1 . A Letter to Mom and Her Mince (肉末)Pies

When I was a little girl, on Christmas Eve, you and I would bake cakes. “Make enough mince pies, because Santa likes them, ” you would tell me.

On Christmas morning, I’d wake up and thrill at the________ before me. At the bottom of my bed would be loads of presents. I’d scream in delight, ________ tearing the wrapping paper. Running downstairs, I would________ that Santa hadn’t just stopped in the________. There were also lots of________ around the Christmas tree.

Many years later, the________ continued. One afternoon________ we were making extra mince pies, it________ hit me that the extra wasn’t for________. I said, “Those extra mince pies were never for Santa, were they? They were________ you!” You never said a word- a smile was your only________.

Christmas changed in 1986, when you suffered a________ brain disease. After________ throughout Christmas, you passed away on December 29.

Only now am I starting to enjoy Christmas again. And while I don’t do the________ any more, I do have mince pies in the house. I leave one out just for you, as if you were________ a part of my Christmas.

2 . Paper cutting is a special form of folk art in China, with a history of nearly 1,500 years. The first paper cutting _______ the Southern and Northern Dynasties (420—589) period. The _______ and spread of paper cutting had a close relationship with Chinese _______ festivals.

In rural areas, paper cutting is _______ a handicraft for women. In the past, every native girl was _______ to master it. _______, professional paper cutting artists were usually males who earned poor incomes by working in workshops.

The main cutting _______ are simple: paper and scissors or cutting knives. It is easy to learn how to make paper cuttings but very difficult to master it with perfection. This is because making paper cuttings _______ much effort, practice, craftsmanship and imagination. Flexibility (灵敏度) is also needed, but any _______ or wiggling (摇晃) will lead to imperfection or __________ damage the whole image.

Wishes for wealth, health and longevity (长寿) are mostly __________ through paper cuttings. For example, during the Spring Festival, the character “Fu” is pasted (粘贴) upside down on the door to express people’s wish for good __________; at a wedding ceremony, a big red paper-cutting with the character “Xi” is a traditional and essential __________; upon the birthday party of a senior, the character “Shou” is often seen and will __________ delight to the whole celebration; a pattern of chubby (胖乎乎的) children hugging fish implies that every year they will be rich in __________.