2 . Three brothers left home for college, and they all became successful people.

Some years later, they got together again. While having dinner, they ________ for a long time. They discussed the ________ they had given their elderly mother who lived far away in another city. The oldest said, "I had a ________ house built for Mama." The second said, "I had my Mercedes-Benz dealer(奔驰经销商) send a ________ to her." The youngest said, "You know ________ Mama loves reading poems and you know she can't read any more because she can't ________ very well. I met a businessman who has a parrot that can recite many ________. It took him 12 years to ________ it to speak and he earns his living by renting it out. I have to pay him $ 100,000 a year for twenty years, ________ it is worth it."

Two weeks later, their mother sent out her thank-you notes, which read, "Milton, the house you built is so huge. I only live in one room, but I have to clean the whole house. It's a (an) ________ job. Thanks anyway," "Marvin, I am too old to ________. I stay home and have others work for me, so I'll ________ use the car. The ________ is good, although not realistic. Thanks."

"Dearest Melvin, you are the ________ son to have the good sense to give a little thought to your gift. The chicken tasted so ________. I liked it very much. Thank you."

3 . Last Saturday, I decided to visit my cousin in Ithaca. It was a 9-hour journey by bus to my ________.

The first leg of the journey spanned (跨越) about six hours. Then, I had to________ to another bus, which spanned about three hours. ________, my first bus got delayed (延误) by two hours. ________, I missed my second bus and had to wait for a couple of hours until I could take the next bus. It was 6:00 pm when I waited for the bus. I called my cousin to tell him about the delay and added that it might be midnight when I reached home.

While I was on________, I did not realize that there was a lady standing close by, listening to my________. I also couldn’t have imagined that what was about to follow would have a deep________ on me.

When I________, the lady       came close to me and we got into a conversation. She asked me about my journey. When she learned that it had already been a long and________ day for me, she took out some snacks and________ them to me. This was a kind act and I felt thankful. However, that was not all that I would________ that evening.

As I________ my conversation with her, I learned that she was from a________ background. This made my heart sink not out of sadness________ out of humbleness (谦卑). I realized how true and kind an act of giving is when one gives away what another needs. As I stood beside this________ lady, I found myself feeling a lot. The strongest feelings were gratitude (感激) and the need to give up my own selfishness.

4 . Both my parents were born to help plants grow well. Our family ______ the food we grew in our huge vegetable garden. My mother canned much of the produce for winter, and my father sold vegetables to the stores and high schools. Our garden was the ______ of the neighborhood. But one summer, we had a ______. Someone was stealing some of our vegetables.

Then one of the neighbors tipped us off that an old bachelor (单身汉), who lived a short distance from us, was seen ______ some vegetables in a nearby town. Benny didn’t have a garden, so he was ______ getting his vegetables from someone else’s garden. Actually, Benny wasn’t a(n) ______ fellow. My dad often ______ him for part-time jobs just to help him out. My parents figured he was taking our vegetables just to earn a few extra dollars. ______ stealing is stealing. My father decided to ______ this situation his own way: hiring Benny to guard the garden. But the others in my family were all ______ it.

When my father asked him about the job, Benny was obviously a bit ______, but he finally agreed. Needless to say, there were no vegetables missing the next day. Whether or not Benny slept most of the night wasn’t ______. The fact was that Dad’s plan was working, ______ better than my father had planned. You see, each morning, after Benny got done sleeping, guarding the garden, he’d ______ long enough for breakfast with us.

Now, Benny got to like this garden business. By the following spring, Benny had his own garden with my father’s help. Of course… for some ______, we don’t need a garden guard anymore.