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　　Millions of people need eyeglasses to see clearly but lack the resources to get them．A group called Give the Gift of Sight provides free eye care and glasses in developing countries．This nonprofit organization is based in the United States．The director, Greg Hare, says clear vision(视力)is a basic human right．

　　Give the Gift of Sight has helped poor communities in Central and South America, Africa, Eastern Europe and Asia．This year, the group is planning to visit 13 countries．These include Thailand, Mexico, Cambodia, Romania and Guatemala．About 20, 000 people are expected at each clinic(门诊部)．

　　Eye-care professionals hold clinics for two weeks．Patients receive an eye examination and a used pair of glasses, if needed．

　　Give the Gift of Sight held its first clinic in 1991 in Costa Rica．More than 8, 000 people came．Since then, the group has helped 2.5 million people in 32 developing nations．

　　Give the Gift of Sight uses volunteers．It works with Lions Clubs International and other groups in each country．These partner organizations help collect and repair used eyewear．They also make sure where clinics will be held and prepare for them．The group depends on local Lions Clubs to identify people in need and to transport them to the clinics．

　　Italy's Luxottica Group started Give the Gift of Sight 20 years ago．The company collects used eyewear donated(捐赠)at its stores worldwide．Volunteers clean the glasses．Greg Hare says Give the Gift of Sight hopes to collect more than one million pairs of eyeglasses this year．

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　　When I came back to China, some people asked me why overseas Chinese men seldom marry Western women．Below are several reasons according to my own experience．

　　1．Most overseas Chinese are the first generation(一代)of immigrants(移民)．They usually live in Chinatowns．They have few chances to get along with westerners．So they have almost no chance of marrying Western women．Certainly, the second generation of immigrants is doing a better job．They have more chances to meet Western women, so the chances for them to marry Western women are greater．

　　2．Most overseas Chinese still keep to the old family tradition that it's their parents who decide their marriages．The overseas Chinese who come from mainland China, Taiwan and Hong Kong usually do not know Western culture well．They won't like it if their children marry Western women who speak a different language．

　　3．Those Chinese who have lived in North America for only a short time usually have a limited income(收入)．They have the wrong idea that whites must have a very high income, so Chinese men prefer to make friends with Chinese women who have the same background．

　　4．Whites are usually taller than Chinese．Chinese men generally don't like the women who are bigger than them．What's more, in the Chinese men's mind, Western women are generally quite open．Well, these features are generally not adored by Chinese men．Therefore, while short-term dating with Western women is common, few relationships end up with a marriage．

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　　All around us buildings shook．We decided to leave the town…We stopped once we had left the buildings behind us…The carts(马车)were moving on opposite directions, though the ground was perfectly flat, and they wouldn’t stay in place even with their wheels blocked by stones．

　　In addition, it seemed as though the sea was being sucked(吸)backwards, as if it were being pushed back by the shaking of the land．Certainly the shoreline moved outwards, and many sea animals were left on dry sand．

　　Behind us were frightening dark clouds that opened up to show fire－like lightening, but bigger．．．Not long after that the cloud reached down to the ground and covered the sea．Now came the dust, though still thin．I looked back．A dense cloud appeared behind us, following us like a flood pouring across the land．Then a darkness came that was not like a moonless or cloudy night, but more like being in a closed and unlighted room．You could hear women and children crying, men shouting．Some were calling for parents, others for children； they could only recognize them by their voices．

　　Darkness and ashes came again, a great weight of them．We stood up and shook the ash off again and again, otherwise we would have been covered with it and crushed(压垮)by the weight．

　　At last the cloud became thinner and thinner until it was no more than smoke or fog．Soon there was real daylight．The sight that met our still terrified eyes was a changed world, buried in ash like snow．

－from Pliny’s letter to a friend

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　　Mr．Peter Johnson, aged twenty-three, fought for half an hour to escape from his trapped car yesterday when it landed upside down in three feet of water．Mr．Johnson took the only escape route－through the boot(行李箱)．

