The Source of My Happiness

Last July， my best friend Chen moved to South Africa. I began to write to her. Ever since then， I became [have become]（1）fond of writing letters. I wrote and wrote， never feeling tired of writing， not only to Chen but to other friends as well. During the summer holidays， I was just like a hungry girl， eating [consuming] （2） a large amount of paper and plenty of envelopes by writing letters.

　　I don't know why I am so fascinated （被……所吸引） with letters. I just enjoy the feeling of sharing my life with others. But the most boring thing is waiting for replies. “What will she feel after reading my letters？ I often ask myself. Fortunately， my pen pals （笔友） have the same idea as mine， for they always reply [answer] （3） my letters as soon as possible.

　　The more letters I have written， the more important I find communication is. A person can't live in isolation （孤立状态） ， can he？ In letters， I can “see” people； I can get to know what he is thinking about； what's his trouble and what he needs. Each letter gives you a new feeling， for different people write just in different ways. That's what I call a magic （魅力） .

　　Maybe you are eager to know how I write a letter. It couldn't be easier： just pick up a pen and put your thoughts or feelings to words. That's it！ In this way， you'll find the world smaller， and you'll find your friends closer to you.

　　I've written various kinds of letters， some in Chinese， some in English； some of them are just for greeting， some of them are for sharing （4）。 Though it's easy to keep in touch with friends in our modern world by telephone， I still find the ancient way of communication —— writing letters more enjoyable.

　　I remember someone once said， “Pen is a special tool； with the help of it you can create wonders. ” I think it [ it is ] （ 5 ） right.

　　Oh， my great piles of letters are the source， the endless fountain （源泉） of my happiness.

　　上海市向明中学高一（9）班 时惠文

　　评 语

　　电讯通信高度发达的今天，作者依然钟情于书信交往，因为这不仅是最古老文明的交际手段之一，而且成了作者的快乐之源。全文语句轻松自然，文笔较为流畅。文中某些语言上的不足之处点评修改如下：

　　（1）根据上下文，这里用现在完成时为好。

　　（2） eating有中国式英文之嫌。用consume既有作者想比喻的“吃”的含义，又能表示“消耗”（use up）的意思。

　　（3）reply后接名词时，是不及物动词。请比较：

　　answer a question/a letter

　　reply to a question/a letter

　　（4）含义令人难以理解。

　　（5）这里还是用一个宾语从句较自然。