Final Presentations

Good Looks  面貌第一

鄧

From the time I was a child, I have been told that inner beauty is more important than good looks. However, when I grow older, I find that good looks may be a key factor to success.

In recent years, the economic situation is getting worse; many companies have closed and many people are without work. You may think you can still get a job because you are smart or have special skills; however, according to an article that was published in a Korean newspaper, the commonality for newly-hired employees is that they are all good-looking. Since that article was published, cosmetic surgery has become a hit among graduating seniors in Korea. The reason for employing good-looking staff is that most people tend to equate the company's image to the employee's image. In order to give a good image of the company, employers had to choose good-looking employees.

It may sound depressing to those who are without good looks. But, what can we do? In my opinion, confidence is really important! If your self-value is built upon others』 opinions, you would always feel unhappy. Be optimistic and have faith that beauty is just in the eye of the beholder. Confidence will always shine brighter than mere good-looks! 

To Return Good for Evil 以德報怨

魏

I would like to talk about a great Chinese virtue, that is, 「To Return Good for Evil.」

This virtue is usually attributed to Confucius, the great Chinese philosopher. However, it is well-known that Confucius believed in 「To return vengeance for evil」 before he turned thirty. So what changed his mind?

Well, 「The Historical Records」 shows that Confucius, in his thirties, had met Laotse who was in his seventies. Afterwards, Confucius sighed all day and kept in silent. At that time Confucius has already become a famous wise man and his disciples have great faith in their teacher. So they asked him, 」Have you met Laotse? What did you tell him to do?」 Finally he said, 「Laotse is like a dragon, which flies high in the clouds, and I cannot make out his ways!」 In other words, Confucius himself realized that Laotse had such a better understanding of life that he himself, in comparison, may be shown to be far behind.

As a matter of fact, what Laotse told Confucius had a great impact on Confucius. Laotse told Confucius that he is smart, but he should study lively instead of reading those dead men』s books all day. The most important of all, he told Confucius, 「You should return good for evil. When you have the right to blame someone, do not blame him for this. If you only look for fairness in the conflicts, something unpleasant will be left behind to trouble yourself.」 (和大怨，必有餘怨，安可以為善。聖人執左契，而不責於人)

Nowadays, modern people have too many troubling things in life. For example, if a leader finds out the mistakes made by his colleague, he will scorn the latter. Even if he doesn』t scorn the one who made a mistake, he will show an unkind attitude to the colleague. That is annoying to both of them and may end up destroying the relationship. 

Under the circumstances, why not try to return good for evil? Things may be better if people try to share a pleasant mood. Thanks you.  

Superstitions 迷信不迷信

Do you think that it is bad luck to walk under a ladder or break a mirror? Do you think that black cats and the number 13 are unlucky? There are three men in America who don』t think so. Every Friday the 13th they walk under ladders, break mirrors, and open umbrellas indoors. They want to prove that they aren』t at all superstitious. They may be the only people in the world who aren』t. There are over one million superstitions, and most people believe at least one or two of them.

Superstitions do tell people how to reverse bad luck. For example, when the Japanese bump heads, they immediately bump heads again. According to a Japanese superstition, the first bump means their parents will die, but the second bump 「erases」 the first bump. To reverse bad luck in general, people turn around three times, turn their pockets inside out, or put their hats on backwards. In the United States, baseball players sometimes wear their caps backwards when their team is losing. It looks silly, but the baseball players don』t mind if it helps them win the game.

Some superstitions have been with us for so long that they have become customs. In many parts of the world it is polite to say 「Health」 or 「God bless you」 when someone sneezes. People used to think that the soul could escape from the body during a sneeze. They said 「God bless you」 to protect people from losing their souls. Today we no longer believe that people who sneeze are in danger of losing their souls, but we say 「God bless you」 not because we are superstitious, but because we are polite.

Almost everyone is at least a little superstitious. One woman says that when she got married, her aunt gave her white bath towels. 「Never buy purple towels,」 her aunt said. 「If you use purple towels, your marriage will end.」 Does the woman believe that superstition?」 「No, of course not,」 she says. 「It』s silly.」 Does she use purple towels? 「Well, no,」 she answers. 「Why take chances?」 

What Makes Marriages Last?  婚姻成功的祕訣

We』ll never understand how marriages last. 

As single people, we are attracted to many people, and it's not like that attraction stops once the ring goes on your finger. But no matter how wonderful a person you marry, you'll eventually meet someone funnier, smarter, cuter or whatever. Of course she/he will attract us, but the question now is how do you not want them instead of your spouse? How do you know that your spouse will stay with you?

