【推荐1】Beep! Beep! Beep! I rolled over and turned off my alarm clock. It was still _________ outside so I turned on the light. I got dressed quickly because I knew both of my dogs would be _________ to get outside for their morning walk. I reached over to grab a _________ and stopped. It was technically still fall but the _________ here in the Appalachian mountains of my home didn’t follow the _________. It had been cold and snowy two days ago and chilly and rainy yesterday. I had forgotten to _________ the weather report for today, however, so I wasn’t sure if I _______ my light jacket or my heavy coat.

I _________ my light jacket, pulled it on and leashed up my bigger dog. I opened the door and stepped outside. Instantly I knew I had made the _________ choice. Each breath I exhaled was a frozen mist. The wind chill was bitter cold. The grass was covered in __________ and I tried to keep my __________ while my dog dragged me along behind him.

I shivered (打寒颤) and __________ a bit but finally turned my head up to the heavens. I looked up at the __________sky and saw it was full of twinkling stars. It was so beautiful and so peaceful. __________, I felt a warmth inside of me and __________ shivering. While my dog sniffed the ground, I opened my heart to the __________ of nature’s creation. In all of its sweet seasons it had never __________ to touch my soul. It had heated my heart on the coldest days and     ________ my spirit on the darkest nights.

Our lives here are full of sweet __________ as well. From the innocence and youth of Spring to the wisdom and wrinkles of Winter. __________ all your sweet seasons. Make each day a creation of your love.

【推荐2】The pandemic has greatly changed the landscape of education. But that never ______ one brilliant girl’s resolve to reach for the stars.

While most teens are tackling the challenges of middle school, Alena Wicker, has already ______ her high school diploma. After virtually learning in a long-term program, she is ______ to attend Arizona State University this summer. There, she will major in astronomical science and chemistry to ______ her dream of working at NASA where she hopes to ______ her extraordinary skills to build spacecraft after graduation. ______ she wanted to be an astronomer, but then she switched over to engineering.

Alena’s space journey began with her early ______ for Lego (乐高), with which she’s always played since she was 4. So far, she’s built ______ of everything from the Taj Mahal to NASA rockets.

She was always ______ at her Lego pieces, and if you ______ her Lego pieces, it would be easy for her to put them together. This genius also had remarkable ______ in other aspects of life. Seeing the ______ of opportunities in the STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) fields for women, Alena wanted to make a change. She has ______ a website to encourage other girls with ______ interests to focus on the STEM fields. Alena hopes to set an example for other girls --- never let the long-established concept keep us from ______ the course of our own life. “It doesn’t matter what you’re planning to do," she said. “Go for it, and then accomplish it.”

【推荐2】If Christmas and Thanksgiving are the biggest official holidays in the US, certainly Super Bowl Sunday is the biggest unofficial holiday. Like other_______, it’s a time for friends and family to_______for food and chatting. However, those who live on the edge of society don’t have the special connection.

Meir Kalmanson thought those people, too, should get to_______the big day. So, on a cold February Sunday in 2017, as he_______to a Super Bowl party being held at a New York City club, he invited six_______men he met on the streets to join him. Over hamburgers, chicken wings and soda, Kalmanson and his homeless_______watched the classic football games. Kalmanson described the scene as“_______, exciting energy”. “We were on the edge of our seats. Cheering, laughing. But the games only played just a small part in the night’s_______,” he said. More important was the men’s_______with one another and the other fans.“We were part of a bigger party that was happening,” said Kalmanson. “They gained their dignity.” For that evening, they were no longer outsiders. They__________.

The following year, friends and YouTube fans asked about the next party, and so began the __________organization Super Soul Parties. Homeless people now have__________to new clothing and a barber, as well as mental health therapists and__________housing organizations.

Kalmanson grew up in a household that lived by the golden rule, “Helping those in need,__________it was a meal or a place to stay,” he says. “It’s the most important thing in life: Be __________”

【推荐3】When she was 86, Mom moved to our city. My husband, Kevin, and I found a lovely apartment for her. I was happy to help take care of her ________ she arrived.

The day after she moved in, she called me to ________ about the food at the facility. “The pizza was like rubber. I couldn’t ________ it.” “Mom, you’re complaining to me. Wouldn’t it make more sense to tell someone who can ________the problem?” We hung up. This was only her second day here! And week after week, Mom found more to complain about.

When with my friend Beth, I spent 20 minutes sharing how Mom’s attitude

________ me. “She seems ________. After everything Kevin and I do for her, all we hear is what she doesn’t like.” As the words spilled from my lips, I realized that I’d developed the same ________ of complaining that annoyed me so much in Mom.

I decided to keep a better watch on my ________. Things went fine for a few weeks. But soon I felt powerless to ________ by myself and couldn’t help complaining to Beth about Mom’s ________ again.

A few days later, I received a journal from my friend Torry. On the first page, he had written, “Jeanette, I use such a journal every day to ________ things I’m thankful for.” I wrote three things I was grateful for. ________ filled my heart. Maybe this was it. It was a joyous ________ that helped me overcome the complaining—Gratitude.

Over the next few months, as I continued, I noticed little things I’d ________. Life was handing out gift after gift, including Mom, complaints and all. I couldn’t change her; I could only________ her.