Bonnie's Miracle

    My sister Bonnie and her husband Bob owned their own flower shop.But flowers were becoming1at more and more local stores and through the Internet2their business was not as good as it had been three years earlier when they3it.For about a year,Bonnie and Bob discussed4they should do.They debated selling.They talked about5it into a gift shop or maybe a bookstore.But there just wasn't enough6or people around the area to7the business.

    Feeling helpless,Bonnie began8praying and asking God for answers.She9"God,give me a sign telling us what You want us to do.Call me on the10she said,"and show me what to do."

    Soon the phone rang.A young woman was asking how much they wanted for the11.My husband and I never take the road beside12shop,"she said,"but we were driving by yesterday and saw the 'For Sale' sign in the13.

    Puzzled,Bonnie replied,"There isn't a sign in the window.My husband and I have been discussing whether or not we should sell,but haven't reached a14"But I saw the sign!"the young lady15insisted."My husband saw it too.It was blue and white in the16picture window17the road.

    It18that the sign was the reflection（反射）of a house's poster put up19to the window on the other side of the road.Anyhow,within two weeks,the young lady and her husband20the flower shop at a handsome price.

    Those who are in love really know each other's thoughts and can see into one another's ice cream bowl.This truth became so clear to me the other day.

    At about 11:00 a.m.,my husband Gary called from work to see what was up at home."Oh nothing,"I said,"just having a little early lunch."Then he said,"So how's the coffee ice cream I bought?"I could almost "hear" him smiling.

    "What?"I was stunned.How in the world did he know I was eating ice cream?I never eat the ice cream, especially in the morning.Besides,he knows that I had been trying to diet again.However,I could hardly hide the laughter in my voice as I calmly asked,"Why would you think I'm eating coffee ice cream?"

    Gary said,"Uh...first,you said 'Just having a little early lunch' in a guilty,high voice.Second,your tongue must be rather cold because your words were a bit slow."What he said made me laugh out loud."The other thing is,I noticed you left some coffee ice cream untouched last night.That was like me hiding some cigarettes in the corner to enjoy later."

    We laughed long and hard together before he asked me gently,"What happened?Er...something must have happened to make you eat ice cream before lunch."

    Suddenly,I felt a rush of love for the man on the other end of the line.He knew me well-cared enough to find out what was bothering me,and trusted me enough to help me laugh at myself.

    The winner of the Art Fund Museum of the Year will be announced on 5 July.Art Fund director Stephen Deuchar said,"All the finalists have had a remarkable year,reaching—in a range of ways—new heights in their efforts to serve and inspire their visitors."The￡100,000 award is being competed for by the following museums:

 The Lapworth Museum of Geology

    This museum,operated by the University of Birmingham,re-opened last June after a￡2.7m redevelopment that was designed to restore it to its 1920s grandeur（宏伟）and create three new galleries.

    It holds 250,000 specimens,ranging from dinosaur skeletons to volcanic rocks.
The National Heritage Centre for Horseracing and Sporting Art

    Officially opened by the Queen in November,this complex is home to the National Horseracing Museum,the Fred Packard Museum and Galleries of British Sporting Art,and a yard for the Retraining of Race horses charity.

    It is also home to two of the Queen's former race horses and a virtual Clare Balding.

 Sir John Soane's Museum

    Housed in the former home of 19th Century architect Sir John Soane,this gallery and museum has completed a￡7m restoration intended to open up "lost" areas and return it to how it looked when he died and left it to the nation in 1837.

    That includes creating 33 percent more space and putting 10 percent more objects on display.

Tate Modern

    Eighteen years after it opened on London's South Bank,Tate Modern had a record 5.8 million visitors in 2017. That was partly down to the opening of a 10-storey extension,the Switch House,and exhibitions of photographs owned by Sir Elton John and art work by Georgia O'Keeffe.

    Ever since I was a kid I had a 6 second rule.That means that if I had something I needed to do but didn't want to, I'd count till 6 and do it anyway.My personal rule was to just never ever break that rule,that at 6,I HAD to get it going.Most of the time I'd use it to get out of bed or get out of the bath.Sometimes I'd also use it to restrict my time playing "ok in 6 seconds I'll stop playing with my dolls."

