1 . September 22, 2018 will be World Car-Free Day, a day on which people across the globe are encouraged to find______methods to meet their transportation needs and re-discover buses, bikes, and their own______.

On this day, people get together in the streets, intersections, and neighborhood blocks to______the world that we don’t have to accept our car-controlled society.

While______along these lines had taken place from time to time starting______the 1973 oil crisis, it was only in October, 1994______a structured call for such projects was______in a keynote speech by Eric Britton at the International Accessible Cities Conference held in Toledo (Spain).

The first national campaign was launched in Britain in 1997, and the French followed suit in 1998. In 2000, car Busters issued an open______for a “World Car-Free Day” to______with Europe’s Car-Free Day on September 22.______then, we have begun to call for citizens to organize______on or near this day.

However, we do not want______one day of celebrations and then return to______life. World Car-Free Day is the______time to remind city planners and politicians to______cycling, walking and public transport. It is up to us, cities and governments to help______permanent changes to______pedestrians, cyclists and other people who do not drive cars.

While______accomplishment has been achieved in terms of media coverage, these events______to be difficult to achieve real success and even a decade later there is considerable uncertainty about the usefulness of this approach. Broad public support and______to change is needed for successful implementation (执行).

2 . Geraniums of Love

As the fifth of seven children, I went to the same public school as my three elder sisters and brother. Every year, my mother went to the same ceremony and had parent-child interviews（亲子交流会）with the same teachers. The only thing different was the child. And every child _______ an old

Third grade was the first time that I was allowed to take part in the plant sale. I wanted to surprise my mother. _______, I didn't have any money. I went to my eldest sister and _______ the secret, and she gave me some money. When I arrived at the plant sale, I carefully made my _______. I agonized（苦苦思索）over that decision, _______ each plant to ensure that I had indeed found the best geranium. The moment I had smuggled it home, with the help of my sister, I _______ it on the upstairs neighbor’s porch. I was very afraid my mother would find it before Mother's Day, but my sister assured me that she wouldn't, and _______ she did not.

When Mother's Day arrived, I was bursting with pride when I gave her that geranium. I remember how bright her eyes were, and how delighted she was with my _______.

The year I was fifteen, my younger sister reached third grade. In early May, she came to me full of wonder and secrecy and told me that there was going to be a plant sale at school and she wanted to __________ our mother. Like my __________ sister did for me, I gave her some money and off she went. She arrived at home full of __________ excitement, the geranium hidden in a paper bag __________ her sweater. “I looked at every plant,” she explained, “and I know I got the __________ one!”

I helped my little __________ hide that geranium on the upstairs neighbor's porch, assuring that our mother wouldn't find it before Mother's Day. I was there when she gave my mother the geranium, and I watched them both bursting with pride and __________. It was like being in a dream I had already dreamed. My mother noticed me __________, and she gave me a soft secret smile. Shocked and puzzled, I __________ back. I had been wondering how my mother could __________ to be surprised at this gift from her sixth child. But as I watched her eyes light up with delight as she was __________   with that most precious gift, I knew she was not pretending.

3 . Why do people give gifts in the first place? Throughout the world, many culture _______ special holiday with gifts and food. Holiday _______ bring people together and allow us to feel a part of the family and community. The gifts and food that we share are about _______ a sense of gratitude and joy.

The gifts of a few generations ago were _______ more useful and homemade. Even the people who could _______ wonderful presents probably didn’t do as much buying and spending as we do today. Our culture has grown more _______, and gift giving has become a booming industry. Sometimes the _______ meaning behind the tradition gets lost, and the gift giving _______ a life of its own.

Not only is the pressure on spending money on the right _______, but many people also find that when gifts become the central point of a holiday, they put too much ________ on receiving, too. It’s all too ________ to have high expectations of what’s in that beautifully wrapped box — but that can set anyone up for ________.

When the materialistic aspects of the holiday overshadow (使显得较不重要) its ________, it can leave people feeling empty and ________ for something more. It’s no wonder that we often hear about people having the “holiday blues” — feeling sad or empty instead of feeling ________ and fulfilled (满足的).

Not all people think the holidays are too materialistic, of course. Most ________ the traditional aspects of the holidays, like getting together and ________ with friends and family. And some love shopping and are ________ fine with all the giving and receiving.

But if you’re feeling a little ________ about the holidays, what can you do? One way to take back the holiday ________ is to focus on traditions and service — putting real meaning into your giving.

4 . Last year I went to America and stayed there with an American family for two months.

