The emergency doctor stood at the foot of my husband’s hospital bed, holding the test results and a diagnosis — Acute Myeloid Leukemia (骨髓白血病). He said to my husband, “Well move you to the leukemia floor. You’ll be here at least a month. ”
A month! My mind started spinning. My mom had fought breast cancer. My aunt had lung cancer. Both had died. But neither had been in hospital for a month! Exactly how bad was my husband’s diagnosis? And how were we going to struggle for a month? It was March. The end of a school year was approaching. My days with my high school students were limited. How could I prepare four weeks of lesson plans and hand them over to a substitute teacher? A month! Could we afford being in the hospital that long? Our insurance was good, but we’d still have to pay our part of the medical expenses. My meals wouldn’t be covered, and parking was so expensive! My head couldn’t do the math. I drove home, filled with countless worries. Even though the parking pass would be a significant discount, I couldn’t help but feel bothered by the cost throughout the drive.
The next morning, I packed the car with everything needed for our hospital stay and headed to school to see my students. Because we live in a small community, they would have heard about my husband’s diagnosis. I would assure them that my husband would be fine, and that I would be fine, too. I’d encourage them to be their best selves for the substitute-and for me—while I was on family leave.
When I entered my classroom, the chatter stopped. I put on a smile and continued to my podium (讲台). Sitting on top was a green envelope with “Mrs. Sargent” written on it. I looked over the frames of my glasses at twenty-eight faces, some smiling, some trying to resist. “What is this?” I asked. I picked up the envelope, and continued, “You guys…”
注意：(1)续写词数应为150 左右;
(2)开头已给出。
Paragraph 1:
When I opened the envelope, coins and dollar bills fell out — fives, tens, twenties.
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Paragraph 2:
As an adult in the room, I felt guilty and unwilling to accept these teenagers’ hard-earned money, but I decided to accept it.
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My Own Beat
My pulse quickened as my feet took me closer and closer to the door. In my head, I could hear the words my kids kept telling me, “Do it, Mom. You never do anything for yourself. Just follow your dream.” I felt my lungs filled with air and released it.
“What are you doing here? You’re a single mom of five. You’re fifty years old!” My thoughts were fighting with my kids’ words. Even so, it was as if I had no control over my feet. As if they were being urged along from somewhere deep inside me.
Finally I gathered my courage, stepped into the hall and signed up for drum classes, which was my childhood dream.
Wednesday came, and along with it my first drum lesson. I walked through the door and headed directly to the seating area in the back. My hands kept fidgeting (动来动去) with the sticks. I kept nervously looking at the time. I tried to slow down my breath. I knew the teacher would say I was not the right type of person to play the drums. I turned around to see an older man looking at me.
“Stephanie? I’m Mike, the drum teacher,” he said.
People make me nervous. That’s the way I’ve always been. But Mike had a very calm manner about him, so I relaxed just slightly. Not only did he not tell me that I was the wrong type of person to play the drums, but he complimented me on how well I held the sticks and followed along with him.
“You are fine. I see so much potential in you,” he told me.
Soon my thirty-minute lesson is over. Walking back to my car, I felt full of excitement and energy. I thought of how many times I had driven my kids to their competitions and watched proudly as they bravely went in front of judges and audiences.
Now it felt scary and amazing at the same time to follow my dream and do something that was purely for my enjoyment, something just for me. Maybe one day I would have the chance to stand on the stage.
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右;
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
I started the car and couldn’t wait to go back home to tell my kids about my class.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Seeing my devotion and progress, Mike convinced me to play in a concert.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________The Class Poet(诗人)
When Thanksgiving Day was approaching (临近), my primary school decided to celebrate(庆祝 ) by presenting shows with dancing and singing that all students could join in. Parents would also be invited to watch.
One afternoon, my teacher called me into his office. He said with a smile, “Nancy, could you write a poem (诗) and read it during the coming event?” “Of course,” I answered excitedly. I had loved poetry since fifth grade. When my first poem was published, my friends and teachers started to describe me as the class poet.
I left the schoolmaster’s office that afternoon feeling quite happy. Then, for weeks, I worked on my poem, carefully designing the content, structure and sound. I practiced reciting(朗诵)it aloud every day.
