【推荐1】When my teenaged son became seriously ill, terrible times for my family began. Our once-happy home became tense and ______. My husband and I were exhausted under the great stress of ______ my son. It was as if we forgot how to communicate—we couldn’t have a simple ______ without a fighting. Our marriage was on the point of breaking up.

One evening, my son and I were talking about _______ I recalled my first Valentine’s present from my husband, a kazoo (卡祖笛). I was ______ when I received it because I couldn’t get it to make a sound ______ I am a professional saxophone(萨克斯) player. However hard I tried, it just never ______ . The kazoo eventually got ______ and forgotten. But My son was interested and insisted on seeing it. After some ______, I found it.

“You couldn’t get a sound? What’s so ______ about it?” my husband asked, amazed. He grabbed the kazoo and ______. Nothing happened. Surprised, he tried again. Still there was no sound. Frustrated. he tried again,______ to produce a funny sound like an angry bumblebee(大黄峰) ______ in the mouth of a bear. We burst into laughter. My son took a ______ to play the kazoo. He did no better than us, causing more ______.

Seeing his face light up, we felt as if the gloom(黑暗) had ______ and a ray of sunshine was let in. It was the best ten ______ of the past couple of years. The mood stayed ______ for the rest of the evening. It didn’t solve anything. But this ______ with the kazoo proved to be a turning point that always ______ us that there are still things to laugh at and enjoy, and that we can still connect as a family.

【推荐2】Ever since I was very young, afraid of making mistakes, I’ve asked countless times “What should I do?”

However, during my high school years, I _______. Maybe it was when I decided to try for the lead in Beauty and the Beast. I would have to memorize lines and movements, but I took the chance that I might fail. On the day of practice, my heart was pounding; my hands were _______ badly when I got up to sing. But when I opened my mouth, the sound was loud and _______. I reached for the high notes that sometimes were beyond my reach, which made me very _______. I was trying to do my best even though I might fail. I realised that if I wanted to live life to the fullest, I had to take _______.

Now, I do take these chances, with baby steps every day, voicing my opinions in class discussions or debates and riding my bike for exercise.

Three years ago, I broke my back when I fell from my bike. The _______ stopped me from trying out for basketball. But I didn’t give up. The first day my doctor _______ me to do any physical activity, I started running with my mom. No stop-watches. No cheering crowds. I didn’t make the basketball team, but I didn’t fail, either.

I have finally learned to _______ myself, like taking a tough science course. And I have come to realise that even though my parents, friends and teachers don’t always have the _______ to “What should I do?”, they will be there to ________ me when I try.

【推荐3】My parents and I visited our relatives in Princeton Junction, New Jersey. Everyday I enjoyed walking a circular way starting from their house. One evening I decided to be adventurous and changed from my _________ way - I was looking forward to a longer walk, _________ that I would be able to find my way back. My walk took me beyond the living area and into a beautiful place with an expanse of fields on both sides of the road. With the sun beginning to _________, it was really a wonderful sight. After about thirty minutes, I noticed that I was not _________ back in the direction I had come - in fact I seemed to be moving further away. I searched my pocket for the mobile phone to get help, but it wasn't there. I had left it at home.

However, I remained _________. Although there weren't any people about, there was some _________ and I was sure that someone would stop and point me in the right direction. As each car or truck came, I stopped and _________, but time after time each one passed me by. No one seemed to feel any sympathy for me. About forty minutes, I was beginning to feel _________. There was no one in sight and my family was completely in the dark as to my _________.

When I just gave up all hope, a black SUV __________ me and stopped. A mother and daughter wanted to know how they could help. I told them I was lost and gave them my address. The mother pointed to a turning a little further down the road and promised me I was pretty close to home. Expressing my thanks, I started off at a fast __________. I had been walking for about five minutes when I heard a car drive up behind me and stop. It was the mother and daughter again. They realized that they had not given me the correct __________ and my destination was much further away.

They offered to __________ me home, and I was so grateful for their help. During our brief conversation I got the __________ that the teenage daughter was going to a school party and would now arrive late. We didn't __________ names but I will never forget their act of kindness.

【推荐1】A magazine article told about a woman in rural Florida who was recovering from a lengthy illness. She enjoyed sitting on her front porch in her _______ and, on this day, she watched her son _______ his car. He raised it on blocks of wood, removed the tires and _______ on his back underneath the vehicle.

_______ there was a loud crack and the car lurched (突然倾斜) to one side, pinning the young man underneath. She _______ for her husband who ran to assist, but he couldn’t _______ the car or the young man. He climbed into his own vehicle and sped away for _______.

The mother, who hadn’t _______ in months, realized that her son’s groans (呻吟声) were growing _______ and she knew that it would be up to her to __________ the boy. She rose to her feet and walked on __________ legs to the car. Supporting herself, she __________ the car. The car rose a few inches — just enough to let the boy get __________. Then she collapsed.

After a thorough __________, she was found only to have suffered strained muscles. And the __________ doctor’s words were most telling: “I will always wonder, ” he said, “how far she might have lifted that car if she had been __________ and strong.”

We’ve read similar stories about persons exhibiting almost super-human __________ in times of crises. This mother, and others like her, found the strength they needed to __________ the crisis at hand.

And so it is with all of us. When life __________ us down and it seems impossible to get back up, we need to find a way to do what needs to be done. We are __________ than we think.

【推荐2】When I was having my coffee at a restaurant last week, a cockroach (蟑螂) suddenly came from somewhere and sat on one lady. She started screaming out of fear. With a panic stricken face and ______ voice, she started jumping, with both her hands ______ trying to get rid of the cockroach. Her ______ was spreading, as everyone in her group ______ got panicky. The lady finally ______ to drive the cockroach away but ... it landed on ______ lady in the group. Now, it was the ______ of the other lady in the group to continue the performance.

The waiter ______ forward to their rescue. In the ______ of throwing, the cockroach next fell upon the waiter. He stood ______, calmed himself and observed the ______ of the cockroach on his shirt. When he was ______ enough, he grabbed it with his fingers and threw it out of the restaurant.

Slowly drinking my coffee and ______ the amusement, my mind picked up a few thoughts and started ______ : was the cockroach responsible for their behavior? If so, then why was the waiter not disturbed? He handled it near to ______, without any chaos. It was not the cockroach, ______ the inability of those people to handle the ______ caused by the cockroach, that disturbed the ladies.

Many such things happen in my life. More than the problem itself, it’s my reaction ______ a problem that creates ______ in my life. I understood a lesson from the waiter how to ______ to a challenge; when faced with tough times, stay calm and save a situation from going out of control and you can find solutions.