With only a week before New Year knocked on their door, Faith sat at her old sewing machine—a special gift from her late mother apart from her sewing skills—secretly sewing new clothes for her father and three younger siblings (兄弟姐妹) and preparing them for Easter.

Faith was the eldest daughter in the family and responsible enough to shoulder her disabled father’s responsibilities. Faith’s father, George, lost his arm in an accident. Despite his disability, George did his best to raise his children, but money was tight, and there were a lot of mouths to feed.

When George couldn’t afford new beds for his children as they grew taller and older, he made new furniture with one hand. It took him several restless nights to arrange the supplies and complete the work. Out of gratitude, Faith decided to do something for him a week before Easter.

“Let’s have a festive dinner, Dad!” she told George. “We haven’t celebrated anything since Mom’s death. Let’s make a change this New Year! Please!”

“Honey,” George said helplessly, “I barely have any money left, and I’d hate to see my children go to bed starving.”

But then George looked at the sadness in his children s eyes and realized he shouldn’t have said that.

“But,” he added, “I guess I can try, can’t I? I can get some eggs and flour, and let’s get your mother’s cookbook from the attic (阁楼). She had these inexpensive and delicious recipes in there. How about that?”

“Oh, perfect!” Faith cheered. “You’re the best, Dad! We’ll finally have a proper dinner!” she shouted to her younger siblings, and the joy on his kids’cheeks made George realize that nothing was more important to him than the happiness of his children.

The next day, George could take his kids to shop. The single father rolled his shopping cart through the aisles (过道), picking up a large bag of flour, a dozen eggs, and cheap sliced ham. After they finished shopping, George and his children decided to walk home because the grocery store was only a few blocks away.

Suddenly, the bag slipped, and George knelt to pick it up when a young lady, Emma, stepped out of her car.

When getting home, George invited Emma to his home for the festival dinner.

The Maritime Silk Road Museum of Guangdong (MSRMG) in Yangjiang, South China’s Guangdong Province, is China’s first museum to focus     1     underwater archaeology (考古学). The museum has become the home of the ancient ship, now known as the Nanhai I, and continues to tell the story of the Maritime Silk Road     2     began 800 years ago.

“Unlike many other Chinese museums that contain     3    (various) of relics, the MSRMG is dedicated to Nanhai I culture,” museum expert Li Yiyang said.

Ye Daoyang, the deputy director of MSRMG’s Underwater Archaeology and Technology Department, said that the Nanhai I will     4    (eventual) become closer and closer to people. During the excavation of the sunken ship, visitors have been able to witness the slow reveal of the ship, once     5    (reveal) only 1 meter of the hull (船体). Most importantly, the museum is     6     archaeological site that keeps people close to first-hand discoveries.

Apart from the ship itself, the museum is home to many china     7    (object). A wooden shi ding is another item unique to the museum. It was a tool     8    (use) during the Song and Yuan dynasties to measure the balance of a ship.

“The entire body of the Nanhai I     9    (display) fully to visitors soon. This is a landmark stage. Such rich underwater resources have encouraged museums like the MSRMG to improve its facilities     10    (protect) these relics while finding creative means to introduce them to the public,” Ye noted.

3 . About more than ten years ago, an elderly veteran (退伍军人) Frank received a heartwarming letter from a sweet third-grader, thanking him for his service and devotion. Frank _________ the thoughtful letter so much that he has carried it around everywhere he went, every day since then.

When Frank first received the letter, he was _________. It meant the _________ to him because a young child would _________ him in such a kind way. The letter _________ a child’s drawing of colorful flowers growing out of a helmet (头盔). He wished that before he _________ his eyes to this life, he would have the _________ to meet the young girl.

Frank is currently living in a senior residence home, where the staff was _________ Frank’s wish to find the author of his treasured letter. They wanted to help him on his search. After some time searching, they were able to _________ her down on social media. They discovered that the little girl named Dashauna was now a(n) ____________ woman serving on active duty in the army.

Dashauna excitedly accepted the staff’s invitation to visit Frank at the senior residence home. She vividly recalled sending the letter in third grade. She remembered feeling ____________ to send the letter to a veteran as she had always ____________ those in uniform. Little did Frank know that Dashauna also treasured a letter that she had kept under lock and key for many years. It was the very letter that Frank had written in ____________ to hers, more than ten years earlier.

