Janitor's Dream Comes True

LAS CRUCES,NM, USA. Primo Torres has learned that dreams come true. Born in Juarez, Mexico, Torres grew up in Texas in a poor family. As a child, Torres was a bookworm and he loved school. At 15, he already dreamed of being a teacher.






One day at school, young Torres dropped by to see his guidance counselor. He told the counselor his plans for the future. "But this guy said, 'Primo, you will never be a college material,'" Torres said. "When he told me that, I gave up. He threw cold water on my dream."






After graduating from high school, Torres got a job as a janitor at Mayfield High School in Las Cruces, New Mexico. He cleaned bathrooms and swept floors. The years went by. Now and then, he talks to his wife about his childhood dream of being a teacher.






One day, when Torres was 41 years old, his wife gave him some papers. She had enrolled him in college. "It was strange going back to school at my age," said Torres. " I felt like an old man around all those kids." The words of his first professor changed his life. "Everyone in this room is capable of succeeding. You can all make an A." he said. Torres hit the books and made his frist A in college.
Torres finished college, and now he's teaching at Mayfield High School. His students love him. "My students don't realize that I'm the same man who used to sweep the floors in this school," said Torres.

About You:

1. Tell about a dream you had that came true.

2. Are you a bookworm?

3. For how long do you hit the books on a typical evening?

4. What do you dream of doing in the future? Does your family encourage you to follow your dreams, or do they throw cold water on them?

Money Rains From the Sky

MIAMI, FL, USA. Early one morning, residents in a very poor neighborhood in Miami heard a loud crash. An armored truck had smashed into a guard rail and overturned on a bridge. The truck was carrying millions of dollars. The doors of the truck burst open, and bags of money fell out. The bags broke open, and money flew all over the place. Hundreds of people rushed to get their hands on the cash. "Money is raining from the sky!" they shouted. Altogether, the people stuffed $500,000 into their pockets and bags.




When the excitement died down, the police went from house to house and announced, "if you took money, you must give it back within 48 hours." They waited at the police station, but in the end only two people showed up-a woman and a boy, Herbert Tarvin,11, turned in the 85 cents he picked up.




Herbet's honesty made an impression on people. When officials at Disney World in Orland, Florida, found out about Herbert, they invited him and his entire class to take a trip there. When they arrived, the Disney company rolled out the red carpetfor the 16 children. Herbert and his friends had the time of their lives. "We like to reward kids for good behavior," a Disney spokesperson commented.






About You:




1. Do you want to take a trip? Where? Why?




2. Tell about an occassion when you had the time of your life.




3. When you meet someone new, what makes an impression on you.




4. What time do you usually show up for class?

The Ringing Dog

LONDON, ENGLAND. It's Christmas time in London. Rachel Murphy, 27, buys a Christmas gift for her roommate. It's a small cellular phone. She wraps it and puts it under the Christmas tree in their apartment. a little bit later, Rachel notices a pile of torn paper under the tree. The phone is gone! "What's going on?" she wonders. She suspects Charlie, her roommate's dog, who is sleeping like a log near the tree. She looks high and low for the phone, but it's nowhere. She can't firgure it out. The phone has vanished into thin air!




Rachel gets the phone number from the telephone company and dials the number. She hears ringing in Charlie's stomach. "What in the world?" she thinks. She's confused, but all at once she gets the picture. Charlie swollowed the phone! She rushes the dog to the vet. "Don't worry," the vet says. "Just let nature take its course." Sure enough, 24 hours later, the phone passes through Charlie's system. It seems to be in perfect working order!


About You:

1. Do you have a pet? If so, does it get into trouble like Charlie?

2. Did you ever own something that vanished into thin air? Did you look high and low for it? Did you ever find it?

3. Do you sleep like a log, or are you a light sleeper?

4. What is the best gift you ever received? On what holidays do you give gifts?

Lovesick Elephant

LYON, FRANCE. For Pankov and Mako, it was love at first sight. When the two elephants first saw each other in the Lyon zoo, they fell head over heels in love.




