2 . My 14-year-old son, Gus, is severely allergic to peanuts and other nuts, so for years we’ve been washing hands like surgeons, and we wipe down surfaces every time we eat out. We know the closest emergency room and exactly what to do during a reaction. Our preparedness to guard against a worst-case situation felt like a win when the pandemic hit. Our everyday caution, which can be exhausting and make us feel awkward at social events, is now a great advantage.

As it turns out, COVID-19 life has had multiple advantages for food-allergy families like mine. Stuck at home with just the food we cook ourselves, we’ve been safe from all the land mines, like big holiday parties with boxes of walnut cookies, or Halloween, with kids eating Snickers while sticking their hands into shared bowls. Not to mention restaurant meals that have unexpected ingredients.

So the pandemic gave me a gift I didn’t even know I needed: I felt seen. The whole world was in prevention mode, weighing what might have touched their groceries or takeout food. We all wash our hands now whether our kids have food allergies or not. We all might call ahead to double-check a restaurant’s precautions and whether the chef wears gloves. I didn’t feel strange anymore.

Of course, the limitations on regular life will ease up soon, and families like mine will need to be on guard again. When I think about the new normal, I’m fine with that post-COVID-19 life. I hope we can keep this appreciation that not everyone’s immune system functions in the same way and some people do need to be more cautious. This makes me think of the classic home-design advice: “You need to take everything out of a room to know what you want to put back.” We’ve taken everything out of the room, and I hope we put back empathy, understanding and tolerance.

3 . On March 14, 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic (新冠疫情) forced 57th Street Books, in Chicago, to close its doors. The store wouldn’t reopen for nearly a year and a half. During that time, director Jeff Deutsch was worried. Customers couldn’t come to the shop. His main advantage over online business had gone overnight.

Deutsch said he and his team were lucky. Customers stepped up. They offered gifts and support. “There was something very beautiful in the way our community came together,” he said. “We really supported one another’s businesses,”

Similar stories played out over the past two years in cities and towns around the country. Though independent bookstores were forced to close during the pandemic, many found ways to connect with and help their community.

Anne Holman is co-owner of the King’s English Bookshop. It’s in Salt Lake City, Utah. She said the store put books outside for reading and started doing a lot of events online. Other stores set up bookselling hotlines, and improved their tools for e-business.

Some bookstores did events that went more than bookselling. They offered COVID testing. They collected food for people in need. “Having an independent bookstore in your community is almost like a town square,” said Samira Ahmed, an author of books for young adults. “It’s an important place to build community.”

11-year-old Adele Sorkin, a fan of 57th Street Books, is on its Young Readers Advisory Board. Members receive early copies of books in exchange for writing reviews. “I think of the bookstore as a cookie jar (罐子),” Adele says. “It’s something special and fun that is always there for you.” Jeff Deutsch sees a bright future. “If we reimagine bookstores and do our best to support them,” he says, “then bookstores can thrive (兴盛).”

5 . As the COVID-19 appeared, many people’s life changed.

At the beginning of March 2020, Boylan, a professor of Medicine Jon Bae, went from working onsite to being another role as a health economic analyst(分析家) of Duke University Health System. And a month into the pandemic(流行病), his daughter, Elora, was born. The past two years drew Boylan closer to his wife, Katie, “During the time of the pandemic, I am not one of those people who have time to learn how to bake bread or anything,” Boylan said. “I think, in terms of personal growth, I have learned much about how to live a happy life.”

By October of 2020, the pandemic had lasted for several months, and Melanie Thomas was feeling down. “How do I have a rich and full life during this special time and keep a positive attitude?” Thomas asked herself. She decided that she needed a goal that she could work out until the world opened up. For the next several months, Thomas began running, working out at a socially distant gym, and walked as much as she could every day. While the trip to Nepal was the goal, the exercise to prepare for it became a central piece of herself-care routine.

A few weeks ago, Mary Atkinson began spending the remaining daylight after work setting up a garden in the yard of her Greensboro home. She as well as her two-year-olds on, West, often played there with the sand and his toy truck. “This is something that never happened before the pandemic, and it gives much happiness to us,” said Atkinson.

During the pandemic, John Carbuccia, instead of eating lunch out or grabbing meals in the university canteen, found himself eating homemade breakfasts, lunches and dinners. Scrambled eggs with vegetables or simply prepared salmon fillets are some of his current favorites. And without having to rush to the company, he walks and runs around his neighborhood before and after work at home.

Stephen Hawking’s family have contributed the ventilator (呼吸机)    1     (own)by Hawking to the Royal Papworth Hospital to help coronavirus(冠状病毒)patients.

After a check by the hospital’s engineering team,   the hospital    2     (happy)accepted the ventilator. The hospital has expanded to more than double its usual size as a result of the increasing number of coronavirus patients. The     3    (contribute)from the Hawking family was    4     great help to the hospital.

“After our father passed away, we returned all the medical equipment(医疗设备)to the National Health Service(NHS),” said Lucy Hawking,     5     is Stephen Hawking’s daughter. “Even some items that he bought for himself    6     (give)to the NHS to fight against coronavirus. The NHS has played a huge part    7     our lives over the years. We fully recognize the efforts of NHS to help those in need." Besides, Lucy Hawking encouraged people    8     (support)the NHS in any way and take social distancing measures seriously.

Since the news was announced, it    9     (attract)national attention. Many people were    10     (touch)and said that even if the great physicist became a star, he still gave off light.

9 . One of the luckiest things in life is that someone offers help when you are in need. Such warm stories happen these days in our city.

We’ve never depended on deliverymen for our daily needs so heavily as we do now, when we work from home to stop the spread of the COVID-19. Some of the deliverymen were afraid that they would not be able to come out to work the next day if they went home and found an overnight lockdown (封锁) in their communities. So they chose to sleep under overpasses (天桥) or on park benches. Photos of them sleeping in those outdoor places were put online. The next day, the government took action and offered them free places to live in either at hotels, at schools or at courier stations (快递站).

Another recent case that shows ordinary people are cared for was about a bun (面包) seller. The man left a message below a post on the Shenzhen Municipal Health Commission (市健康委员会)’s WeChat account. He said he had trouble running his store because of the recent spread of the COVID-19. Community workers in his area paid him a visit to see what they could do to help. On the night of the same day, the man received an unexpected large order from his community.

There is a long list of such small acts of kindness in almost every corner of the city. It tells us love and care is powerful to help us overcome the difficulties.

Every year I travel a lot to appreciate tourist     1    （attract）. As the saying goes, “Read ten thousand books and travel ten thousand miles.” Large quantities of practice     2    （be）the same important as reading large volumes of books. Since 2015, I have visited more than twenty cities at home and abroad, during     3     time I enjoyed wonderful views of mountains and rivers and saw the powerful strength of our motherland as     4    （good）as the great changes of the world.

However, COVID-19     5    （sweep）the globe during the past two years.     6     great many, people were infected with the disease. But a great part of them have been cured on account     7     the wise policies of our government. Despite     8    （affect）, we firmly believe that our government will pay what it takes     9    （save）her people. At the same time, there are countless organizations and individuals voluntarily     10    （struggle）against the disease. Victory belongs to us, our country and the whole world.