Yesterday, I got a letter from America. It was from my American family. I was so excited to hear from them again. In the letter. Dad told me all my family, my teachers, and my friends missed me very much. He said everybody hoped I could return sometime.

After reading the letter, I came to the window. The sky was full of stars. All my wonderful memories appeared in my mind.. I remembered this summer I was chosen to be a member of an ex-change program between our Experimental¹ High School and Paso Robles High School in America. We flew over the Pacific Ocean and landed in that exciting country. When I first got there, I just couldn't believe I was in America. I thought that I was in a dream.

Then we went to a small town called Paso Robles. It is close to the Pacific Ocean, at the edge of California. There are four people in my family. My dad worked in the church. Mum worked in the bank. I have a brother and a sister. Our house was very big and very nice. Before I got there, Mom had got everything ready for me. My family was very kind to me. In the following days, they really helped me a lot. I liked talking with Dad. We talked about our different cultures, different beliefs and different poli-cies. When I heard that the flood was very serious in China, I was very worried. I told it to Dad. From then on, he always sat in front of the TV and watched the Chinese news. Sometimes, he read something about China in the newspaper. He always tried to explain it to me. I was really very grateful to him. From Dad, I could see the kindness of American people.

I was also very lucky that I had the chance to study there. I went to Paso Robles Public High School for about one month. The school there is very different from here, but it is interesting. One thing touched me a lot and I won't forget it forever. Once,! was invited to give the students a speech about China. I was very happy to do that and of course, I did a good job. At the end of the class, I wrote the students' names in Chinese. They were very happy and excited. We had a good time. In the morning when I would leave America, my teacher gave me several pieces of paper. She told me that was a special gift from the students. I opened it carefully. All of the students wrote some words to me, and to my surprise, they wrote their Chinese names on it too. I was deeply moved. I thought it was the best gift I had.

Time flies. I had to leave my host family and Paso Robles. Then we went to visit a lot of famous places. We went to San Francisco to see China Town and the great Golden Gate Bridge. Then we went to Los Angles². We visited Hollywood there and had a lot of fun in Disneyland. Oh, yeah! We also went to the beach.

I have learned³ a lot during these two months and became mature. I have a lot of things to learn. I won't forget anything I have seen there. The blue sky and the beautiful rainbow. Especial-ly, the kindness of. American people.

The following is my favorite poem. It always makes me do everything with confidence.

The world would like to change you.

There are pressures all around. You must decide just who you are.

To firmly hold your ground. You have an image of yourself.

An ideal⁴ sense of you. And to this vision⁵ you must always.

Struggle to be true. You know what you are good at.

And you know where talents lie. But if you are ruled by others.

Your uniqueness could pass by. Remember, there is much to learn.

But all new things aren't good. Wisdom lies in what you've learned.

And what you have withstood⁶. Soibe yourself and don't allow.

The world to take control.

Preserving your identity⁷.

Is life's most precious goal.

—Bruce B. Wilmer

指导教师：李琛