Karen, Judy and I were the last ones back in the classroom after lunch. Our classmates were playing outside.

“Look at what I found in Ms. Lee’s office.” Karen held up a small box filled with pieces of chalk in every color of the rainbow.

“Wow! What fun it would be to write on the chalkboard while everyone is outside,” Judy’s eyes shone with joy. “But Ms. Lee doesn’t let us do so,” I responded, already feeling guilty, although we had not yet done anything. “Don’t be a chicken, Janet. No one will ever know,” said Karen, reaching into the box and drawing out some chalk. Judy also began drawing.

I unwillingly joined my friends in the artwork, afraid of being caught. However, I found it was very funny. Then something struck Judy. She said excitedly, “We’re all right-handed. Let’s see who can write their name best using their left hand.”

Picking up their chalk, Judy and Karen started. I chose a white piece from the box and began to write. The handwriting was a bit shaky, but no one would doubt that it said “Janet”.

“We’d better get this board cleaned off now,” said Judy, eyeing the clock. She picked up an eraser and began erasing our handwork from the board. Everything came off... but my name! In disbelief, I looked at the chalk I held in my sweaty hand. On closer examination, I found that it wasn’t chalk at all, but a piece of white crayon (蜡笔). I was sweating and my knees felt weak. My mother had a saying: “Fools’ names and faces always appear in public places.” I never understood fully what it meant before. Now I did! I was a fool, and there was my name in crayon to prove it. And the teacher would be returning soon.

“Quick! Let’s get some wet cloth,” said Judy, springing into action.

Ms. Lee never asked about the abrasion (磨损处) and maybe never noticed it.

I am Sadie. I love oceans, especially the one near my grandma's house with beautiful shells. Why? That's what I am about to tell you.

It all started when my parents divorced a few weeks ago. I had remained silent since then. So my mother decided to send me to Florida to live with my grandma.

On the way to my grandma's house, my mother said, “Sadie, I know we are not the best family you can have and I truly apologize. I just do not know how to be a mother. But remember, Sadie, whatever happened, I do love you.” These words made me sadder.

When we arrived, Grandma told me to go upstairs and unpack my things while she spoke to my mother. When I saw a blue and green painted room with a huge window and a comfortable bed, I thought, “Moving to Florida might not be that bad.”   I comforted myself as I walked towards the window. I opened the curtains and saw sky­blue waves slowly washing away the sand on the beach and sea birds flying in the clear sky. The ocean was only a few hundred meters away from here.

After my mother left, Grandma softly touched my shoulder, “I want to take you to the place I called ‘the Big Blue’. And I think you might like it.” (I guess you could know where it is.)

Before I stepped on the sand I could smell the ocean. Together we enjoyed the sunset with a whole lot of yellow and orange. Suddenly she picked out the most beautiful shell I had ever seen in my life. It was almost gold, shining in the sunlight. I couldn't move my eyes off it.

“Want to know how I get through my parents' divorce？” Grandma asked.

“The beautiful shells here gave me the courage to live on，”   Grandma said.

After my son, Scott, graduated from high school he took a job near his father. Two thousand miles suddenly separated me from the person who’d been the focus of my life for 18 years. As the days went by, I missed Scott more and more. I’d always been able to take care of myself, but now I seemed to need Scott’s help constantly, like getting a tool from the top shelf, or moving something heavy, or changing a tire on the car. Most of all, I just missed having him to talk to. I was lonely. I knew this day would come. But why does it have to be so hard?

However, a mother spider taught me a lesson.

On my way out from my storeroom, I noticed a spider building her web across the top corner of the doorway. I reached for a hoe（锄头）m, tore down the web, and watched the giant spider run away in the grass. She was back the very next morning, in the exact same spot, busily rebuilding. I stared for a moment, and then reached for the hoe again. Then I twisted the hoe round and round, catching the spider in her own web. I carried her far into my backyard, shook the hoe and watched her fall to the ground, disappearing in the bush. The third morning, I stopped short as I entered the storeroom. The spider was back in the same corner of the door frame, her web almost completed again. I reached for the hoe, but stopped. She wants her web where she wants it, I thought, and that kind of perseverance（毅力）should pay off. I stepped back and watched her long legs busily knitting the web.

For the next few weeks, the spider and I were close neighbors. One particularly boring day, I was feeling so down that I didn’t even glance up at my spider as I entered. As I stared in wonder, I found a hundred tiny angels on the floor. I realized that these were baby spiders that the eggs had hatched, and already, as the mother watched from the corner of the home that she had built, her young were making their way to the ground.