1 . Over the years I’ve spent living in Beijing, I can _________ the number of truly outdoor experiences I’ve had on one hand. But a road trip to Nanshan Skiing Village in February 2021 provided me with some _________ memories.

As my friends and I sat together in the ski lift chair, I finally felt for the first time that I had _________ left the busy city life of Beijing. Up in the air a few dozen meters off the ground, I _________ the wide view of the countryside and appreciated the peaceful quiet.

As the ski lift reached its _________, I _________ slid off from the chair and almost did a face-plant into the snow. “So much for the peace and quiet”, I _________ to myself. _________, I gathered myself together and made my way as _________ as I could to one of the several starting points.

My buddies had already started making their way down the hill, and I was about to join them but suddenly fear __________ me as I noticed how easy it was to __________ speed. I __________ to swerve (突然转向) to the side to slow down, but ended up tumbling (摔倒) down into the snow.

Not wanting to become __________, I awkwardly reattached the ski. Although I still felt nervous, by accepting the risk I was able to ski more confidently and at last managed to make it down the whole ski slope (斜坡).

By the day’s end, I had relearned what it __________ to take risks and get out of my comfort zone. By accepting what seems __________, you can find both confidence and peace within.

2 . It was on my 30th birthday. When I came back, my mother was________herself proudly in her usual chair, with two shirt boxes ________blue paper and a pink card in front of her. “Happy birthday!” she said,________at the boxes. “Open them.”

My mom had got me________what I wanted, as she always knows me. I hugged and thanked her and________to eat the chocolate cake. “High calories, I shouldn’t have done that,” I said, not really caring. Mom waved off my put-on ________and laughed. Two weeks later, I came upon the same________:   my mom sitting in the chair; a chocolate cake next to blue shirt boxes,________, a yellow card this time. I was aware she had ________Alzheimer’s (阿尔茨海默氏病) .

Four long years passed. I now have a 15-month-old son, Ben. Lately my mother has been reading to him, the ________ character and plot every time. It doesn’t________to Ben that he’s heard the story, and he doesn’t mind her poor ________, because every minute is new for him too.

I begin to enjoy the situation and realize we are ________. My mother is in bad, but stable condition.________is better than a decline. Change will come; her remembrance may ________further, but I’ll be in the frontline.

3 . Like many people, public speaking once filled me with fear As a writer, I felt much more ________ expressing myself on the page, rather than on the ________. Strangely, I found that the feelings of ________ to be perfectly tolerable; ________, I was concerned with the ways that others would perceive my nervous energy. A slight change of ________, the unconscious biting of my lip — I assured that I’d be ________ for any nom-verbal signal that showed my lack of ________. I was experiencing anxiety about my anxiety—consequences that made the whole task feel much more ________.

You might have ________ this yourself before a job interview or important work meeting in front of senior colleagues. And the more you try to ________ your feelings, the more obvious they appear to others.

According to a striking new study, however, these concerns may be ________. Jamie Whitehouse, a research fellow at Nottingham Trent University in the UK, has shown that visible signs of stress are often ________, leaving others more likely to like us and treat us ________. If so, then we need not try so hard to ________ a calm-and-collected poker face, safe in the knowledge that people will relate well to our ________.

4 . Some years ago, I was stuck on a crosstown bus during rush hour. The bus was filled with cold, tired people________ with one another. Two men________ at each other for an unintentional push. An elderly woman got on, and nobody offered her a________. Anger was in the air; no________ could be found here.

As the bus approached Seventh Avenue, the driver’s words came from the speaker. “Folks,”   he said. “I know you’ve had a(n)________ day and that you are depressed, but I will________. When each of you walks by before getting off, drop your________ into my palm (手掌). My route goes right by the Hudson River, into which I’ll________ them.”

It seemed as if a spell had lifted. Everyone burst out laughing, their faces shining with________. The passengers who had been________each other’s existence were suddenly grinning (咧嘴笑) at each other — is this guy serious?

At the next stop, just as________, the driver held out his hand, palm up, and waited. All the________passengers performed the gesture of dropping something into his palm. The driver________the same action at every stop that followed.

Occasionally we may sink into a grey world, but someone can ________it like a ray of light, showing us hope. What if we are the light?________, anyone possesses the power to shine on others’ dark days.

5 . It all started with a post on the social media.

Returning home from the_________store, Simone felt she must help the elderly in her community to practice_________social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic. With this in mind, she reached out to her friends on Facebook. Unexpectedly, many_________, expressing their willingness to volunteer. They decided to start an online platform called Invisible Hands Deliver.

Just two days after_________the initiative, they built a website that allowed the_________in the community to make requests for groceries to be delivered to them. The web page also included a call for volunteers, which_________gained over 1,000 sign-ups within the first week.

As the pandemic continued to worsen in New York, Invisible Hands Deliver witnessed a great deal of support from_________individuals with similar beliefs. When a request was submitted on the website, it was_________to all volunteers in the neighbourhood, so that anyone who was_________could come to help. The delivery itself was__________, since volunteers had been instructed to leave the bags of groceries outside the seniors’ doors. All volunteers__________strict safety rules. Like the wearing of medical gloves.

Following its success in New York, the platform__________its operations to Philadelphia and other areas of America. Inspired by their acts of kindness, similar networks have__________worldwide.

In a time when the pandemic forced people apart, the__________and able youths played a leading role in bridging the__________and bringing communities together.

6 . There is no way they just drove into that water, thought Corion Evans. The 16-year-old teenager was ___________ with friends near the Pascagoula River, when a car with three teenage girls inside accidentally_________ off the road into the river and started to___________ some 20 feet away from land.