When the evening for the event finally came, I was ready. Well, I was ready until I looked around and realized how many people there were in the school hall. How could I present my poem in front of more than 400 people? I was just a seventh-grader. No one would take my work seriously. What was worse, I had never spoken in front of a huge crowd before. I sat in my chair, wanting to bury(隐藏) myself. Maybe they would forget I was supposed to read.
“Hey, Nancie, I saw your name in the program. Good luck,” my little brother shouted. His voice rose as he took his seat a few rows (排)down with his class. I nodded (点头), struggling to keep calm. I knew my parents were somewhere in the hall. Before long, the lights faded (暗下来), the crowd went quiet, and the schoolmaster got on stage to introduce the list of performers. My name was at the end of the list, so I had to sit through an hour of absolute anxiety.
It wasn’t until the students from the fourth grade were singing that my teacher led me downstairs to the area next to the stage. My mind was blank (空白的). Then suddenly, I was on stage with the bright white lights blinding (使眼花) my view of the audience. When I walked to the microphone in the center of the stage, I somehow tripped (绊倒) over something and stupidly fell down. All of the kids burst into laughter.
注意：1. 续写词数应为 150 个左右;
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
I was about to run away when my teacher came up to me
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________When I finished my reading, the hall was silent at first.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________I’m good at making excuses. I came up with a new one every time the idea of returning to college presented itself. I had enrolled in a university at 21 but later quit. As the years passed, I regretted not finishing my English degree. But I always comforted myself with excuses — I have three little ones who need me at home. I’m busy with the children’s school activities. I can’t go back to school at 50. Old dogs can’t learn new tricks.
The truth was that I was just plain scared to go back to school. What if I needed remedial (补习的) courses? What if a professor called attention to me? What if I walked into a classroom and there was nowhere to sit? What if I stood out in a sea of young faces?
After my children finished college, they insisted it was my turn, so I called Dalton State College and set up a time to take the Compass Test to see if I needed remedial courses. The next day, when I was on the highway heading there, Rachel, my middle child called. When she learned my destination, I heard the pride in her voice. “You’ve got this, Mama!”
That was all it took. Hot tears tumbled down my cheeks as she spoke words of encouragement to me. It turned out that I scored high on the English test but would need to take two remedial courses for the math section. But I didn’t care. After decades of excuses, I’d finally thrown my leg over the high fence of fear. I couldn’t wait to register for classes.
My first course was U. S. History. I’ve never been good with dates, but the professor calmed my nerves. “I don’t care about dates, but I expect you to know the names of significant individuals. For instance, who was the first person to set foot on the moon?”
“Neil Armstrong,” chorused several students.
“Does anyone know when that event took place?”
My heart leapt at the question, because I was celebrating my fifteenth birthday on that day!
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Since it might be the only question I could answer, I sheepishly raised my hand.
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Other fears didn’t turn into reality either.
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After being busy for half a year, my parents decided to drive me to a scenic spot outside the city to have fun. Joyfully, we planned our driving route.
Then, on a December Saturday morning, my dad started his car and we set off with great expectation. Before long, we left the noisy city and came to the mountains. There were few vehicles on the road and the trees alongside were pretty. We felt so excited!
As a few hours passed, we drove onto a narrow road. And minutes later, we found a river not far away from the road. The beach was very wide, and we wanted to have a rest there for a while. So my dad turned our car and drove towards it. Soon, we were driving on the sandy beach. Moments later, our car wheels were struggling in the increasingly soft sand. But my dad wanted to get closer to the river.
Before he regretted it, our car had got stuck in the sand. My dad tried to turn around or move back, but the car didn’t move. We were worried, trapped in the middle of nowhere. Even worse, it began raining and was cold. We got out of the car and tried to push it, but failed. After a couple of minutes, we were tired and our hair and coats were a little wet. But the car only sank further into the sand.
Anxiously, we walked to the road, eager to stop a vehicle and let it help pull our car out of the sand. Our coats and hair were wetter and wetter. Before the journey, we hadn’t prepared umbrellas or carried any food. Now, we were hungry and cold, standing in the rain. After waiting for a long time, there wasn’t one vehicle passing.
