2 . Every time I passed boys who were playing basketball, I stopped to silently watch them. I really envied them. But as a girl, I once thought that I could_______play basketball.

I like playing basketball though I’m not good at it. I’ve had a basketball _______I was a child. At first, I could play freely because no one__________when I was just a kid. But as I grew up it seemed harder and harder for me to enjoy basketball.

At school, it was always the boys who played basketball during PE classes. The girls were_______ allowed to play volleyball or badminton.

My parents did not________me play basketball at home. “Basketball is not fit for girls,” they said. _______I went to play basketball with my friends, boys _______ at me on the court as if I were an alien.

I was feeling________ and had lost hope of playing basketball. _______, something changed the first day of high school. I made some friends who also enjoyed playing basketball. They________ me to get back on the court.

One of them told me with a smile, “Go your own _____ , let others talk.” This girl would always play basketball with me. Even the boy who sat next to me in class talked about   ________   with me almost every day.

I was inspired by them. Confidence and passion_______to my heart. I am ready to stand up and play. I will play as well as I can, ________for me, even the sky is boundless (无限的).

Basketball has become an important part of my_______. I am interested in it. I watch matches and enjoy playing almost every day. Through basketball, not only do I feel happy and confident, but also_______a lot.

I’ve heard the NBA star Tracy McGrady say, “Nothing is impossible.” It is from an advertisement on TV. I have________to realize that life is just like playing basketball. You should have an_______. After that, just be confident and_______ going. Never give up and you’ll make it sooner or later.

I love the motto of the NBA. It can______ my strong feelings for basketball, “I love this game!”

3 . Running for a Dream

I will never forget that November day．It was hotter than normal．This was the ________ my father and I had waited so long for，because we had been working towards this race for three years．Dozens of familiar faces from church and school flashed across my view．They had come ________me．I saw worry and ________on my father's face．Then the race began!

For the first two and a half miles．I felt________．I had never before been so ready for something．The weeks leading up to the race were filled with controlled________and a strict diet．My friends hadn't seen me in weeks，but they understood the _______required to make my dream a reality．As in all of my races，I didn't _______ out in the front，I loved the pleasure of passing people as my strength overtook their premature speed．

Then without warning，my strength began to decrease．Neck and neck with one of my greatest competitors，I ________see the finish line．I had begun the final dash into_______when my knees became weak and my legs gave way．Nothing I could do would make them _______ weight．

I watched as runners rushed by me．________ I knew my dreams of victory were destroyed．I had to finish the race．However，my legs hurt badly．With all of the ________ left in me，I got on my hands and knees and crawled （爬），inch by inch，across the finish line．Voices，both ________ and familiar，cheered me on．They gave me the courage to keep ________until the very end．

The doctors were there in seconds，but my eyes searched the crowd for him．There was only one person I wanted to ________to．I whispered，"I'm so sorry，Dad，I'm so sorry I ________you．"He looked at me，saying，"You could never disappoint me．Sometimes these things just ________．All that matters is that you did your best．"

"But we worked so ________．What about our dream？"He reached over for my hand and said，"Don't you know that you are my dream and it has come true？"

It wasn't long before my running shoes were back on，marking a________path for my journey，I learned that all of the miles，the tears，the sweat，and the pain my dad and I experienced together were not for a________．What I realized，though，was that to him，I was the greatest prize he had ever won．