　　Mr．Johnson’s car had finished up in a ditch(沟渠)at Romney Marsin, Kent after skidding on ice and hitting a bank．“Fortunately, the water began to come in only slowly, ” Mr．Johnson said．“I couldn’t force the doors because they were jammed against the walls of the ditch and dared not open the windows because I knew water would come flooding in．”

　　Mr．Johnson, a sweet salesman of Sitting Home, Kent, first tried to attract the attention of other motorists by sounding the horn and hammering on the roof and boot．Then he began his struggle to escape．

　　Later he said, “It was really a half penny that saved my life．It was the only coin I had in my pocket and I used it to unscrew the back seat to get into the boot．I hammered desperately with a hammer trying to make someone hear, but no help came．”

　　It took ten minutes to unscrew the seat, and a further five minutes to clear the sweet samples from the boot．Then Mr．Johnson found a wrench and began to work on the boot lock．Fifteen minutes passed by．“It was the only chance I had．Finally it gave, but as soon as I moved the boot lid, the water and mud poured in．I forced the lid down into the mud and scrambled clear as the car filled up．”

　　His hands and arms cut and bruised(擦伤), Mr．Johnson got to Beckett Farm nearby, where he was looked after by the farmer’s wife, Mrs．Lucy Bates．Huddled in a blanket, he said, “That thirty minutes seemed like hours．” Only the tips of the car wheels were visible, police said last night．The vehicle had sunk into two feet of mud at the bottom of the ditch．

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　　“SUPER Girl” winner, Li Yuchun, appears on the cover of the latest edition of Time, issued on October 3, as one of the 25 Asia Heroes of 2005．Six people from China were on the Asia Hero list, including actress Zhang Jingchu who played the heroine in the Silver Bear Award winning movie “Peacock” at this year’s Berlin Film Festival and Taiwan dance artist Lin Hwai-min．

　　The other Asia Heroes are from Japan, India, Thailand, Malaysia and South Korea, including volunteers who helped search for missing people in last year’s tsunami．

　　Time said the 21-year-old Li, a pop singing major at the Sichuan Conservatory of Music, has become a new pop image(形象)for her boyish charm and unconventional(非传统的)personality．Li got more than 3．5 million votes through cell phone text messages at the finals of “Super Girl”, the Chinese version of “American Idol”．

　　According to Time, the influence brought by the “Li Yuchun phenomenon(现象)” goes far beyond her voice in China．Her “attitude, creativity and boy-like characteristics” are challenging the country’s traditional customs．

　　Time said actress Zhang, “with her taste for traditionally inspired dress and her respect for ancient Chinese sayings, ” may be a perfect ambassador(大使)for China．

　　Described by Time as “Asia’s dance genius, ” dancer Lin’s outdoor performance in Taipei could attract more than 60 000．

　　In the past four years, Time has elected Asia Heroes．The listed heroes are considered brave, courageous．They never give in and their spirit can encourage locals．

　　Last year, Athens Olympics champion Liu Xiang and Tan Yuanyuan from China were on the list．

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　　On September 22, 1986, Jay Brunkella, a police-officer in the Rogers Park district in Chicago, was shot during a drug arrest and died．Shortly afterwards, fellow officer Ken Knapcik, a 20-year veteran(老警官)of the force, returned home after work to find a note from his 15-year-old daughter on the dining table．

　　Dad－This poem came directly from my heart．I love you so much!It scares and amazes me that you go out every day and risk everything to provide us with all that we have．I wrote this to express how much I love you and how much lost I’d be without you－Laura．P．S．：Hey, let’s be careful out there．

　　Titled “The Ultimate Cop”, Laura’s poem was dedicated “To all the cops in the world who have daughters who love them with all their hearts．And especially to my dad．” It was about a police-officer’s daughter who sees on the night time news that her father has been shot．Part of poem：“Daddy, my Daddy, can you hear me cry?Oh, God, I need my Daddy, please don’t let him die．”

