When Jin Huilin, a member of the Nanjing Yuhua Stone Cultural Exchange Association, first saw Yuhua stone, the 34-year-old ________ it for its beauty. Nanjing Yuhua stone is a type of water-worn gravel stone (砾石) mainly found in areas like Nanjing and Yizheng. It’s known ________ its bright colors and rich patterns.

To explore freshly mind stones, Jin has to visit a local market in Nanjing’s Qingliangshan Park every Saturday at 4 am. Sometimes, Jin wears rubber shoes to ________ them in rainy days. When bringing the stones home, Jin fills a number of white porcelain (瓷的) bowls ________ water and places the stones in them. “Dry Yuhua stones look grey. Filling the river stones’ capillary pores (毛管孔隙) with water can make the stones bright and show their beautiful colors,” explained Jin. In the light, he ________ his time appreciating the stones. He believes that stone observation ________ imagination and knowledge. From the stone’s ________ features like their color, texture (质地), and patterns, people may see different things like trees, mountains, waterfalls, and the green lotus (青莲). ________, Jin also noted that younger lovers sometimes see cartoon ________ in the stones, like the squirrel from Ice Age, the big robot Baymax, and Nezha. For Jin, stone observation brings joy and something fresh to his life. “Some people like to have lively pets as companions, ________ I prefer stones for their everlasting nature,” Jin noted.