【推荐1】I awoke in the night to find my husband gently rocking our baby son，Noah.

I felt in my heart that something was _______ wrong with Noah.This was one of several nights Noah had been _______，burning with a high fever.

Tears filled my eyes as I watched my husband move Noah’s little cheek up _______ his own chests，so that Noah could _______ the vibrations(振动) of his voice.Noah is deaf.

We had taken Noah to doctor more times than I can _______.It had been a week and a half and Noah’s _______ remained very high.I knew in my soul that Noah was in _______.

I gently touched my husband’s shoulder and we looked into each other’s eyes with the same _______.

When morning finally came，we called the doctor and were told to _______ him in again.Our hearts ________with fear.The doctor looked Noah over and told us the news we ________.Noah had to be admitted to the hospital.

I couldn’t focus on anything，and I couldn’t stop ________.I felt as if I were shattering(垮掉)from the inside out.My husband ________ me that he felt in his heart that Noah would be OK.He never gave up.

A short time later，the doctor told us that Noah’s first ________ were back，and that he had Influenza A(流感)．Noah would ________ and soon be back to his little self.

Marty and I grinned(露齿而笑) at each other through our tears.________，in the middle of the night，we were told that it was ________ to take Noah home!

A few days later，I was cooking dinner.I peeked into the living room，seeing my husband playing and laughing with Noah.They both looked up and ________ me watching them，and my husband and I signed “I love you” to each other，then to Noah.And then Noah put his little arm up，________ to sign his own “I love you” to his daddy.I watched with tears as my husband ________ helped Noah form his tiny fingers into the sign I love you.

You are only three years old, and at this point in your life you are not able to understand this letter. But some day when you _________, I hope you will find something _________ in what I am going to tell you.

Life can be _________. There will be people in your life who won’t be very nice. They’ll _________ you because you are different, _________ for no good reason. You will also face heartbreak and might be _________ by those you love. I hope you don’t have to face these too much, but such things _________.

Be open to life anyway. You’ll find cruelty and _________ in your journey through life, but don’t let that _________ you from finding new things. Don’t retreat (退却) from life, and don’t ____________ or wall yourself off. Be open to new things, new experiences, and new people. You will ____________ many times, but if you allow that to stop you from trying, you will ____________ many chances. Do remember failure is a stepping stone to ____________.

You will meet many people who will try to do ____________ than you, in school, in college, and at work. They’ll try to have nicer cars, bigger houses, nicer clothes, and so on. To ____________, life is a competition. However, I believe life is a(n) ____________. If you always try your best to ____________ others, you are wasting your life. Learn to enjoy your life ____________ and you will make it a journey of ____________, of learning and of love.

Finally, know that I love you and always will. You are ____________ a really wonderful journey, and I will always be there for you.

Love,

Dad

【推荐3】My grandma, Popo, came to live with us in Canada when I was nine. I remembered her as the comforting figure who warmed me in her thick wool coat when we went on family walks during _______ in China. But things_______when she moved in.

_______ my grandma arrived, I used to plant some flowers in our garden. But while I was at school and my parents were at work, Popo, in her _______ , came down upon the little land. She pulled out my flowers and _______ them with orderly rows of tomatoes and other_______. I told her to stop and to keep the flowers. “They’re pretty, but they’re _______,” she said matter-of-factly. I complained to my parents, but they told me to let Popo be.

I never fully understood why my parents _______ to my grandma until one night when my mom was driving me home.“Grandma’s had a _______ life,” she said. “She was two years old when her mother passed away, nine years old at the time of a severe famine (饥荒). She also lost her dad and her elder sister in her teens. Since then， Popo did everything on her own to support her family.”

Different times create different people. My grandma was shaped by the ________ of her family members and the hardship in her childhood. Those who experienced the famine are, naturally,________ to use valuable land to plant flowers. Her independence, diligence and responsibility helped her through those difficult years. Though her quality of being so practical may seem out of place in our current times of ________, she is an important ________ between my families’ past and future- she ________ life challenges to bring up the next generation. Someday, I will be like my grandma and ________ my small part to humanity’s march forward.

