【推荐1】Hope in my arms

Last year I was invited to participate in a carnival for Tuesday’s Child – an organization that helps children with AIDS.

All the children that had ______ in one particular room could paint a square on a piece of cloth. Later the squares would be sewn(缝) together to ____   a quilt. The quilt would be ____ to a man who had devoted his life to the   ____   and would soon be retiring .

The kids were given paints in bright colors and asked to paint something that would make the quilt _____. As I looked around at all the ______ , I saw pink hearts, blue clouds, orange sunrises and red flowers. The pictures were all bright and ______ . All except one.

One boy was painting a heart, ______ it was dark and lifeless. It _______   the bright colors that his fellow artists had used.

I asked why. He told me he was very sick and that his ______ was not ever going to get better. He looked straight into my eyes and said. “There is no _____   in my life.” I told him I was _____ and I could understand why he had made his heart a dark color. I told him that even though we couldn’t make him better, we can give ______ , which can really help when he is feeling _____ . I told him that if he would like, I would be happy to give him one. He crawled onto my lap. I thought my own heart would ____   for this sweet little boy. He sat there for a long time. Finally he _____   down to finish his coloring. As I was getting ready to   ____   home, I felt a tug (猛拽) on my jacket. Standing there was the little boy,     _____ . He said, “My heart is changing   ______ . It is getting brighter, I think those hugs really do   ______ .” On my way home I felt my own heart. It too had changed to a brighter color.

【推荐2】Steve was a seventh grader, a big boy, looking more like a teenager than a 12-year-old. Yet, he went unnoticed — he had been ____ every examination since first grade—until Miss Wilma.

In the middle of the first semester of school, the entire seventh grade was ____ for basic skills.

“You all did pretty well,” Miss Wilma told the class after going over the ____, “except for one boy. And it _____my heart to tell you this, but…” she ___ , “the smartest boy in the seventh grade is failing my class.” Steve ____ his eyes and carefully examined his fingertips.

After that, Steve still wouldn’t do his homework. Even if Miss Wilma ____punished him, he remained ___ .

“Steve, please! I care about you!”

____, Steve got it! “Someone CARES ABOUT ME?!”

One Monday a couple of weeks later, Miss Wilma gave a ____ on the weekend homework. Steve ____ through the test and was the first to hand in his paper. With a look of ____, Miss Wilma took his paper and began to look it over.

Miss Wilma’s face was in ____ shock! She glanced up at Steve, then ____, then up. The smartest boy in the seventh grade had just passed his first test!

From that moment, nothing was the same for Steve. He discovered that not only could he remember and understand_____, but he could translate what he learned into his life. He became______.

After high school, Steve enlisted in the Navy, and he had a(n)_____military career. During his naval years, he inspired many young people who might not have _____themselves without him.

A _____took place within the heart of a boy all because of one teacher, who ____.

【推荐3】I became the youngest person in the world to climb Broad Peak in 2018. Then I set my _________ on Mount Qomolangma.

Even highly _________ mountaineers face barriers like extreme altitude, avalanches (雪崩), and freezing temperatures. Still, I was _________.

I turned 19 on March 11, 2021. On the 24th day of the month, I landed in Nepal to summit (登顶) Mount Qomolangma—the _________ point on Earth at 8,848.86 meters. I spent close to two months at Base Camp and took shorter hikes up the mountain to _________ the conditions and the low-oxygen environment.

Base Camp sits at an elevation of 5,364 meters, tall enough to cause _________ emergencies. The route is mostly a long, slow, technically _________, oxygen-starved journey. I was nervous at first, but I didn’t rush as I moved around layers of _________ shifting, huge ice blocks.

I witnessed fellow climbers _________ and heard some screaming for help at the top of their lungs. Sometimes, I stopped dead in my __________. I gasped for air, but I had no choice but to keep __________.

I was in Qomolangma’s Death Zone for 24 hours. Oxygen is so __________ in the Death Zone and the body’s cells begin to die. Hikers have to __________ oxygen tanks. Most deaths from climbing Qomolangma __________ in the Death Zone.

On May 11, 2021, I became the fourth teenager in the world to climb Mount Qomolangma. I was on top of the world, literally! I felt like I could __________ the sky.

【推荐1】Eileen Taylor had something sweet on her mind in the drive-through (汽车餐厅) line at Heav’nly Donuts. But it wasn’t a doughnut (甜甜圈).

Just the day before, a stranger ahead of her in line had _________ paid for her coffee. “It made such a big difference in my day,” says Eileen. She had recently _________ her job as a physician’s assistant, and money was tight. But Eileen was _________ to pick up the $12 bill of the family _________ the car behind hers. What she didn’t know was that her _________ would go around, and in a chain reaction (连锁反应), other _________ would be encouraged to pay backward (向后) too. In two and a half hours, 55 drivers paid for the _________ of the person behind them in line. The doughnut shop’s employees had _________ this before. In fact, this Heav’nly Donuts was known as a special _________—manager Wendy Clement says her customers are the “best in the world”. But, even so, the workers were ____________ when a 15th car pulled up to the window and the driver ____________ the next customer. By the time the lines for the drive-through and at the counter were empty, the shop had more than ____________ its previous record. Later that day, Eileen went back to pick up a coffee. Wendy told her what had happened.

