Water is the softest thing in nature, but Lao Zi really admired it. The gentleness of water does not mean weakness, but rather it     1     a spirit of perseverance (毅力) and determination (决心). Compared to those hard stone, water is gentle.     2    , with continued efforts over time, even water droplets (水滴) tells us that once we have     3     our goal, we need to stick to our plan.

So, if you are the weaker one, don’t be     4    . You should     5     on what you are doing and never give up. And if you are the stronger one, don’t be too proud because anyone     6     than you still has a chance to beat you. King Goujian of Yue gave up his     7     to meet the unreasonable demands (无理的要求) of Fuchai, the King of Gao Emperor Liu Bang of the Han Dynasty avoided fighting with Xiang Yu     8    . Instead, he build up his power over time and defeated Xiang Yu’s army in one final war. These people show us that in order to     9    , we should keep a     10     attitude. We need to think wisely about the balance of power, and stick on our goals.

One day, a baby snail (蜗牛) found that he had to carry a big and heavy shell at any time. He asked his mother. “Why was I born with a shell? It grows so hard and     1    .” His mother said, “Because we don’t have     2     to support us. We move slowly,     3     we need a shell to protect us.”

The baby snail asked again, “The caterpillar (毛毛虫) has no bones, either, and she can’t move     4    . Why can she live     5     a shell?” The mother snail answered patiently. “That’s because she will become a butterfly. She can fly high into the sky which can protect her.”

The baby snail then     6    , “We are so poor! We have no protection like that!” His mother smiled at him, “That’s why we have a shell. My dear, imagine if we don’t have the shell, what will     7     to us? Our bodies will be hurt by the     8     sun and we’ll have nowhere to sleep. What’s     9    , we’ll die in the heavy rain. We don’t depend on the sky. We should depend on     10    .”

Two friends, Jim and Stew, joined a big sales company together just after their graduation. Both of     1     worked really hard.

Two years     2    , the company’s director promoted (提拔) Stew to sales executive (销售经理). Jim did not get any promotion.

Jim thought it was unfair, so he asked his boss     3     he didn’t appreciate (赏识) the hard-working workers. The boss knew that Jim worked hard, and to show the     4     between him and Stew, he asked, “Go and find anyone selling watermelons in the market.”

When Jim     5    , the boss asked him, “How much per kilogram?” Jim didn’t ask the seller about that so he went back to the market and then returned to say the price-$12 per kg.

Then the boss asked Stew the     6     thing. Stew went to the market, and when he returned, he said, “At the moment there is one person     7     watermelons, $12 per kg, 100 for10 kg. Now he has 340 watermelons in stock (有存货). On the table there are 48 watermelons, and each of them weighs about 15 kg. Watermelons were bought from the south two days ago, so they are     8    .”

Hearing this, Jim realized the differences between him and Stew. He knew that he could learn a lot     9     his friend.

Successful people can think and see further. They think and see the future,     10     most people see only tomorrow. Let’s learn from them.

It was a warm Sunday afternoon in May, 2021.     1     the Lech River many people were playing and picnicking, and they felt     2     and relaxed. Some people were cooling their feet in the cold water from the snow-covered mountains nearby. From behind the bar (吧台) at the restaurant, Paul Blachut, a waiter, had a good view of the river.

A mother and two daughters were playing on the riverbank when,     3    , they fell into the fast-running water. A passer-by shouted loudly, “Help! Three people are being carried away by the water!” Looking up from his work, Paul noticed the three women flapping (摆动) their arms in the water, trying to catch     4     they could.

Paul rushed to the riverbank and jumped into the river. He didn’t     5     the cold. All he could think about was saving the women. As he got closer to them, he found the mother had the most     6     because her long dress made her so heavy. He pushed her to the bank     7    . Then he     8     to save the two daughters with other people’s help.

Later, people expressed their admiration for Paul, but he was modest (谦虚的) about his     9    . “It only took me two or three minutes,” he said, adding that he was happy to have     10     high praise from his boss for his courage. Indeed, it was a job very well done.

When I was in college, I volunteered to work in a hospital for some time. This meant that I would spend time with some hospital patients.

On one visit, I carefully entered a dark room to find an elderly man     1     in bed. I firstly thought he was sleeping. When I moved closer, however, I     2     he was very much awake, but also very confused(糊涂的). He seemed to be expecting something. He wanted to communicate something at that moment, but I couldn’t understand what he     3    . He seemed quite weak, and I couldn’t tell if he was in pain, or just scared. I knew     4     about him, and I felt totally helpless. He clearly didn’t want me to leave him, but I felt very lost and     5     so I left the room after only a couple of minutes.

The next time I was at the hospital and saw him again, I was     6     he didn’t remember me. But he said at once, “I remember you. You were the angel(天使) that gave me hope in my     7     hour in my life that evening” I was so amazed, once again, I didn’t know how to answer.

In the short moment of my staying there, I didn’t do anything at all. But     8    , he found in me something he needed, just because I was there.

I have thought about this thing often over the past years. It has shaped the way I see life, the way I see myself, and the way I see others. It makes me want to offer     9     kindness I can to others, and I try to recognize(分辨) and feel thankful for the kindness that others share with me.

So, a     10     in the form of a weak changed the rest of my life with just a few words. Who was the angel to whom?

I used to be a very self-centered person. However, in the past two years I     1     a lot. I have started to think about other people before I think about myself. I am happy that I am becoming a different person.

I think my change started when I was at Palomar College. At first, I just wanted to get my degree and be left alone. I thought I was     2     than everyone else, so I hardly ever talked to anyone in my class. At the end of my first term, everyone except me     3     friends and had fun. So I tried something different at once. I started     4     people around me how they were doing, and if they were having trouble, some help could be offered to them. That was really a big change for me.     5    , by the end of the year, I had several new friends.

A bigger cause of my new attitude (态度), however, came when I took a part-time job at Vista Nursing Home. One old lady there who had a bad disease became a friend of     6    . Every time I came into her room, she was so happy because her     7     never visited her. So I took their place. She let me see that making others good made me feel good too. When she died, I was heartbroken, but I was also very     8     to her.

I think I am a much better person today, and I hope these experiences     9     forever. Life has taught me the     10     of caring about other people more. I like who I am today, and I could not say that a few years ago.

Julie grew     1     in Guangzhou. Last year, she moved to Harbin. She also experienced the heavy     2     there.

It was Sunday yesterday. In the afternoon, there was a strong wind and     3     were getting together in the sky. It seemed there would be a heavy snow.

At around seven o’clock, it     4     to snow. At     5    , it snowed lightly. Then it snowed heavily. At ten o’clock, Julie went to bed. She couldn’t sleep for about two hours. She was thinking about the snow. “A snowstorm is coming,” she said to     6    . Suddenly, a strong wind blew and the windows were     7    . The floor was full of glass. Julie lived     8     so there was no one to help. What great trouble she was in!

Julie had to call the police. When the police arrived, they helped Julie to     9     the windows. And luckily, the snow wasn’t     10     heavy as Julie expected. It soon stopped completely.