He The Great Wall.

We haven't kept in touch with each other since we last time.

    I have had the pleasure of meeting a few neighbors . They seem to be quite kind people . For Christmas , I thought I would do something nice for each of the neighbors that I knew . I sat down and counted . There were nine neighbors , and I also knew which houses they lived 1 .

    However , I decided to add one more person to my list , the lady I met every morning walking to work when I drove down the street . She always gave me a sweet smile and a friendly wave（挥手）, 2 I had no idea about her address .

    My gift idea was to make small 3 baskets and leave them on each of my neighbor's front porches（门廊）the night of Christmas Eve . I kept the last one for the friendly lady because I was still not sure about where she lived . It was 4 the house down about where I met her each morning . Finally I decided to put it there . My neighbors really enjoyed the baskets and a couple even came by to thank me .

    This morning I got a Thank you card.

    The card said , “ Thank you for those lovely apples and strawberries you left on the porch of Thomas . He 5 on January 19 , but he never stopped 6 about how nice it was that he was remembered in his time of illness . He really enjoyed it . ”

    I was very 7 . Why he sent a card to me ? I had no idea 8 Thomas was or that he had been seriously ill . I had left that nice lady's basket on Thomas' porch by accident . I believe Thomas never expected to have that basket . I feel sorry that the nice lady didn't get a basket from me , but I believe if she knew what had happened , she would 9 me .

    I feel lucky to have helped Thomas be more cheerful in his last days . This just makes me further believe that sometimes 10 in life are beautiful .

—OK, _______ I prefer to have a rest.

Dear Wang Tao,

    I'm so glad to read about the changes taking place in your city. I am happy that you can travel by subway in Chongqing, though there are only six lines there. Here is London we have twelve lines.

    The London Underground is very famous. It's famous for several reasons. Firstly, part of the underground railway today is the oldest in the world. It opened in 1863. Secondly, the London Underground is also the first line to have electric（电动的）trains in 1890. Thirdly, the London Underground is the second largest metro（地下铁道）system in the world, after the Shanghai Metro. There are 270 stations in the Underground and it has 402 kilometers of tracks (轨道). What's more, the city of London itself helps make the transportation（交通）system famous! I've got a few photos to help you build a clear picture of the Underground in my city. They are together with this mail.

    In your e-mail, you also said workers were building more lines. I'm sure your city is developing fast. Maybe you can send me a few photos of your city today. I really want to see the changes taking place there. I'm happy for you to live in an ancient city with such a new look!

    So much for now. I'll write soon again. Best wishes!

Yours,John

they shut the door?

    What do you think Americans in the early twentieth century (1900~1927) did on weekends？ What do they do on weekends now?

Life today moves faster than ever before. Thanks to technology(技术), the speed of life has increased(增加) over the past century. Time-saving inventions, like e-mail and ATMs, have made daily tasks more efficient (有效率的). People today need speed. A recent CNN survey shows that sixty percent of Americans said they won't wait longer than 15 minutes for food or services. A restaurant in Japan even asks customers to pay by time spent at table, not by what they eat!

    Unfortunately, studies show that life's hurried  pace produces stress and leads to health problems. An online survey at sina.com showed that 56 % of people in China usually feel short of time. They are always busy and feel nervous all the time. Maybe people need to take time to slow down and smell the roses.

    However, whether you enjoy speed or prefer a slower pace, it's easy to be amazed(大为惊奇) at how fast life moves. And with tomorrow's technology, it will likely get even faster.