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　　Sam Trafton was my violin teacher and what he said during one of my lessons often came back to me years later．

　　One day he asked me how much I practiced, I said three or four hours a day．

　　“Do you practice in long stretches, an hour at a time?’’

　　“I try to．’’

　　“Well, don’t,’’ he shouted．“When you grow up, time won’t come in long stretches．Practice in minutes, whenever you can find them five or ten before school, after lunch, between household tasks．Spread the practice through the day．’’

　　When I was teaching at Boston, I wanted to write a novel, but for two years I got practically nothing down on paper, and my excuse was that I had no time．Then I remembered what Sam had said．During the next week I did an experiment．Whenever I had five minutes unoccupied, I sat down and wrote a hundred words or so．To my surprise, at the end of the week I had finished a chapter．Later on I continued my novels by the same piecemeal method．Though my teaching schedule had become heavier than ever, every day there were unoccupied moments that could be caught and put to use．

　　However, you must get into your work quickly．If you have only five minutes for writing, you can’t afford to waste four chewing your pencil．You must make your mental preparations beforehand, and concentrate on your task almost instantly when the time comes．Fortunately, rapid concentration is easier than most of us realize Sam Trafton has had a great influence on my life．He let me know that life can be counted on to supply you short moments and even every short periods of time can add up to all useful hours you need, if you start without delay．

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　　Boys need friends, suffer when they don’t believe they have any, and worry over the ups and downs of relationships．Many adults believe that somehow boys need friends less than girls do, in truth, though, no boy is an island; boys value their friends throughout childhood and adolescence and are happier and healthier when they have solid relationships with peers．

　　Despite the common belief that girls are better at relationships, most boys consider their friends a very important part of their lives and boys may actually be better at keeping friendships than girls are．A recent study of 10 to 15-year-old boys and girls found that girls’ friendships are actually more fragile(脆弱)．Girls tend to say and do hurtful things to each other more frequently than boys, and girls are more hurt by the end of a friendship．

　　Boys are the living definition of the phrase “peer group”; they love games with rules, competition, and doing things together．Boys seem to enjoy, even need the opportunity to test themselves against others, and many lasting friendships begin in karate(空手道)class or on the basketball court．Competence and skill are widely respected; being picked last for a team or left out altogether is an experience that can haunt(萦绕心头)a boy for years．

　　As boys mature(成熟), the friendship becomes even more important, and it frequently widens to include girls．During the teen years, friends can become the most important part of a boy’s life － and a part in which his parents are not included．The confusion of being a teenager leads boys to form close bonds with friends．There is the sense for many boys that a friend is someone who is “always there for me”, someone he can trust．They may be partners in crime or partners in study, but the friendship of adolescent boys can run surprisingly deep．

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Dear Editor,

　　Brockingham is run by people who are more interested in tourists than its residents．The problem is that the people running the government refuse to accept new ideas．By banning(禁止)all fast-food restaurants and discount stores, they take away all the places kids can afford to shop．

　　These people forget that when they were young, they could go to the South Street Soda Fountain and get an ice-cream soda for 25 cents．Today you can’t find an ice-cream soda anywhere in Brockingham for less than ＄2! Where can kids go for a snack?

　　There is not a single restaurant in Brockingham where a family of four can eat dinner for less than ＄100．Add a 15％ tip and sales tax and you have spent nearly ＄125 to eat a meal you could prepare at home for about ＄12．Have you noticed that Brockingham families never dine in Brockingham?

　　Fast-food restaurants are also a good place for school kids to get an after-school job．Fast-food restaurants are busiest during the early supper hours when students are able to work, whereas the fancy food restaurants cater to late-night diners．Working in one of these establishments requires working shifts that are too late for most students．

　　The City Council claims that local businessmen, rather than national chains, should benefit from the tourist business．I agree that it is important to support local businesses, but I think the fast-food restaurants would encourage more people to shop in Brockingham．

　　Another thing that disturbs me is that we must travel 25 miles to the nearest discount store．If I need a tire for my bike, I have a choice of buying one at Surf and Peddle Sport Shop for ＄15 or driving to Parkersburg Discount Center where I can buy the same kind of tire for ＄9．Again, I think the ban on all food chains and discount houses is counterproductive for our city．

　　Wes Woodrow 9th-Grade Student at Brockingham High School

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　　Anyone who reads a book and then goes to see a movie based on that book generally leaves the movie feeling a little disappointed．Why might this be? Both books and movies serve the purpose of entertainment．Both books and movies offer characters and plots．And, both books and movies provide a setting for a story．Books, however, offer a more attractive and complex form of entertainment than movies．

