【推荐1】My son Tom taught me a beautiful lesson today. He is three years old and it is amazing hatching him grow up.

He called out to me today saying, “Papa, sit”. That usually means _______ everything and going next to him and sitting down to play with him. I did that, as he can be _______ and will not stop calling out until I _______. He was playing with beads (珠子), pushing a string through them, which is a great exercise to help _______ fine motor skills. Then, after he finished playing with the beads, it was time to put them back in the box that they are stored in. I saw him _______ pick up each bead, look at it _______ it were made of chocolate and then placed it into its box.

With over a hundred beads to go, I was getting _______. “What a long time it will take! Why cannot he _______ ten beads in one go and drop them in?” said my anxious mind. I noticed that he did this with as much_______ as he had while we were playing. I didn’t see any ________ between his play and his putting away the toy. Obviously he enjoyed both.

Then it suddenly ________ me that this boy was enjoying the whole ________. The journey was his goal. For him the ________ was in the game and after the game, not just in the fun part. What a great perspective: to live each moment as it is the ________ moment; to do each task as it is the most awesome task. Nothing else ________.

Looking at how ________ my son was putting beads into the box ________ me that the process was the goal. The joy of pilgrimage (朝圣) is not in getting there but in every ________ of the journey.

This is what living in the NOW is all ________. Tom, my son, was showing me that it was about thoroughly enjoying every moment with ________ love and peace.

【推荐2】I’ll always remember the first time I tried ballet. My mother was a _________and I wanted nothing more than to be like her, but after _________during my first class, I felt like I wanted to quit right away. 

Weeks passed and my dancing didn’t _________ any better. So when my dance teacher announced that we were to perform in a show, I feared falling over in front of hundreds of people and _________ my mom. 

Even though I practiced for the show, I _________found my secrets. Finally, feeling nervous and_________, I told my mum how I felt. As I cried, I told her how _________ dancing was for me. My mother told me that from that day on, she would _________ me all she knew about ballet. She wiped the _________ from my face, and I smiled. 

My mom quickly discovered how bad at ballet I was, but she still taught me with the greatest __________, love, and understanding. When I leapt and fell, she was there to catch me.     When I lost my __________, she held me up. By the time the show arrived, I was as prepared as I could be. 

The music began and my heart started to race. Breathing steadily, I began moving to the music without__________ a step. When the music stopped, I ran off the stage to my mother in__________. My mother gave me a huge hug, telling me how __________she was. I looked at my mom and told her that there was no way this could have happened __________ her. 

Never be afraid to reach for the stars, because even if you fall, you’ll always be wearing a “parent-chute”.

【推荐3】Night after night， she came to tuck (盖被子) me in， even long after my childhood years. ____ her long­standing custom， she'd lean down and push my long hair out of the way， then kiss my ____Ｗ.

I don't remember when it first started annoying me—her hands pushing my hair that way. But it did annoy me， for they felt rough ____ my young skin. Finally， one night， I ____ at her： “Don't do that any more—your hands are too rough！” She didn't say anything in ____Ｗ. But never again did my mother ____ my day with that familiar expression of her love. Lying ____ long afterward， my words haunted(萦绕) me. While pride overcame my ____，   I didn't tell her I was sorry.

Time after time， my thoughts returned to that night. I ____ my mother's warm hands and her kiss. Sometimes the incident seemed very close， sometimes far away. ____ always it appeared， hauntingly， in my mind.

Now， I'm not a little girl any more. Mom is in her mid­seventies， and those hands I once thought to be so ____ are still doing things for me and my family. She's been our doctor， reaching into a cabinet for the medicine to ____ a young girl's stomach. She cooks the best fried chicken in the world...

My own children are grown and gone. Mom no longer has Dad， and on ____ occasions， I find myself drawn to her home to spend the night with her. One night on Thanksgiving Eve， as I drifted into sleep in the bedroom of my youth， a familiar hand ____ stole across my face to brush the hair from my forehead. Then a kiss， ever so gently， touched my brow.

In my memory， for the thousandth time， I ____ the night when my rude young voice ____：“Don't do that any more—your hands are too rough！” Catching Mom's hand in mine， I blurted out how ____ I was for that night. I thought she'd remember， as I did. But Mom didn't know what I was talking about. She had forgotten—and ____—long ago.

That night， I fell asleep with a new ____ for my gentle mother and her caring hands. And the ____ I had carried around for so long was nowhere to be found.

【推荐2】The Most Valuable Skill

My grandmother, who had Alzheimer disease, got worse two years ago. My father had her taken good care of in a famous nursing home nearby. My grandmother was a retired university professor, which often made her have an ocean of_________who she had taught before. The old man next door almost had no visitors at all, in deep_________with my grandmother. When I kept her company, he was always_________,sitting on his wheelchair and bathing himself in the sunshine.

Once I_________him, “How are you doing recently?” He gave me a look, but said nothing. I thought he could not hear well, so I_________my voice, “I was asking, ‘How are you doing recently?’” He_________ his head slightly. After a long while finding I was still there, he just said, “Fine.” Then he looked away. I had to choose to _________.

Later, a nurse accidentally told me that the old man had been a businessman, after getting tons of money and companies._________ he was not a good speaker, he annoyed many people and _________made his family and friends pull away. Then he went broke.

That day, my father asked, “What is the most valuable__________a person can have for their entire life?” Before I answered, he continued, “You think making money is the answer. huh? No! But the ability to express your __________is. Seriously, I believe this is something most of us__________.”

It’s extremely__________for a person to learn to put into words, what he thinks. It makes a relationship__________. It creates a(n) __________on the person you’re talking to. It gives you a chance to__________what others think about your ideas. It lets you say something in a________ other people understand. How many of us have said something that has__________whoever loves us deeply? Whatever you say, on purpose or__________,will matter.

So Hemingway concluded, “It takes two years to learn to __________,and a lifetime to learn to shut up.”

【推荐3】My mom used to say that my first words were :I’ll do it myself.

Maybe it was because I was an only child and spent hours alone to _______ myself. Maybe it’s just something I was born with. My mother called my stubbornness(固执） “_______”. Whatever it is, I wanted to do everything on my own.

At 12, I made a carpool(拼车) scheduled with other moms and made a six year plan to _______ university. My parents were _______. While their friends were hounding(逼迫）their kids to finish homework or _______ watching TV, mine was unbothered about whether or not. I’d do the right thing: They always _______ I would.

I wanted everyone to think I was capable. I hoped that if they believed it then I would, too. The _______ is that while I tried to look perfect, I felt like a phony(骗子).

On the outside I looked like I was in control; on the inside, I felt as if a thousand strings (线）were pulling me in all _______ directions.

_______ life became more complex(复杂的), perfection became harder to ________. I felt like I was falling. When would I hit the ground? Panicked, I ________ myself harder.

Simple tasks felt almost impossible. I stopped playing sports and ________ plans with friends. Instead, I would lie in my bed and think about everything and nothing.

My parents became ________. They took me to the doctor. After ________ and meetings and discussions, I was diagnosed as depressed and anxious.

After some reflection(反思), I ________ that I couldn’t do everything on my own, and that this was okay and I was not weak.

I was determined to be the perfect student and kid. Now, I was determined to be an imperfect patient.

________, I tried to ________ to my loved ones. This helped my depression and anxiety, and now I know that I’m not alone. I am not weak for letting someone help me ________ life. Sometimes, imperfect is perfect. If there is a problem, I should talk to the people I love and ________. My parents may be the first choice, but I have friends too. They’re my support ________. They make my life better.