I love to study art history and develop my skill at creating art. But I work full-time as a recovery doctor, so I have the chance to use art as expression and healing. For almost six years, I have been rolling my "Art Cart" that I built down the hails; of the hospital, where I make the young patients who are receiving terrible medical treatment create art.
On these visits, I bring my art part filled with everything from colored pencils to markers and more. I want to act as an "Artist Buddy" to bring kids some relief while they are waiting for or receiving treatment.
When I began doing this, at first the parents were a bit leery and showed little interest in it. But now they are excited to see the benefits of art expression and the way it lifts the children^ spirits. It gives them a sense of achievement and self-control, and helps lift their souls in their situation. And time after time, the parents themselves create art which gives them relief from the stresses of seeing their children in a most difficult situation. Besides, I just love being there. This work keeps me gratefully balanced and has a great effect on my mood.
This is a great chance that allows me to go down there and be a car of those kids' treatment. And I get to know these kids because they are there very often. The children's eyes light up when they see me and the art cart. A six-year-old boy was receiving treatment for his leukemia and we were immersed in some art activity. His mother was present and nearby. After a while, this young boy looked at his mother with excitement and said, "Mom, I promise I am going to try not to play video games too much. And I'd like to do more art. Art makes my head feel better."
Do you remember playing stickball or jumping rope in the street? Neighborhood streets used to be children playgrounds, but traffic was the problem. Now one organization wants to bring those back to kids by temporarily closing local streets to traffic and letting kids play outside.
Playing is important but community buildings end the fun. So here came Play Streets. It began in Bristol in 2009 with just one street Encouraged by the success, the idea grew. It really took off in 2011 with support from The Funding Network and now thousands of people across the UK are taking part in the activity and playing in the streets. Later, Play Streets became a global movement and moved across the pond to US communities in San Francisco, Chicago and Seattle. Now Play Streets is spreading like wildfire.
"Our society has changed and communities are having higher levels of isolation than ever before and kids aren't playing outside as much either. But Play Streets gives people a place to have street meetings and parties, or simply a place to play for a few hours," Valli Morphett, the chief executive of CoDesign Studios said.
You can bring Play Streets to your street in your neighborhood too. Get a group of neighbors together to organize activities and you can even ask local schools to help plan your activities. But you just can't put up a sign and close your street to traffic. Before you start, you should consider the following question to make sure Play Streets will go well. Is the local government supportive? You should handle the necessary paperwork with the local government so that rules are followed. The local government is normally receptive to the activity and likely to make it easy to close the street. Once the permit has been approved, ifs time for fun. Gather a kit of toys and supplies, get the word out, and get each organizer to take on a role to share the load.
Have you ever taken a taxi? In the past, doing so meant finding one, flagging it down and telling the driver where you wanted to go, paying, and possibly, adding a tip. And while this still happens, it is less common than it used to be. These days, it is much easier to open a ride-hailing (打车) app. All of the boring stuff gets taken care of. It is a perfect solution!
Except that it isn't. A recent report from urban transport consultant Bruce Schaller, who spent the last four years studying traffic flow in New York, concluded that the use of these app-based journeys is causing traffic jams. The 81% increase in these city-based rides means that there are now five times more of them than the iconic yellow taxicab. "It's the shift in passage from public transports, he told the BBC. "That means moving people from larger vehicles into smaller ones, which means more vehicles to move the same people. Therefore, more traffic."
"They are out there in force at the worst possible times, n said Prof Christo Wilson, a computer scientist at Northeastern University, who has also studied the services. He referred to Uber's traffic data, which perfectly match the peaks for the rush hour. He also added that the low fares and convenience mean that people are ordering rides to go from A to B when they wouldn't normally. Both help contribute to the congestion (拥堵).
So what can be done to stop traffic from backing up or bottlenecking? One solution involves combining ride-hailing with sharing. Many ride-hailing companies, such as Uber and Didi Chuxing, enable customers to carpool. This allows travelers who share similar destinations to share the journey. The app enables drivers to pick up passengers halfway, which means more streamlined traffic, and less time spent with an empty vehicle.
Could this decongest the world's jam-packed roads? It is certainly one solution. But maybe we shouldn't be so quick to dismiss the more traditional public transport options. "Congestion is a really complicated issued said Adrew Salzberg, from Uber. "There is no more efficient way to move people around than public transport," he added. So don't do away with that bus pass just yet.
How would you feel if you were sharing a personal story and noticed that your friend wasn't really listening? You probably wouldn't be too excited. Without active listening, people often feel unheard and unacknowledged.
Listen without making judgements. Most people tend to judge others during conversations. If you let your opinions come into play, they may ruin the conversation. However, if you enter a discussion with the goal of understanding someone else's opinion, they will want to have deeper discussions with you.
Physically showing that you're listening doesn't come naturally for everybody. But if someone is ready to open up to you, and you sit back with your arms crossed without saying a word, they're not going to say much. To encourage someone to keep talking, focus on the speaker by turning your head and body to face them and by making eye contact.
