1 . In a heartwarming incident that highlights the power of human connection, a woman’s act of kindness saved the life of a struggling homeless man.

During a _________ between classes, Casey Fischer made a stop at Dunkin Donuts for a coffee. It was there that she _________ a homeless man collecting change by the roadside. _________, she watched him walk into Dunkin, counting his change to see what he could _________.

Casey went over to engage him in _________ and learned that he had only about $1 in change. _________ by his difficult situation, she bought him a _________ and bagel, inviting him to sit with her. He told her that he lost his family in an accident and how people are usually _________ to him because he’s homeless. They _________ for about an hour, drinking their coffees.

After __________ that Casey needed to return to class, the man, named Chris, asked her to __________ so he could write something down for her. Handing Casey a crumpled-up receipt with a(an)__________ for his shaky handwriting, he smiled and left.

Upon opening the __________, Casey read his heartfelt message: “I wanted to end my life today, but because of you, I now have __________. Thank you, beautiful person.”

Casey posted on social media later that day that “this lovely man’s name was Chris, and Chris was one of the most __________ people I’ve ever met”.

2 . Kwane Stewart, a devoted vet (兽医) in San Diego, had reached a point of burnout in his career. The animal ______ where he worked was full of abandoned pets as people ______ to deal with the ongoing economic decline. In those days, animals would be euthanized (安乐死) if they weren’t ______ in seven days. The cruel reality deeply troubled Stewart, even leading him to consider ______ his profession.

One fateful day, outside a convenience store, he ______ a homeless man with a dog suffering from a visible skin issue. The man, ______ for a solution, shared his dog’s suffering. Stewart examined the dog and then ______ some medicine to him. In tears, the man thanked Stewart, saying “Thank you for not ______ me”. The very words served as a wakeup call to Steward and inspired his next ______ .

Stewart began working as a street vet during his free time, determined to ______ on his own. Over a nine-year period, he provided ______ medical care for over 1,000 homeless people and their pets and in 2020, he created a nonprofit organization Project Street Vet.

For Stewart, the most rewarding aspect of his work lies in the one-on-one ______ with the homeless. By ______ helping their cherished companion, Stewart helps ______ their faith in humanity. Their gratitude fuels him to continue his mission, offering ______ to those facing awful circumstances.

3 . Each day, I woke up with a mental list of the tasks I had to complete. My routine was ________ : class, soccer practice, and sleep. I adapted well to it. However, my life ________ on the day of the final game.

As I ________ the center of the field, I ________ myself that I would give this game my all as if it were my ________ game.

The whistle sounded, and the ball was kicked in my direction. ________ the ball, I crossed it, just in time for my teammate to meet it and pound it right into the ________ .“Goal!”The game had started out ________. But the game grew intense as the score was tied at 1-1, until I had the ball with one minute ________. I needed to put the ball in the net, and I did just that, making the ________ score 2-1. But it didn’t go exactly as planned. To block my shot, my opponent ________ me in midair. But instead of heading the ball, her body ________ mine, leaving me unconscious in the middle of the field.

I went through a very difficult operation, followed by a long,________ road to recovery. I couldn’t play soccer any more. It did turn out my last game. Yet, looking back on the situation in its entirety, I have no ________. I said I would give it 100 percent. I did just that, and finally, I came out a ________.

4 . My husband Dan and I were just finishing breakfast at a busy diner when a young soldier, his wife and their two school-aged children were seated at the table next to us. As they all sat down, the woman ________ her handbag and opened a small blue wallet.

“Eighteen,” she said softly to her husband after ________ counting out the bills inside. “And a few loose coins.” He nodded silently and then began ________ the menu, reading off food ________ to the children.

The kids ordered the silver-dollar pancakes while their parents requested scrambled eggs and sausage. “Can we get strawberries, too, puh-leeeeeeeze?” the kids asked with ________ . Mother and father exchanged a(n)________ look. “Sure,” the man spoke up. And the couple looked at the menus again, ________ their options. The soldier suggested they split something but his wife insisted she would just get toast. ________they spoke in hushed tones, we couldn’t help but overhear them in the ________ space.

