【推荐1】My mother left the field of education formally after I was born. However, she did not leave it _________. She made learning a _________ part of my life. I never watched television, not because I was not _________ to, but because it was more fun writing stories with my mom.

On my first day of kindergarten, I was excited, but _________. During snack time that day, I sat quietly and opened my _________. Inside, I found a note from my mother written on a napkin(餐巾纸). The note said that she _________ me, that she was proud of me and that I was the best kindergartener in the world! Because of that napkin note I _________ my first day of kindergarten successfully and many more school days to follow.

There have been many napkin notes since the _________ one. There were even napkin notes _________ to me in college, far away from my home. __________ I changed majors, changed the way I looked at the world, there was one thing that never __________ — my mother’s encouragement, support and __________ in napkin notes.

This year, my mother __________ to go back to school to earn her degree in teaching. Although I was in __________ of my mother for following her dreams, I wanted her to __________ that she didn’t need a(n) __________ to make her an excellent teacher.

So I gave her a __________ for school: a lunch bag filled with her favorite foods. She laughed as she __________ the lunch bag. Then she pulled out a napkin with __________ on it.

As she opened up her “You can do it!” napkin note from me, tears began to run down her face. When her eyes met mine, I saw she __________ my unspoken message: My mother is, and always has been, a teacher.

【推荐2】When I wanted to get into my little daughter’s room one evening, I stopped. Through the crack of the door, I saw her playing alone. In one hand was plastic _______ and in the other, a toy broom. I listened calmly as she was speaking to her make-believe little friend and I’ll never forget the words she said _________it was just a pretence.

She said, “Rosa is in the corner because she hasn’t been very _______ and quiet lately. She didn’t listen to me or do what she should.” In the corner I saw her baby doll. It was _______ that she’d been put there to sit alone and think by herself. My daughter went on with her “_______”, as I sat down on the floor. She said “I’m _______ of all this. I really don’t know how to _______ her any more. She cries whenever I have to work and wants to play games, too. She never _______me to do the things I just have to. She tries to help me with the dishes, but her arms can’t reach. I don’t have the energy to teach. I have much work to do and a big house to keep _______. I don’t have time to sit and play ---understand what I mean? ”

Later, I thought about making changes in my life as I listened to her __________ words that cut me like a knife. I didn’t pay enough attention to what I care most about. I’d been caught up in responsibilities that __________ throughout the year.

But now my attitude has greatly changed because in my heart I realize that I’ve seen the world in a __________ way through my daughter’s eyes. So, just let the spider webs take up the corners and the dusty toy rabbit __________ the floor. Anyway, I’m not going to __________them any more. I’m going to fill the house with __________ of a child and her mother because we’re given only one childhood, and we’ll never get another.

【推荐3】We went for a walk in the fields, my mother, my wife, my son and I.

Mother had been ___________ to come out with us, for she was in poor health, and even a(n) ___________ distance would make her feel tired. But I insisted that, just for this reason, walking was necessary. ___________ her agreement, she went to fetch her overcoat.

This year, spring came too late. Some old people found it hard to endure the long cold. But ___________ spring was here now, and my mother had ___________ another bitter winter.

My mother and I walked in front, followed by my wife and son. Later, ___________ occurred between us: my mother wanted to take the main road, for it was wide and ___________, while my son preferred the little path, where there might be more interesting things. It was ___________ me to make the final decision. My mother had got used to listening to her strong son, and my son was in the habit of ___________ his father, a big figure in his mind. I suddenly feel the weight of a heavy ____________. I tried to ____________ a win-win choice, but failed. Finally, I decided ____________ my son, because there would be long years ____________ in which I could be with him.

But my mother changed her ____________ and said, “We’d better take the little path. You’ll have to ____________ me on your back in places I can’t walk across.”

The problem thus ____________; we picked our way along the little path. When we came to a certain spot, I let my mother get on my back. My wife followed my ____________ and carried our son. ____________ as my mother was, she was quite thin, and not heavy at all. My son was ____________, but a child could only be so heavy. Despite this, both my wife and I walked ____________, as steadily as possible, as if we bore the whole world on our backs.

【推荐1】If someone said they’d pay you 1,800 dollars to stay off social media for six years, would you do it? Could you? Sivert Klefsaas did just that. “It was _________” Sivert told CNN, “I thought, ‘Ah, what’s 6 more years?’”

In 2016, Lorna Klefsaas _________ her 12-year-old son Sivert to stay off social media until he was 18. If he completed the challenge, she’d award him the _________on his eighteenth birthday. On February 19, 2022, Sivert _________ his prize.

Lorna was inspired by a “16 for 16” _________, where a mother gave her daughter $1,600 when she _________ 16 for keeping off social media. She decided to up the ante (赌注) to two _________ years and 200 dollars more.

For Sivert it wasn’t too difficult to _________ social media, and he didn’t think about it much during the six years. As a 12-year-old, Sivert wasn’t using social media much _________. The only app he had prior to the bet was Snapchat — which he __________ a day after trying it out. There was never a time when Sivert was about to break. As it went on, it was more of a(n) __________ thing. He also had his friends to keep him __________ on the latest information or trends so as to avoid all the unnecessary drama that was on there.

Lorna never had to check for any __________ downloaded apps since he’s so competitive and it was definitely more for proving a point. It also meant he had more time to focus on his __________ and sports instead. Lorna noted that they were certainly not against social media, but it’s the healthy using of it. It’s about not letting oneself get __________ by it, or addicted to it, or affected by things that people post.

