In 1868, six-year-old Laura and her family set sail from New Bedford. The little girl was taken to share the adventure and the danger of life at sea by his father, Captain Jernegan, who was unwilling to be separated from his family when he was going to hunt the mightiest animal on earth. Laura was a keen observer and writer, whose diary offers a look into her unusual childhood.

Laura was fascinated by her father’s job. When the ship’s lookout spotted a whale, “I hope we shall get him,” she wrote. She watched as the men rushed to their whaleboats and chased the whale to within harpooning(鱼叉) distance. Once, they harpooned so huge a whale that his head was “as big as four whole rooms and his body as long as one ship,” Laura wrote.

Hunting whales was only one part of a whaleman’s job. As soon as a whale was caught, the crew began the hard and dirty work of processing it. ‘The whale body smelled” dreadfully, “noted Laura. The processing of the whale was finally finished when the cooled oil was spooned into barrels. One huge whale produced enough oil to fill seventy-five barrels, she noted. When the Jernegans returned home, the oil would be sold for the best possible price. Whale oil was important during the nineteenth century when it was used to light lamps and to make candles.

Whaling was both exciting and exhausting. Yet it also had its slow moments. Weeks could go by without so much as a glimpse of a whale. Then Laura filled her days with school lessons and sewing.

When Laura was grew up, she never went whaling again. By then, petrol had already replaced whale oil. This era, called the golden age of whaling, was over. So was the era of entire families going to sea. Yet Laura’s diary has helped to ensure that this chapter in America’s seafaring history won’t be forgotten.

A job is more than just a job, especially to the older generation. "It's not the money that matters, but the sense of self­worth," 56­year­old Cheng Wonlan said. So, every day Ms Cheng carries a bag of parcels, letters and documents of all shapes and sizes and does her rounds in North Point. She's a courier(快递人员).

Five years ago, Ms Cheng was a nurse at a private clinic. She had worked there for almost 30 years but was made jobless when the doctor migrated(移居). It was extremely difficult for her to find another job. "People do not trust my ability when they learn how old I am, "she said. After two years of searching, the mother of two eventually found another nursing job. But then after two years, she quit. Why?

"My colleagues were young and they didn't understand me because of my age. They often asked me, ‘You are so old；what are you working for？' I was very unhappy." she said. So while the rest of her family left for work, she was left to lonely boredom at home. The urge to work drove her to suffering. Then, one of Ms Cheng's neighbours told her about Employee's Retraining Board (ERB) offering retraining courses for older people on specific occupations, such as convenience store assistants, junior clerks and so on.

"I was interested in courier work. I didn't think my age was a barrier because I was fit and healthy. So I thought why not give it a try." she said. Upon graduation from the ERB, Ms Cheng was offered a job by the Speeding Shuttle Courier Service Company Limited. But then Ms Cheng was faced with a conflict: she was caught between honour and employment.It took Ms Cheng 24 hours to make up her mind and eventually came to the conclusion that there was nothing wrong or embarrassing about doing the job.So she took heart and went off to work as a courier.

Ms Cheng's employer is delighted with her, "Ms Cheng has been working with us for two months and has shown a good responsible attitude to work."Anthony Chong, who runs the company, said.Currently, Mr Chong has 60 couriers working for his company：five of them are over fifty, four of whom have been through the ERB plan.Mr Chong said he hired older people because they were able and reliable."Age is not an important factor but attitude is.Many old people are more capable than the youngsters.They will not run from difficulties but the young ones will." he said."It is not easy to recruit (招募) young people since they shy away from hardship and challenges."

Mary had struggled to find the right words to convey her thoughts and feelings ever since she was a child. She was often told that she was “too quiet” or “too shy”, and as she grew older, she became increasingly self-conscious about her inability to articulate herself. It wasn’t that she didn’t have anything to say—far from it. Mary’s mind was constantly racing with ideas and observations, but no matter how hard she tried, she just couldn’t seem to get the words out.

“Mary, I need to talk to you,” Mr. Thompson, the boss of Mary’s new company, said one day, his voice serious. Mary’s heart sank. “Don’t worry,” Mr. Thompson said, noticing Mary’s panic. “It’s not that kind of conversation. I just wanted to talk to you about something that’s been on my mind lately.”

He paused for a moment, collecting his thoughts. “I’ve noticed that you’ve been struggling a bit lately. It seems like you’re having a tough time communicating with customers. I hear that you’re proficient at writing. So why not join our Advertising Department? Besides, I have another suggestion…”

Mary kept nodding, unable to find the words to express her gratitude.

Following Mr. Thompson’s suggestion, Mary joined a writing competition. She had always been a talented writer, and she knew that she had the potential to create something truly special. So she set to work, pouring her heart and soul into her essay. The words started flowing, and Mary found herself writing with a newfound sense of clarity and purpose.

The judges of the competition were amazed by Mary’s essay, and they selected it as the winner. Mary was thrilled, and she was grateful to have finally found the right way to do a good job.