Then we went to settle the bill at the ________, where Dan handed the cashier our check and asked if she could also add in a $25 restaurant ________ card.

“Sure,” the cashier responded. “Whose birthday?” Dan looked at her ________, a bit confused that she had immediately ________ this was a birthday gift.

“Oh, I just figured one of them was having a birthday today,” the cashier________, “because you’re the third person in the last few minutes who bought a gift card to send to that ________ table.”

5 . I have struggled with feelings of unworthiness since forever. My most painful moments were at parties. My friends made fun of me because I was rhythmically (有节奏地)__________ and I couldn’t get my__________ body to imitate the latest dance moves. I was never chosen to dance. I felt like I didn’t__________.

Around age 12, I decided that the way to__________ these feelings of unworthiness was perfection. If I was just perfect then I would fit in. But this strategy didn’t__________.My self-esteem (自尊心) was high when I got good grades and felt__________, but crashed when I didn’t do well__________, or was left out.

After several years of spiritual growth, it__________ me that for many of us, self-worth is tied to our__________. We experience low self-worth__________ we fail or lose approval. So I have begun to cultivate an unconditional self-worth. It’s not about doing things perfectly.__________, “Unconditional self-worth” is the______ that you deserve to be alive, to be loved and cared for.

The__________ to unconditional self-worth is not always easy. It takes courage to free yourself from the __________ you’ve placed on your worth. But this journey is beautiful and worth taking. So I challenge you to embrace yourselves and find your metaphorical (隐喻的) __________ floor and move freely.

6 . In the hospital the lift opened and I saw my dad in a stretcher (担架), his eyes closed and an oxygen mask over his mouth. He was fastened (固定) _______to the stretcher so that he would not _______.Then, all I wanted was to_______him, wake him up, take him home and want him to_______me with chocolates and kiss me on my forehead.

My dad had an accident in the building site, which caused _______damage to his spinal cord (脊髓).The doctor told me there was almost no_______that he could ever walk again. I was_______.The thought of the pain from which my father, who was so kind, helpful and caring, greatly suffered during the_______made me really sad.

My dad_______ a lot of weight after the operation (手术) and then he was ________ to ICU. But he was sent back home two weeks later because of our __________ of money. At home he was confined (限制) to his chair and my heart hurt so much __________I saw this.

One day two months later, I heard my dad call my name. I rushed out of the room and was surprised to see him __________there, holding the wall, like a__________.Therefore, just as he taught me to__________ in my childhood, I was teaching him. I supported him and __________him to be brave as I was there. At last he moved the first step with great __________.

With three months passing, my dad got better again and my joy was __________.I trust my father because in my eyes he’s really an iron man who __________loses hope. His spirit of perseverance (毅力) will always be a great__________ to me!

7 . Hannah, an adventurous girl, lived on a small village in a land far away. All of the villagers were used to their ________ tasks and very few had the will to try something new. Unlike them, Hannah loved to ________ and would spend hours in the woods looking for new things.

One afternoon, she ________ an abandoned cottage. With curiosity she slowly opened the door and was left ________. In front of her was a room full of books glittering in the dust! She gasped as she ________ that she had found a hidden treasure. She ________ two and decided to read them at her home.

From that day on, Hannah ________ read the books, which took her to a world of talking animals, mystical creatures, and daring knights. She read about characters who faced ________ with their determination and characters who bravely ________ for good. She learned the power of love and friendship, and that the true strength lies within one’s own ________!

With the good in heart, Hannah started to ________ the gold from the tales with the people of her village. Soon, the ________ of Hannah’s storytelling spread. People traveled from different places to listen to her stories.________, Hannah started writing stories of her own too!

Hannah’s passion and ________ blew life into the tales and her words breathed new life into countless souls. She became a signal of ________, a reminder for everyone that even in the dustiest comers, there can be a hidden treasure.

