desk stands a brown wooden chair which fills up the left end of the roomStuffed under the
27、 desk is a wastepaper basket overflowing with tom pieces of Paper and refuseThe wall above the bookcase and desk is completely taken up with two small postersOn the right side of the room is a narrow closet with clothes，shoes ，hats，tennis racquets， and boxes bulging out of its sliding doorsEvery tim
28、e 1 walk out of my bedroomI think to myself, Now I know what it is like to live in a closet ”6SubwaysSubways are long，dark，gloomy, sooty tunnels under the groundTrains with many cars clatter on steel tracks through these tunnelsThe automatic doors open noisily, one at each end and another in the mid
29、dle of the carThe trains have bright electric lights and long benches for passengers comfortThere are many colorful posters on the damp metal walls of the trainsSome advertise toothpaste for the family Many posters plead for support for charity organizationsA lot of posters urge subway riders to buy
30、 a special lime-scented deodorant or a particular lemon-oil haft tonicA few posters ask readers to buy this soap or that shoe polishMost of the riders read the postersA few of them read books or newspapersNot many riders talk to their fellow travelers as they burrow through the earth from one end of
31、 the city to another7A Spring MorningIt was early in a morning in springThe sun was just scrambling upward from the eastern horizon and shedding vermilion steaks to penetrate the ambient clouds that were drifting across the skySoon the campus was bathed in the first rays of the sun. Then the lake，th
32、e trees and the bamboos looked as if they were all gildedThe ground was covered with tender grasses and the beaded dewdrops stood on their tips and were ready to reflect the nascent sunshineBirds flew about in the woods，twittering restlesslySome boy students who were absorbed in reading leaned again
33、st trees with buds peeping out from beneath the gray barkA couple of girl students were reading from their English textbooks aloud while walking up and down the gravel path around the lake where a sort of stream rose to form swirls of thin mistIt was really a morning of beauty, vigor and hope8A Plea
34、sant SummerWhat can aptly characterize a pleasant summer should consist of such as bright sunshine，refreshing breeze，and comfortable warmthIn a pleasant summer, when the breeze is soothing，when the blue sky is heartening，and when the white clouds are nurturing your reverie，you cannot refrain from im
35、agining that you are overwhelmed with heavenly blissThe invigorating air and the intoxicating landscape are all what you need to make yourself feel irresistibly fascinated with your own lifeGiven them all，what else do you need to make your life more worth living? None indeed!The beautiful landscape
36、pampers youThe high mountains in the distance，the crystalline brook meandering in your vicinity, the verdure surrounding you，the fragrant flowers nodding to you，the birds circling overhead，the little wild beasts skittering away into wilderness，are all pleasing sights to your mind and the eyesA walk
37、along a pond covered with sweet lilyflowers or teeming with various aquatic growths is also a very good pastimeEven though it is rather warm in daytime，most nights in a pleasant summer can be extremely enjoyable with stars twinkling in the sky and the shining moon cascading a profusion of light onto
38、 treetopsThe soothing breeze caresses your face lovinglyMusical cicadas are singing merrily from the branches of treesWhat else do you want of a summer 1ike this! Nothing else indeed!9A TeaspoonA teaspoon is a utensil for scooping up and carrying small amounts of something. It has two joined parts:
39、a flat, narrow, tapered handle, by which it is held, and a shadow, oval bowl to dip and carry liquid, food or other materials. The handle is about four inches long. It arches slightly upward at the wide end. It curves sharply downward at the narrow end. The shape of the handle allows it to fit easil
40、y in the hand when it is correctly held resting across the third finger and grasped between the thumb and first joint of the fore-finger of the right hand. When the bowl is level the handle points upward at a shallow angle. A spoon is usually made of metal or some other hard-wearing, unbreakable mat
41、erial.Roger H. Garrison, “A Teaspoon” in A Guide to Creative Writing 10The Earliest Coins in ChinaOf the various currencies in ancient China, the round bronze coin with a square hole in the center was by far the most common. The earliest coins in this form, known as Qin ban liang, were a product of
42、Chinas first centralized kingdom, the Qin dynasty, established by Qin Shi Huang in 221 B.C. Before the Qin dynasty, Chinese currency had taken many forms. Coins shaped like various items of clothing, farm implements, or knives were in circulation, but they were costly and hard to produce, and diffic
43、ult to carry and transport. The new coins were a great improvement they were relatively simple to cast and could be strung together for ease of transportation. The new coins also had a particular philosophical significance to the ancient Chinese, who made the coins to symbolize their belief that hea
44、ven was round and the earth as square, and that heaven sheltered the earth and all things in the universe were united. This concept of unity was important to the Qin emperors, who ruled over a unified China and believed their power great enough to spread to the four corners of the earth.The coins also had great aesthetic appeal. They were thought to represent the relationship between man and nature. Commonly found in nature, the circle represents freedom, comfort, and ease; whereas the square is seen as something man-made, a symbol of law, order, and restraint.
