1 . May is a beautiful month full of sunshine and flowers. It is also the __________ when we show thanks to our mothers on Mother’s Day.

In my family, the celebration of Mother’s Day is __________ every year. Two years ago, I made a big __________ for my mom and she still remembers all the dishes I cooked that morning. Last year, I __________ some of my old books and I bought her a scarf with the money. She uses it all the time.

I wanted to do __________ special on Mother’s Day this year. In late April, I started to look for different gift __________ on the Internet. It took me about two weeks to get a final idea. __________ , I decided to make several (几个) cards by hand. And then I put the cards and a bag of colorful __________ in a box. Of course, I wrote some____________ on the cards. The words were all about __________ jobs I could help my mom do at home, like doing the dishes and cleaning the floor.

On the night before Mother’s Day, I went into my mom’s room __________ and put the gift on her bed when she was sleeping. When she __________ in the morning, she found the cards. She was very excited about my gift and __________ a lot of time looking at the cards and enjoyed the candies.

Mother’s Day is a happy moment (时光) for me to __________ my mom. I will try to show my love __________ she cares about me so much every day. Mother’s love is the best in my heart.

3 . I was raised in a village where people lived in harmony with the natural environment. Throughout the year we would have numerous ______where all the villagers would ______and celebrate. The entire village was like one big______.

However, within less than a decade my village was no longer the______village that I grew up in. Due to rapid modernization, everything______. The rich cultural traditions that once held the village together were ______. Everyone in the village was______in making money and had no time to participate in traditional celebrations. No one favored such a change, but they somehow______it as they felt that it was unavoidable.

It made me feel______that some ancient traditions had stopped to exist, so I______I had to do something. I ______the Cultural Heritage Studies Program, which enabled me to gain a better understanding of cultural heritage______.

Then I involved myself in protecting cultural heritage sites in my hometown. With the knowledge I______in the Cultural Heritage Studies Program, I was trying my best to help make the process of modernization run more______ for cultural heritage sites with heritage protection as a focus point.

I would say the success of the preservation work is the most______aspect of my job.

6 . Everyone talks about how different Japan’s culture is from the rest of the world but I didn’t believe it. How could such a ________ country have such vastly different cultural beliefs and lifestyle from the western part of the world? I decided that I had to ________ for myself and within 24 hours of arriving in Tokyo, I knew everything I heard about Japan was ________.

I remember arriving at the ________ in Tokyo and having to take the train into the city. I wasn’t sure how and where to take the train, so, I ________ a man in uniform and asked: “Where do you take the train?” To my ________, he did not speak English. Instead, he spoke quickly in Japanese and when he saw my ________ face, he smiled and bowed, which I found very ________ at the time.

How could such a modern country not speak English? ________, I was able to find someone that was able to guide me to where I needed to go. I bought my ticket for the train and went over to the ________ and saw that the train wouldn’t arrive in 5 minutes. In my head, 5 minutes was like ________ 10 minutes.

But little did I know, in exactly 5 minutes, the train ________. When are trains ever on time in your country? I got on the long train ride into the city of Tokyo and I don’t ________ hearing anyone say a single word. No conversation, no phone calls, no music, ________. It was just the sound of the train traveling at high speed and the broadcast from the train. Later I found out it was ________ to talk on the trains, especially on your phone.

7 . In September 1789, the government of the US was only a few months old. George Washington was president — the nation’s first. Congress (国会) was _________, too. Some of the early lawmakers came to the president with a(n) _________: Would he call for a national Thanksgiving?

One aim was to help _________ the young country, which was made of the 13 former colonies. Calling a national Thanksgiving would be a _________ to bring Americans together. But other lawmakers strongly _________ to the idea. They noted the president could not _________ the power of the federal government to urge Americans to follow — or not follow — a religious _________ and that _________ belonged to the leader of each state.

In the end, Washington did formally _________ a national Thanksgiving. It was the country’s first presidential proclamation (宣言). He also tried to __________ opponents of the idea. Washington sent copies of his proclamation to the __________ of each of the 13 states. He asked them to call a national Thanksgiving on the day he had __________. The president was very well respected. And so the state leaders all __________.

In the years that followed, some presidents __________ their own proclamations for a day of thanksgiving; many others did not. Finally, in 1941, lawmakers in Congress made the fourth Thursday in November a(n) __________ holiday.

8 . Today was another enlightening day at my new American school. Back in China, lunchtime is a ________ hour. We eat, talk, and most importantly, take a short nap (小睡) to ________ for the afternoon. This relaxing routine of our midday break allowed for a ________ escape from the day’s demands. But here? It’s like a ________ against the clock.