【推荐1】I was driving on the freeway when I saw the sign. It _______ drivers that chains would be required to cross the mountain. It took me quite sometime to get the chains on. When I got to a spot where it was no longer snowing, I took the chains off so I could drive at a(n) _______ speed.

Suddenly, I _______ another snowy, icy patch of road. My car spun out into a snowdrift. I thought of _______ some tree branches and placing them under my tires, but it was so cold outside that my hands weren’t working _______. I got inside the car and called American Automobile Association(AAA).

A Russian man came up to my window and said hello. Before I could say too much, he and his three sons were already _______ to push my car. I got out of my car and _______ them.

It was past midnight and they easily could have decided that AAA would _______ the situation after our initial _______ failed. Yet, they stayed with me for nearly 45 minutes as we kept trying ________ things to get the car out of the snow, and insisted that they wouldn’t leave until I was ________.

At first, I was a little ________ about being stuck in the freezing weather at such a late hour, but their cheerful attitude changed the whole ________ of the situation and lifted my spirits.

After nearly 45 minutes of hard work when my car was finally free, they didn’t even ________ around long enough for me to get their names. They just ran toward their truck, ________ a bit on the ice, and yelled back “Drive Slowly”, like true smile heroes!

【推荐2】

After a powerful wind storm struck Iowa in August, the city of Mount Vernon was left covered in fallen trees.

That's when 12-year-old Tommy Rhomberg stepped up to the plate. Using fallen _______, Tommy designed and carved more than 200 baseball bats, which he sold to _______money for victims of the widespread wind storm. For each bat sold for $100, he _______   $20 to the Greater Cedar Rapids Community Foundation Disaster Relief Fund.

Tommy_______the idea on the day of the storm, which_______ to be his best friend's birthday. Knowing his best friend's _______for baseball-and surrounded by _________ trees from the storm -Tommy decided to gift his friend a hand-carved bat. He woke up at 6 a.m. to_______it over the course of a few days until it was perfect. When seeing it, his friend was amazed by Tommy's thoughtful gift: “I didn't _______anything for my birthday, but when Tommy brought me the bat that he made me, I was so excited and__________”。

Tommy made the bat using his grandfather's__________   and sand paper, and that he worked until his hands were covered in blisters.

After Amanda Rhomberg, Tommy's mom,__________ photos of the bat on Facebook, the post went __________ and hundreds of people asked if Tommy could make them bats.

The bats, which are about 30 inches long, can't be used to play__________, as the fallen wood will crack as the wood dries over time. But people can__________them as “a little souvenir from the storm". “I don't know how his__________hands can do so much,” Amanda said. “He has put in hundreds of hours into making these bats. I am so__________ of him for teaching himself a new skill and starting a __________while doing so much good. He shows that you can make a__________in your corner of the world by doing what you can with __________you have.”

【推荐3】A 13-year-old girl from Connecticut came up with a smart idea and brightened the days of hundreds of sick kids. ________ to see her dear sister lying on the hospital bed three months ago, Ella Casano ________ the Medi Teddy, a stuffed animal bag that contains an IV pocket (静脉注射袋). The back of the ________ consists of a net, allowing a doctor or nurse to see through and check on the liquid ________ that a child is receiving. From the front, the child sees a ________ face instead of the IV liquid pocket.

At the beginning, Ella hoped to ________ $5,000 through a GoFundMe page, which would have allowed her to start producing 500 Medi Teddys, the smallest number ________ by the manufacturer (厂家) to do the job. ________, in just over a week, Ella’s page collected more than $20,000. Although her sister recovered soon, Ella was amazed by the ________ level of response and decided to work harder.

She shared with a local newspaper, “It turns out kids aren’t the only ones who get ________ by the Medi Teddy. The ________ for it has been quite obvious among patients, both children and adults, and even pet owners nationwide. We want to continue to ________ Medi Teddys to as many children as we can to make a ________ in their lives.”

The same motivation has also ________ Ella’s mum. “It’s really been heartwarming to receive such ________emails from all over the world,” she said. “And it’s inspiring me to contribute to the process.”

