【推荐1】When I re-entered the full-time workforce a few years ago after a decade of lonely self-employment, there was one thing I was looking forward to the most: the opportunity to have work friends once again. It wasn't until I entered the corporate world that I realized, for me at least, being friends with colleagues didn't emerge as a（n） ________ at all. This is surprising when you consider the prevailing emphasis by scholars and trainers and managers on the importance of cultivating close ________ relationships at work. So much research has explored the way in which collegial（同事的）ties can help overcome a range of workplace issues ________ productivity and the quality of work output such as team-based conflict, jealousy, undermining, anger, and more.

Perhaps my expectations of lunches, water-cooler gossip and caring, deep-and-meaningful conversations were a ________ of the last time I was in that kind of office environment. Whereas now, as I near the end of my fourth decade, I realize work can be fully functional and entirely fulfilling without ________ to be best mates with the people sitting next to you.

In an academic analysis just published in the profoundly-respected Journal of Management, researchers have looked at the concept of “indifferent relationships", a simple term that summarizes the fact that relationships at work can ________ be non-interpersonal, inconsequential, unimportant and even, dare I say it, disposable or substitutable.

Indifferent relationships are neither positive nor negative. The limited research conducted thus far indicates they're especially ________ among those who value independence over cooperation, and harmony over confrontation. Indifference is also the ________ option among those who are socially lazy. Maintaining relationships over the long term takes effort, which, for some of us, is much too________.

As noted above, indifferent relationships may not always be the most ________ approach in resolving some of the issues that pop up at work. But there are nevertheless several apparently proven benefits. One of those is ________ . Less time chatting and socializing means more time working and churning（产出）.

The other is ________ . As human beings, we're programmed to compare ourselves to each other in what is an anxiety-causing phenomenon. Apparently, we look down on acquaintances（泛泛之交）more so than friends. Since the former is most common among those ________ to indifferent relationships, their predominance can promote individuals' sense of self-worth.

Ego aside, a third advantage is that the emotional ________of indifferent relationships has been found to enhance critical evaluation, to strengthen one's focus on task resolution, and to gain greater access to valuable information. None of that might be as ________ as after-work socializing but, hey, I'll take it anyway.

【推荐3】I moved to a new city and took a job in marketing. I didn't really understand whether it_________me. I enjoyed doing things that I felt had_________—I could see their benefit and feel their impact. As the months passed, I felt it just wasn't for me. I needed to find a way out.

A job advertisement for a(n)_________for a new youth magazine came at exactly the right time. I applied and was_________. My role was to help teams of young people edit their_________and help them with their work. I had assumed the magazine would be a(n)_________of games and dull reviews, so I was_________when one of the first pieces written was about social welfare._________, I found something I was interested in.

I felt a_________in me straight away. I had a purpose again. Days were lost to discussing hot topics and__________the words of their strong and opinionated (坚持己见的) voices.__________in their world, I could see myself making a difference to the team's__________ability. As our website__________increased and the work shifted to reflect what our__________wanted, I developed a greater__________of what young people might want to read.

The biggest change the job brought, __________,was to my well-being. It is rare you find yourself in a job you love, one that you are happy to__________each day. I was thriving (充实）in this__________environment, inspired by the talented young people I was helping to__________their careers. Now, I realize that there are jobs that will keep you happy,__________and inspired.

【推荐1】At a family picnic for employees of the company where my father worked, they held a contest for children. I was 13, full of enthusiasm, so I ________ myself into it.

The host gave each child a cloth handkerchief and told us the winner would be the one who cast it the ________. The first throwers, took mighty wind-ups (挥臂投掷), but when the cloth left their hands, it ________ and landed on the ground a few inches in front of them. The crowd roared with ________. Not until then did I realize it was not meant to ________ any real skill, but simply for laughs. However, it stimulated my ________ for thinking outside the box.

It ________ me to see the kids throwing harder when the handkerchief always caught the air and died. It was obvious that using the same ________ would not work. Suppose I tied a ________ inside the handkerchief? When they inspected it, I’d be ________. So I began tying the handkerchief around itself to make it small and ________ packed together to keep it from unfolding. When I approached the line, people were already laughing, ________ a big strong-looking boy like me casting it just a few inches.

I took a long wind-up, and the balled handkerchief ________ off maybe 60 feet away. The laughing ________ in collective shock. I had not broken the rules. What I learned from this contest was that, in order to live creatively, you have to ________ the less-used parts of your brain, and not accept stereotypes (刻板印象), slogans and unquestioned ideas.

【推荐2】Pennsylvania is full of mysterious places! One of those is an old turnpike (收费高速公路) abandoned for decades. People in Pennsylvania view it as a museum. My dad loves________, and he learned it was open to the public. ________, when I was 14, we took a bike trip to ________ this road!

My dad chose a 16-mile________ of the road for us to ride. Part of it included an old tunnel called Sideling Hill which is over a mile long! To prepare, we checked our ________ and made   sure our lights had batteries. In the morning, we loaded our bikes into the car and set off.