　　Although movies are entertaining to watch, books have advantages over them．First, books, in comparison to movies, can more easily seize the depths of characters and create a complex setting through the use of rich description．Books leave it up to the reader to interpret, imagine, and recreate the story in his or her own mind．However, movies are action－packed and provide lots of visual stimuli(视觉刺激);still, it is the movie not the viewer that interprets the characters, plot and setting．Second, books are not limited to time．A writer can write as much or as little as necessary in order to create and tell a story．Movies, on the other hand, are limited to an hour and a half to two hours of entertaining time before the audience begins to get restless．Last, reading is an intellectual form of entertainment．Readers can improve their level of reading and vocabulary in a harmless, healthy, and pleasurable way．Movies, on the other hand, are not as complex and entertaining as books, and they leave nothing to interpret．Therefore, the advantages and entertainment value of books outweigh(胜过)those of a movie．

　　To conclude, books, through interpretation, help the reader develop a sense of relationship to the characters and the story itself, but a movie strictly entertains．Books are a better form of entertainment than movies．

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　　My grandfather worked as a carpenter．On this particular day, he was building some crates(木箱)for the clothes his church was sending to an orphanage(孤儿院)in Brazil．On his way home, he found his glasses were gone．When he mentally replayed his earlier actions, he realized what happened．The glasses had slipped out of his pocket and fallen into one of the crates．His new glasses were heading for Brazil!

　　The Great Depression was at its height, and Grandpa had six children．He had spent twenty dollars for those glasses that very morning．

　　“It’s not fair,” he thought as he walked home angrily．“I’ve been very faithful in giving my time and money to my work, and now this．”

　　Several months later, the director of the orphanage came to the United States．He wanted to visit all the churches that supported him, so he came to my grandfather’s small church in Chicago．

　　He began by thanking the people for their kindness in supporting the orphanage．“But most of all, he said,” I must thank you for the glasses you sent last year．You see, some people had just come to the orphanage, destroying everything, including my glasses．I was desperate．Even if I had the money, there was simply no way of replacing those glasses．Along with not being able to see well, I experienced headaches every day, so my coworkers and I were very worried about this．Then your crates arrived．When I removed the covers, I found a pair of glasses lying on top．”

　　He paused long enough to let his words sink in．Then, he continued：“When I tried on the glasses, it was as though they had been made just for me! I want to thank you for being a part of that!”

　　The people listened, happy for the miraculous glasses．But they thought it was strange because there were no glasses on their list of items to be sent overseas．

　　Sitting quietly in the back, with tears streaming down his face, my grandfather, an ordinary carpenter realized his glasses had found a good place to go．

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　　Grasslands need time to rest when cattle and other animals feed on them．Moving animals from one area of pasture(牧场)to another can provide the time needed for new growth．This is called rotational grazing．(循环放牧)

　　Rotational grazing is good for the land and the animals, and it can save money．This form of grazing can reduce the need for pesticide(农药)treatments by reducing the growth of weeds．And it can limit the need for chemical fertilizers by letting animal wastes do the job of natural fertilizer．Rotational grazing can even help prevent wildfires by keeping grasslands in good condition．

　　Letting animals feed continually and intensively(集中地)in the same grazing areas can require costly replanting．Animals eat the most desirable growth first．When that keeps happening, the roots do not have enough time to recover．As a result, less desirable plants may replace them．Intensively used grasslands are also harmed as the soil is continually crushed under the weight of heavy animals．

　　While rotational grazing can save money over time, it also requires planning．And that starts with a good map to mark fences, water supplies and grazing areas．

　　Changing methods of grazing also requires time．Farmers may want to put up electric fences to enclose(圈起)grazing areas, called paddocks．The paddocks will need water．Some farmers design a path for animals from different paddocks to drink from a common watering place．

　　Farmers can start rotational grazing by removing animals from a pasture when the grass is eaten to less that five centimeters．The pasture is then kept empty until the grass grows to more than fifteen centimeters high．

　　Sheep and goats may require special preparations．They may need stronger fences than other animals．And while they eat the grass, they may need guard animals to protect them from animals that would like to eat them．

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　　Rahfeal Gordon has come a long way from the homeless shelters and streets of Newark, New Jersey．The 25-year-old was honored this year by the National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship for his work－giving motivational speeches to youth groups．

　　Rahfeal Gordon tells his audience, "If nobody ever says that you're brilliant, say it to yourself every day．Look yourself in the mirror：if you have survived something, I don't care how small, how big, you’ve survived it," he said．

　　Rahfeal Gordon 's speech is simple：He tells the story of his own life in three chapters．Each begins with a hip hop lyric(歌词)that he knows will be meaningful to a young audience．

　　Gordon says he uses positive hip hop lyrics to encourage youths, especially those who grew in poverty and abuse, as he did．His talk is called "Hip Hop Saved My Life"．

　　“When I had my very dark moments in life, I would put on certain songs, whether it is from Jay-Z, Tupac, Kanye West," Gordon said．"They kept me going through the hard times．They fulfilled a certain void(空白)that I couldn't fulfill, like not having a father or mother there, so I felt they could relate because they would tell these stories．"

