A hobby can be almost anything a person likes to do in his free time．Hobbyists keep pets, build model shops, watch birds, hunt animals, climb mountains, grow flowers, fish, ski, skate, and swim．Hobbyists also paint pictures, attend concerts and plays and perform on musical instruments．They collect everything from books to butterflies, and from shells to stamps．

　　People have hobbies because these activities offer enjoyment, friendship, knowledge, and relaxation．Sometimes they even make some money by following a hobby．Hobbies help people relax after hard work, and provide a balance between work and play．Hobbies also offer interesting activities for persons who have retired(退休)．Anyone, rich or poor, old or young, sick or well, can follow an interesting hobby．

　　Hobbies can help a person’s mental and physical health．Doctors have found that hobbies are valuable in helping patients recover from physical or mental illness．Hobbies give patients something to do, and provide interests that keep them from thinking about themselves．Many hospitals treat patients by having them have interesting hobbies or pastimes．

　　In early times, most people were too busy making a living to have many hobbies．But some persons who were free did enjoy hobbies．The old Egyptians played games with balls made of wood or pottery．

　　People today have more time than ever before for hobbies．Machines have reduced(减少)the amount of time they must spend on their jobs．More people are retiring than ever before, and at an earlier age．Those who have developed hobbies never need to worry about what to do with their newly-found free hours．

　　Sir William Osler, a famous Canadian doctor, expressed the value of hobbies by saying, “No man is really happy or safe without a hobby．”

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　　The word hobby is an interesting word．Every person has one thing he or she likes to do for fun(娱乐)．Some people like to collect(收集)things like stamps or story books．Others like to play football or go window shopping where you can look at many beautiful things without buying them．

　　I have many hobbies I do for fun．I sometimes play golf with my sons．I play tennis with all the family．I like to collect music books．I also collect musical instruments(乐器)from China like the erhu, the dizi, the xiao, the suona, and the pipa．These are the instruments of China which cannot be found in America．

　　My favourite hobby is fishing．I like to go and see my brother in the state(州)of Alaska where fishing is wonderful．The two of us take a boat and go to the small river where we fish for salmon, America’s most famous fish．

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