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One year ago, I paid no attention to English idioms (习语), though my teacher told me about them again and again. But soon, the 1  of English idioms was shown in an amusing experience.

One day, I 2 to meet an Englishman on the road, and soon we began to talk. As I was talking about how I was studying English, the 3 seemed to be surprised. Gently shaking his 4 , shrugging (耸) his shoulders, he said, "You don't say!" I was 5 . I thought perhaps this was not a proper 6 . I had better change it. So I said to him, "Have you ever been to the Great Wall?" "Certainly! It was amazing. Everyone back home will 7 me if I leave China without seeing it." I continued, "The Great Wall is one of the 8 in the world. We are very proud of it." But soon, "You don't say!" came to my ears again. I couldn't 9 asking, "Why do you ask me not to talk about it?" "Well, I didn't ask you to do so," he answered, 10 surprised. I said, "Didn't you say ‘You don't say!'?" 11 this, the Englishman laughed to tears. He began to 12 , "‘You don't say!' actually means ‘Really'! It is a (n) 13 of surprise. Perhaps you don't pay attention to English idioms." Only then did I know I had made a 14 of myself. Since then I have been more 15 with idiomatic expressions.

It is well known that humans need meaningful social connection.  The stronger our relationships are, the more likely we are to live better. So how do we deepen friendships in our lives?

Shower them with affection. We often think of affection as love we show in romantic relationships. But affection is more than holding hands and kissing.  There are many ways you can show love to your friends. Tell them how much they mean to you. Remind them you are grateful to know them. These simple acts provide security in the relationship.

Being generous with your friends is an easy way to develop your friendships. If you're a gym rat, you could help your friend train for a coming race they have. Or if your friend is applying for a university, you can use your research and analysis skills to put together a presentation for them.

Share your joys struggles and even guilt. Think about how good it feels to tell a friend you secretly like a boring TV show and hear them respond "me too!" Many people hold the view that it can be scary to be open with our feelings. It can come with the risk of shame or rejection. But people are less likely to reject you for being weak than you think.

Don't hide your disagreements. It's hard to deal with conflict in friendships. People often see them as something that should be fun and lighthearted, so they ignore problems when they arise. It might be painful at first, but it shows you want to be honest with them, and that you want to make your relationship better.

A. Tell them how much you value them.

B. Value them with your skills and talents.

C. It's about communicating love and appreciation.

D. In fact, it's linked to our mental and physical health.

E. It means they accept us for who we are, the good and the bad.

F. People feel hurt when someone doesn't keep their private information.

G. But dealing with conflict in a healthy way can deepen your friendships.

On Saturday, August 24, 1918, it was raining cats and dogs and thundering over a city called Sunderland on the northeast coast of England. The storm lasted for only about ten minutes. People were surprised to see that it was not just rainwater falling from the sky. There were fish falling down, too! People came out to find out what was happening. They could not believe their own eyes. There were thousands of fish—sand eels (沙鳗)—lying on the ground. They were about seven centimeters long, and all were frozen dead.

Sand eels swim together in large groups, often in sandy water, and are often found in large numbers in the North Sea, which reaches out to the east of Sunderland. How was it possible for these sand eels to fall from the sky and land on Sunderland?

Scientists believed the heavy thunderstorm that afternoon may have caused a waterspout (水龙卷). Waterspout s can be formed when strong winds move quickly in a circle over water. They are so powerful that anything less than one meter in length can be taken into them and forced into the clouds. The clouds carry whatever has been taken into them for long distances —sometimes over 150 kilometers. It's very cold up there and everything soon freezes.

For hundreds of years there have been reports of small animals being taken into the sky through waterspouts. In 2009, dead tadpoles rained down on the city of Nanao in Japan. In 2012, fifty kilos of prawns fell from the sky over Sri Lanka. In 2017, fish fell on the coastal city of Tampico in Mexico.

It must be a very strange experience to see fish raining down on you. It would probably hurt if one fell on your head! With climate change and many reports of terrible storms, will the time ever come when it may really begin to rain cats and dogs?