【推荐1】Five years ago, I got an email from a well-known professor in my field in March. He invited me to________ for a position in his lab. Things went well and all I needed to do was finish up my thesis (毕业论文) and I decided to ________ it in the following months.

One night, my mother came up to my room, asking softly, “Have you ________ your thesis yet?” “Not yet, Mom,” I ________ , even too busy to look up at her. Then she mentioned that she had some ________ symptoms (症状) in her body that had never been seen before. She wanted to say something more, but my academic (学业的)________ made me hardly take her words to heart.

However, two months later, the doctor announced my mother might ________for less than a year ________cancer (癌症). It was then that I was ________that things became more serious than I had imagined. Before it was too late, I was________to stop my thesis and be there with my mother for her rest life. ________ , my mother failed in the battle and passed away at the end of the year. The next July, I finished my scientific thesis and got the________from the lab.

When looking back today, I feel ________for losing precious time with my mother. The ________ of my mother gave me a new way to think about life: If your loved ones need you, be there for them. Sometimes, just being a listening ear to them can really ________.

【推荐3】“I just can’t help thinking that it isn’t fair to Tara,” sighed my mother last week, for no obvious _________ . I knew what she meant. In fact, I sort of feel it, too, _________ it’s almost impossible to explain. Two words perhaps can help sum it up: _________ child.

Two years ago, the situation was _________ . We had two babies: Ruby, the older one, and Tara, the younger who was playful and cute. Even at five years old, Tara still felt like our baby. But then we had Orla. Ruby, aged seven at the time, became the eldest of three, but Tara lost her place as the baby, along with all its advantages. Now she is sandwiched between an outgoing elder sister and a cute little one.

Somehow, life can just seem _________ for Tara. Bedtime is a good example. Nine-year-old Ruby likes lots of _________ and some time on her own in bed, listening to her iPod, reading and playing. That’s easily arranged. Orla likes to be hugged as she goes to sleep. _________ , Tara would really like someone to lie with her, _________ her day and her book. Sometimes I’ll walk out of Orla’s room at 10 pm after falling asleep beside her, to find Tara _________ , still waiting for my hug. She also gets signed up for the __________ after-school clubs as her elder sister although I know she isn’t interested in them.

Of the three, Tara is the most likely to wander around alone, saying, “It’s not __________ .” And quite often she has a point. The middle child often has to watch the elder sibling leading the way, getting all that __________ of the first-born. The youngest has the benefit of being the baby. So what __________ does the middle child play?

I can __________ see the situation in Tara. She is the one who gets herself up and dressed every morning, who brushes her hair and her teeth, packs her bag for school and __________ me about all the things I’ve probably forgotten.

【推荐2】I started serving the homeless when I was eight years old. I didn't know these people would make such a big difference in my _______.

Twice a month I go to the church and help get things ready for _______. When the gate is opened, people come in _______ to get drinks. They take their seats while breakfast is _______， and then we begin to _______. We each take two plates and carry them _______ the line as the plates are _______. Each person receives several kinds of foods. I walk to the tables and _______ the plates before them. After I've served them, I ask if they need _______ else and bring them whatever they ask for.

When I first started serving, I was a little     ________ . At first I stayed close to my mom most of the time, but after I got to know these strangers, I   ________ that they were friendly people. And the ________ of them was often nicer than the outside. I realized that there was no ________ to be scared. After serving for a few months, I started to ________ seeing the same people each week.

All of these people make my day much ________. The past two years have made a big ________ in my life. I do this ________ it is the right thing to do. When I serve people, I want them to know that someone   ________   them and that they matter. Serving makes me happy, but even more ________， it teaches me to love and ________ others and helps make the world a better place.

【推荐3】I got out of the car that rainy Tuesday, already tired, and headed toward my company. It had been a(n) _________ morning with my son, Adrian, who has severe ADD (多动症). By the building entrance, something caught my _________. A chicken.

A man told me the chicken had been _________ around the last few nights. At the end of my _________, I saw her in the same spot, cold and _________. “Go find your family,” I said. All night I was _________ about her. What if a coyote (郊狼) got her?

It rained the next morning. No sign of the chicken. I_________ she had gone home. But then I found her. She was there, getting _________ on again. I_________ her some bread. She refused it and just stood there, __________ up at me. Halfway home that evening, I made a U-turn and went back to my __________. I picked up the chicken and drove home with her in my lap, her beak (喙) on my shoulder the entire __________.

I __________ on Facebook, asking if anyone had __________ a chicken. But no one claimed her. My __________ made herself at home—even laying eggs in my backyard.

The biggest surprise was how Adrian __________ her. His ADD makes him get angry easily. __________ not with the chicken. She __________ him around the house and sits in his lap. The __________ between them has been such a blessing. That rainy Tuesday, I told the chicken to find her __________. Little did I know it would turn out to be us!

【推荐1】My family is still recovering from the hard time of the past few years. It began when my teenaged son became _______.

As anyone who has ever _______ a seriously sick child knows, the stress doesn’t go away. Every day the air carried the _______ of an approaching storm. My husband and I seemed to forget how to _______ — we couldn’t have a simple conversation without fighting and tears.

One night, my son and I were discussing Valentine’s gifts. I _______ that his dad gave me a kazoo (卡祖笛) for our first Valentine’s Day.

My first _______ to this gift was confusion, which quickly turned to _______ when I, a professional saxophone (萨克斯风) player, couldn’t get it to make a _______. The kazoo eventually was _______ away and I hadn’t thought of it __________ that evening. Interested, he asked to see it. After some trouble, I found it __________ in a dusty box.

“You couldn’t make a sound?” he asked, amazed, turning it __________ in his hands. “What’s so hard about it?”

“I don’t know. It just never __________.”

My husband grabbed (抓住) the kazoo — “It’s __________! Look, you just do this …” — and blew. __________ happened. Surprised, he tried again, only to produce a sound like an angry bee.

We burst into laughter as if the long-settled dark cloud had __________ and let in a ray of sunshine. Eyes met and souls __________. My son took a turn on the kazoo. He did no better than us. More __________.The mood stayed light for the rest of the evening.

Even though we have gone through a lot, __________, we can still connect as a family. There is always light to lead the way out of the __________.