一 Well, it all ________________ the weather.

The second Sunday in May is Mother's Day. American children of all ages give their mothers something special. It is the day children, young and old, try to show their love to mothers, It is the day to celebrate motherhood and to thank her for all small and big things she has done for her children. However, do you know that Mother's Day celebration is not a recent thing?

England was the first country to set a day to mothers. In the United States, Mother's Day became an official holiday in 1914. An American woman, Anna, asked governors to set a festival for mothers for their love. And they set the second Sunday in May as Mother's Day and a year later all the other states celebrated it.

On Mother's Day morning, some American children serve their mothers breakfast in bed. Other children will give their mothers presents which they have made themselves or bought in shops. Adults give their mothers red carnations (康乃馨), the official Mother's Day flowers. If their mothers left the world, they might bring white carnations to their grave sites (基地). This is the busiest day of the year for American restaurants. On the special day, family members do not want mothers to cook dinner!

    Every year, during Chongyang Festival, citizens of China show their respect to the elders in their families and communities. It's a special tradition which is rooted in the deep value that Chinese culture places on honouring their elders.

    Sadly, many of our aging population are seniors without sons, daughters or grandchildren to visit. While they may have great friends, they no doubt miss the tender and loving relationships unique to families. To fill this void(空虚),many volunteers turned up at nursing homes around the country in order to spend time with the residents(居民). In some cases, they performed humble(谦逊的) gestures(表示) of kindness, such as combing their hair or washing their feet.

    While the kind acts were appreciated, one embarrassing story out of Anhui Province raised a valuable question. Reportedly, one old gentleman had his feet washed seven times during the day by different volunteers. Is this genuinely(真诚地) caring for the elderly? Many of the residents at the nursing home said that those gestures do not make them feel cared for at all. Their family members or community volunteers may drop by for a few hours of token(象征性) time, but soon they disappear back into their busy lives.

    There is nothing we can give that is more valuable or appreciated than our time. While you may feel like there is barely enough time to care for your many responsibilities, might it be possible to spare just a moment as you walk home from school to sit with a senior who lives in your community? Just five minutes is not going to prevent you from getting your homework done, but it may totally change a day of loneliness into a day of joy for one old man or woman. Do you live far from your grandparents? Why not pick up the phone and let them know you're thinking of them? Or maybe you could remind them of the "good old days" and mail them a short letter. Imagine their surprise and joy!

    We live in a complicated(复杂的) and busy world, but kindness and caring is still a very simple thing.

    The Mid-Autumn Festival is a very important Chinese festival. It falls on the 15th day of the eighth month of lunar calendar. A few days before the festival, everyone in the family will help to make the house clean and beautiful. Lanterns will be hung in front of the house.

    On the evening of the festival there will be a big family dinner. People who work far away from their homes will try to come back for the reunion (团聚). After dinner, people will light the lanterns which are usually bright and round. Children will play with their own toy lanterns happily.

    At night the moon is usually round and bright. People can enjoy the moon while eating mooncakes which are the special food for this festival.

Father's Day is celebrated on the third Sunday of June in the US and the UK. Sonora Smart Dodd, a loving daughter from Spokane, had the good idea that society must celebrate a day to honour fathers, because they make important contributions to the raising of children.

    People celebrate the festival by honouring their fathers and expressing love to them by giving popular gifts like cards, flowers, chocolate and ties. Little children often give handmade gifts to their dads.

    There are many different kinds of festivals around the world. Here are four of them.

    Saint Patrick's Day in Ireland

    Ireland is an island country. It's in the west of Europe, There are wide green fields.

    Saint Patrick's Day is on 17th March. It's an important holiday in Ireland. This holiday is to remember Saint Patrick. He did good things for the people of Ireland.

    During the holiday, there are parades and lots of green. You can see people in green clothes, and you can even see green buildings.

    Red Wednesday in Iran

    Red Wednesday is a fire jumping festival in Iran. It is on the eve(前夜) of the last Wednesday of the year. People jump over the fire. They hope that it will take all the bad things away.

    Quebec Winter Carnival in Canada

    When winter comes, it's party time in Quebec City, Canada. The Quebec Winter Carnival is all about outdoor fun. It starts from the end of January and ends in mid February.

    One of the most popular activities is the dog sledding race(狗拉雪橇比赛). It has more than 30 teams and the race goes on for 6 kilometres. You can see happiness on every face.

    The Desert(沙漠) Festival in Tunisia

    Tunisia is a very important country in North Africa. Every year on the last Sunday of December, the Desert Festival is held in Tunisia. As "Ships of the Desert", camels are very important in the festival. There is camel racing and camel wrestling(摔跤).

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