1 . Communication with a Stranger

Last weekend I sat on the bus talking with excitement and so ready to spend time in New York City with one of my best friends from college．As I took the window seat and wore headphones over ears，I almost didn't _________the elderly man sitting beside me．

Two hours passed and I was still absorbed in my own world．_________the elderly man asked me a question，a simple question_________the bus's Wi-Fi connection，which turned into a two- hour _________In fact，it directly _________my personal life．

We talked a lot about my dreams，my fears and my life．I _________ more with this stranger on the bus than I have with any friend or family member in months．Maybe it had something to do with me just being _________ to let anyone I know close to me．I was_________that the stranger was not only so deeply interested in getting to know me，but also just as willing to _________ me to my greatest abilities．He listened carefully to every word I said and made some useful____________at times．Instead of politely ____________ his head when I mentioned my major，he told me that my strong liking seemed to be psychology，but not the one I was studying．He said that he knew I would face difficulties if I studied psychology and that he fully understood my ____________ for the failure．

This elderly man made me ____________ the plans that I had laid out for my life with just that simple statement．He helped me realize that my neatly ____________plan for the next five years of my life wasn't all that neat，but actually complex and filled with ____________．Most of all，he helped me ____________ the complex，not stay away from it because of my fear for the unknown．I ____________ a lot from talking with the elderly stranger．

A few days later，he emailed me，saying，"I think you're ____________ for great things 8no matter what you decide to do．" The email was filled with words of ____________．In a few hours a stranger showed me a sense of kindness that made me realize that life is sometimes ____________ but it is going to be okay．

2 . Martin shook his money box again. Nothing! He carefully counted the_______that lay on the bed. 32 dollars was all that he had. The_______ he wanted was at least 100 dollars! How on earth was he going to get the_______of the money?

He knew that his friends all had bicycles. It was_______to hang around with people when you were the only one without wheels. He _______what he could do. There was no_______asking his parents, for he knew they had no money to spare.

There was only one way to get money, and that was to _______it. He would have to find a job. But who would give him the _______ and what could he do? He decided to ask Mr. Allen for_______, who usually had experience on most things.

That was the beginning of Martin's odd-job(零工) business. For3 months he ________every day after finishing his homework. He________dogs and babies for walks, cleared out cupboards, and mended books. He couldn't ________ how many cars he washed and how many windows he________, but the money increased and he knew that he would soon have ________for the bicycle.

The day________came when Martin counted his money and found $104. 32. He wasted no time and went down to the ________to pick up the bicycle he wanted. He rode________home. He looked forward to showing his new bicycle________ his friends. It had been hard working for the money, ________Martin knew it was a valuable experience. He had ________what he thought was impossible, and that was worth even more than the bicycle.

3 . Making friends is a skill. Like most skills, it improves with practice. If you want to meet people and make friends, you must be willing to _______some action. You must first go where there are people. You won’t make friends staying home _______.

Join a club or group. Talking with those who like the same things as you do is much easier. Or join someone _______some activity.

Many people are nervous when talking to new people. _______all, meeting strangers means_______the unknown. And it’s human nature to _______a bit uncomfortable about the unknown.

Most of our fears about dealing with new people come from doubts about_______. We imagine other people are judging us, finding us too tall or too short, too this or too that, but don’t forget that they must be feeling the same way. Try to accept yourself as you are, and try to put the other person at ease. You’ll both feel more comfortable.

Try to act as self-confident even if you don’t feel that way when you _______a room full of strangers, such as a new classroom, walk tall and straight, look directly _______other people and smile.

If you see someone you’d like to speak to, say something. Don’t wait for the other person to start a conversation.

Just meeting someone new does not mean that you will ________friends with that person. Friendship is based on mutual(相互的) liking and “give and take”. It takes time and effort to develop. And there are things that keep a new friendship from growing.

4 . Mrs. Hyde was my fifth and sixth grade teacher. She was a nice and gentle teacher who wanted her students to learn and to do well in school. She was also________to those of us who showed an interest in a particular subject. For me it was________.

One of our homework for writing class was to_______some James Thurber's stories. I loved this writer. Students would take turns reading his________stories out loud in class.________it came to my turn to read, it was difficult. I couldn't________laughing at what I was reading.

Mrs. Hyde encouraged us to write our own short________. I tried my best to make up a story, imitating Thurber's style.

I got an A + on my paper. Mrs. Hyde________told me how good and funny she thought it was. She told me, "You really have a(n)________for this."

From that day forward, I had aspirations(渴望)of________a writer. Along the way and for a long time, my friends and family repeatedly________to talk me out of this. "Writers don't make any________." they would tell me "You'll starve to death."

I never forgot Mrs. Hyde's________to me. It took several years to turn my________into reality, but today, I'm a working writer. It's true I don't make a lot of money doing it, but I'm doing what I________. If it hadn't been for Mrs. Hyde's encouragement to me so many years ago, I don't know if I would have ever given writing a________.

Mrs. Hyde died in the late 1980s. She never saw any of my________published, but she always knew how much I________writing. I wouldn't have made it________her encouragement. How I wish I could see her and thank her for her words of encouragement. They________the world to me.