8 . On Dec.26,2022, Gelinne, a former Navy commander, aged 60, was gazing out the windows of his house in Edgewater. That’s when his daughter, Aimee, ________ a small aircraft and cried “Look!”.

Gelinne looked up in time to see the aircraft a few hundred yards away, losing   ________. As the plane disappeared behind the trees, he ________ it was going to land in the frozen creek (河湾). Without   ________, Gelinne ran down to the waterfront. The plane had slid to a stop on the frozen creek, far from shore. It was ________. The pilot was standing on the wing.

Knowing from his Navy training that even a few minutes in the icy water could kill the pilot, Gelinne tested the ice with his foot ________ . He figured, if a kayak (皮艇) could float on the water, it could slide on the ice. ________, he pulled his kayak out and tried using shovels to push the boat along. His first attempts left it spinning in circles, but he made progress with strength. It was ________ work.

When Gelinne ________ to reach the plane, only its tail was visible. The pilot’s chest surrounded by water, he was standing on a tail wing, seized by ________. Gelinne pushed his boat off the ice and into the water, trying to keep the pilot calm. The pilot grabbed the bow of the boat and now the two men were________together. What Gelinne ________ to do at the very moment was getting the pilot up onto an unbroken ice shelf before the man lost too much body heat. But each time Gelinne tried to land ________the ice shelf, the kayak broke through.

Fortunately, a police officer arrived and radioed for help. Then, another boat arrived just in time to________the pilot, Steve Couchman, 71, and helped Gelinne to shore. Exhausted, still, Gelinne was________ with what he’d done that day.

9 . Our ancient nomadic(游牧的)ancestor would often sing or dance to show others where to find food. In my family, we’ve always had music around us too and this influence is starting to _______. Our seven-year-old son has _______ to perform his own raps which are quite excellent even without considering how _______ he is. Our four-year-old daughter is showing her musical _______ too — she started to make up little ditties(小调).

What is most joyous about our shared _______ of music are those moments when we all come together as a _______. My favorite time happened in April when I was feeling quite _______. I was cooking breakfast when the kids _______ that I was playing dance music. My seven-year-old son then started to join in dancing. This _______ his four-year-old sister, soon the three of us were jumping up and down. It was a moment of real ________ and it turned around how I was feeling.

At that point, I felt like music would be the way to ________ to the kids. I’ve sat down with my son and together we’ve remixed his voice and I’ve sat with my daughter and we’ve played the guitar. We might not be ________ anything about the whereabouts of food as our ancestor did. But we are giving them an ________ through song. We’ re teaching them “Flower of Scotland” so that they might know something about their heritage.

Through ________, we have all become a ________ family.

10 . I grew up in a large family of twelve siblings. We weren’t poor, but there were times when we couldn’t _______ certain things my friends had.

Back in those days, hot lunch was a _______. And usually hot-lunch buyers and the students who brought cold lunch sat _______. My siblings and I brought lunch from home every day: thick slices of homemade bread. We would _______ longingly as the rich kids proudly sat down with their _______ food like chicken fricassee.

I never said anything, but my teacher Mrs. Caruso, must have seen the _______ in my eyes. One day she _______ pressed a note into my hand and whispered, “Give this to your mother.”

I skipped home and handed my mom the note. She read it and smiled “Well, Mrs. Caruso said because of all your hard work, she wants to _______ your lunch tomorrow. ”The next day, I proudly carried my tray of chicken fricassee and _______ with the students at the hot-lunch table. ________, the food wasn’t as great as I had imagined, but I was ________ to be a part of the group.

I don’t know why Mrs. Caruso ________ me. Maybe she also grew up in a family that ________ to make ends meet. Maybe she knew what it was like to feel just a little less than everyone else. Somehow, with her ________, she never made me feel ashamed. She just made me feel loved and ________. Thanks to her, I learned that I had just as much right as anyone to sit at the hot lunch table.