As we ________ the tunnel, I felt nervous as it was absolutely black inside! But Dad ________ me. He said he would be ________ me. He reminded me to stay ________ and keep my light on!

When we entered the tunnel, the sound of our bikes was heard through the darkness. I shined my flashlight around and saw walls________with graffiti (涂鸦). And I felt like I was being ________! I was pretty scared, but ________ following Dad. He helped me relax. After riding ________through, I could see light coming from the other end motivating me to keep going. And I was so delighted to ride out into the bright   afternoon!

________ going through difficulties in life, I remember this trip. It reminds me that my father is always beside me. He turns on the light of hope in my heart and gives me courage to keep riding through life’s ________tunnels.

【推荐3】Almost everyone says that he could know his mother very well, but I never knew how well Mother could keep a trust until I was going through her things after she died.

I discovered something I had long forgotten, something that _______ to me as a child.

One day, as I went to sleep after my sisters and I had said our prayers, I recalled the events of the day how _______ I had behaved toward Mother. “I must make things right now,” I thought.

Quietly I _______ out of bed and picked up the pencil and paper from the dresser and then tiptoed into the hall. The _______ from the living room shone dimly. I knew Mother was downstairs still doing some sewing.

I quickly _______   a note asking Mother to excuse me for being so _______ . I didn’t want my sisters to know my _______ so I added a postscript, “Please don’t let anyone else see this.” Then I   _______ moved into my parents’ bedroom and put the letter under Mother’s pillow.

The next morning when I _______ my bed after breakfast, I __________ found a return note under my pillow. Mother wrote that she loved me and __________ me.

This became my way of apologizing whenever I talked __________ or disobeyed. Mother always left a return note, but she never __________ Our under-the-pillow messages in front of the family. Even when we were __________, she never mentioned them when we sisters __________ our childhood.

When Mother passed away, I had to go through her personal belongings. In her desk was a bundle of notes tied with a faded ribbon. On top was a message in handwriting which read, “In the event of my death, please   __________ these.”

I __________ the package and glanced at the handwriting on the bottom. To my __________, I recognized my childish writing, “PS, Please don’t let anyone else see this. Love. Edie.”

I gently placed the unopened bundle in the   __________ along with other things for the rubbish burner. “Lord,” I prayed, “make me like   __________.”

【推荐2】Over the years, thanks to my life’s obstacles (障碍), I understood the meaning of faith and the strong will to survive. It was Hurricane Ike that made me fully _________ the beauty of our strength and a human’s motivation to _________.

Mom had a two-week vacation in summer. While we enjoyed our holiday in Southeast Texas, we didn’t realize the fact that Ike would cause months and likely years of “labor”. By September 7th, the “eyes of Texas” were watching Hurricane Ike more closely, making the typical mad rush for last-minute hurricane _________. Two days later, both oil and ice were in _________ demand.

In the early hours of September 11th, some neighbors were planning to _________ the storm in their homes, while others were making final preparations to get away. At first, we decided to stay. But that afternoon, the Houston-Galveston area would be on the more dangerous side of the storm. Mom and I packed some of our most _________ belongings in the car and headed for the East Texas town of Lufkin.

As Ike pushed farther inland, we _________ power in Lufkin. On Sunday, our next-door neighbor told us via cell phone that our house had remained well. Our hopes could not have been _________. But a few hours later, the neighbors reported that our brick chimney had gone, and it was sitting on our living room, _________ a hole in the roof between two skylights (天窗).

We wouldn’t be allowed to return home until September 17th. I climbed upstairs, and looked toward the hole in the roof which showed a beautiful blue sky.

Without hesitation, I shouted, “Wow! A third skylight!”

My neighbors could not believe I was making jokes instead of crying, but __________ is always good medicine. It was with that joke that I knew, given time, everything would be okay.

【推荐3】Six months after my car accident, I finally returned home. ______, that’s when the reality of the situation became clear to me. I realized my life was now so ______, unable to use a phone, feed or bathe myself. I couldn’t hold anything — a fork was too heavy to ______. I had lost my entire independence and had to ______ on others for any help. I ______ so much that I could fill up buckets with tears. Yet I had no choice but to ______ it. No matter how difficult things were, I never gave up my faith.

Shortly after returning home, I could finally wiggle (摆动) a toe and scratch my nose. I realized the little things we get used to so often ______ the most. Small victories are huge and important leaps.

In these past few years, I’ve made progress in my ______. I had to learn to be ______ with myself and to enjoy every moment going forward. I ______ hard in my recovery and still do to this day. I’m now moving my legs and arms on my own, and sometimes work out in a gym. All of this is turning the page from the impossible to the possible. I’m presently working to ______ my independence and mobility.

This event has been entirely life-changing for me. Every day I am struggling to improve my ______, hoping to recover from paralysis (瘫痪). My unshakable faith, ______ family and friends encourage me to continue to work harder. I believe it is a chance to become stronger, and keep on fighting to hopefully ______ someone else not to give up. Never give up ______. Never give up hope.