The bell rang, and everyone ________ to the cafeteria. I followed, naively (天真地) thinking I’d have ________ time to eat and perhaps even close my eyes for a moment. However, I barely had time to finish my sandwich before the next bell hit. Where did the time go?

And the nap? Forget about it. There’s no ________ for that comfort here. In China, we have these cozy mats in the classroom for our post-lunch rest. But in America, the ________ of napping in school seems as ________ to them as the absence of a nap is to me.

At first, I felt quite sleepy in the afternoon classes. I ________ that brief break we get in China. But then I noticed something. Even without the nap, my classmates were hardly tired. Perhaps they’re used to this fast schedule, or maybe they ________ on pure youthful energy. Who knows?

I’m beginning to ________ that life here is simply faster. People eat ________, converse rapidly, and shift swiftly. It’s a(n) ________ with the life style back in China, but perhaps it’s not harmful, just another ________ of life.

9 . The origin of the Chinese New Year Festival can be traced back thousands of years. According to one of the most famous legends (传说), in _______ China there lived a monster named Year, who lived deep at the _______ of the sea all the year round and climbed up to the _______ only on New Year’s Eve to eat the cattle and kill people’s lives. Therefore, on the day of every New Year’s Eve people from all villages would flee (逃离) to the mountains so as to _______ the monster of Year.

On the day of that New Year’s Eve the people of Peach Blossom village were _______ their houses when there came from outside the village an old beggar (乞丐). Seized with _______, the villagers were in a great hurry to run away and no one was _______ the mood to care for the beggar.

Only a grandmother living in the east end of the village gave the old man some food and advised him to _______ to the mountains to avoid the Year monster. But the old man said with a smile, “If you allow me to stay at your home for the night, I’m sure to _______ away the monster Year.” The old woman was surprised to hear this. She went on to ‘persuade him to take flight. But he only smiled without ________. Thereupon the grandmother could not help ________   leave her home and flee to the mountains.

Around midnight the monster Year rushed into the village. He found the house of the grandmother in the east end of the village was brilliantly illuminated (照亮的), with bright red paper stuck on the doors: Greatly ________, the monster Year made a dash for the house. As he ________ the door, there came all of a sudden the exploding sounds of bang-bong. Trembling (颤抖) all over, the monster dared not make a step ________ . And when the door of the grandmother’s house was thrown open and an old man in a red robe (袍服) burst out laughing in the courtyard, the monster Year was scared out of his wits and ran away.

The next day when people came back from their hideouts and found everything safe and ________. The old woman suddenly ________ what had happened and told the villagers about the old beggar’s ________. The villagers rushed into the grandmother’s house, only to find that the doors were stuck with red paper, the ember (余火) of a pile of bamboo were still giving out exploding sound of bang-bong in the courtyard, and a few ________ were still shining in the room.

From then on, on each New Year’s Eve, each family ________ on their doors antithetical couplets (对联) written on red paper, blow up firecrackers, keep their houses brilliantly illuminated and stay up late into the night. These customs are spreading far and ________ and kept for generations. It becomes the most ceremonious traditional festival of the Chinese people.

10 . My husband and I were going to be away from our family for Thanksgiving. We would be alone in a hotel room, eating cheap take-out and feeling very _________ for ourselves. The thought of it was more than I could bear.

I decided to take the _________. I wrote a post on Facebook: “Does anyone know of a church or community center hosting a public _________ for Thanksgiving in Winnipeg?” A friend immediately wrote back with _________ news. So, three days later, we found ourselves driving to the small town of Dauphin, Manitoba, to spend Thanksgiving with _________.

We _________ in front of a small, lakeside house. A smiling couple _________ us from the front porch. As we stepped into Betty and Gary’s home, we were immediately met with _________. The wood stove took every bit of chill out of the air, and the smell of food _________ us like a soft blanket. Turkey, stuffing, veggies, and piles of desserts — what a ____________!

And the warmth didn’t just come from the home or the food. It came from Betty, Gary, and their ____________. We gathered around the table; introductions were made. We____________that no one there was family by blood.   ____________, we were all connected by something much greater. Our unease ____________ as we told stories, shared laughs, and gave ____________, with food ____________ shared around an open table. We were ____________ into this circle of friendship. Laughter____________ to flow. Relationships were born. Memories were created.

We thought we were going to spend Thanksgiving with strangers, but we really didn’t. Sharing a meal together, we’re connected by our desire for ____________, our need for understanding, and our common humanity. What a ____________ way to celebrate Thanksgiving!