As is said, "The best house is in America, the best wife is in Japan, and the best food is in China." So I _____ pride and pleasure in "the best food" I _____ for my American family. Each day, regardless of my poor skill of cooking, I would do something in a new way: _____ the dishes' color, the meat's type or the soup's style. Thus, my American friends could discover the _____ of eating Chinese food. _____ my "good" job, I was often rewarded with their _____ of thanks such as" very delicious" and "excellent".

But something funny _____ yesterday when I cooked Sichuan style fish for dinner. I was _______ with my work. When the whole family sat round the table, they first looked _____ at the fish, and then looked at me." Why do all the fish only have their ______ ?" they asked. "It's terrible!" ______ or terrible? I can't understand. But I do know that fish heads are delicious. The head is the ______ part of fish; in China only the important guest can have the ______ of enjoying it.

Another ______ thing is: the American friends often said to me "help yourself" as they ________ home fruits or other things. According to Chinese ______ I would simply smile in answer to their kindness ______ actually helping myself to any of the food. ______, I said "help yourself" to them whenever I brought home fruits. Dear me! No matter how much or how often I brought home food, ______ it was nice to their taste, they ______ hesitated to use their hands to "help themselves" until all was finished.

5 . April 1st is a day on which ,in some countries, people try to play tricks on others. If one _______ in tricking someone, one laughs and says: “ April Fool!” and then the person who was tricked _______ laughs, too.

One April 1st, a country bus was going along a _______ road when it _______ down and stopped. The driver_______ turned switches and pressed buttons, but nothing happened. _______ he turned to the passengers with a _______ look on his face and said:“This poor bus is getting _______ . It isn’t going as well as it used to. There is only one thing to do if we want to get home today. I’ll _______three. I want you all to lean(倾斜) ________ suddenly as hard as you can . This should ________ the bus started again, but if it doesn’t , I’m afraid there’s nothing else I can do. Now , all of you lean back as ________ as you can in your seats and get ready.”

The passengers all obeyed and waited ________.

Then the driver turned to his ________and asked:” Are you ready?” The passengers ________ had enough ________ to answer: “yes.”

“ One! Two ! Three!” counted the driver. The passengers all leant forward suddenly--- and the bus started ________ at a great speed.

The passengers breathed more ________ and began to smile with relief. But their smile turned to ________ and laughter when the driver ________ cried: “ April Fool !”

6 . I had just arrived in this Asian country for a one-year teaching position. One day, I took the subway to visit some ancient palaces and temples in the downtown. The following account of what happened to me has taught me much about culture _____

Since all the ______ were taken, I stood. Suddenly, I felt someone pulling on my bag._______ I probably was in someone’s way, I moved over slightly. _______ in one quick motion(动作), I felt my bag removed from my back, and in a flash it was______. I turned around to see who the thief was. I looked at the people standing behind me, but didn’t see my bag or any ______.My heart sank and I began to______.

I glanced around the car only to find directly across from me was an elderly lady, and sitting on her lap was my ______. I tried to get it back from her lap. But as I began to ______ it up, she quickly grabbed it back and held onto it. I looked around at the people standing beside me, and those sitting beside her, but no one took any ______ of the situation. Trying not to cause a(n)_______, I tried to communicate through gestures. I used my hands as best as I could, but she ______ my requests for my bag and pointed to my back. She picked up my bag, showing how ______ it was. I finally began to understand. She was holding my bag to ______ me.

As the subway ______ the main downtown station and I was getting ready to get off, the woman ______ handed me back my bag. But ______ I had a chance to thank her, she had disappeared into the crowd.

Sadly, this ______ custom was more surprising to me than pleasing. Everyone back home had heard of being robbed—that was ______ city behavior—but having a stranger hold onto someone’s bag out of ______, in a city of twelve million people—that was truly unusual.

7 . I have happy memories of trips to Europe, but my trip to Romania was unique. My husband was born there and he _______ to go to Canada but was rejected. _______ he became a US citizen when we married. Seven years later, with a US passport, and two children, he wanted to _______ Romania. He hadn’t seen his mother, two sisters, and two brothers _______ he was 16.

When we reached Bucharest, his family was waiting outside his sister’s house to _______ us. After hugging, kissing, and crying, his family also embraced me, the _______ wife with two young children.

They had great interest in me. _______ Americans visited Romania at that time, and most Romanians had little _______ to travel.

I had brought an English-Romanian dictionary with me and _______ to communicate. My Romanian improved, but mostly I spoke in ________ Roman.

Romania didn’t have many dry cleaners. Most homes had ________ washing machines but no dryers, and it was a hot summer. The relatives had a surprising and simple ________: the women dined in their bras and slippers. The men were shirtless. Disrobing (脱衣服) for dinner was inconvenient. I, of course, having just met them, ________ fully clothed. I washed my clothes by hand and hung them outdoors to ________.

