【推荐1】Last year my children gifted me a coffee plunger (法式按压咖啡壶). I love to start the day with a strong black coffee and couldn’t_________ to use it. I looked _________to the following morning’s coffee making, knowing that I probably wouldn’t smash (打碎) this plunger as easily as I had done so often in the past.

But as I poured my first cup of coffee, the plunger _________ all over the table. _________ no one was around to see my_________ face! I kept trying, but each morning would see me wiping up the coffee. Then I realized that if I poured very slowly there would be no spilling.

This was at first a very painful experience. My normal practice was to _________ breakfast so that I could get on with my day. But in time I learned not only to pour slowly but to enjoy the experience: the smell, the taste, and the _________of a new day. It led me to reflect on (反思) _________ there were other areas of my life I was rushing through. Most of life, it seemed.

I started to leave extra time to do even the most _________ tasks. When shop owners would __________ for keeping me waiting, I’d say, “Not a problem, I’m not in a(n) __________. ” Even hanging out the washing became __________ when a couple of extra minutes of standing still and listening to the birds singing in the trees around me became part of my routine.

Besides, one of my favorite experiences living in the inner city for many years was sitting on the front doorstep of our home spending time with strangers. We sat on the steps, each of us with a cup of coffee in our hands, __________ each other’s stories. It was one of the warmest things about living in a busy city. It was as if the world around us __________to a pace we could both handle.

Stillness and quietness not only slow the pace of life, but also feed the __________, helping us to enjoy the world’s small pleasures.

【推荐2】It’s always been a dream for Alex to take a trip with her mother, but it was a death in the family that _______ made them both realize how precious life really is.

“After losing my grandma, I _______ that neither I nor my mum will _______ be here, and that I can’t _______ the right time to come,” the 27-year-old girl told The Huffington post.

“After a week of _______, my amazing mum and I are off to travel around the United States. We will be travelling from New York to Los Angeles interviewing _______ who are changing the world for the better and _______ the dream I had for a very long time: to travel together with my mother. I have taken a month off work and we are on our way._______ are waiting!” Alex said.

So in August，Alex and her 63-year-old retired mother，Halina, traveled to the United States for a three-week _______ that took them from coast to coast.

Alex is the ________ of Looking For Heroes, a social media project, in which she photographs many of the interesting people she meets with,________ unique tidbits (花边新闻) of their life stories at the same time. The ________ mother and daughter traveled across the nation, visiting cities ________ Knoxville, Tennessee, New York City, Los Angeles and Washington. Along the way they took photos ________ famous backdrops (背景) in each city, making some ________ memories.

Meanwhile, Alex ________ much from her mother. Her mother often said “My ________ to young people would be to learn new things, and what you have learned will be your biggest ________ in life. With age you stop ________ about things that don’t matter. With your priorities (优先) changing,________ and health become the most important.

【推荐3】One year after Tom was born, his parents had a car accident. They never _____. Tom's 85-year-old grandmother was too _____ to take care of him. As a result he was put up for adoption（领养）. He was adopted by a middle-aged couple who had no _____ of their own. They were not rich and received little education, but they were _____ people.

As Tom grew up, he _____ a lot of problems at school. He didn't learn _____ and had trouble in reading. His _____ sometimes laughed at him. What they said made Tom _____.

As he couldn't _____ the other students at school, he dropped out of school and came back home. But he didn't stop learning. He had big dreams. Though he didn't learn fast he kept ______ himself at home.

After many years of learning at home, he ______ overcame his difficulties. Today he is a very ______ speaker and author. While he was at school, his self-esteem（自尊）and ______ were low because of others' making fun of him. It took him many ______ to realize his dreams.

When listening to his videos and tapes, we can feel his confidence. He tells his ______ and how he overcame the challenges in his life. He has a very ______ sentence, "You cannot expect to achieve new goals or move beyond your present situation ______ you change. "

For those who have low self-confidence, I suggest you ______ reading about Tom's world. Many people have so much potential（潜能）to be discovered. If you have a dream, then start today to ______ yourself towards it. If someone like Tom who has ______ in learning can make such achievements, why can't you succeed？