4 . I never thought that I had to move to another state at 14. I was doubly _________ for I had just lost my father.

My family got _________ in giving away all the things we could not carry with us. On top of the _________ was a wooden cradle (摇篮). Cradles are _________ meant for newborns, but my mother decided to _________ this big one to my friend Sara as she used to love playing in it.

Soon I got _________ with the new schedule of school, adjusting to the new city. Times fled quickly until I _________ the news of Sara’s marriage. My thoughts wandered about her and our good _________ in the native town of Kerala.

I happened to _________ the town after 20 years. What a (n) __________ -Sara’s daughter was sleeping in the very cradle from my mother. I also came to know Sara was __________ on her mother’s decision to donate this cradle and she refused. Sara, even today, treats this gift as a blessing and a sign of __________ from my mother to her. She now __________ the cradle to other babies and fetches it when they start walking.

“This is not just a material thing; this indicates our strong __________. The excellence of a gift lies in its appropriateness rather than in its __________,” Sara said.

5 . My 10-year-old son attended an amazing half-day basketball camp with more than 60 kids. I watched how much _______ my son was having throughout the day.

Before the camp ended, there was a ________ competition. Only a few kids were picked to ________, and my son was not one of them. The competition ________ received prizes and recognition. And a few kids were titled as “all-stars” for effort,________and participation (参与).   Again, my son was not________.

When the camp ended, I could see how ________ he was. He certainly loves the sport, and his jumping skill is ________ . He would have enjoyed the recognition. But sometimes it doesn’t ________ that way.

In my mind, the day was ________. At the camp, he played with kids,________ them fiercely (激烈地) and took shots easily against them. But it was hard for him to see the result s as a small part of his day. The last thing I wanted was for these results to________ the experience.

It’s my job to help my kids think more ________. I did the math and figured out the shooting competition and awards were about 6% of the total camp. The rest of the camp, the parts that he________, were 94%. If my son felt most of the day was great—that’s a win. We can ________ the parts that disappoint us, as long as we are willing to focus on the bigger picture.

7 . I have worked with hundreds of students in my thirty-six years of Spanish teaching at Walpole High School in Massachusetts. Some of them are ________ while some are academically (学业上) at risk. ________ , only one stands out in my memory.

Vincent entered my classroom as a ________ freshman on his first day of high school. His eighth grade teacher had described him as that “ sad, introverted (内向的) boy always lowering his head.” As for his Spanish, he hadn’t had a lot of ________ before.

At first he was shy about ________ questions in Spanish. I told him I could relate to his shyness, but he needed to get over it and join in more ________ about his family and interests. Little by little Vincent became braver. Some classes even saw him not only ________ to answer questions but also share his opinions. I was beginning to view him as a ________ role model for the other students.

Once spring came I recommended he ________ the National Spanish Competition. Much to my ________ , he won the second prize. One of my ________ moments as his teacher was to call Vincent to the stage at our yearly Foreign Language Awards Night to ________ him for his outstanding performance.

Several years later when we ________ in the street, he told me my class was the first one where he had ________ success. It has impressed on me how important it is for teachers to ________ with kids and also reminded me how success produces success.

8 . When handball was introduced to Sri Lankan schools in 2010, I wanted to bring it to my school in a remote village. This became a(n) _______ task as the sports teacher was unwilling to initiate anything _______ traditional sports like basketball. Despite being an English language teacher before _______ my post as deputy principal (副校长), I was _______ to start this game at any cost.

40 students aged between 13 and 19 _______ to play. I had the support of their parents but I still couldn’t _______ the sports teacher to agree. _______ , I used my position to get the game going.

Heshan Pradeep, an alumnus (校友) and member of the Air Force handball team, volunteered to _______ the team. Although handball is an indoor game, we trained outdoors due to limited _______. Training started early in the morning before class and ________ after school until it was dark. The boys loved the game and were ________ training. After three months of devoted training, we were able to send an under-19s boys’ team to ________ with 50 other schools. Our boys played remarkably well and ________ the semifinals. The following year, nobody could ________ our team from winning the all-island schools handball championship.

The ________ sent the whole village into carnival mode. Heshan and I were much honored to have shown the boys that dreams can be fulfilled.

9 . Despite facing numerous blows, Kieran Behan kept going. This remarkable man has _________ the world, not only with his gymnastic skills, but also his unshakable _________.

Behan had a(n)_________ for gymnastics and became a part of the school team. However, his _________childhood changed when he was ten, due to an operation. The unfortunate turn of events left him in a _________. The doctors told him that he would never walk. _________, against all odds, the young Behan returned to the gym 15 months later. Unfortunately, tragedy struck again when he was 12 years old. While working on the high bar at school, Behan _________ and hit the back of his head. This brain injury damaged his inner ear, taking away the two most crucial _________ of a gymnast: balance and coordination. This time, the doctor was even more _________ that he would never walk again. Nevertheless, Behan __________ to believe any of that. Over the next three years, he made __________ to recover. He managed to make a __________ to the gymnastic world.

In 2016, Behan made it for the 2016 Olympic Games, his final Olympic appearance. He managed to complete his __________ and came in 38th in the event. Behan said, “If I’ve __________ anyone out there, then that’s a (n)__________ I’m going to be so proud of. To have gone out there and given it my all, you can’t really ask for much more.”

10 . I had always felt like I didn’t fit in the school. My true friends weren’t in the crowd of _________ kids in school, either.

Parading before me was “the fun group”— the popular kids — always laughing and whispering (窃窃私语). I wanted to be just like them and wished to be _________ .

Later, my dream came true when I joined a cheer leading team. Immediately, I_________ a lot — new hair color, new dressing style and a new group of _________. Everything I had wanted to be, I was. I was _________ one of the popular kids.

However, the more I was included with the “in crowd”, the more confused I became. _________, these people were far from _________ . They talked behind each other’s backs while they _________ to be best friends. They _________ what I was wearing, but they weren’t concerned about what my dreams were. I began to feel a sense of loss and __________.

Worst of all, I __________ that I was becoming just like them. I decided I had to get my life back in __________ . I concentrated on finding out who my real friends were — the ones who really mattered. I stayed with cheer leading, but I __________ playing with only the popular kids. I found out that my real friends had never__________ me. They were simply waiting for me. I finally learned that my __________ friends were all I would ever need.