The Last Leaf is about the story of two young painters in Greenwich Village, Sue and Johnsy, and their neighbour, Behrman. Johnsy suffered    1    severe pneumonia in the cold November, and her condition became     2    (serious) than it used to be. And she put the hope of life on the last leaf outside the window,    3    (think) that when the last leaf fell, it was the end of her life. As a result, she lost the courage and faith    4    (live).

Several years ago I started riding a bike. At first, I thought it was only a short ride. But as I built up my strength, my friends inspired me     1     (try) some longer trips. The first one to come along was a 150-mile journey, an event held every year that raises money to fight cancer.

When I signed my name, the idea seemed fantastic. It was to support a worthy cause when we went for the distance. And I trained with great excitement. But as the time for the ride approached, I didn’t really want to bike all those miles for two days straight.

The ride began on a Sunday morning in the Georgia countryside. There were a number of strong riders. For the first few hours, I felt wonderful. There were not many     2     (vehicle) on the way. But by the end of the day, my energy had run     3    . I was sure I would give up before I reached the destination.

As I was getting to the top of hill, the sunset which looked so     4     (admire) kept me going for a few minutes more. I said to myself, “So far half of the distance     5     (cover) by me. That is enough.” Then in the distance, I saw a lone (单独的) rider riding very slowly. I noticed that the person looked different in some way, but I couldn’t tell the reason     6     that person was different. I managed to catch up. There she was, riding slowly but steadily, with a determined smile on her face. Then I kept up     7     her and found that she had only one leg. In my view, she can be regarded as a     8     (represent) of people with strong determination.

My focus changed at that moment. I’d been doubting my body for a whole day. But now I knew-it wasn’t the body, but the will that would help me reach my goal.

It rained all the second day. I never saw the one-legged biker again, but I pushed on without complaining. And at the end of the day, still feeling strong, I     9     (eventual) completed the 150th mile. Now it seems that I have been     10     (addict) to such a kind of event.

The other day, Thomas, my husband, told me that he would buy an old army truck.

“Don’t you ever want to do normal things like     1     men? Play golf on Saturdays, and...”

“That’s no fun. Life’s too short to live like everybody else. Besides, the truck will be     2     great advertisement. I’ll get the business name and our phone number     3     (print) on the side.”

At five o’clock in the afternoon, I heard a low sound. I looked out of the window. The army truck was much     4     (bad) than I’d imagined. I was speechless.

Thomas invited me for a ride. I didn’t have it in me to say no. Thomas turned right onto a main road,     5     (expose) us to the curious expressions of onlookers. I didn’t blame them. We were silly. I     6     (look) for something I could crawl under. But then     7     the truck made a terrible sound, neighbors smiled and waved. Nobody laughed at us.

Just the opposite, I could see excitement shining in their eyes. This truck was something different and interesting. With new     8     (appreciate) for my man and our truck, I sat taller and waved to our neighbors     9     (proud).

    10     he were just like me—reserved—imagine how dull our lives would be!