【推荐2】At the age of 60, my father was hit by a car when he walked to a nearby supermarket to buy vegetables. After ________ for two months in hospital, he finally woke up. His waking up ________ all our family. ________, he didn’t know any of us. Doctors said his brain was hurt so ________ that he had lost all his memory. And his mental age (心理年龄) was only five. We were sorry to hear about the bad news.

Since I was his only child, it was my ________ to look after him. He forgot ________ everything, but he did remember he liked sweets. I used the sweets as a way of ________ bad behaviors. I would gave him one sweet ________ he didn’t sit on the ground, a second for stopping painting on the wall, and another for not trying to put clothes on the dog.

Dad became the ________ child in town. He climbed up the tree to catch a bird and couldn’t get down after it ________ away. He broke my window with a ball and ________ our telephone in water like washing clothes. When I told him he was doing ________ things, he would answer smilingly, “I like that!” My son, then aged five, and two eight-year-old daughters, welcomed their ________ playmate. He would happily make them real cigarettes, ________ his sweets with them, and carry them high in the apple tree to ________ apples.

It is eight years since the ________. Dad has accepted the fact that he is the ________ of his three playmates but not a brother. He has also accepted that they grow taller but his ________ stays the same. Though it is still ________ to take care of him, he brings us a lot of fun. In some way I think it is a(n) ________ thing to look after dad like looking after a child. How many people can have the chance to care for a child-like parent?

【推荐3】A few years after Dad died, my 82-year-old mom moved away from the family farm near Almonte into her first apartment, which meant ________ for her to go for groceries. We were also ________ that she was living alone and hoped this ________ would really widen her social ________.

As she and I ________ her belongings, Mom shared with me all kinds of ________ about her and my father’s life together. Then we drove to town, ________ the unwanted items at Almonte’s secondhand store, where they could be ________ and the money would go to charity.

A local gentleman, who had ________ one of Mom’s old suitcases, found a black-and-white negative (底片) in an envelope, with the word “Daddy” ________ in pencil on the front. Knowing that this film certainly ________ something to someone, he took it to the Almonte Gazette, attempting to find its rightful ________ through the paper.

A week later, a big photo of my father appeared in our local paper, with a story to ________ it. Readers responded immediately; they ________ “Daddy” well — it was their uncle, brother-in-law, neighbor, friend, favorite bus driver…

So Mom and I went to the Gazette right away to ________ our film. We thanked the staff and also called the       _____ to express our heart-felt gratitude for ________ Mom, Daddy and me.

What a(n) ________ act! It meant the world to us. Mom eventually moved into a nursing home. She passed away in November, 2018, at 98, and until then ________ a day went by that she did not look at, in her words, “that famous ________ of Daddy,” on her bedside table.

【推荐1】Hardship comes in different shapes and sizes. But few things in life are as _______ as feeling cut off from the people we love.

Recently, while _______ against the COVID-19, my grandkids and I have to stay indoors and started _______ via Wechat. Mostly, I read to them because I love doing it, but I also do it for their parents' mental health. Besides having to stay indoors, they are _______ to homeschool their kids, who can't go to school or play with their friends.

Reading to each other is an age-old practice to me. It has _______ and healing (治愈的) power especially in current situation. When we read, we see the words with our eyes. But hearing them read is a different _______, we just need to be quiet and listen. Sometimes, the voice and the love it_______ mean far more than the words. Today, I wechatted with my grandkids, Ran and Wey, and read them a book my kids loved long ago, and they thought it _______, frequently bursting out laughing.

Now more than ever, while keeping a safe distance, we all need to _______ each other. Sometimes the words we read are so powerful that they will never be ________.

Have you ever had problems in your life and don’t know how to be happy? If _______, you will find “Being a Happy Teenager” by Australian writer Andrew Matthews _______.

In his book, Matthews _______ us how to have a happy life and answer the _______ of teenagers.

There are many _______ such as parents and friends, and the book _______ we should stop being angry and learn to forgive. The book tells us of useful skills _______ how to put what you have learned into pictures of your mind to _______your memory better.

Many teenagers think _______ happiness comes from a good exam result ________ praise (赞扬) from other people. But you can ________ be happy when there are no such “good” things.

Success comes from a(n) ________ attitude (态度). If you ________ from problems, you will have success in the future.

Some school students have ________ such as being too tall or too short. But Matthews tells us that ________ comes from thinking about things in a positive (积极的)________ . If you are ________ , people notice you and you can get a ________ view (视线) at the movie; if you are short, your clothes and shoes ________ less room in your bedroom! This is Matthews’ most important ________ : you choose to be happy!

【推荐3】One year my children came home from school asking where we were going on summer vacation. It seemed that all the other kids were________ where they were spending the summer. I couldn’t ______to take them anywhere but I didn’t want to tell them that so I just said, “It’s a surprise!” They were delighted. That bought me a little more time.

I called several amusement parks to see if there was a half-price event during the summer but no such ______ . I tried everything, with no success, so I called some of the other moms to find that most were in the same situation that I was. We decided to ______something fun for our kids to do. We had a meeting, all five of us, and created what is now called a “playcation”.

One mother was a ______ , so on Mondays the kids would all go to her house. They would play games using plants and vegetables. They also planted vegetables and watch them grow over the summer.

Another mother had Bible______on Tuesdays. She asked some questions about Bible. The kid who answered correctly got a penny, which they all turned in at the end to buy their goodie bags.

At our house on Wednesdays, I made an outdoor_______training with my spare tires. The kids also walked a balance beam and raced through large cardboard boxes taped together.

On______they had arts and crafts across the street. Fridays were hosted by a wonderful single dad with a metal detector who took everyone out treasure______ .

The summer was a big success. Okay, it wasn’t Disney World, ______the kids didn’t miss anything. My son actually asked me, “Can we do this again next year?”