When I was six, Dad brought home a dog one day, who was called "Brownie". My brothers and I all loved Brownie and did different things with her. One of us would walk her, another would feed her, then there were baths, playing catch and many other games. Brownie, in return, loved each and every one of us. One thing that most touched my heart was that she would go to whoever was sick and just be with them. We always felt better when she was around.

One day, as I was getting her food, she chewed up (咬破) one of my Dad's shoes, which had to be thrown away in the end. I knew Dad would be mad and I had to let her know what she did was wrong. When I looked at her and said, “Bad girl,” she looked down at the ground and then went and hid. I saw a tear in her eyes.

Brownie turned out to be more than just our family pet. She went everywhere with us. People would stop and ask if they could pet her. Of course she'd let anyone pet her. She was just the most lovable dog. There were many times when we'd be out walking and a small child would come over and pull on her hair. She never barked (吠) or tried to get away. Funny thing is that she would smile. This frightened people because they thought she was showing her teeth. Far from the truth, she loved everyone.

Now many years have passed since Brownie died of old age. I still miss the days when she was with us.

When I was in college, a man named Henry worked as a custodian (看门人) in our student union building. White-haired, with a Pennsylvania Dutch accent, Henry could usually be seen in a baseball cap, a T-shirt and a pair of jeans.

He was the custodian, and he was the most respected and most well-known person in the building. Everyone loved Henry, and it was because of all the implicit ways he expressed his love for everyone around him. Henry didn’t have to say, “I love you.” He lived his love.

Henry was always excited when he met someone new, and he wanted to know everything about them. He felt it was important to do things for people he valued. And Henry seemed to value everyone he met. He brought in articles or cartoons for certain people, went out of his way to introduce people to each other, kept dozens of names and birthdays in his wallet so he could send cards, and helped students keep in touch with graduates who had written to him. He even assisted students who didn’t have enough money to buy their books.

Henry taught me --- and many others he supported --- how to live life to the fullest. Not by skydiving or exploring some foreign countries, but by appreciating where you are in life and valuing those around you.

The funny thing is that despite all he did and taught us, Henry truly believed that he was the lucky one --- that he was the one who was gaining so much by getting to know us. But all of us who remember Henry know that we were the ones who were truly blessed.

We will never forget the man who taught us that best way to say “I love you” often has little to do with the words.

The great avenues are quiet, and the shops are closed. There’s the smell of fresh bread from a bakery somewhere. It would be hard to say which time of the day in Paris I prefer but this is probably it. Soon the streets will be full of people and traffic. As with most other cities, you see the real Paris when the city wakes up.

There is, however, another part of Paris which is silent and free from people 24 hours a day. Under the city are hundreds of kilometers of abandoned tunnels. During the 19th century, Paris needed more stones for buildings above the ground, so people dug tunnels beneath the city. After that, many farmers grew mushrooms in them. During World War II, the French soldiers also used them. Since the 1970s, many young people have started spending days and nights below the city in these tunnels. It’s now a place for parties, theatre performances, art galleries – anything goes!A “normal” tourist can visit some parts of Paris’s tunnel system, such as the underground cemetery, where you can see the bones of about six million Parisians. The bodies came from cemeteries above the ground two centuries ago when the city needed more space.

However, people are not allowed to enter other parts of the tunnel system. It’s very dangerous because some tunnels might collapse and people will be trapped below. Nevertheless, there are people who will take you to visit them. I have found two “unofficial” tour guides who take me through many tunnels. After a couple of hours we arrive at a room which isn’t on any map. The room is comfortable and clean with a table and chairs and a bed. The guide tells me there are many other places like this. “Many people come down here to party, some people to paint.... We do what we want here.”