Ask questions. Asking questions is one of the best ways to show you're interested. If someone is telling you about their ski trip，don't respond with "That's nice." Instead, you can ask, "How long have you been skiing?" or "What was your favorite part of the trip?" The person will think highly of you because you have asked a few questions.
Think before responding. After the speaker has finished talking, a good listener may take some time before responding. Simply take a few seconds to think or say, "Give me a second to think about that." Doing so either makes the speaker first feel you're listening to what they're saying. In this way, it will make the speaker feel comfortable as they see you processing what they've said.
A. Use positive body language.
B. Pay attention to the speaker's judgement
C. That would show a lack of interest and disrespect.
D. Give the speaker a chance to correct your understanding.
E. But judging isn't helpful when you're having a conversation.
F. Then they will know you want to be thoughtful in your response.
G. That's why it's important for everyone to learn how to be a better listener.
I should go to university on a scholarship because I came from a low-income family. However, a last-minute £100-a-year pay1for my Mom pushed my family over the threshold (门揽）for what was defined "low-income". I was suddenly no longer 2a scholarship of £15,000 a year.
I wouldn't receive any 3support from my family, as all the income went towards paying their own bills. It would be 4, but because I had some savings, I decided to go to university anyway. After paying my 5, I could only spend £10.20 a week on everything else including food and school supplies.
One day, I headed for a coffee shop to get a cup of coffee 6I shopped for my food. While paying, I 7a £20 note and a handful of change, and realized I could pay without breaking into the note, so I put it back into my pocket. It wasn't until I was at the supermarket that I realized the note was 8. As it was the equivalent of two weeks' expenses, I was 9.
As my last 10, I called the coffee shop to ask if they saw it, saying I knew it was 11, but I wanted to ask if it was 12by someone because money was tight for me. The cashier said. We were lucky to have found 13!" She handed me a shiny new note. But mine was 14with repeated fold marks. I told her, "This isn't mine; my note was an old worn one." She continued, "We have given yours to somebody else for change. Just take this one."
At her 15I left with the money. It wasn't until later that I realized they were 16trying to help out a student who was 17with the coffee shop's own money. Now I've graduated and 18a good job. The cost of coffee no longer 19me. I go to the coffee shop regularly—I'm definitely a 20for life.
There's no doubt that dogs are insightful and sensitive beings，with the ability to sense emotions and read humans' facial expressions. The American Kennel Club (AKC) says dogs combine hearing and sight(correspond) happy and angry faces with happy and angry sounds. Researchers have found that dogs can distinguish the positive sound of laughing the negative sound of crying. The dogs were found to be more upset and stimulated by the negative sounds than positive ones. 2018 study published in Scientific Report, a peer-reviewed online journal published by Nature Research, (show) that dogs use the right side of their brain for processing negative emotions and the left side for positive ones.
Speaking to Newsweek, AKC's officer. Dr. Jerry Klein, explained dogs can certainly become (depress) and anxious. There have been reports of dogs (experience) depression and loneliness following the (lose) of an owner or a "fellow member" of their pack, as well as a change from (they) normal routine. "But whether dogs get 'sad' is less certain," Klein told Newsweek. Klein said from a (strict) scientific standpoint, there isn't strong evidence that dogs feel people would classify as sadness. "Dogs live more in the moment and don't have the ‘self-consciousness' to inwardly think like people do."
Frey grabbed his bat and glove, and raced out of the door towards the Jack's. Summer vacation just began. The boys planned to play baseball every day, so they could make the team in the following semester.
Jack was waiting outside for Frey. "What are you doing? Where's your stuff?" Frey asked, lifting his bat onto his shoulder. Jack shook his head, "I have to clean Mr. Willow's garage before I can go. With his broken arm, he can't do it himself. My mom always volunteers me to help the Willow's. She thinks they're kind of old and can't afford to hire a cleaner."
To get the work done earlier, Frey offered to help. The boys went down the block to the Willow's and got started. They found a couple of brooms. Before they swept, they put boxes scattered around the garage floor on shelves. As Jack put a big box on a shelf, it fell off and with it fell an envelope. He picked it up. It wasn't sealed, so he opened it. Out of his surprise, there were several one hundred dollar bills inside.
"You've got to see this." He pulled out the bills and showed Frey, "It just fell down when the box fell. There's got to be several hundred dollars here." Jack looked past Frey to the garage door and continued, "Nobody's here. If we take some, I bet no one will ever know." Before his voice died away, Jack had already drawn out one bill and stuffed it into his pocket.
Frey frowned and shook his head. "Are you crazy? That's stealing." Jack ignored him and protested, "Well, I do a lot of chores for them and don't get paid. It's not really stealing. It's kind of payment for my hard work. And one hundred will do for a bat and glove in Igo's Sports Store". With this, Jack put the rest money back.
Frey was about to grab the money from Jack's pocket when they heard a voice, "Hello, boys. Come in for a chocolate cake! Mrs. Willow made one for you." Mr. Willow walked into the garage.
注意：
1）所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2）至少使用5个短文中标有下划线的关键词语；
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4）续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。
Paragraph 1
At the sight of Mr. Willow, Jack and Frey froze in shock.
Paragraph 2
When they were about to leave, Mr. Willow handed Jack a brand new bat and glove.