“Everyone was all ____________ ,” says Eileen.

Now—working again as a physician’s assistant, Eileen ____________ Heav’nly Donuts every Saturday morning, having a ____________ —and paying for the order of the customer behind her.

【推荐2】Martin is my youngest son. He likes staying alone and be seldom laughs. As the boy’s mother, I was _______ about him. I took him to see the _______ in many hospitals, but it didn’t work well.

Nothing could make him happy except the recycling truck passing by my house. Every afternoon, he raced to the front of the house, waiting for the _______.

When we were late and _______ the truck, Martin would be very disappointed. One day, I stopped the truck and _______ myself.

“Nice to meet you, too. I’m Vince.” The driver greeted me in a happy _______.

“Your coming is the most exciting moment for my son.” I smiled.

After knowing our story, he said, “Could you please give me your _______ number? Maybe I can send you a message _______ I arrive.”

Then began our _______ with Vince.

Recently, I said to him, “It’s my little boy’s birthday tomorrow. Can you do something special for him?”

The next day, as I was standing by the driveway with Martin, we saw the ________ truck running down the street with a loud beep. Like a superman in a movie, Vince stopped and walked towards us with a box in his hand.

“Today is your birthday, Martin, and here’s a gift.”

He handed the box to my son. Inside, there was a green model truck like his. My son, surprised, looked up ________ and thanked him.

After chatting for several ________, he was about to leave for work. I tried to give him some ________ for his help. He kept shaking his head and ________ my money, saying, “Today you, tomorrow me.”

I was deeply moved by these ________ words. And I have been ready to help others whenever I can. You will never know when you’re going to be the one that needs help.

【推荐3】A few years ago, I was at a restaurant with my project team, eating a Christmas dinner. My view of the other diners was via a _________ in from of me from where I was sitting. It was a Wednesday night about 3 weeks before Christmas so there were only about 6 other tables _________.

About 10 minutes before we left, I happened to look in the mirror, seeing two girls come in. They sat near me. They started to _________ the menu and I could hear what they said. They _________. “It’s so expensive!”

I usually _________ the table that’s eating their dinners so I can get their check from the restaurant. As we left, I told the manager I wanted to _________ the two girls. He figured that the high _________ was $100 including taxes, so I gave him $140 and told him to give the waiter whatever was left as a Christmas _________ . Touched by my act, the manager said he would _________ anything over $100 and give the waiter $40. We agreed that he would tell the two girls after we __________ that someone had paid for their meal. I wanted them to __________ whatever they wanted without considering the cost.

The next day I went to the restaurant again to eat dinner with my friends, the manager __________ me. He walked to me. From him, I knew __________ about the thing after we left. The two girls felt __________ and were moved to tears. They appreciated the kindness and said they would pass the kindness on to others in need.

I do this several times a year but I __________ like the two girls’ reaction, which makes think it valuable to do such things!

【推荐2】An off-duty pilot was called a “legend” after stepping in to fly a plane himself to stop the flight being cancelled.

Michael Bradley, a ______ EasyJet pilot, had a holiday when he ______ flying a plane that was delayed by two hours. He told passengers on board the Manchester Airport flight to Alicante that he was ______ his services as there was no pilot available.

Mr. Bradley said, “My wife was then with my little boy. She ______ and complained, ‘Our flight’s delayed by two hours because there’s no ______ for the flight.’ So just before we went through security, I wonder if this is worth a call. I think it is because I’d like to go on holiday.”

Mr. Bradley phoned up EasyJet and said, “I’m standing in the ______ doing nothing. I have got my ______ with me and I’d very much like to go on holiday and if you need a(n) ______, I’m standing here ready to go.” And his bosses called him back in less than a minute to give him the go-ahead, saying, “Please, please, can you fly the airplane to Alicante?” Then he told this to the passengers. This was ______ with cheers from the passengers.

An EasyJet spokesman said, “We are ______ to one of our pilots who was travelling on holiday from Manchester to Alicante on 2nd, September with his family and ______ to operate the flight. This ______ customers could get to their destination and shows the ______ of our crew. This is ______ in line with regulations as he had his license and ID with him. Safety is always our ______ priority.”

【推荐3】Masako Wakamiya, a native of Kanagawa, Japan, saw a need in her community. There were no good mobile apps for people of her ______. So at 81, she ______ and said firmly, “I’ll do it myself!” Her story ______ us all that we’re never, not ever, too old to try something ______.

We often think of programming as ______ — at least I know I do. But Masako had a different ______ — she thought it could be ______. Programming can take anywhere from a few months to multiple years to ______, depending on how complicated your end goals are, the type of work you want to do and how long you ______ on it every week.

Masako never used a computer until she was 58 years old. Having no ______ with technology, she originally asked some younger ______ to make something for her. But when they said that they didn’t know what seniors ______ in an app, she took matters into her own hands. That day, her app story was ______. Masako made it her mission to help senior citizens get engaged with technology so they can stay ______ and lead more fulfilling lives, ______ the separation that often comes with aging.