【推荐2】I always do voluntary work in the hospital. As a patient visitor, my important ______ is to deliver quality services to patients and families. By ______ companionship (陪伴) for patients in a sometimes ______ environment, I try my best to serve them and help to reduce the loneliness and frustration patients may feel after ______ in a hospital for weeks or even months.

Every Saturday afternoon for three to four hours, with a list of patients who ______ a patient visitor service, I head up to the 5th, 6th or 7th floor to first visit my priority (优先) patients. At the nurse’s station, I ______ ask the nurses or the medical staff about the condition of the patients in that unit and ______ that the patients would like a visitor. After receiving an update from the nurse, I gently ______ the door of the patients and enter with a friendly “Hello”. Then, I introduce myself and again politely ask if they would like a patient visitor. I usually try to prepare a few starting conversation ______ such as the current news, sports scores and fun facts. However, the patients usually engage (使加入) me first in an interesting conversation.

When volunteering as a patient visitor, I spent a lot of time communicating one-on-one with patients. Individual patients had individual needs and had extraordinary personal stories. ______,I found every visit ______. From generous and kind patients I have learned about their diseases and their course of ______. Additionally, I learned about literature, life during the Great Depression and wilderness of Northern Minnesota. On the whole, not only did I learn about the hospital settings and system, but I learned about the different ______ of others.

Many of the patients I have visited were truly inspiring and I always ______ them for their strength. Although their situations were somewhat difficult, they were often willing to share their stories of pain, suffering, hopes and optimism. I realize that I am truly grateful and ______ that they would share their personal stories with just a volunteer like me.

【推荐3】My family lives in Las Vegas, where I can hardly remember the last time it snowed. We also didn’t get the ________ of the men who helped us during the last snowstorm.

We had been ______ through Albuquerque, New Mexico from Texas after a week of visiting family and friends after 15 years of not seeing them. Suddenly, we _____________ it was snowing, and soon, as we got closer to Albuquerque, _________________________ snow piles littered the sides of the road.

We had a quick ________ at Clines Corners Rest Area, and got back on the road again. Slowly, we drove onto the snow-filled highway. At first, it had seemed like we would _______ it, and we almost did. Right at the edge of the highway, we got stuck in the snow. My sister and I got out to try and push the car, but that didn’t work. In the words of my sister, "this is how horror movies __________."

Thank goodness it wasn’t so __________ that there were cars on the road. At first, we used our bare hands to try and __________ a car to help us. The driver looked at us and unfortunately continued driving, but I understood. It seemed he was also on a ________ with his family. Then, we saw another car and grabbed our phones and _________ them with the flashlights on.

A man in a truck about the same height as I am, __________ in his early 30s, stopped to help us. Despite him not having any_________, he still tried to help us push our car back onto the road.

After several attempts, another truck saw us. It passed us, but someone in it _________ the driver to back up and help. Two white men, taller than I, probably also in their 30s, got ________and grabbed their shovel（铁锹）. They knew exactly what to do, shoveling the snow, and revealing a pathway of pavement for our tires to drive on. They even instructed my dad to slowly speed up. With their help, our car __________ made it back on the road.

I’m really ________ to you three who helped my family. _________ we didn't get your names, I hope that somehow this piece of writing __________ you, and you understand that you saved my family and two dogs, from a potentially life-threatening _______.

【推荐2】Several years ago, a neighbor kid kicked a football and broke a basement window of my house. Due to financial problems, I _________ it up, thinking I’d get to it someday.

Over the years, I had planned to upgrade to energy-efficient windows. But with the frame (窗框) rusted (锈) and firmly _________ in the foundation, whoever did it would need to chisel (凿) it out by hand. It would be a _________ process and there were six of those windows in the house. The cost was estimated at $ 15, 00. It was simply _________.

Honestly, the thought of that window _________ me for years. I knew I needed to fix it, but I had built up the _________ so much in my mind that I put it off again and again.

Then I had a job change and needed to sell the house before moving away. But it was almost _________ to find a buyer if there was a broken window. So I pulled off the boards to face this thing head-on. I grabbed some rust remover, _________ it around the frame of the window, and gave it a pull. To my astonishment, it easily _________. I took the window downtown. It only cost me $ 12. I could have __________ the problem for only $12 when it occurred, but I let it bother me for five years!

__________, this isn’t just about my window. Many of us live with broken windows of one type or another. They are things that seriously affect our __________ of life. If you recognize your broken window, don’t __________ to mend it. It may turn out to be __________ than expected. Usually we suffer more in __________ than in reality.