For 34 years, the two elephants looked after each other and were happy. Then one day, Mako got sick. He fell into a ditch by the elephants' cage. A few months later, on a cold January day, he passed away.




Pancov was brokenhearted. Over and over, zookeepers tried to feed her, but she refused to eat. Although Pancov had a sweet tooth, she even refused her favorite treat, sweet spiced wine. Nothing could cheer her up.Pancov didn't eat for four weeks, and she went from bad to worse. On Valentine's Day, a month after Mako's Death, zookeepers found Pancov in the same ditch. The night, she died of a broken heart.






About You:




1. Do you believe in love at first sight, or do you think love grows over time?




2. Do you think animals have emotions?




3. Do you have a sweet tooth?

Crow Commits Crime

CLEARWATER, FL, USA. One day, when Frank Landstrom was playing golf in Clearwater, Florida, something strange happened. His $450 gold bracelet was in his golf cart. All of a sudden, a big crow flew down out of nowhere and grabbed the bracelet. "What in the world?" Frank thought. He watched wide-eyed as the crow made off with his bracelet. Frank was in a bad mood because he was sure the bracelet was gone for good.




Later that day, a man named Tom Johnson pulled into a supermarket parking lot 35 miles from Clearwater. something shiny on the ground caught his eye. He picked it up. It was a gold bracelet!




The next morning, Tom saw a story in the newspaper about a crow and a gold bracelet. He put two and two together. Then he got in touch with Frank Landstrom to give the bracelet back. Frank couldn't believe his luck. He was thrilled to get it back.






About you:




1. Tell about a time when you lost something valuable. Did you ever get it back, or was it gone for good?




2. Have you ever found something valuable? Did you try to give it back to the owner?




3. Are you in a bad or a good mood today? Why?




4. Do you know an unusual story about an animal? If so, tell it.

Fish Turns the Table on Fisherman

KONAKOVO, RUSSIA. One day, a Russian man is fishing at a lake near Moscow. He is crazy about this sport. He catches a very large fish and is on cloud nine! when he begins to show off for his pals. He grabs the fish and kisses it right on the mouth. BUt the fish turns the tables on the fisherman and bites his nose. It won't let go. The poor fisherman is in hot water now. "Take it easy," his friends advise. Then they have an idea. They cut the head off the fish. But the fish still won't let go of the fisherman's nose. It has strong teeth! Finally, doctors in local hospital set the fisherman free. "play it safe," they tell him. "Don't kiss any more fish!"



About you:


1. Do you like to fish? If so, are you crazy about it? Do you clean the fish? Do you cut the head off?


2. What sports or hobbies are you crazy about?


3. Tell about a happy memory when you were on cloud nine.


4. Do you know people who show off? If so, what do they do?


5. Have you ever been in hot water? Why? When? Tell the story.


6. Are you the type of person who plays it safe, or do you like to take risks?

Man Dances in his Own Funeral

CAIRO, EGYPT. One day, the police see a body on a beach in Egypt. The man is dead as a doornail. The ID card in the man's wallet identify him as Ahmed Awadh, age 30.




A short time later, Ahmed's friends and relatives are sitting in a funeral tent. The feel blue and they're crying over Ahmed. All of a sudden the "dead" man walks into the tent, looking like a million dollars. His friends and family are dumbfounded. When they realize it's really Ahmed they go crazy. They laugh, they cry, and they kiss him. Ahmed explains, "A thief ripped me off and took my ID cards. So when the police found the dead man, they thought he was me!" When Ahmed's friends and family get over their shock, the funeral turns into a party. They're on the top of the world! Police are still trying to identify the dead man.






About you




1. Has anyone ever ripped you off? What did they take?




2. Tell about a time when you felt blue. How did you get over it?




3. Tell about a time when you were dumbfounded. What happened?




4. What are funerals like in your country?