　　Gordon says his childhood was happy until his father became addicted to drugs and began to beat his three brothers and mother．They left to live on the streets and in homeless shelters．Gordon says he tries now to be a voice for others, including a brother who was murdered at the age of 19．

　　“When I lost my brother, that was, really, a moment when things really started to take off, in the sense of saying, ‘I really, really want to be that individual to help people, to help individuals,’ ”Gordon said．“I can't be Superman．I can't save the world, but I think that if I can help an individual, I am saving the world．”

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　　Even before historian Joseph Ellis became a best-selling author, he was famous for his vivid lectures．In his popular courses at Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts, he would often make classroom discussion lively by describing his own fighting experience in Vietnam．But as Ellis's reputation grew--his books on the Founding Fathers won both the National Book Award and the Pulitzer Prize ---the history professor began to entertain local and national reporters with his memories of war．Last year, after The Boston Globe reported Ellis's experience in the Vietnam war, someone who knew the truth about Ellis dropped a dime．Last week The Boston Globe revealed that Ellis, famous for explaining the nation's history, had some explaining to do about his own past．

　　“Even in the best of lives, mistakes are made," said Ellis．It turned out that while the historian had served in the Army, he'd spent his war years not in the jungles of Southeast Asia, but teaching history at West Point(西点军校)．He'd also overstated his role in the antiwar movement and even his high-school athletic records．His admission shocked colleagues, fellow historians and students who wondered why someone so successful would beautify his past．But it seems that success and truthfulness don’t always go hand in hand．Even among the successful achievers, security experts say, one in ten is deceiving．And, oddly, people often beautify their past once they're famous, says Ernest Brod of Kroll Associates, which has conducted thousands of background checks．

　　Then what makes them do it? Psychologists say some people succeed, at least in part, because they are uniquely adjusted to the expectations of others．And no matter how well-known, those people can be haunted(长期不断的缠绕)by a sense of their own shortcomings．"From outside, these people look anything but fragile," says Dennis Shulman, a psychoanalyst．"But inside, they feel hollow, empty,”

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　　Opposition is growing to the Berlin Zoo’s plans to find a new home for Knut, the moneymaking celebrity polar bear whose popularity has been exploited by environmentalists and even Canadian tourism promoters．

　　No longer cute, and just days before his second birthday, Knut will be given a new home that is expected to include a potential mating partner．

　　The Berlin Zoo, facing the global economic crisis, can’t afford the estimated ＄ 13 million it would take to acquire a female and a new home for them to share．“It’s time for him to go－the sooner he gets a new home the better,” said senior bear keeper Heiner Kloes．

　　But some Berliners are beginning a campaign, collecting petition(情愿书)signatures and arguing that he’s a tourist draw and a symbol as important as the Brandenburg Gate．“He means a lot to many people．When you’re with him you forget your problems,” Hartmut Wiedenroth, co-founder of the campaign, told Spiegel Online．

　　Knut became an international celebrity in 2007, drawing huge crowds to his cage and triggering sales of thousands of Knut toys and Knut-shaped candies．

　　The Vancouver-based Canadian Tourism Commission made Knut a major part of its “Canada－Keep Exploring” campaign to draw tourists to the country－and especially to polar bear country in northern Manitoba to see them in their natural habitat．Environmentalists also used the bear to promote the fight against global warming．

　　But Knut’s popularity diminished as his size increased to 210 kilograms, He was photographed at one point snapping(咬)at a child near his cage．In September his keeper, Thomas Doerflein, died of a heart attack．Doerflein, who became a celebrity himself after nursing the tiny ball of white fur when Knut’s mother rejected him, had been re-assigned shortly after Knut’s first birthday．Some animal rights critics said Knut has been showing unusually aggressive behavior because of his unnatural upbringing．

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　　A serious problem for today's society is who should be responsible for our elderly and how to improve their lives．It is not only a financial problem but also a question of the system we want for our society．I would like to suggest several possible solutions to this problem．

　　First, employers should take the responsibility for their retired employees．To make this possible, a percentage of profits should be set aside for this purpose．But when a company must take life-long responsibility for its employees, it may suffer from a commercial disadvantage due to higher employee costs．

　　Another way of solving the problem is to return the responsibility to the individual．This means each person must save during his working years to pay for his years of retirement．This does not seem a very fair model since some people have enough trouble paying for their daily life without trying to earn extra to cover their retirement years．This means the government might have to step in to care for the poor．

　　In addition, the government could take responsibility for the care of the elderly．This could be financed through government taxes to increase the level of pensions(养老金)．Furthermore, some in-situations should be created for senior citizens, which can help provide a comfortable life for them．Unfortunately, as the present situation in our country shows, this is not a truly viable answer．The government can seldom afford to care for the elderly, particularly when it is busy trying to care for the young．

　　One further solution is that the government or social organizations establish some working places especially for the elderly where they are independent．

　　To sum up, all these options(选择)have advantages and disadvantages．Therefore, it is reasonable to expect that some combination of these options may be needed to provide the care we hope to give to our elderly generations．