　　Ken Knapcik stood alone as he read the poem．“It took me several minutes, ” he said．“I’d get through part of it and have to stop before I could go on．I was weeping．She had never told me she was scared．” He took the poem to work the next day and showed it to his fellow officers．“I’ve never seen so many grown men cry．Some couldn’t finish it．”

　　Knapcik keeps Laura’s poem in the pocket of his police jacket．He takes it with him every time he leaves the house for a new shift．“I don’t want to be out there without it．” he said, “I’ll probably carry it with me forever．”

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　　I really love my job because I enjoy working with small children and like the challenges and awards from the job．I also think my work is important．There was a time when I thought I would never have that sort of career．

　　I wasn’t an excellent student because I didn’t do much schoolwork．In my final term I started thinking what I might do and found I didn’t have much to offer．I just accepted that I wasn’t the type to have a career．

　　I then found myself a job, looking after two little girls．It wasn’t too bad at first．But the problems began when I agreed to live in, so that I would be there if my boss had to go out for business in the evening．We agreed that if I had to work extra hours one week, she’d give me time off the next．But unfortunately, it didn’t often work out．I was getting extremely tired and fed up, because I had too many late nights and early mornings with the children．

　　One Sunday, I was in the park with the children, and met Megan who used to go to school with me．I told her about my situation．She suggested that I should do a course and get a qualification(资格证书)if I wanted to work with children．I didn’t think I would be accepted because I didn’t take many exams in school．She persuaded me to phone the local college and they were really helpful．My experience counted for a lot and I got on a part-time course．I had to leave my job with the family, and got work helping out at a kindergarten．

　　Now I’ve got a full-time job there．I shall always be thankful to Megan．I wish I had known earlier that you could have a career, even if you aren’t top of the class at school．

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　　“Time is a problem for children,” states a news report for a new Swiss watch．Children in some countries “learn time slowly” because “they don’t wear watches” and “parents don’t really know how to teach them time”．The children grow up with this handicap and become adults－and then can’t get to work on time．Is there an answer to this problem? Of course－it’s the Flik Flak, made by a famous Swiss watch company．

　　The Flik Flak is being marketed as something teaching watch for children aged 4 to 10．The watch itself does not teach children how to tell time, of course; it merely “takes their imagination” by presenting the “hour” hand as a beautiful red girl named Flak and the “minute” hand as a tall blue boy named Flik．Flik points to related “blue” minutes on the dial, while Flak points to “red” hour numbers．The characters and colors combined with parental help, are supposed to teach young children how to tell time．

　　The watch comes equipped with a standard battery and a nylon band(尼龙表带)．Peter Lipkin, the United States sales manager for the Flik Flak, calls it “childproof：if it gets dirty you can throw the whole watch in the washing machine”．The product is being sold in select department stores in Europe, Asia and the United States for a suggested price of ＄25．Parents who buy the watch may discover that it is one thing to tell time; it’s quite another for them to be on time．

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　　A new plan for getting children to and from school is being started by a local government in Eastern England．This could end the worries of many parents fearful for their children’s safety on the roads．

　　Until now the local government has only been prepared to provide bus services for children living more than three miles from their school, or sometimes less if special reasons existed．Now it has been decided that if a group of parents ask for help in organizing transport they will be prepared to go ahead, as long as the arrangement will not lose money and children taking part will be attending their nearest school．

　　The new plan is to be tried out this term for children living at Milton who attend Impington School．The children live just within the three-mile limit and the local government has said in the past that they will not undertake to provide free transport to the school．But now they have agreed to offer a sum of money for a bus service from Milton to Impington and back, a plan which has the support of the school’s headmaster．

　　Between 50 and 60 parents have said they would like their children to take part．Final calculations have still to be carried out, but a government official has said the cost to parents should be less than ￡20 a term．

　　They have been able to arrange the service at a low cost because there is already an agreement with the bus company for a bus to take children who live further away to Impington．The same bus would now just make one more journey to pick up the Milton children．The official said they would get in touch with other groups of parents who in the past had asked if transport could be provided for their children, to see if they would like to take part in the new plan．