【推荐1】This afternoon after seeing my mom, I was driving home. I took the________that was more like a canyon (峡谷)drive with beautiful scenery. Suddenly I heard a sound and I knew a big________tire! I pulled to the side, but this was a canyon drive with not much shoulder________, and it happened to be around a curve (弯曲处)where people couldn't________me. That made it very________. Thus, cars       passed me________so that I couldn't get out. Within minutes I saw a car________at a distance behind me. The gentleman walked out,________help, and I walked out of the car very________, for the road was so narrow. He moved my car a bit out of the way while I was still talking to AAA(美国汽车协会).They said with all the________they gave me since I was in a dangerous place, they could send ________in 20minutes. The gentleman offered to look at my spare tire to________ it was OK before I ________AAA.

Before I knew it, he took it out and________to change the tire. By the time I finished talking with AAA, he had changed my tire!

I________him and he left. I saw in my________that the car just followed me, making sure I was OK. At the traffic lights, I got a chance to see the________family in the car—a beautiful young wife with lovely children in the back. They all gave me a big smile and________at me. I thought about what a role________for those young children to learn about service and sympathy. I thought how ________I was to be the receiver of such generosity.

【推荐2】Ariel decided to _________ herself in nature the day before she turned 30, so she rode her bike to Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge in Queens, New York on November 5 to take a hike. A mile into her walk, she _________ a gorgeous female mute (哑的) swan near the water’s edge. Ariel, 30, who _________ volunteered at the Wild Bird Fund rehab (康复) center in Manhattan for five years, knew that mute swans can be _________. But as she approached this one, it didn’t move.

She was certain that the bird needed medical attention. Ariel put her jacket over the bird’s head to keep it calm, carefully picked it up, and held it in her arms. And then a thought _________ her: What can I do now?

Her best bet was the rehab center, but that was across the East River and clear on the other side of town. How was she going to _________ a 17-pound swan on her bike all that way? _________, some puzzled strangers driving by offered her, her bike, and the swan a _________ to a nearby subway station.

On the subway, no one seemed particularly annoyed by the _________ passenger. Ariel says: “One guy was sitting right in front of me on his phone. I don’t know if he __________ there was a swan in front of him”.

Ariel called the rehab center on the way, and Tristan Higgin, a (n) __________ manager, picked her up at the subway station and drove the bird, bike, and __________ to the facility. There, staff members determined that the swan might have lead poisoning, caused by swallowing __________ used on fishing lines.

While recovering, she made a boyfriend at the center—another injured swan. Sadly, even with all that tender loving care, the swan was __________ with a bacterial infection. Two months after Ariel came to her rescue, she __________. It’s a disappointing ending, but the real story is just how far some people are willing to go to save a swan in the big city. In all, Ariel traveled two hours by foot, car, and subway (while dragging her bike). “That’s the perfect summary of who she is.” says Higginbotham.

【推荐3】My previous home had a stand of woods behind it and many animals in the backyard. That first year, I started feeding peanuts to the blue jays, then the squirrels. The squirrels had no _____________coming up right to me for them. As the months went by, the rabbits saw that I was no _____________and didn’t escape. When I threw carrot slices (薄片), they even came for a nibble (啃). Slowly they came to _____________me, and by the end of the year they were eating out of my hand.

That second year, the rabbits _____________me, and one would even sit up for slices! While I was feeding them, I noticed that a groundhog who used to run away was now taking an _____________interest in this food situation. I carefully extended a long carrot, with a keen eye on those teeth, and ___________, there were times I would have the groundhog sitting next to a rabbit, both munching (津津有味地咀嚼) on carrots. A few months later, while eating, she would even turn her back to me. _____________when she was facing away, I reached out and _____________scratched (搔) her back with my finger. She didn’t move.

By year three, the rabbits and the groundhog were back. The groundhog _____________didn’t have a problem with me scratching her back, and I got an idea. I’d always ____________, while slicing up carrots, that the end looked like a cap. So one day, just to see what she would do, I gently ______________one on top of the groundhog’s head. Again, not a ____________. The next time, I had my camera ready to record what you see here, one of several dozen such pictures. ________she had a slice to cat, she never ______________the one on her head. It was a fair ____________—I got a pleasure, and she had yet another tasty treat.