【推荐1】I lived at home while I went to college, and I appreciated the extra time with my family. I________my mom’s wisdom and I actually took her advice! One day particularly ________for me, a day when a simple piece of advice became a(n) ________lesson.

I don’t remember what I was ________about, but I remember ________ that I was talking on the kitchen phone to someone, and there was a(n) ________. Mom was busy as usual with household tasks and she wasn’t one to interfere. But for some reason she________ as the call went on that my mood was not ________. Suddenly she stood before me with a tiny piece of paper. On it were two words and a drawing. She handed it to me with a smile and then________.

I ________ the tiny paper. It read: “Be Nice” and had a smiley face drawing.

I ________ my mom’s advice. From that point I took a ________ tone. By the conclusion of the conversation the tension I had felt was ________ . All was at peace in my world.

But there is________to the story about the little piece of paper. When I graduated and ________that little piece of paper moved with me. I________ it on my refrigerator, secured in place by a magnet. For many years that piece of paper moved with me and has been serving as a constant________ .

Today, whenever I feel stressed or impatient in the presence of a(n)________person, I visualize my mom handing me that piece of paper and I act ________ ! Who would have ever guessed the timeless________of two little words and a smiley face on a simple little piece of paper?

【推荐2】Whenever something upsetting happened to me during my teen years, my mother always said,“Get a good night’s sleep. Things will look better in the morning.”

Mother repeated her words when, in my early twenties, I was _______ by the library school I had set all my hopes on." What _______ advice!" I thought. How was sleeping going to make my _______ go away?

That night, I _______ myself to sleep. The next morning, I called a more _______ school and asked for an application. Having failed to get into the first school, I figured I had nothing to_______ by applying to the better one. The better school _______ me.

My mother died the year after I received my graduate degree. Then, I got a library job I loved._______ I threw myself into my career 150 percent, my boss _______ me from the day I was hired. One evening I came home ill. I just couldn’t take the ________ anymore. I was in ________ and frustration. That night, as I cried myself to sleep, I________ my mother’s words — more for comfort than for insight.

The next morning I woke realizing I had other ________. That day, I gave up the job and worked as a teacher in elementary schools. My career as a children’s librarian sparked my ________ in writing picture books. ________, without the pressure of my former job, story ideas popped out at me from every direction. I’ve________ my stories to children’s magazines. I have two books awaiting publication, and I continue to write.

After so many years I have finally come to understand the ________ of my mother’s words. Sleep doesn’t make problems ________, but it does help emotions settle. Sleep gives the subconscious (潜意识的) mind time to ________ possible ways to solve problems. I now repeat my mother’s ________ to myself whenever I face new challenges.

【推荐3】My father, a soldier, was ordered to move again. It came as a _____________   because we had     just moved into the present duty station a few weeks before.

It was the fourth time we’d got to move to a ___________   place in just two years, which was truly our “home” in Hawaii that we’d only _________________   through my father’s music with ukulele     (尤克里里)._________ was the thing that connected my father with Hawaii, a reminder of his home and_______.

Everything was   _________________   this time. We   were just arriving,   but he was already   ___________ to   leave again   without   us. Our father,   the person who could make   us _________   the “new”   family, was gone.   Suddenly, we   were surrounded   by cousins who ___________   knowing each   other, joining in   a cultural   __________________   of which we   only knew the surface. We   were   __________   in the family.

One day, I ________________   my father’s ukulele that I had watched him play was   ________________   in the corner. When I tried to play it, though unskillfully, I felt closer to him and our Hawaiian roots. Then   I picked up an old   song   book, and ____________   myself   to play. I would play   and sing, __________   my   father had been here. Finally   my   father______________with   a newly-bought ukulele, and we had a mini concert. He was________ that I had learned so much.

What I really ______________   was that   music   has the ________________   to do truly extraordinary things________ us with our culture and each other, our past and our present.

【推荐2】Just before New Year, the principal (校长) called me into his office and asked me to read a poem written by me at the New Year party. “Sure,” I said with a smile, my dreams of being a famous ________ floating in my mind.

For weeks, I worked on my poem, ________ bettering the structure, sound, and voice. I reread my Emily Dickinson and William Wordsworth for ________. I practiced reciting it aloud. I revised, revised, revised. By December 30th, the day of the event, I was ________.

Well, I was confident until I looked around and realized how many people were there. And how big the hall was, and how ________ I felt about myself. How could I ________ a piece of my poetry to 800 people? My heart was beating so hard I thought everyone around me could ________ it. I was nervous. I could feel cool shakes run down my back. I couldn’t remember why I had said yes to the ________. Then the light darkened, the crowd quieted. It was starting.

Suddenly, I was on stage with the bright white lights blinding my view of the audience and the feeling that my ________ was closing up. I leaned in to the microphone and tried out my ________ as I read the title: “Let There Be Light.” My voice boomed (声音低沉洪亮) from the speakers loudly and sounded much more confident than I felt.

The room was ________ as I began my piece, and I tried to focus on the words and ________ the people. The words somehow ________ in the right order, the lines flowed together properly, and I even remembered which words to ________. I finally came to the last line of the poem and breathed a deep sigh of relief. It was over.

The room was dead silent. Maybe no one liked it. I felt like I was going to faint. Then out of the silence there was ________, cheering, and smiling. I had done it. I had shared a piece of my poetry with the world.

【推荐3】Once upon a time the colors of the world started to quarrel. All ______ that they were the best. The most useful. The favorite.

Green said: “Clearly I am the most important. I am the ______ of life and of hope. I was chosen for ______, trees and leaves. Without me, all animals would die.” Blue interrupted: “You only think about the earth, _______ consider the sky and the sea. It is the water that is the ______ of life. The sky gives space and peace and serenity（宁静）. Without my peace, you would all be _______.” Yellow chuckled: “You are all so ______. I bring laughter, joy, and warmth into the world. Every time you look at a sunflower, the whole world starts to ______. Without me there would be no fun.”

Orange, Red, Purple and Indigo（青色） all rose up to their full height and argue that they themselves are the most important and indispensable. And so the colors went on boasting, each ______ his or her own superiority. Their quarreling became louder and louder.

Suddenly rain started to pour down pitilessly. The colors got down in ______, drawing close to one another for ______. In the midst of the chaos, rain began to speak: “You foolish colors, fighting amongst yourselves, each trying to _______ the rest. You were each made for a special purpose, ______ and different. Join hands with one another and come to me.”

Doing as they were told, the colors united and joined hands.

The rain continued: “From now on, when it rains, each of you will stretch ______   the sky in a great bow of color as a(n) ______ that you can all live in peace. The Rainbow is a sign of hope for tomorrow.”