4 . Clothes Donation (捐赠) Box

Have you ever put your old clothes into the donation box in your neighborhood? If not, you can do it right now because the clothes donation is becoming a trend (趋势) in China.

“From time to time, my mother clears out the clothes which I no longer wear. You know, we teenagers are growing fast. I think it’s a good way to help others. ” Lin Tao, a junior student says.

“I often pick out some of my clothes which are out of style after going shopping. Then I’ll put them into the donation box.” Miss Li, a pretty young lady says.

“That seems like a good idea. Some clothes in the box are quite new. People can either wear them or use them to make things such as handbags and pencil cases.” Mrs. Wang, an old woman says, “Sometimes I also look through the box for some nice clothes.”

However, there are some problems along with the popularity of clothes donation. Recently, a reporter has made a survey. Here are the results:

◆The box is full of clothes in a short time. There is no more room for people to give away clothes.

◆Some people sell the clothes in the donation box for making money instead of wearing them.

◆Some communities set the box in unsuitable places. So there are few clothes in it.

◆Many clothes are too old and shabby (破烂的).

◆“What’s worse,” one of the staff in a community added, “we quite often see people throw rubbish into the box when they pass by. We’ve tried to stop them several times but failed. It has been the most serious problem since we set the box.”

In order to make the donation box work in an efficient (有效的) way, our government is taking action. Clothes donation will be better-organized and it’ll be more convenient for people in need to take the clothes away.

7 . I sat down in my seat waiting for the plane to take off. A line of _________ came over and filled all the empty seats.

After a _________, we were told that lunches were available (可得的) for $5. As I reached for my wallet to buy one, I heard a soldier ask his buddy _________ he planned to buy lunch. “No, that seems like a lot of money for just a lunch. I’ll wait _________ we get to Chicago.” His friend agreed.

I looked around at the other soldiers. _________ of them were buying lunch. I walked to the back of the plane and handed the flight attendant (服务人员) a $50 bill. “Take a lunch to all those soldiers.”

After I finished _________, I went to the restroom. A man stopped me. “I saw what you did. I want to be _________ of it. Here, take this. He handed me $25.”

Soon after I _________ to my seat, the Flight Captain came to me and said, “I want to shake your hand. I was a military (军队) pilot. Once, someone bought me a lunch. It was an act of _________ that I never forgot.” I was embarrassed when applause (掌声) was heard from all of the passengers.

Later, I walked to the front of the plane __________ I could stretch (伸展) my legs. A man who was seated about six rows in front of me reached out his hand, wanting to shake __________. He left another $25 in my hand.

__________ we landed in Chicago, I picked up my belongings (行李). While waiting to __________ the plane, a man passed by and put something in my pocket. Another $25!

I walked over to the soldiers and handed them $75. “It will __________ you some time to reach the base (基地). It will be about time for a sandwich. God bless you.” I said.

These soldiers were giving their all for our __________. I could only give them a couple of meals. It seemed so little.

8 . Seven years ago, Joyce Akinpe moved to Australia to start a new life, finding an exciting job in Sydney. After the outbreak (爆发) of COVID-19, she suddenly lost her job.

Seeing that there were many others like herself in trouble from the outbreak, Akinpe and her two roommates, Michelle Gomez and Maureen Lee, brainstormed ideas for how to help their local community. They came up with a street pantry (储藏柜). Gomez said the idea was very simple, “Take what you need and leave what you can.”

With the help of Gomez’s father, they built the Blessing Box-a street pantry, with shelves and hanging baskets and two doors made from old furniture.

It sits just at the back of the three girls’ home, so they can look after it. They put some information notices into their neighbors’ mailboxes, and the Blessing Box was quickly filled with the donations (捐赠) from the community. “It is the community’s strong support that keeps the project alive.” Akinpe said.

“We now have hundreds of people visiting our box every day. It might only take two hours for the box to be full and next hour it might become empty again. We are now helping others to carry out similar projects in their own communities, too,” Gomez said.

Lee said things in the box were mostly convenience foods, as well as some necessary life things such as spaghetti and toilet paper. “Few people take everything at once. They think there are other people who need them more.” Lee added.

There were many people rushing there for donations. The three girls needed to sanitize (消毒) all the donations and make sure all food packages were not broken. Gomez said that they had no time for rest, but what they did was well worth.

9 . I help to look after some old ladies at the old people’s home every week. I’d like to bring them a little happiness.

This afternoon when I was about to go there, the telephone rang. It was my husband, “Sorry, dear, but I have to work late in my shop today. So you have to take Taylor home after school.” I decided to take my son with me to the old people’s home for the first time because I couldn’t find any friend to help take care of him.

With my new partner, I started my work. I found that just when we wanted to leave their rooms, my son kissed everyone on their faces and whispered (低声说) something in their ears. Every lady looked happy.

Later in the evening, my husband asked how my work went on “It’s lots of fun,” I said “We are quite a pair. When Taylor kissed to the ladies, it surely made them happy, especially when he whispered in their ears.”

“What did you whisper about?” asked my husband.

Looking up at his dad and me with his big brown eyes, he told us, “I whispered, ‘I love you, Grandma. And I just want you to know that you look so beautiful today.’”

I asked,“Why did you do that?”

He said, “I just know it can make them feel good.”

10 . One day a man saw an old lady standing by her expensive car, clearly in need of help. So he stopped his old truck and got out. Although he was smiling, the old lady was worried. Was he going to hurt her? He didn’t look safe.

The man could see that she was frightened, so in his friendliest voice he said, “I’m here to help you, madam. Why don’t you wait in the car where it’s warm? By the way, my name is Bryan Anderson.” Bryan quickly fixed the car and the lady thanked him. Then she asked how much she should pay him.

But Bryan wanted no money. He was just giving a hand to someone in trouble. This was normal for him. He said, “If you really want to repay me, next time you see someone in need, help them and think of me.”

After saying goodbye, the lady continued down the road until she reached a small café where she decided to stop for something to cat. As the pretty waitress took her order, the lady noticed she was nearly eight months pregnant (怀孕). Although the waitress looked tired, she was very kind. As the lady was going to pay the $10 bill she remembered Bryan’s words.

She paid with a hundred-dollar bill. But when the waitress returned with the change, the lady was gone. On the table she saw a small note. There were tears in her eyes when she read it: “Somebody once helped me the way I’m helping you. If you want to pay me back, here is what you can do—do not let the chain (链条) of love end with you.” Under the note were nine more $100 bills.

Was the old lady an angel? The waitress was so excited that she called her husband to tell him the news. “Bryan Anderson my dear… you’re not going to believe what just happened…”

A．	B．
C．	D．