1 . Years ago I was hiking in the Himalayas and had made the mistake of changing a large amount of money into the local currency (货币). As I walked through the villages of the Annapurna, it soon became________ that the people were too poor to________even the simplest goods. They had nothing. This meant that it was no use carrying the wad (捆) of________in my pack and I was a virtual (虚拟的) walking________compared to the local people. I grew to dislike the money and it was________to have it in my bag. This led to a remarkable experience that ________me deeply and its________has never left me.

On this particular day, I was left behind by my fellow hikers and found myself in a valley. As I made myself down, I noticed a young girl of around 13________some sheep. Like so many of the children of the amazing Nepalese people, she was very beautiful. I couldn’t help looking at her and she looked at me. As I approached her she suddenly rushed________to me, and without a

________, handed me a flower. She________at me for a tiny moment and then she ran away. The spirit in this lovely child had responded to something she saw in me and her first idea was to find something to________. Because of her________, there was nothing she had________a single flower. The weight of my bag was never heavier than at this moment and I had just received one of the most valuable________I had ever had in my life.

2 . Ariel Cordova-Rojas rode her bike to Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge in Queens, New York, planning to go hiking and bird-watching. A mile into her walk, she __________ a female mute swan near the water’s edge. Cordova-Rojas, who had been __________ at the Wild Bird Fund rehabilitation (康复) center in Manhattan, knew that mute swans can be aggressive (富于攻击性的). But as she__________ this one, it didn’t move.

She was certain that the bird needed medical attention. Cordova-Rojas covered her jacket over the bird’s head to keep it calm, __________ picked it up, and held it in her arms. And then a thought __________ her: What do I do now?

Her best bet was the rehab center. __________, that was across the East River on the other side of town. How was she going to __________ a 17-pound swan on her bike all that way? Luckily, some strangers driving by __________ her, her bike, and the swan a lift to a nearby subway station.

On the subway, no one seemed particularly annoyed by the feathered passenger. They were busy with their own things. Cordova-Rojas called the rehab center on the way, and Tristan Higginbotham, an animal-care manager, picked her up at the subway station and drove bird, bike, and __________ to the facility. There, staff members __________ that the swan might have lead poisoning (铅中毒), caused by swallowing (吞下) weights used on fishing lines.

The staff got the swan back up on her webbed feet. She even made a boyfriend at the center—another injured swan. Sadly, even with all that care, the swan __________ a bacterial infection. Two months after Cordova-Rojas came to her rescue, she __________.

It’s a __________ ending, but the real story is just __________ some people are willing to go to save a swan in the big city—literally. “In all, Cordova-Rojas traveled two hours by foot, car, and subway,” says Higginbotham, “That’s the perfect __________ of who she is.”

3 . Years ago, when we first went to Canada, we were driving through Montana to Colorado with our two children. We thought we’d find a hotel on the way without _________ ahead of time. As it was getting late, we started looking for a hotel, only to find that all the hotels were full.

_________, around 9 pm, we stopped at a gas station to fill up on gas. My husband told the woman at the counter that we were _________ to find a hotel. She told us it would be _________ at such a late time in a busy season. Noticing that we were worried, she said we could spend the night at her home nearby.

Though surprised at her _________, we gladly accepted it. She then called her son to come and lead the way, since she had to work until midnight. Soon a pickup truck arrived and we _________ it. When we reached their home, her husband _________ us. He invited us to have coffee and we chatted when _________ his wife. She came past 12. We asked if we could leave _________ in the morning so as not to disturb them. They said we were now guests and we’d have to have breakfast with them.

Next morning, around the table were many people and we were __________ that they would welcome total __________ from a different country. After breakfast, when we were __________, my husband asked if he could offer some __________. But they said no. Then we left. We kept in __________ for many years. Later we lost contact, but over the years we have never forgotten their __________.

4 . My aunt came to my home with her six-year-old daughter Alice this morning. While my aunt was talking with my mom at home, my cousin felt a bit _______. So I suggested that I go out with her. My aunt happily agreed. So we went to the park near my home together. There we bought two _______ and started flying them. While we were doing that, Alice couldn’t help _______. She jumped up and down and I knew she was _______ having great fun. And I must _______ that I haven’t enjoyed myself like that for a long time.

Later, we sat down on a bench, looking at the gardens. As we were _______ there, Alice looked up at me and said, “What a _______ day today!” I smiled at her and agreed. I then started _______ what we had done that day. We did something quite _______, yet we were very happy.

Many people wait for their “best days”. But I think today is our ________ day. That’s a lesson I learned today. As adults, we often make plans carefully in order to have a great day. Some people think that they can have a nice day through spending a lot of ________. I think we should be more like ________. They don’t think about money or what will happen tomorrow. They really live in the moment and enjoy the moment!

We often hear the expression that we should live in the ________. How do we do that? We’re not doing such a good job. Remember today is important as we are exchanging (交换) a day of our ________ for it. Yesterday is a history. Tomorrow is a mystery. Today is a ________. That’s why it is called present. So seize (把握) the day!

9 . As we all know, a friend in need is a friend indeed. I really didn’t know the meaning of this proverb until one day something _______ happened to me.  

That morning, I got up late and _______ to school without breakfast. While I was crossing a street, my bike _______ a stone and I fell on the ground, with my both knees badly hurt. I managed with the _______ and continued my riding. On my arrival at school, my teacher took us to the _______ for a basketball match. _______ I could hardly walk normally, I joined in the game. When I _______ to pass the ball, I was knocked down and fell down on my back. I could not _______ the terrible pain and cried. My classmates all started _______ at me and continued their match. ________ on the ground alone, hungry and painful, I couldn’t stop my crying. Just at that moment, Jack, one of my teammates, ________ towards me from the other end and helped me. He comforted me and tried all ________ to make me stand. He asked another classmate to take his ________ and kept sitting beside me. He kept me company the whole day and even ________ me home after school was over.  

It was on that day that I learned and believed the proverb “a friend in need is a friend indeed” to be ________.

10 . When I was a young boy, our whole family lived in my grandma’s old house right beside a set of railroad tracks. I can remember the whole house would ________ when the trains rolled by. These trains hauling (运；拉) coal cars were few and far between, so I often spent my summer afternoons walking down the ________. I can remember the first time I tried to ________ myself and walk on a single rail. The steel rails were very narrow and quite slippery ________ I didn’t have much ________. First I tried ________ my arms and watching my feet as I walked. This only ________ to me shaking and falling off after a few steps. I decided to walk backwards once but quickly slipped off and skinned my ankle on the rail. It was only when I started looking ahead down the length of the tracks ________ I was able to walk the rail. Keeping my eyes forward, I put one foot in front of the other and was soon walking with ease.

Looking back on this time, I now ________ that it also gave me a ________ lesson about living. You can’t go through life watching and worrying about every step you take or ________ you make. This only leads to second guessing yourself and you soon go off the rails. Looking behind you is even worse. ________ your eyes on the past, you can’t see the way ahead. You can only stand still and stay ________ in your regrets. It is only when you look ahead that you can really move forward and see the life you want to lead. Then each step you take and the choice you make is ________ with love and enjoyment for life and you will walk on with a ________ heart.

We all need to keep our eyes forward. We all need to look ahead with love and enjoyment for life. We all need to see with our hearts the life we want to live.