If you had the chance to be someone else, who would you choose to be? Explain what would be good about being that person, and what might be difficult.

         If I had the chance to be someone else, I would choose to be a professional ballet dancer. Since I was 6 years old, I have developed a strong passion for dance. I would always look at the videos or photos of ballerina eagerly and start to imagine myself being one of them. Since then, it has been one of my dreams to wear ballet shoes and pointe shoes when dancing on the stage. 

        If I were a ballet dancer, I would be able to dance every day without the need to study complicated subjects that are irrelevant to ballet such as mathematics, chemistry and biology. On the contrary, I would be studying ballet-related subjects such as ballet history so that I can have a fundamental knowledge about ballet. In view of this, I could dance as I please, without being restricted by anyone. Nevertheless, I understand that I might have to go through a lot of hard and painful intensive training. However, I know that this is necessary so as to equip myself as a professional dancer that is perfect from every angle. On top of that, I also know that the environment of ballet school is very competitive, because all dancers are trying to enter famous companies. Nobody wanted to be left behind.

        If I were a ballerina, I would have the opportunity to perform famous classical ballet on stage, such as Swan Lake, Nutcracker, Giselle and many other works. I always look up to those dancers, because they are really so elegant and amazing, until the audience is deeply involved in their performances. Therefore, I always envision the grown-up me performing those dances and receiving great applause and praise from the audience. Nevertheless, I know very well that I might encounter many injuries because we need to practice every day. In addition, praise is always accompanied by criticism. Therefore, I might still need to be mentally prepared myself to receive harsh comments.

        If I were a ballet dancer, I would have a healthy, muscular, slim figure. This is because ballet dancers are required to control their weight, so that they look beautiful and decent when they put on ballet leotards. Another reason for this is that ballet dancers need to build a strong stamina which enables them to last until the end of the show, which normally takes about two hours. In other words, this means that dancers are the premise of receiving continuous training, so that they can perform well. Although this could prevent me from living an unhealthy 'coach potato" lifestyle, I am aware that repeating daily trainings could make people exhausted. I know it really takes a lot of perseverance and hard work, because there is no "free lunch 'in the world.

         Being a professional ballet dancer could seem glory, but the path is not as easy as anyone could imagine. On top of maintaining and improving dancing techniques, dancers need to cultivate a strong mentality, so that they would not be defeated by intense competitions and criticisms. However, if I had the chance to be someone else, I would still choose to be a ballet dancer, because I hope to experience their life at least once in my life. 

Vocabulary

1. Passion 热情/强烈的喜爱
2. Eagerly 渴望地
3. Fundamental 基本的
4. Restricted 约束
5. Equip 使有准备
6. Envision 想象
7. Applause 掌声
8. Decent 得体
9. Premise 前提
10. Coach Potato 整天宅在家看电视或者打电视游戏的人
11. Perseverance 坚持
12. Glory 荣耀
13. Cultivate 培养
14. Defeated by 被打败

ARTICLE : A GREAT WAY TO KEEP FIT

Jogging : relaxing and fun

I love jogging. I started this sport since I was small. My parents used to bring me to the nearby park to have a jog. I found it quite enjoyable since it do not need any skill. So, I had a habit to go for jog every morning before having breakfast. I can feel the fresh air and relax my mind when I was jogging. Everyone can do this sport at anytime and anywhere.

During school holidays, I always invite my friends to jog together. This is a good way to tighten our friendship because we can share our ideas or chat about our life while jogging. However, everyone was encouraged to warm-up your body before start jogging in order to avoid your body from getting hurt. For people who are competitive and enjoy doing this activity, you can go for marathon race and win a trophy.

I would strongly recommend this sporting activity to everyone since it bring a lot of benefits to us.  Jogging is an easy sport as you do not need much expenses on the trainers because what you need is just a pair of sport shoes. Why don’t you have a try?

HIT AND RUN ACCIDENT

      It was a Sunday night. I walked home alone after buying some food from the nearby night market. I walked along Jalan Mutiara 2. It was quite a deserted road and very few cars were around. As it was getting dark, I walked quickly.

     In a distance, I saw an old woman walking along the pavement. She was pushing a cart. I supposed she was one of the vendors at the night market. She looked tired as she pushing the cart. A bolt out of the blue, a speeding red car came passed her. There was a loud screeching sound. The cart she pushed was thrown far away. The poor old woman was fall and laid motionlessly on the pavement.

      It was a hit and run accident. The driver never stopped but sped off like greased lightning. I quickly took down the car number and used my mobile to call for the police and the ambulance. Within a minute, the ambulance arrived. The paramedics ran down from the ambulance and quickly sent the unconscious victim to the hospital. Soon, the police also arrived at the spot. One of the policeman recorded my statement.

     I felt sorry for the poor old woman. The driver should at least stopped and helped when his car hit the old women. He should not run away when things happened. This is such an irresponsible attitude.

A FAMILY OUTING AT TEMPLER PARK

        It was a crisp Saturday morning. My father brought us to the waterfall at Templer Park. It was located in the countryside.The journey took about an hour. It was a pleasant journey as the scenery along the way was breathtaking.

