1 . Gary Vaynerchuk is a larger-than-life character who has established a series of successful businesses. He was born in 1975 in the town of Babruysk and then left for the USA with his ________ in 1978, where his father ________ a wine store in Springfield, New Jersey. Gary showed himself to be a ________ businessman as a youngster, running a lemonade ________.

When Gary grew up, his approach to the wine business soon brought ________ results. He created a strong online presence, ________ several media companies. Through this online ________, he promotes his ________ for business success.

Gary’s opinions are aimed at the business community, but there is much in what he says that can be applied just as effectively to your ________. One of the views is that social media can be used to make connections with those who can help you ________.

Wasting time is something Gary hates. He often emphasizes the fact that ________ is a limited resource. You should ________ the one life you have been given. To get the sense of well-being and ________, concentrate on the talents you have, and ________ about those you are bad at. By being yourself, you will ________ much more than if you try to be something you are not.

2 . Jenny lived in a small village. When she was a child, what she liked to do most was to watch the blue sky and enjoy birds flying freely in the sky. She always ______that some day she could also fly like a bird.

When Jenny was in the fourth grade, her teacher asked them to write a passage about their ______. In it, she wrote that she wanted to become an airplane pilot in the future. However, to her surprise, her paper came back with an “F” on it. The teacher told her it was nothing but fairy tale which could never become true. Jenny felt ______and sad. In her heart, she didn’t want to ______her teacher’s opinion. Why was it impossible? But the people______Jenny didn’t   support her and told her over and over again, “Girls can’t become pilots; never have, and never will. You’re______.” Finally, Jenny felt hopeless and ______her dream.

Jenny was in the senior high school several ______later. One day her English teacher, Mrs. Slaton, gave the class a ______about what they would be doing in the future. Jenny thought hard about it, “Pilot? No way! Artist? No talent! Waitress? I can do it.”_______she wrote it down. What Jenny wrote surprised Mrs.Slaton, “Is that what you are really interested in? I think you will be ______to do something full of more challenges.” Jenny felt excited, but she was still ______that she would be laughed at again. The teacher continued, “Everyone has their own talent. If you don’t go for your dream,______will do it for you.” Hearing that, with great courage she wrote down her old dream.

Mrs.Slaton’s words ______Jenny a lot. After ten years of hard work, Jenny’s dream came true. She became one of the first three women ______in the world. Stick to your dream if it’s what you really want!

3 . If you think you haven’t got what it takes to achieve your goals, you must remember that hard work beats talent every time!

________ is the natural ability or capacity to perform a function. When you ________ talent in an area, you are gifted with the “knack (诀窍)” or “instinct” needed to perform a skill or ________ a specific quality. But this only means you have the “________ qualities.” So, you have the equipment or tools needed to perform the skills.

According to a study by Angela Duckworth, a leading researcher, hard work and ________ are more important ________ of success than talent.

Duckworth found that ________ who showed more grit (defined as perseverance and passion for long-term goals) were more likely to achieve their ________ than those who were simply talented but lacked the ________ drive to succeed.

However, ________ you learn how to efficiently use, manage, and control these resources, you cannot perform or use your talents at the highest levels. This is where “hard work” ________. “Hard work” applied to your natural talents and instincts will take you to levels others may never ________ . But talent alone will not do it…you must ________ your “talents” through “hard work” -practice, training, and exerting effort.

If you do not ________ to gain experience, education, and training as it relates to your talent, your ________ ability will not shine. Soon, others will surpass your accomplishments. Hard work beats talent.

4 . “A new student is waiting in your room.” My principal announced. “Name’s Mary. I’ll talk to you about her.” I nodded, some materials in my hands. “Fine,” I said. “We’re making valentine envelopes, a good way for her to get ________.”

She sat in the back of the room, her hands ________ in her lap. “Welcome, Mary. I’m glad you are in our room.” No ________. “Mary.” I said again. She raised her head and looked into my eyes. A chill went through me. The eyes in that face were unexpectedly ________ as if the owner of a house had drawn the blinds (百叶窗).

The bell rang, little time to worry about Mary. After ________ Mary into her desk, I distributed materials and then hurried to the office. There I learned weeks ago, someone had broken into her home, killing her mother in Mary’s ________. She survived but had been ________ since. “Give her ________,” the principal suggested.

I returned and grabbed a chance to explain this to my students. “It may be a long time ________ she joins us, but you can do your bit.” How loving they could be once they understood. On Valentine’s Day, Mary’s envelopes overflowed. Although studying each card without ________, she replaced it in her container.

Later on a March day, my children noticed the flowers ________ and advised making flower baskets! It was something to lift our ________. Remembering the valentine incident, I expected nothing from Mary; ________, I encouraged her to try. Soon, a boy exclaimed: “Look at Mary’s basket. So pretty!” I was dumbfounded at its beauty, asking how she managed it. She looked at me with the shining eyes of any ________ girl and replied “Mother loved flowers.”

“God, you’ve given us a ________.” I put my arms around Mary. I’ve kept the followers in my desk just to remind me of the lasting power of love.

5 . In February 2010, Roger Lynn’s wife Veronica was diagnosed with lung cancer. Soon, she was ________ to hospital. The diagnosis was depressing and the ________ in the hospital only made things more difficult.

“Her room was at the far end of the floor, and felt like a dark and ________ corner,” Lynn remembered.

One day, as Lynn was sitting with his wife, a nurse named Jennifer came in and ________ some good news: A room with a window had been ________ and she wanted Lynn’s wife to have it.

“She led me into the room, which was filled with ________, and through the window there was a/an________ of the Olympic Mountains serving as backdrop for the whole scene,” Lynn said.

The new room ________ the feelings of their previously bad experience of being in the hospital day after day. But a week later, Veronica took a turn for the ________. She developed a blood clot (血栓), and then ________. The next day, Lynn took flowers to the nurses’ station as an expression of ________ for their support over the past two weeks. When he arrived, Jennifer________ Lynn and took him by the hand.

“She told me what a(n)________ it had been to care for Veronica and her family. She had been touched by the experience and was ________ saddened by her death,” Lynn said. “Jennifer didn’t have to find me that day when the room became ________. But she did, and her kindness was light in a dark and painful time.”

6 . In Jan. 2020, Teresa Hernandez was 35 weeks pregnant. One morning, she _________ the baby wasn’t moving as much as usual. She decided to go to the hospital to _________ everything was OK.

When she got there, she learned that the baby’s heart rate was _________. The doctors told her that her baby needed to be delivered _________ by an operation. Hernandez was in complete _________. But the doctors said if it was inside, they wouldn’t be able to help if something went wrong.

Hernandez was _________ to the operating room. On the way, her anxiety became _________ . That’s when a nurse in the operating room _________to help.

“This nurse took my hand and started pressing. And then she _________ me while they were doing the operation. And then she __________ one hand on my cheek. And she started humming softly,” Hernandez __________. “I felt like my mom was there, holding me.”

__________ her husband, Hernandez had no family with her. But the nurse’s gesture of warmth brought her __________. It felt like her mom stayed by her side. “When your mom is there, you feel __________. You feel like everything is going to be right,” Hernandez said.

Looking back, Hernandez remembers a string of unsung heroes who helped her that day. But she says that nurse was the first one that left a lasting __________.