【推荐1】“How did you do it, Dad? How have you   ______   not to take a drink for almost 20 years？” It took me almost 20 years to have the   _____   to even ask my father this very _____ question. When Dad first _____ drinking, the whole family was on pins and needles ______ he got into a situation that, in the past, would have started him drinking again. For a few years we were ______ to bring it up for fear that the drinking would begin again.

“I had this little _____ that I would recite to myself ______ four to five times a day.” was Dad's _____ to my 18 year old unasked question. “The ______ were an instant relief and constant reminder to me that things were never so _____ that I could not handle them，” Dad said. And then he ______ the poem with me. The poem's simple, yet profound (深奥的) words   ______   became part of my daily routine as well.

About a month after this talk with my father, I _____ a gift in the mail from a friend of mine. It was a book of affirmations(断言)with one affirmation listed for each ______ of the year.

I ______ opened the book to the page of my birthday to see what words of wisdom this book had in store for me. ______ of disbelief and appreciation rolled down my face. There, on my birthday, was the _____ poem that had helped my ______ for all these years! It is called The Serenity Prayer.

God, give me the serenity (平静)to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to ______ the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

The pickle jar (腌菜罐子) as far back as I can remember sat on the floor in my parents’ bedroom. _______ he got ready for bed, Dad would empty his pockets and drop his _______ into the jar. When the jar was _______ , he would take the coins to the bank and say _______ to the cashier, “These are for my son’s college fund (资金). He’ll _______ work at the mill (磨坊) all his life like me.”

The years passed, and I _______college and took a job in another town. Once, while visiting my parents, I noticed that the pickle jar was gone. It had served its purpose and had been removed. My dad was a man of _______words, and never taught me the _______of determination, perseverance (毅力) and faith. The pickle jar had taught me more than _______could have done.

When I married, I told my wife Susan about the ________. In my mind, it showed how much my dad had ________me. Dad continued to drop his coins into the jar, no matter how ________things got at home.

The first Christmas after our daughter Jessica was born, we spent the holiday with my parents. After dinner, Susan ________our baby into my parents’ bedroom to feed her. When Susan came back into the living room, there was strange tears in her________. She handed Jessica to Dad before taking my hand and leading me into the room.

“Look”, she said ________, her eyes directing me to a spot on the floor. To my________, there, as if it had never been ________, stood the old pickle jar, the bottom already ________ with coins. I walked over to the pickle jar, dug down into ________ and pulled out a handful of coins. With the strong emotions choking me, I dropped the coins into the jar. I looked up and saw that Dad, carrying Jessica, had slipped quietly into the room. Our eyes ________, and I knew he was feeling the same emotions I felt. Neither one of us could speak.

【推荐2】Alice is a student who came to my class last year. Though she has already turned 60, Alice looks so fit and _____, with a bright smile and a positive attitude. I am Alice’s teacher in class, but I feel she is my teacher in life.

For my 2-hour class every Saturday morning, Alice has to make a 3-hour round trip on the road, but she is never   ___ for class. Alice is very fond of learning English. She often says, “Don’t _____ me as a 60-year-old lady. I am just a beginner who wants to learn something _____. You know, I am very excited to come to the class!” So I feel a strong sense of _____ to make sure what I teach makes sense to her.

Alice came to me with very _____ English skills, but she turns out to be a very fast learner because she puts English to _____ on a daily basis. I _____ her homework before every class. Her homework is usually not what I _____ to the class, but rather something that she ______ to do. She makes various sentences using the important words and phrases she has learned from our ______ class. I am always ______ by the quality of her homework.

I feel fortunate to have a student like Alice. She has ______ me so much and our ______ is a great learning experience for both of us. Though I have no idea why she learns English, I hope I can help her ______ her dream, whatever it is.

【推荐1】This afternoon after seeing my mom, I was driving home. I took the________that was more like a canyon (峡谷)drive with beautiful scenery. Suddenly I heard a sound and I knew a big________tire! I pulled to the side, but this was a canyon drive with not much shoulder________, and it happened to be around a curve (弯曲处)where people couldn't________me. That made it very________. Thus, cars       passed me________so that I couldn't get out. Within minutes I saw a car________at a distance behind me. The gentleman walked out,________help, and I walked out of the car very________, for the road was so narrow. He moved my car a bit out of the way while I was still talking to AAA(美国汽车协会).They said with all the________they gave me since I was in a dangerous place, they could send ________in 20minutes. The gentleman offered to look at my spare tire to________ it was OK before I ________AAA.

Before I knew it, he took it out and________to change the tire. By the time I finished talking with AAA, he had changed my tire!

I________him and he left. I saw in my________that the car just followed me, making sure I was OK. At the traffic lights, I got a chance to see the________family in the car—a beautiful young wife with lovely children in the back. They all gave me a big smile and________at me. I thought about what a role________for those young children to learn about service and sympathy. I thought how ________I was to be the receiver of such generosity.

【推荐3】Confidence has nothing to do with your figure. I learned this recently.

Every day I’d look in the mirror, hate what I see, and repeat the words ________ , “I am beautiful.” Sometimes I’d even grit my teeth (咬紧牙关) to ________ the words out. But I ________ saying them, no matter what.   

It was at the request of my friend that I began this ________. He said he wanted to be my friend because of my ________ and gentle character. Besides, he also saw me as beautiful and it ________ him that I couldn’t see the beauty in myself.   

For a long time, I had ________ that my weight made me a second-rate person. Years of being fat and years of being ________ had caused me to build a cocoon (保护膜) around myself. I ________ thought that if I stayed quiet, maybe I would be safe. I put myself in layers of fear, my heart breaking a little more with each wedding invitation. I __________ hoping for my true love, believing I wasn’t good enough.   

It wasn’t until I met my friend that I was determined to be happy on my own and things began to change. He pointed out my ________ personalities and excellent qualities and made me repeat them out loud. I laughed at first because it felt ________, but I kept at it every day.   

Then, one day, a(n) ________ thing happened. Staring into the mirror, I realized with a shock that I believed it! He wasn’t ________ and it was true — I’m beautiful! The layers of my cocoon suddenly disappeared. And nowadays, I learn to love myself and keep ________ no matter what my dress size is. Indeed, confidence comes from within.