    As I grew older,I'd use it as a motivation to get it going with my homework,get off messenger,etc.It really worked well,the same rule applied;whatever happens,don't cheat the "rule of 6." Most of the time,I wouldn't even have to count till 6 because I knew it would just mean I have to do it,so I'd just do it anyway.As an adult,I've pretty much conditioned myself to do things by the rule of 6.I've pretty much mastered most usual things in my life but the rule of 6 never fails me when I start something new.Exercising,running,getting cooking,starting reading,it just works for me.

    At the time,when I was 6,6 was my favorite number.So just go ahead and pick a number from 1-10 (although Id suggest 3-10) and try it.The important thing is not just to let yourself down.Like any other trick,it only works if you allow it to.

    What would work be like if you had no boss?Imagine you could make all your own decisions and no one told you what to do.

    A Swedish software company,Crisp,decided to get rid of their CEO.First,they needed to find out what a CEO actually did.Then they shared those duties among staff and board members,which is exactly what they did.And the employees believes it's been a good change.An employee named Heinrik Kniberg says the company can now act faster,"If you want to get something done,you stand up and start driving that.Workers are also more active and satisfied."And any big decisions are made during the all-member meetings several times a year.

    So,if it's working well for Crisp,could this model become more widespread? Online retailer（零售商）Zappos tried out a similar plan but had unpleasant results.Almost a fifth of its staff decided to leave,and CEO Tony Hsieh admitted that "self-management is not for everyone".Mr Houston,founder of file-sharing service Drew Dropbox,says that total freedom doesn't always feel good,because you no longer know what you're supposed to do,what is important and you're bumping up against other people."

    Would you like to work somewhere with no boss?

                                                    5 Ways to Get Work Done

    As the day draws to a close,are you having trouble finishing your work? You don't need to end up with a sense of failure.In the hours left,the following ways can help you get things done to have a sense of achievement.

⒈Trick yourself.

          So,try this: add something to your to-do-list that takes only 30 seconds to finish.Feeling a bit inspired? Then use as short a deadline to deal with another.Or focus on something by giving yourself only five minutes,and then work as long as you can.

⒉Take lots of breaks.

    Find yourself checking your cellphone or reading the Internet?      Have some breaks,and you'll be able to face your work again with delight.

⒊Use rewards.

    One-hundred more words on this report,and you can have a cup of coffee.One more phone call,and you can check your personal email.      

⒋      

    Most of us spend too much of our day sitting.It's bad for our health and bad for our concentration.Take a walk or do some jumping in a free meeting room—anything to get you refreshed and your brain working again.

⒌Work as a team.

    When you have a big project deadline coming up,you can even keep a meeting room and work in the same place.      ,but also you'll feel more connected to your co-workers while doing it.

A.Get physical exercise

B.Don't feel guilty

C.Do things energetically

D.Not only will you get more done

E.Rewards are wonderful motivators

F.Endless work makes us busy and tired every day

G.A feeling of having made progress will inspire you

增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号(∧)，并在其下面写出该加的词。

删除：把多余的词用斜线(＼)划掉。

修改：在错的词下画一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。

注意：1．每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；

2．只允许修改10处，多者(从第11处起)不计分。

    Recently, people were moved by a story taking the place in Thailand. It told about a girl whom had a quarrel with her mother and ran away from home. After several days, the girl walked into a restaurant in hungers. A man who was the cook invites her to sit down and then made some delicious food for him. The girl was very surprising. Then the cook told the girl that a woman took a photo and asked him whether he seen the girl. But the woman gave him some money to cook for the girl if she turned up. Until then the girl realized how greatly her mother was and she should be grateful on her.

    How long can a person live?How tall can a human being grow?The Guinness（吉尼斯）World Records book lists many of the greatest records      the greatest potentials（潜能）.But it's a fossil record.It speaks only to what has been done,not how much can      (do),which is why it has to be constantly updated（更新）.

    Take the      (surprise )case of the British middle-distance runner Roger Bannister for example.In the 1950s, experts said      the human body could not run a mile in less than four minutes.Then Bannister came along in 1954 and proved it could      act be run in 3:59.4.Once Bannister broke the imaginary barrier      (sudden )the floodgates opened;scores of runners started besting（击败）the four-minute mark every year,each one      (fast) than the last. How fast does a human have the ability      (run)the mile today?We honestly don't know.That is why we hold our      (breathe )during every Olympics.

    All we know      (be)that this kind of change is possible.Keep this in mind the next time you feel stuck or challenged.Just because it hasn't been done before doesn't mean it's impossible.

注意：

1）词数100左右。

2）应适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。

Dear Jack,

Yours,

Li Hua