Essay On Jonathan Fenby's The Penguin History Of Modern China

As a musician, I spend most of my free time practicing. However, I’m interested in learning much more than just music. Among all my interests, learning history, exercising, and traveling stand out as my favorites.
In seventh grade, I had a first history class. Unlike most Chinese teachers, my history teacher was not into assigning many worksheets. Instead, she required all her students to read a historical book and reflect on it. I chose to read The Penguin History of Modern China by Jonathan Fenby, who analyzed the factors behind the rise and fall of China since the 1850s. This book started my obsession with history because of the life lessons it provides.
As Edmund Burke once said, “Those that don’t know history are doomed to repeat it.” History gives warnings to humans; parallels between events that happened years apart can easily be found. For instance, Napoleon lost nearly all of his troops when he intended to invade Russia. Similarly, Hitler attempted to conquer the world but ended up suffering a massive loss of his men. Because of human nature, we often ignore the warnings that history presents us with; history reminds me to learn from mistakes

Exercising has always been a top priority to me for several reasons. First of all, exercise helps me manage my weight. In addition to the fact that overweight leads to various diseases, as a musician, being overweight does not give audience a nice first impression. Moreover, exercising in the morning helps me stay positive and energetic throughout the entire day. I have noticed a dramatic difference of how I felt between the days I exercised in the morning and the days that I didn 't. On most days, I run on the treadmill at home to save the time travelling to a gym. Nonetheless, when I have more time, I love to go swimming. Being in the water helps me relax and let go of all the pressure. In short, exercising is not only a habit of mine, but also a hobby of