Article: Dear Maya Shao-ming, To me, June 6, 1990 is a special day. My long-awaited dream came true the minute your father cried, "A girl!" You are more than just a second child, more than just a girl to match our boy. You, little daughter, are the link to our female line, the legacy of another woman's pain and sacrifice 31 years ago. Let me tell you about your Chinese grandmother. Somewhere in Hong Kong, in the late fifties, a young waitress found herself pregnant by a cook, probably a co-worker at her restaurant. She carried the baby to term, suffered to give it birth, and kept the little girl for the first three months of her life. I like to think that my mother--your grandmother--loved me and fought to raise me on her own, but that the daily struggle was too hard. Worn down by the demands of the new baby and perhaps the constant threat of starvation, she made the painful decision to give away her girl so that both of us might have a chance for a better life. More likely, I was dropped at the orphanage (M JLR) steps or somewhere else. I will probably never know the truth. Having a baby in her unmarried state would have brought shame on the family in China, so she probably kept my existence a secret. Once I was out of her life, it was as if I had never been born. And so you and your brother and I are the missing leaves on a family tree. Do they ever wonder if we exist? Before I was two, I was adopted by an Anglo couple. Fed three square meals a day, I grew like a wild weed and grasped all the opportunities they had to offer--books, music, education, church life and community activities. In a family of blue-eyed blonds, though, _ . Whether from jealousy or fear of someone who looked so different, my older brothers sometimes teased me about my unpleasing skin, or made fun of my clumsy walk. Moody and impatient, burdened by fears that none of us realized resulted from my early years of need, I was not an easy child to love. My mother and I conflicted countless times over the years, but gradually came to see one... Question: Why did Mommy name her daughter "Shao-ming?" Yes or no, is the answer "To identify her with Chinese origin."?
No

Article: Ask a question! Email it to Letters@Highlights.com. Gift Giving I'm going to China and everyone in my class is asking me to buy them something. What should I do? Reply from the Highlights Editor: Your classmates are probably just excited about your trip. Most likely they don't expect you to buy gifts for everyone. Sending a few postcards to the entire class during your trip would be a wonderful way to share your experiences. The pictures on the cards and your words of description will be the best gift of all. Dog Begging My dog always begs for food at the dinner table. I really want to feed him, but my mom says I can't. I'm afraid he won't like me anymore. What should I do? Reply from the Highlights Editor: Your dog loves you for many more reasons than just for what you feed him. You can show him that you care about him by playing with him, by petting him and speaking kindly to him and by making sure he has fresh water. It might be best if your dog is not near the dinner table while you are eating. You could teach him to stay in another room. Being Bilingual My aunt insists that we speak our language(Tagalog) at home and English outside the house. Do you think she is right? Reply from the Highlights Editor: It is a great gift to have someone in your family who is willing to take the time to teach you another language. It's a good way to keep family traditions alive, and it helps develop your language skills. Your ability to use both English and Tagalog will help you learn a third and fourth language later in life. So it sounds like a great idea! Question: The Highlights editors give the replies to _ . Yes or no, is the answer "offer their readers advice on personal problems"?
No

Article: Life is full of change, and this leads to growth. Change is what keeps our lives moving, and allows us to achieve what we desire and deserve. Like it or not, we need to be willing to go with the flow, and be adaptable when something doesn't go according to plan. A catalyst is a person that causes something else to happen, and if you're not currently a catalyst for change, here are some things you can do to become one. Take a look at what you've got going on in your life right now. Write down everything that comes to mind. Is there anything that jumps out at you that you're not content with? Is there something that isn't moving forward as quickly as you would like it to? Identifying what you want to change is the first step to getting somewhere with it. Take the initiative to make change happen. Once you have identified what you want to work on changing, write down several possible "next steps" you can take to realizing that change. Whatever it is you want to change, you won't get very far without having specific actions in mind to carry out. Start small, and then focus on items that are a bit more involved or difficult and just keep going! When carrying out a change, it's great if you're able to _ , particularly if they can help you implement that change in some way. Be receptive to feedback, but realize that others' opinions are not golden. Also remember to give feedback when asked for it. Be sure it's genuine and that you are able to stand behind it. Create an environment for change. There is nothing more discouraging than trying to create change in an environment that is not conducive to it. It's like trying to stick to a diet in a house that is filled with chips, cookies, ice cream and chocolate; you are just making it more difficult for yourself. Change is good, and often leads to process improvement, increased productivity and efficiency. Take the initiative, and make changes to your life to get to where you want to go faster than you are going right now. Question: What can we infer from the text? Yes or no, is the answer "Change benefits us in different ways."?
No