On the last night of our ________, we had a large family dinner. I was tired of washing my clothes. So I ________ my dress over my head and placed it on the chair behind me. The ________ broke out in applause. Even with my poor Romanian, I ________ that they were saying, “She’s part of our family now.”

My children were 4 and 5 at the time, but they still have memories of that ________. But most of all, I remember the ________ dinner we had together. When in Rome, do as the Romans do.

8 . It was the afternoon of December 24，the day before Christmas，but I had to stay to tidy the office.The only thing that   _____ my day was the beautifully decorated   _____ in our waiting room and a   _____ sent to me by a fellow I was dating—a dozen long­stemmed red roses.

Suddenly，our receptionist came and said there was a lady outside that urgently needed to speak with me. As I stepped out，I noticed a young _____   woman with a baby in her arms standing there._____，she explained that her husband—a prisoner in a nearby prison—was my next patient. She told me she wasn’t _____ to visit her husband in prison and   _____ he had never seen his son. So she   _____ me to let her wait here ahead of time. I agreed._____，it was Christmas Eve.

A short time later，her husband arrived—with chains on his feet，cuffs on his hands，and two armed guards ______ him. The woman’s tired face ______   when her husband took a seat beside her. I watched them laugh，cry，and share their ______. He seemed like a gentle and honest man.

At the end of the ______，the man had to go back and I ______ him a Merry Christmas. He smiled and thanked me and said he felt saddened by the ______ that he hadn’t been able to get his wife ______     for Christmas. On hearing this，I was   ______ with a wonderful idea.

I’ll never forget the ______ on both their faces as the prisoner gave his wife the beautiful，long­stemmed red roses. I’m not sure who   ______   the most joy the husband in giving，the wife in receiving，or myself in having the opportunity to share in this   ______   moment.

9 . Heritage(遗产) Education

China’s “Cultural Heritage Day” falls on the second Saturday of June every year.Many celebrations are held and all cultural relic protection sites are ______ to open for free to the public on the day.There is no ______ that different kinds of celebrating ______ across the country will arouse(唤醒) public ______ of the importance of cultural heritage protection and ______ the young people to love the fine ______ culture of the motherland.

China faces a heavy task to protect and rescue its cultural ______.We need to consider seriously the ______ of the lack of awareness about cultural heritage protection.______，Heritage Education is one of our main approaches(方法)．People cannot ______ value cultural heritage if they do not know ______ it is important or how to protect it.Over the past seven years，CHP has ______ over a hundred educational seminars(研究会) to different groups，______ as schools，government offices，______ the general public.Many people have attended CHP seminars.Typically，each seminar lasts two to three hours and ______ of an informative presentation，______ by a longer question­and­answer session and discussion.Each attender ______ limited knowledge of cultural heritage ______ it to be just the Forbidden City(紫禁城) and the Great Wall.People often think that the duty only ______ to the government.So “Cultural Heritage Day” will be a welcome ______ to educate a wide public on world heritage protection.

10 . I’d never been crazy about Christmas. My husband John and the kids had always done their best to infuse(使充满) me with the holiday ___ , but this Christmas their efforts would be especially ___ .

My salary had reduced and John’s government salary was _______, too. There wasn’t much money to go around, and _______ were just impossible. John was _______ a brave face as usual. But for me our financial hardship brought back ___   memories of my childhood.

“I got a Make and Bake set for Christmas!” one girl shouted. “I got clothes!” another girl said. “What did you get, Lori?” someone asked. “So many presents.” I lied. My parents gave me plenty of love, but love was the ____     thing I had. Mom and Dad always had trouble making ends meet. I’d long since ____   Christmas just wasn’t for me.

John was ______ the tree for just the right branch to ______ the red glass bulb with the “Merry Christmas” writing. It was a precious _______ of his childhood, and he took great pleasure in hanging it on our tree every year. A few days earlier, the tree _______ and several ornaments( 装 饰 物 ) broke, but this one was unique because of the memories it held for him. It was fine if I didn’t have any Christmas spirit, but it was a different ____ for John. He took a step back to admire the replacement I’d finally found after endless searching on foot and surfing the Internet.

I worked hard to make things right for John because I loved to see my Christmas-loving husband full of holiday joy. I _______ one of the tree lights so it shone directly on John’s beloved ornament. The words on it sparkled(闪烁). After all this time, I finally understood its ______ . Christmas was the season to show my love for my family. How could anyone not like Christmas?