Sooner or later every married person confronts two troubling facts: they are restless people, and their partners are not perfect. Even when life goes well, sometimes you do think you'd rather be with somebody else that is more attractive, more fun, more encouraging. Those thoughts grow all the more troubling when, as happens in every relationship, you're struggling. Marriage is more than just a personal decision to hook up with somebody.

Ask yourself whether this is the one person in the universe you want to live with and love for the rest of your life. After the wedding, however, the question changes, don』t ask whether you want to live with this person forever, but ask how. That's because your relationship and marriage is no longer just your decision. It's your decision plus your partner's.

Asking whether you still want to be married to your spouse is something like a soldier asking whether the war he's volunteered for is really such a good idea. A lot of times, temptations are fleeting. If you ignore them, they usually go away. Even if temptations and difficulties persist, you can overcome them.

But how do you know your partner will always love you? Well, if you both understand what a marriage commitment is, if you realize that both you and your partner may be tempted by others, you can overcome any difficulty.

Google 搜尋引擎

Today, my topic is a word you have to be familiar with--that is, Google.
If you still use 「Yahoo」 to locate the information you want, you are outdated. If you don』t have the experience of typing query into a blank line on a sparsely decorated google page, then you don』t deserve to be called an up-to-date intellectual, because google hits have become the critical criterion for being intellectuals.

The appearance of google amazed Internet information-diggers, positioning them only a mouse click away from the answers to the most arcane questions and making the process of searching addictive. No one can resist the temptation of google once they begin to use it. People use it to find long-lost relatives, recall old song lyrics, and browse through the pictures of their favorite stars. Even college instructors sniffing for plagiarism type in suspiciously accomplished phrases form papers of otherwise inarticulate students.

With virtually no marketing, Google is now the fourth most popular website in the world. About half of all Web searches in the world are performed with Google, which has been translated into 86 languages. The big reason for the success is that it works. It not only dramatically speeds up the process of finding things in the vast storehouse of the Web, but also ranks the results properly. It makes use of the collective intelligence of the millions who surf the site, so that when you search, you can follow in the pathways of others who had been interested in the same information.

Google is much more than the searching engine. Sooner or later, 「google」 will be used as a verb in our daily conversation. Soon, you may get a funny feeling when someone says, 「 I googled something,」 instead of 「 I researched something?」 Well, just try to get used to it.

Christmas Traditions 聖誕習俗

Lily

For millions of people around the world, the very word Christmas brings warmth and joy to their hearts and homes. As to some, it is simply an extremely popular holiday, but for many it honors the birth of Jesus Christ. Here is a brief history of Christmas and some of the traditions connected with it.
The Christmas tree tradition was started in Germany in the late fifteenth century. At that time a popular theatrical performance was represented by a fir tree hung with apples. Soon the tree was placed in the homes of Christians who interpreted it as a symbol of the coming Savior.

The first commercially-printed Christmas cards originated in London. A wealthy businessman commissioned an artist to create a card he could proudly send to friends and professional acquaintances to wish them a "merry Christmas."
The stockings originated with St. Nicholas. It is believed that St. Nicholas helped a man who was hopelessly in debt. His creditors were about to sell him and his daughters into slavery. Nicholas went to the man's home at night and threw a bag of gold through the man's window. The bag of gold landed in one of the daughter's stockings that had been hung up to dry.

Of the many statements made about Christmas, one of the finest comes from former U.S. President Calvin Coolidge who reminded people: "To cherish peace and goodwill, to be plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas." 

Christmas 聖誕

培

Christians make up a minority in Taiwan society. But every year, people in Taiwan still celebrate Christmas and regard Christmas as an important holiday. Why do we do that? I think it is because people in Taiwan might enjoy a romantic and merry atmosphere during those days and young people desire to revel with their friends on Christmas Eve. In other words, Christmas gives people an excuse to enjoy themselves.

To the Irish, on the other hand, Christmas is a time for religious celebration rather than revelry. Candles, decorated with greenery, are placed in the windows of Irish homes on Christmas Eve to light the way of the Holy Family as well as any other poor travelers out on such a night. During the British occupation of all of Ireland, three candles were placed in the window at Christmas. One for the Father, one for the Son, and one for the Holy Spirit. Fellow Catholics passing by would know that the house was a Catholic home, and that all friends were welcome there to celebrate Christmas. The candles were also an invitation to priests to enter the home, say the Christmas Mass, eat dinner, and spend the night with the family. After the evening meal, the table is set with bread and milk and the door left unlatched as a symbol of the hospitality that the family is offering to Mary and Joseph and the little one to come.

Religion is a powerful part of a culture. It is rooted deeply in people』s lives. As Christian celebrations become increasingly internationalized, I wonder when our Annual Inspection Tour by the Goddess Ma-Dzu (媽祖繞境) will become a world phenomenon.