2 . Bill Johnson was walking along the banks of the Niagara River, trying to find a good place to take a photo. Finally, he found the__________place. He leaned out (探出身子)__________the guardrail next to the pavement to get a better angle, when a gust of wind blew his camera out of his hand. Fortunately, it __________on the rocks right above the river instead of in the river itself. As the camera seemed just within__________, he knelt down and __________ out to get it. But before he knew it, he was falling head over heels into the river. Landing with a splash into the cold water, he tried to swim to shore, but the current was too __________.Then he saw a large rock in the river.__________, he tried to swim to it, but just as he reached out his hand to grab on to it, he found himself__________. He looked ahead, and could see the cloud of mist rising from the Niagara Falls __________nearer and nearer. Before he knew it, he was going over the falls. All he could see was white mist and water as he __________for what seemed like hours. Finally, the water turned dark, and he found himself buffeted (被冲击) like he was in a washing machine,__________over and over again, not knowing which __________was up. He then__________two things: That he was freezing cold, and that he could not breathe. He__________for a long while, but then realised that it was hopeless and that he could not__________ his breath for much longer. He allowed his body to go limp, surrendering (投降) himself to the rolling waves. But then, just as all hope was gone he found himself __________into the air.

Tired and gasping for breath, he paddled his hands, trying to stay afloat. Finally, he found himself being__________by his collar on to a pleasure boat at the base of the falls. Soon, he found himself __________in a warm blanket and being served hot cocoa. Then hours later he was reunited with his __________mother, who had seen him fall into the water and thought that he was dead. The next day there was his photo in the newspaper below the__________: “The Boy Who Survived Niagara Falls (尼亚加拉大瀑布).”

When my husband Ash told me he was planning to turn down some perfectly good job offers and start his own business, I was surprised. I advised against it. But Ash’s mother, who had run her own business, said: “Why not give it a go?”

My mother-in-law was right. Ash started Present Model Management. He loves it: the pressure (压力) he has now is lower. Plus, he can take the kids to school if he wants.

Watching him succeed inspired me to take my own leap. After 12 years of working as a childminder, I knew that something had to change. I loved the kids, but I’d been singing “Twinkle Twinkle” for 12 years. I only became a childminder in order to be home with my own children. Now that they are more independent, I have time to try something more exciting.

I set up @family_feasts to record what our family eats: healthy, tasty meals on a sensible budget (开支). From there, I started a WordPress blog to hold the recipes (食谱). When I started sharing weekly meal plans, the feedback (反响) was amazing. That’s what people want: inspiration.

At first I wanted to teach workshops for parents. To prove that I could teach, I started a cooking class for 8-10-year-old children at my daughter’s primary school.

It sold out overnight. A year later, I have a long waiting list. It’s so meaningful to watch the kids learn: they’ve burnt and cut themselves, but they’re really starting to understand flavors.

The next thing that took off was children’s cookery birthday parties. People have booked those through word of mouth. From the strength of my blog, I’ve published recipes with the BBC and Co-op Food Magazine. My final dream is to write a family cookbook one day.

I’m so glad that Ash and I took this leap. We plan our work around the kids. We pay ourselves less than before, but we also spend more sensibly. I love the freedom of our life, the time we have together, and the excitement of building a community of kids who will be able to feed themselves.

4 . Westsider Rare & Used Books bookstore is a big name on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. It’s the type of old shop where you can wander narrow walkways for hours while looking through towering shelves stuffed with books ranging from cheap, used copies to rare collections. The store has even been used as a setting in several films.

In January, a neighborhood resident Bobby Panza, saw the Westsider was having a going-out-of-business sale. He also read a story on a local blog in which store owner Dorian Thornley made an “off the cuff (即兴的)” remark that the store could stay open if it could raise $50,000 — “don’t see that happening, though,” Thornley mentioned at the time.

Panza, who had never formally met Thornley but had shopped at the store for a decade, started a GoFundMe campaign. In just four days, 850 people donated from $5 to thousands of dollars each and raised $54,000.

With the money, Thornley updated (更新) the store’s selection of used and rare books and reorganized the interior (内部) of the bookstore. Thornley also intended to buy advertising for his store, but the publicity from the GoFundMe campaign has helped raise awareness and helped boost (提高) Westsider’s sales by nearly 25%. Thornley has saved some of the money to ensure Westsider won’t fall behind on its rent again.

Thornley found out about the crowdfunding effort the day after it started when a customer asked whether Thornley was serious about keeping the store open for good if $50,000 could be raised. When he told her he was serious, the customer — a local writer named Sally Klingenstein Martell — donated $10,000 to get the effort off the ground. Thornley calls Martell’s significant donation “the motivator for everyone else donating”.

Whether the money will be enough to permanently save the business remains to be seen. But now that Westsider has avoided the worst, Thornley is trying to make that happen.

5 . BBC Young Reporter Competition

If you are 11-18 years old, tell us about a story you think the BBC should be reporting.

