I am Lin Fei. I am a student（学生）. I am thirteen years old. I am in Class One, Grade Seven. I am from Beijing, and my mom and dad are in Beijing now. My mom is a teacher. She is thirty years old. My dad is a doctor（医生）. He is thirty-two years old. I am in Chongqing now. I have a good friend here. Her name is Zhang Ning. She is fourteen years old. She is from Shanghai. We are in the same（相同的）class.

I like playing basketball. However, when I went to the local boys’ club to play basketball games, I didn’t think I could do well in it. If somebody passed the ball to me, I would quickly pass the ball to another teammate. I dared not shoot the ball myself. I was afraid that I would miss the shot and be laughed at by my teammates. I watched basketball games and felt the excitement of the players right after they made the shot. “Those feelings wouldn’t be the same,” I thought.

One day, on the way to Starbucks, I asked for some advice from my best friend about what team I should join. “Should I try out for basketball or wrestling?” She asked, “Don’t you love basketball?” I sadly replied, “Yeah, but I was never good at it.” She looked at me with disbelief. “Yes, you are!” I looked at her skeptically, “Am I?” Then she said these words, “If I love something, I will keep doing what I love to do so that I can get better.” Her words inspired me.

I decided to join another club to play basketball. The teams were picked, and the game started. What my friend had said stood in my mind. My teammate passed the ball to me. I received the ball and took a shot. I made it. As soon as I made the shot, I felt the excitement of an NBA player. My successful play was unforgettable. I’ll never forget that day.

I believe that everybody has something he or she loves, and inspiration（激励）will lead you there if you have trouble. People need to be inspired to find their passion（激情）. Their passion will most likely help them to achieve greater things in life, and to be the best people they can be.

Do you know drift bottles (漂流瓶)? Scientists use them to study the sea. People in trouble on the sea use drift bottles with messages to ask for help. If you want to make a friend far away, you can also use drift bottles. Write a making-friend letter, put it into a drift bottle and throw it into the sea. A young girl named Niki Nie finds a friend by this way.

This is the letter in Niki’s drift bottle.

Hello!

My name is Niki Nie. I’m a 17-year-old girl from the US. I have big eyes and long brown hair. My parents, my brother and I live on a boat. I don’t go to school and I study at home. I put this letter in a drift bottle on January 8, 2019. Thank you for finding my bottle. I wonder who you are. Please send me an email to tell me about it. Hope I will be your friend.

Niki

Steven Amos finds Niki’s drift bottle this year. Here is a letter from Steven to Niki.

Hello, Niki,

I’m Steven Amos. I’m from Papua New Guinea. I work on the beaches. Part of my job is to clean the beach every day. Now your drift bottle is in my hand. Oh, I’m really excited about it because it’s my first time to find a drift bottle. I read your letter in the bottle, and I’m really happy to be your friend.

Steven