The Old Man and the Sea.

The Old Man and the Sea was written by an American writer named Ernest Hemingway. It has been translated into tens of languages, and the writer was so proud of his work.

The first time I read it is in a junior high school grade three. This is a simple story with only an ordinary old man and an ordinary marlin.

With catching no fish for eighty-four days, the old man Santiago set sail and caught an eighteen-feet marlin. While the sharks attacked him when he was on the way home. Ultimately, he got the fishbone.

This story reflects the people in ' full of violence and death of real life ' expression comes out of courage. Try to think of, an old and poor and alone, or even the old man to death, but to his death and these weakness, struggle to maintain his identity and dignity, to re-establish his circle in the name, and those who love and he can inheritance of the traditional culture of people keep good relationships. But finally the old man a hero's struggle not only saved yourself, also inspired those around him, and made them the spiritual to sublimate.

Lu Xun once said ' Great breadth of view should show such spirit with smiling face to meet the fate of tragic, with confidence in the courage to cope with his own misfortune '. When we go through the misfortune, compared with complaining the unfairness of the fate, struggling with the misfortune seems to be a better choice. Even if sometimes you failed in the arena of life, when you actively face the irreversible fate, you 're still the spirit of the strong.

Isn't the old man same?

He was never defeated by the obstacles and he tried his best to struggle with the misfortune during his life. He once said ' But man is not made for defeat. A man can be destroyed but not defeated '. While dealing with the obstacles, we should never be trapped over and cannot recover after a setback. What we should do is learn a lesson from the failure and treat it as a necessary road leading to the success.

Probably, this is my favorite book. This book gives me courage of conquering all kinds of difficulties.

However difficult the situation might be, whatever the misfortune we will meet, under no circumstance should we escape from them. Just face it bravely, as the old man on once did.

A Complete Month

I not only enjoy the feeling of helping others which is inexpressible, but also the feeling of learning together that is pleasurable! When I browsed the calendar this morning, I suddenly realized that my morning reading program is a complete month. I just cannot imagine how time flies without noticing. Now, the morning reading pattern has been changed, it’s no longer just for reading. Pronunciations and explanations are added. Like what I have announced last week, on weekends we may only focus on revision but no more new lessons. Owing to that Monday to Friday we almost read new lessons every day. We don’t have much time to digest and absorb. So it’s necessary for us to master the lessons as well. The aim of this grogram is to improve the quality of our English.

Personally, I think repetition is an effective way for keeping knowledge and remaining proficiency. Many people failed to understand why I could always have fun with those old lessons. That is not an enigma or any secret here. I just don’t feel bored of it but enjoy the familiarity. Stephen Covey once said “If we keep doing what we’re doing, we’re going to keep getting what we’re getting”. So follow your heart; don’t be always interrupted by others’ voice or follow suit. Why don’t you be the master of your own?

I really appreciate their participation, perseverance and struggle. Obviously, their English has been improved a lot. As I always reminded them, there are not shortcuts for any skills. We need to be down-to-earth and practical. They are so adorable and doing so well in learning. I truly hope that this program could help them to cultivate a good habit.

I found I am not that sheepish girl anymore; I am bold enough to be a host and trying to be a good one, to help people with all my might, to inspire people with my whole effort. In the past I was afraid of making mistakes as well as losing face. But now, critics, opinions and suggestions are appreciated. I am so glad that I am able to help others and sharing their happiness of improving. It’s the merriest thing indeed.