Reading Aloud 9

Beauty is health and helping others

What is beauty? I think most people have their own definition. But people generally over-emphasise the importance of appearance.

Beauty is a blessing. If there was no beauty in the world, our lives would be very boring.

But a lot of women believe that plastic surgery is the only way to make them beautiful. They are willing to undergo very scary operations. But they have not considered the serious consequences if they are disfigured during surgery.

Similarly, people who diet to lose weight often eat less and do not get enough nutrients. This leads to poor health and may cause illness.

I think that being healthy and showing compassion are the essential elements of beauty. Exercise regularly, stick to a balanced diet and help the needy.

With age, your looks disappear, so make the most of life with more worthwhile things.

Law Hau Kwan ( 6A )
South China Morning Post ( November 8, 2005 )

Vocabulary

1. definition (n) 定義
2. over-emphasise (v) 過分 強調
3. appearance (n) 外貌
4. blessing (n) 賜福
5. plastic surgery (n) 整形外科
6. scary (adj) 引起驚慌的
7. compassion (n) 憐憫
8. nutrients (n) 營養物
9. consequences (n) 後果

Useful Sentences

1. overemphasize sth 過分強調某事
  We cannot overemphasize how damaging these results are to our reputation.

2. importance of/to 重要性
  They attach great importance to the project.

3. it's a blessing that 幸好
  It's a blessing that nobody was in the house at the time.

4. serious consequences 嚴重後果
  This decision could have serious consequences for the future of the industry.

5. compassion for 憐憫，同情
The nurse had great compassion for her patients.

6. stick to 堅持下去，信守
  She finds it impossible to stick to a diet.