        There was already a big crowd at the waterfall as we arrived. The waterfall cascading from the top of the hill. We were mesmerised by the crystal clear water. The air was fresh. It was such a marvellous place to have family and friends gathering. We then helped to spread the map on the ground under a big tree and began to arrange food on it.

        My mother had prepared lots of delicacies such as sandwiches, fried rice and some pastries. My brother and I quickly changed into our swimming trunks and jumped into the water. We splashed the cool water and giggled at each other. My father managed to snap some photos while we were playing happily in the water. We felt we were in paradise as the view around us was so beautiful beyond description.

       After spending about an hour in the water, we felt a little bit hungry. We changed back into our dry clothes and enjoy the food that our mum had prepared. The food was tasty and scrumptious that we had almost finished all the food within a minute. There was a lot of colourful fish swimming in the water.There were some men using a fishing net to catch fish. We left the waterfall at about six in the evening. It was such a memorable outing.

        A family picnic at the waterfall is a good way bond with family members. Besides, there are also many other activities toward achieving close-knit family such as visiting grandparents in the village during the weekend, doing gardening or cooking at home together or even going for a movie.

     

MOTHER'S DAY CELEBRATION

        My family and I celebrate Mother's Day in a famous restaurant treated by our father every year. But this year, we decide to celebrate Mother's Day at home. We all planned the event weeks before. My mum was kept in the dark about the celebration.

        On that day, my father brought my mum to have breakfast and then they went for a movie. My father was supposed to bring mum home in the evening. My sister and I stayed at home to cook some scrumptious dishes while my brother went to the bakery shop to fetch the cake we ordered a week ago. He also stopped at the near by florist's to buy a bouquet of white roses.

         Later, three of us decorated the hall with colourful balloons and we also hung a big banner on the wall. The banner was written " Happy Mother's Day! We love you very much mum!". Everything was set up properly on the table and we had also put on our nice clothes to wait for our parents to come home.

         It was about 6.00p.m in the evening. My dad brought mum back on time. As both of them entered the house, my brother took out the cake and my sister presented our mum the bouquet of white rose. At the same time,we all said " Happy Mother's Day " to her. Then we took turns to hug and kiss her. My mother was touched and she was in tears of joy.

        Mother's Day is a crucial and special event for all the mothers in the world. It is the day for all the children to thank and appreciate their mother. Mothers had sacrificed their time and love us unconditionally.

FORMAL LETTER : THANKING THE HOSPITAL STAFF

General Hospital Tengku Rahimah,
223, Jalan Maju,
41200 Klang,
Selangor.                                                                                                                    23 February 2015

Dear Sir,

A Heartfelt Gratitude

I wish to express my utmost thanks and gratitude to the doctors and nurses at General Hospital Tengku Rahimah Klang for their delicacy care and excellent services during my stay at the hospital.

2. Two weeks ago I went to the hospital due to severe vomiting and abdominal pain. I was diagnosed with appendix and had to undergo a surgery as quickly as possible. Doctor Rebecca was thorough and answered all my parents' question patiently when I was admitted into the hospital.

3. Before the surgery, I felt really nervous and frightened that I will be in a great deal of pain during the surgery. Luckily, the staff and the nurses there were kind enough to reassure me. I was then feeling more comfortable and had calm down my mind before undergo the surgery.

4. After the surgery, the recovery was painful. However, Doctor Rebecca and the nurses provided round the clock care and attention to me. During my stay in the hospital for three days, I had been well taken care of.

I am really grateful to the doctor and nurses for their commitment and delicacy care. Last but not least, I would like to say thank you again to all of you.

Yours faithfully,

Joanne Tan

Vocabulary
gratitude : 感谢的心情
delicacy : 体贴
severe : 严重的
diagnosed : 诊断
appendix : 盲肠炎
undergo : 经历；忍受
thorough : 细心；周到
reassure : 使……安心
round the clock : 无眠无休的；throughout the day and night.
commitment : 献身

A BREAK IN INCIDENT

           Last night I could not sleep well because it was a hot night. So, I went to open the windows in my room. While I was opening the windows, I was shock to see a robber was climbing up my neighbours'gate. My neighbours had gone overseas and no one was at home.

           At first, I was shocked to see that situation. However, I tried to keep a cool head. I quickly walked into my parents'room in order to wake my parents up. I told them about this incident. Without any hesitation, my father quickly picked up his phone and called to the police station.

           Soon, a police patrol car arrived in front of my neighbours' house. Four policemen got out from the patrol car. Two of them went into the house quietly while the other two waiting outside the gate.

           A bolt out of the blue, we heard some shouting and loud footsteps. The robber ran out of the house and two officers were chasing after him. Unfortunately, the robber tripped down by a stone and fell down. The policemen managed to catch and handcuffed him.

           The policemen thanked and praised us for being alert to our surrounding. I felt so ecstatic and happy because I had done a good deed. The moral of the story is we must always be a willing horse.

Vocabulary

A willing horse : 乐于助人