It is a yearly opportunity for 11- to 18-year-olds across the UK to submit (提交) an original story idea to the BBC. BBC Young Reporter Competition winners will have the chance to tell their story on TV, radio, online or on social media with the help of BBC journalists, producers and program makers. We are not looking for finished reports but entries should just be an outline of a story idea. This can be submitted as a written description or videos.

Entries will be judged in two age categories: 11-15 and 16-18. There is one entry category: Me and My World. Entries should be an original and true story about your life, or the world you live in. It could be about your own identity or experience that impacts you or your community. You need to show how your report on this story can reflect the wider situation. Entries will only be considered when submitted via the online mechanism (机制). No other method of entry is permitted (this includes email or post).

Stories will be judged on editorial merit (优点) — that means the strength of the story, originality, and the personal story or background related to it. Judges will be looking for 40 winning stories from across the UK. Judges include editors from across the BBC as well as presenters and reporters. Stories will not be broadcast until all the judging is completed and the winners are announced in June.

If you have any questions about the BBC Young Reporter Competition, please contact a member of the team by emailing youngreportercompetition@bbc.co.uk.

7 . Compared to most people with disabilities, Zhao Hongcheng is lucky.

Born in 1990, a wheelchair has been part of Zhao’s life since she was 1 year old due to the aftereffects of poliomyelitis(小儿麻痹症).However, it did not stop her from completing her college and graduate studies before becoming a white-collar worker in Shanghai. And now, as a video content creator who has over 84, 000 followers on the video-sharing platform Bilibili, Zhao wants to be a bridge between the disabled and the rest of society.

First attempt

“I made my first video in 2019,” Zhao says, adding that it was also the years he moved to Shanghai. “My original purpose was to find an emotional outlet. I always encountered inconvenience caused by my wheelchair when going out, which made me feel sad. However, I barely had any disabled friends, so I had no one to talk to. I felt quite lonely,” Zhao explains. In 2019, the rising popularity of short videos inspired Zhao.

Under the username Da Chengzi Hao Meimei on Bilibili, her first vlog about a trip to Guangzhou with friends was viewed more than 2, 000 times on the first day, which surprised Zhao. “This made me feel that there were many things worth sharing in my life, and it also gave me a sense of mission,” she explains. That first video has since been viewed over 48, 000times and her fourth video, displaying how she got to work in a wheelchair, made her even more popular.

Rising ambition

After her fourth video went viral, she continued to make short videos and, in 2021.became a full-time content creator on Bilibili. In her video about an accessibility bus tour in Shanghai, she put forward a piece of advice for such facilities. Fortunately, her proposal was adopted by the city and is currently being optimized. Zhao’s other videos, including a list of praise and criticism for various daily travel experiences in Shanghai, have also received wide attention.

“One of the great things about being a content creator is that I feel like I have the initiative of discourse-that is, (talking about)the real difficulties and pains that a disabled person faces,” Zhao says.

Long way to go

Zhao says education and employment are the two major hurdles for the disabled group around her. She explains that she has heard many stories about disabled people dropping out of school and that some students with good grades were rejected by their chosen universities or were persuaded to change majors. Beyond that, some people with minor disabilities, which may not affect their daily life at all, were being dismissed by companies, due to their physical examination reports reflecting their issue.

Zhao says she has developed a new perspective for her videos. “I hope to be a bridge between the wider society and the disabled. I want people to be able to truly experience the life of the disabled and to develop a greater understanding of the group,” she says.

Now Bilibili star uses her platform to promote greater understanding of the lives and needs of disabled people.

9 . Meagan, my youngest child, studies in a high school. She’ll ______it soon and she has gained a scholarship from a university.

Her brother is a physician; her sisters major in computer. In a way, all of this ______for my New Year’s resolution (决定) made years ago. That evening my husband, Gary, said, “I’ve decided on my New Year’s resolution. I’ll take ______ lessons.” I answered. “What about me? I’m stuck in the kitchen, bed rooms, and yards due to the kids. It’s not that I don’t ______ being a mother, but that sometimes I wish to do something for myself, too.”

“Why don’t you?” Gary ______, “Surely you can think of something to be away from the ______ .” His words comforted me. ______ I was a non-native English speaker, I thought I could take an English class at college to improve my ______ so that people would understand me better. Later, I realized taking a class would ______ me, and that my kids would have an advantage, too.

“You’re ______,” I replied. “I decide to take an English class and see if the college will accept me.” “Give it a(n) ______,” Gary said. “I’m sure you’ll make it.” ______, in my heart, I just felt a bit doubtful.

And before applying to college, I was ______ baby number three. So I ______ my plan made before. One day, Gary said______,“I have finally found an excellent guitar teacher.”And he added, “What about your resolution? Have you signed up for your classes?”

I ______ my head, explaining it was because I was pregnant and that I had decided to apply to college after my delivery. Gary ______, saying I should register for the spring term before the baby came. I followed Gary’s advice. Later, I went to a good college and ______some papers. I was ______that after my papers were read, I was given a chance to take classes.

Now I fully realize the _____ of the New Year’s resolution. My following through that resolution inspired my kids, greatly contributing to their achievements in education.