【推荐2】When I was driving on the highway, a big storm came. The rain began to beat_______     against my car windows. I had to stop and_______my car along the roadside. Sitting in the car with boxes of_________in the back seat, I was_______of Hurricane Katrina.

Hurricane Katrina hit Houston when I was fourteen years old. I was_________that it would destroy my neighborhood._________it missed ours, while leaving many parts of the city in _______. From the TV, I saw a reporter_______the homeless people inside the Houston Astrodome(体育馆). Many of them were in dirty and_________clothes, and some had no shoes on their feet. I noticed a little boy behind the reporter__________an old teddy bear. Suddenly, I knew I had to do__________.

The next day, my friends__________me at our volunteer club and we came up with a plan to________some used toys and give them to the kids at the Astrodome. I hoped they would bring some________to those homeless kids. We________the word to our schools and other organizations. Three days later, our club was flooded with new toys! When we__________the Astrodome with our gifts, children__________toward us from all directions.

My cell phone brought me back to the present. To my joy, the storm had________“Hector, we have had more__________because of the tornado.” “Well, I’ve brought a lot of clothes for them. The__________kept me late, but I'll be there soon!" I turned my car into the suddenly heavy traffic. I knew that any small act of kindness would make a big difference.

【推荐3】It was 1994, and I was a 19-year-old student in my third year at Western University in London, Ontario. I had ________ a course in the Department of English taught by one Donald S. Hair.

A few weeks into the class, the professor ________ our first test. I didn’t think I had anything to worry about—until he handed my exam back the following week with a 67 written on it in red ink.

Sixty-seven! I’d never received such a low mark. I was dependent on a ________, and any grade below 80 put my future in trouble. My seatmate’s annoyed expression suggested her mark had been painful too. We ________ silently: Professor Hair was an old weirdo! How dare he ________ our GPAs? What was the old boy’s problem, anyway?

But the real problem was this: He was right. I knew it as soon as I’d ________ off and taken the time to digest his ________ . My writing was careless, my understanding of key concepts ________ . Like many of my partners, I was used to earning top grades. Now, for the first time, a teacher had introduced an uncomfortable question. Were we actually “________” them?

The next day, I went to his office. With burning cheeks, I told him I knew I’d ________ the exam. To my childish ________, he wasn’t a “weirdo” in the least. He was funny, warm and ________ patient. He assured me if I worked hard, I’d achieve my ________in the course, and he’d be available to help me.

I went away, reading and reading some more. The more I read, the more interesting his classes became, and soon, his complex, absorbing lectures were the ________ of my week. I spared no effort in that course. The grade I earned in his class was the lowest I’d received that year. But I had earned that grade. Nearly 30 years later, I’m still ________ of that.

【推荐2】Emerald(翡翠) Dreams

“And this is me kissing the Blarney Stone”, says Carrie, my seventeen-year-old daughter She turns the pages of her new photo album, recounting her recent ten-day _______ abroad, and my mind wanders back... way back to when she was only five.

“Someday I’m going to Ireland”, she said, holding her Childeraft book in her lap. Her blue eyes _______ as she looked at the beautiful pictures. “Well, maybe you can!” I said. However, it was _______ for our family to pay for the luxury of traveling. I was working as a secretary. My husband Charlie had to close his _______ last year due to his poor health.

Ten years later, Carrie came home from school one day, hardly able to contain her _______, “Mama, you’ll never _______ where the class is going. To Ireland!” she smiled _______. “You’re kidding!” I said. “Ireland! Where you’ve always wanted to go!”

“The trip is _______ for year after next, and the $2,100 can be paid in installments(分期付款).” Then she added, “But that’s too much... isn’t it?” Her voice was _______ yet doubting. “Well.” I said slowly, “Daddy and I can’t help much; ________, you have two years to earn the money.” “You think so?” Carrie’s face lit up like a Christmas tree. “Well,” I ________, “maybe you could use your father’s bakery and sell baked goods.” Sell baked goods? We ________ at each other. Carrie was an excellent ________! This would work!

So the plan was laid. Carrie began working, making a variety of baked goods. The finished product was an extremely pleasant treat, winning praise from even the little old ladies in these hills who have been making dried-apple pies for decades. ________ began rolling in, and the Ireland fund grew, and well within the given time the trip abroad was paid in full.

Now I’m looking at her album as she proudly points out the ________ she visited: castles of Ireland, historic bridges and churches, cobblestone (鹅卵石) streets of Dublin... so much like those in her Childcraft book. My daughter will forever remember this dream come true.

【推荐3】One day I was driving to the marsh (湿地) for bird-watching. The weather forecast called for the possibility of fog. As I ________ the destination, the fog began to ________. At a turning, I lost ________ of the car and ran into the wet land.

I tried to open the door, but it was locked as the water had ________ the electrical system. I remembered I had a fire extinguisher (灭火器). I ________ it and gave the window a ________ hit. It merely bounced off. I hit it again, with the ________ result.

The water level had risen, and soon I was swinging the extinguisher underwater. I had to ________ for air and down to take as many ________ as my breath would allow. I was nearly ________. A part of me just wanted to give up. But then another thought came to mind, “You have ________ more time. What will you do with it？” “I’m going to try ________，” I responded.

I ________ swinging the fire extinguisher as hard as I could and suddenly the impact felt different. I ________ my left hand and felt a hole in the ________. I knew I was going to live.