In 1850, an American lawyer, Bethune, bought a slave to work in his home. The slave, a woman, had a small child     1    (call) Tom, who was blind. One day, Bethune     2    (walk) around his garden when he heard music coming from the house. He went inside and found young Tom playing on the family piano. Bethung    3    (immediate) realized that the boy, who was only four, had special abilities.     4     asked a band of musicians to come to the house and play in front of him. Tom reproduced perfectly the music     5    he had heard. Tom was indeed an unusual boy.

In 1857, “Blind Tom” took part     6    his first public performance. The reviews was so good     7     Bethune took him on a tour of the US. Three years later, “Blind Tom”     8    (invite) to the White House to perform for the president. Over the next forty years, Tom performed     9    (enjoy) shows all over the U.S. and other countries. His concerts were    10     mixture of classical music and his own compositions.

Marlee     1     (become) deaf when she was one and a half years old. Although she can’t hear anything, she is positive towards life: “The only thing I can’t do is hear.” Her parents sent her to a public school,     2     Marlee got used to the life soon.     3     (help) by the school, she became the first deaf actress to receive an Academy Award. “I work every day to help people understand. Deaf people not only deserve respect, they deserve to be heard,” Marlee said.