It was around midnight in July. In the _________ , Evans and his friends could_________ figure out the girls holding on to the roof, the only part of the car still above water. But they could hear _________ for help.

Evans took off his shirt and shoes without ___________ , diving into the water. He helped the first girl he saw and led her to the shore. Then, he jumped back into the river to ___________ another of the girls. But halfway back to the bank, she was so_________ as to go underwater, pulling Evans down with her. Evans fought his way and pushed her to ______________.

There was still one girl in the water. Watson, 19, could not ____________. She was swallowing water, ____________ to stay afloat. And sacred. “I just knew my last breath was coming and I began to go under. Then, a shake. Evans ____________ me.” Watson said later.

The three girls were rushed to the hospital and well ____________. Evans risked his life to save them, but he said he had no other ____________

7 . Have you seen the incredible guitar-playing of man born with no arms? The musician who was born without arms is being _________ for his greatest guitar-playing skills in a short documentary (纪实的) video which shows him playing the instrument with his _________.

Mark Goffeney, 46, of San Diego, who is _________ as “Big Toe” because of the way he plays the guitar, shows how he became a talented performer despite his _________ in the inspiring video, “I first _________ the instrument when I was nine, after my father brought home a beat-up _________ with only four strings. My first guitar came from some place like a landfill (垃圾场), ” says Mark, who adds that he became “_________” about becoming a musician at age 12.

Mark devoted every waking hour to searching his town and trying to join a _________, but ran into _________ because of his disability. Therefore, he started his own rock band, called Wicked Misfit, and began booking gigs (特约演奏) in California.

Things were _________ professionally for Mark because of his disability. But everything _________ when he started playing music from the heart.

“When I _________ chasing this fantasy dream of being a rock star and just started playing music to make money to support my family, everything started feeling good and _________ out for me, ” he shares.

Today, Mark _________ with his band, Big Toe, and also becomes a street-performer in California, where he makes quite good money _________ by passers-by.

8 . 13-year-old Abraham was born with a rare blood disorder and needed a bone marrow (骨髓) transplant. About a year later, he ______ better news: His transplant was successful, and he ______ for Make-A-Wish, an organization that grants wishes to children with serious ______.

Abraham wanted a long-lasting ______, and he shared with his mom the idea. “I remember we were coming home from one of his doctor’s ______ and he said, ‘Mom, I really want to ______ the homeless,’” Abraham’s mom, Miriam, told CBS News. “I said, ‘Are you sure Abraham? Are you sure you don’t want a PlayStation?’” He was sure to provide food for the homeless. “So we weren’t going to ______ an opportunity like that because we always tried to instill (灌输) ______ into our children,” Miriam said.

In September, 2021, Make-A-Wish helped Abraham organize a day to hand out ______ food in Jackson, Mississippi, with food and supplies ______ from local businesses. “When the homeless get the plate, some of them would come back and ______ to us and thank us, which really ______ our hearts.”

When his wish is ______ in August 2022, Abraham has plans to continue helping the homeless. “If I was out there on the streets, ______, I would want somebody at some ______ to think of me and to do something special for me.” he said.

9 . Misty Copeland spends most days twisting, spinning and _______. She practices and _______ the graceful movements of her art. When she isn’t performing she is practicing. When she isn’t practicing, she is stretching. She takes classes almost every day. She takes care of her body so she doesn’t _______ it when she goes to work in a ballet theatre.

“I treat my body with the respect that any musician would to their _______.” says Misty. “I love my body,” she adds.

Was she _______ confident? Actually, she was a _______ girl and avoided the spotlight. But Misty loved music and movement. When she was thirteen, Misty’s teacher suggested she _______ a free ballet class at the Boys&Girls Club. For two weeks, Misty sat on the gym bench watching the class, afraid to _______. Finally, she gave it a _______. At first, she felt ________in the class. She didn’t know anything about ballet, and she was ________ than most of the students. Over time, ________, she began to enjoy the lessons. She discovered that her body — especially her long legs and flexible muscles — was just ________ for ballet. After the class season ended, Misty received a scholarship to a nearby dance studio. Most ballerinas (女舞者) start their training much younger than thirteen. But Misty’s natural abilities and hard work made her improve quickly.

Over the next five years, ballet was Misty’s ________. She practiced, performed, competed and attended ballet programs. “Performing was my favourite part because I felt ________ and open onstage,” she says. “For the first time in my life, I felt like I belonged.”

10 . Andrew Chilton was diagnosed with autism (自闭症) at age eight. There was a lot to _________. Would he ever have a job? Live _________? Doctors and school officials _________ that Andrew might not even graduate from high school.

Andrew’s family would do anything for him. Christy Chachere, the boy’s personal care attendant, saw the _________ right away. “You have to let him _________,” she told the family. “It’s the _________ way he learns to do things on his own.”

No longer would Andrew’s mother write his papers. His younger brother wouldn’t _________ him to operate the computer. Christy wouldn’t help him with homework either.

Andrew _________ loudly at times. But then what Christy expected began to _________. Andrew would come home from school, get a snack and start on his homework. Christy was ____________ there. She wouldn’t do his papers for him. But she showed him how to get organized. Best of all, Christy offered ____________ once his work was done. She’d ____________ him to a store where he could buy Pokémon cards. To the movies. Or out to eat his favorite food.

Christy has been with Andrew for six years. She has successfully helped ____________ the life of a boy with autism. One ____________ at a time, Andrew gained independence. He graduated from high school and entered community college. “Life has never been ____________,” said Andrew.