Just when we were helpless, we saw a farmhouse not far away. “Can they help us?” I asked. My dad was doubtful. Still, we reached there, and found it was a big family. They seemed poor and unfriendly. My dad told them our problem and begged them to help us pull our car out.
注意：
1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
To our surprise, they nodded without thinking.
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My dad was so grateful that he handed some money to the family to thank them. _
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Leaving the busy and noisy store, I hurried back to my car, my mind preoccupied with the tasks awaiting me at home. However, as I reached for my car keys in my pocket, a sinking feeling washed over me — I had locked both my keys and cell phone inside the vehicle. Frustration surged through my veins. Feeling extremely annoyed, I couldn’t help but let out a string of choice words, punctuated by a swift kick to the tire.
Just then, a teenager on his bicycle happened to pass by, his eyes catching my display of frustration. Sensing an opportunity to lend a hand, he pulled over and asked, “What’s wrong?”
I took a deep breath, grateful for a sympathetic ear, and explained my situation. “I’ve managed to lock my keys and cell phone inside the car,” I sighed. “My wife must be really worried as I should have been home by now.” “Even if I could call my wife, she wouldn’t be able to bring me her car key since this is our only vehicle.”
Without hesitation, the teenager extended his hand, offering me his cell phone. “Here, you can use mine to call your wife,” he said, his youthful voice brimming with sincerity.
I accepted his offer gratefully, dialing my wife’s number and relaying the situation to her. I could sense her concern on the other end of the line, but she remained calm and asked for my exact position.
“I’ll need to see if I can borrow any of our neighbours’ cars.” “I’ve thought about this plan, but most of them must be in town for the carnival today.” I sighed. But she just reassured me that she would find the extra key and find a way to get here as soon as possible.
As I ended the call, I expressed my gratitude to the teenager, but a new worry crept into my mind. “It’s a seven-mile trip for my wife,” I said, “even if she could borrow a car, she hasn’t driven for long and she’s pregnant.” The teenager asked, “Did you just say you live in the Medway street? My school is nearby so I’m quite familiar with the route. Just tell your wife I’m coming to get the key.” “But that’s seven miles! It’ll take you at least an hour round trip.”
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
The teenager simply smiled, with a determined look on his face.
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Deeply moved, I reached into my pocket, eager to offer him some money.
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A few days before Christmas, a friend called me to see if I wanted to take a coffee. As a new mum, I was always looking for an excuse to get out of the house, so I agreed immediately. About halfway through my story, I noticed my friend wasn’t listening anymore. She was clearly distracted (分散注意力) by something over my shoulder. Turning around, I noticed a woman trying to get her bank card to work.
“Do you know her?” I asked my friend.
“I do. Give me a minute. I’m going to go and see if I can help,” she replied, standing up to walk over to her.
A few minutes later, my friend returned to the table with the woman. The woman looked upset, pale, and tired. After I was introduced, my friend asked her if she was okay. She said she wasn’t and burst into tears. We comforted her. She was a little embarrassed by her emotional response. Wanting to put her at ease, I quickly told her not to worry. I shared that I was a new mum and I’d already cried fourteen times that day. She laughed at my silly confession (坦白), but soon her tears were flowing again.
For the next forty-five minutes, my friend and I both sat and patiently listened to her. She lost her husband before Christmas and their bank accounts were now left nothing. We tried our best to cheer her up. My friend even tried to give her some cash, which she refused. When she finally got up to leave, she removed her tears, thanked us both for listening, and walked out.
As I drove home, I couldn’t stop thinking about how sad she looked when she left the coffee shop. I decided to make Christmas a little better for her family by buying them a few gifts. As soon as I got home, I called my friend and excitedly explained my plan. She agreed with me that it would probably be best if she delivered the presents and said they were from an anonymous (匿名) donor.
On Christmas Eve morning, I drove to my friend’s house and dropped off a large box of food and a few presents for the three of them, all addressed from Santa Claus.
注意：
1.续写词数应为150左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Once my friend had delivered everything, she told me the kids had been overjoyed to receive their presents.
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From that day forward, I understood the power of kindness and never missed an opportunity to spread some around.
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