On a warm summer day in 2021, the ____________ finally arrived. Tearfully, Frank met with Dashauna, who ____________ wore her uniform and carried a bunch of flowers.

4 . Asking for or accepting help can bring up a wide range of complicated emotions, like there’s the fear of being seen as needy or weak. Although accepting help from others is difficult, giving and receiving is a necessary part of life.

    1    . For many people, the difficulty in asking for or receiving help is tied to childhood. As psychologist Lisa Firestone points out, these feelings often develop from having our requests go unnoticed at an earlier age.

Sometimes these unnoticed requests are a result of neglect or because parents are too busy to notice. Maybe they were undertaking some jobs to make ends meet or didn’t have additional family support to spare.     2    . When your needs go unnoticed, it can create feelings of shame about asking for or receiving help, while also forming an extreme sense of independence.

How do you get better at accepting help? One way to get better at accepting help is to start with small requests, such as asking for directions.     3    . Practicing this in good environment can ease some of the emotions that can appear suddenly.

    4    . If you feel very uncomfortable, wait a few moments to let these feelings calm down before accepting or denying the help.

Helping others feels good. Although asking for help is hard, one way to make it a little easier is to focus on how it feels when you help others.     5    .

5 . As the carbon countdown clock ticks on, cities must be more imaginative and cooperative, a lively round table hosted in Newham by a non-profit organization Friends of the Earth said.

“Net zero is around the corner,” said Mike Wake, Director of Friends of the Earth. “The UK has cut greenhouse gas emission (排放) by 40% to date mostly through the growth of large renewable generation on the grid (输电网), but further cuts will be needed as London tries to find new ways of using energy.

“While Newham has lower greenhouse gas emission per head than the UK, it has high levels of fuel poverty, poor air quality and leaky homes. Vastly improved energy efficiency, especially on older and leakier homes, along with more efficient forms of heating and an expansion of low carbon heat networks, will help,” said Wake.

“But the future requires a shift to a more communal solution,” the representatives said. District heating, which pipes hot water from a central source to connected homes or businesses, is often a cheaper and lower-carbon method of heating highly populated areas. “It’s the lowest cost and low carbon solution for the future,” Wake added.

“There are new technologies to use wasted heat,” Wake said. “We worked with businesses to decarbonise (使环保) energy supply. Rather than wasting, spare heat generated by manufacturing and other activities can be captured and used to heat nearby properties. Friends of the Earth has already helped save Newham thousands of tonnes of emissions through district heating plans, solar PV and more energy efficient measures in the homes.”

But the challenges are substantial. Newham has London’s second-highest rate of fuel poverty. “Anyway, I’m confident and hopeful about the collective challenge,” said Wake. “But for Newham to be at the forefront of a green economy, to solve fuel poverty and deal with structural equalities, we must spare no effort.”

7 . WANTED

SOURCING MANAGER

The Sourcing Manager is responsible for vendor (销售公司) identification, selection, auditing (审计) and evaluation for all hotels, restaurants, guides, transportation providers and travel agents used in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) student programs. The managed vendor network is spread throughout the APAC region. Must be willing and able to travel and to work during irregular hours on occasion.

● Build and maintain a strong relationship with the APAC’s vendors to ensure vendors fulfill program requirements at a target budgeted cost.

● Build and maintain a smooth communication channel with other departments.

● Support the Program Management team in program implementation, ensuring strong communication so that needs are fully understood by both our external suppliers and our internal team, and addressed in a timely manner.

● Research and identify vendor resources for student travel programs.

● Set up, develop and maintain the databases of providers, specified vendor details and user management related to vendors.

● Build and maintain a positive working relationship with all vendor partners.

● Negotiate competitive payment terms with all vendor partners, review and manage all vendor contracts.

● At least 25 years old.

● Bachelor’s (学士) degree or above.

● Fluent in spoken and written English and/or another Asian language strongly preferred.

● Very strong organization, planning, time management and negotiation skills.

● Ability to work with little direct supervision and take accountability for decisions/results.

● Attention to detail and desire to learn new aspects of the international education field.

● Willing and able to travel up to 20%-30%annually.

● 2-3 years’ experience in supplier communication or management.