1 . I was resting when Jenny called. “There’s a thing that ________ you,” she said. “My cat found a mouse and I don’t know how you feel about cats with mice, although I have the ________ that you are afraid of bugs.”

“Bugs are afraid of me.” I said. Having been bitten by a spider, I decided my new ________ was simple: get them before they get you. “I will get it.”

The mouse was under the ________ when I arrived. After putting a broom handle beneath to force surrender, which ________, I walked beside the fridge, armed with a box.

It was a good plan, but it didn’t ________ according to plan. The box created a no-escape trap, the mouse ventured out and I slammed the box down. ________, the only thing inside the box was its tail, and the mouse was struggling to escape.

Meanwhile, sensing Jenny was going ________ on the mouse, I said, “Don’t you dare name it! It’s not your pet.” The mouse then crawled up on the broom handle, and we were now eyeball to eyeball.

I ________ for something else to get the mouse. She rushed over, and then a spatula (抹刀) descended over my shoulder.

“What? This is a MOUSE not a MOUSSE (奶油)!” Another container was handed. Despite my two-box move, the mouse ________ and shot back under the fridge.

I told Jenny to leave the kitchen light on, hoping the mouse would stay under the fridge and not ________ her bedroom at night.

After my departure, she found the mouse ________ in the sunlight, with the cat alongside, soaking up the rays as well. They seemed a(n) ________ couple. Learning from my ________, she got a box with a lid, and the mouse jumped in the box and helped her ________ the lid.

2 . An elephant was rescued in southern India after falling into a well in the village of Dharmapuri. It took more than 12 hours, but the elephant has been _________ finally.

The elephant came from a _________ forest. The well in the village was hidden by bushes. And there were even no barriers _________ around it.

People from the village _________ told the local officials when they saw the trapped elephant. They dropped some banana _________ down the well for the elephant to eat, as rescuers worked throughout the whole night to free it.

The officials brought in a crane (吊车) to _________ the elephant out. As the crane lifted the elephant to safety, it was fastened by some belts and _________ upside down. Doctors helped rescuers sedate (给……服镇静剂) the elephant when it _________ pipes they were using to pump water out of the well. After the rescue, the elephant was monitored by the _________ government for about three hours. It was found to be __________ and active in the end.

The people in the village have some __________ saving trapped elephants because two other elephants have fallen down wells before. And the uncovered wells there have already __________ a threat to the elephants.

The elephants need more __________ land to survive as they need to walk around to look for food and water. Open wells in their migratory routes (迁移路线) are huge __________ for them. What we must do is to cover the wells or set a barrier around them so as to __________ these elephants.

3 . My trip to Antarctic (南极洲) fulfilled a personal goal and dream of mine-reaching all seven continents. I’ve had the _______ to travel to some amazing places for work and pleasure throughout my life, but I had yet to _______ Antarctica.

Several months ago, I was ready to book the trip. To get _______, though, I needed a plan. For me, one of the _______ things I wanted to see was the Antarctic _______, which survives in the worst environment on Earth. So I _______ my trip to Antarctica based on the best time to see baby penguins (企鹅).

I am a self-described bookworm (书虫), and this was the perfect trip to relax and _______ new knowledge. I was able to _______ a variety of seals, birds, whales and penguins. A highlight during my _______ was when I got within a couple of feet of a ________ penguin, something that I will never forget. While I didn’t ________ it, this inquisitive creature decided to come to check me out. ________ took over me. It was ________ amazing to see Antarctic wildlife up close and personal. I was also surprised at how the wildlife ________ with me. These were priceless ________ that I was able to make on my Antarctic trip.

4 . We were living in Kentucky. My two sons kept asking me to adopt a dog. Honestly, I _________ to do so. However, with my sons’ endless requests, I finally _________ a trip to an animal center.

Actually, I was not in the mood for a pet, for I was struggling with _________. We’d just moved to Kentucky. I was having trouble _________. I missed my parents and friends.

While wandering around the center, I noticed a little dog curled up (蜷缩) in the corner, shaking. Obviously, she was having a(n)_________ time. The dog called Princess just came the day before. The voices of people and barks of other dogs clearly _________ her. I wanted to take the poor thing in. However, my husband suggested having a look at all the dogs before our _________. Surprisingly, my two sons agreed to _________ Princess. So finally, we took her home.

Princess was quiet in the first few days, but _________ she settled into her new home. In a strange way, knowing I had a “friend”with a(n) __________ experience made me feel better.

One day, I was ill, missing my previous home more. Princess stayed with me quietly. Her __________ helped keep my mind off my problems. Soon, I recovered. Since then, Princess and I have fully __________ each other.

A few months after Princess came, I __________ a lot. I stopped losing myself in the __________. I made friends and enjoyed visiting places in a(n) __________ way.

5 . Adrienne Tully, an amateur photographer, went to the coast of a beach in Belmar, New Jersey. She planned to take photos of the ______ against the sea. Instead, she was able to ______ a frightening but happy journey. It all started last Sunday morning when she noticed a crowd ______ on the beach. Naturally, she joined them in the ______ of learning what was going on.

For a minute, Adrienne was ______ about what everyone was looking at. From how far away they were, it almost seemed like a bird. Looking closer, ______ , it was clearly a deer who was ______ on a raised rock in the middle of the ocean. The deer made a couple of ______ to swim back to the shore but the turbulent (汹涌的) water ______ all its efforts. Then someone who came out of nowhere ______ rode his surfboard to the deer. After a short magic while, the ______ managed to guide the deer out. Upon ______ ashore, the deer just ran north on the beach. Those watching nearby were no doubt ______ at the way this nameless young man ______ to help. But he somehow disappeared too, leaving people to hope he knows that he is greatly ______ for what he did.

6 . The morning commute (通勤) is never fun. But if you pass through Stevenage on your way to work, your morning might be a little ________ thanks to the cat Nala.

Dragging yourself out of bed in the morning and off to work is hard, ________ on dark winter mornings. However, you might ________ to come out of the house with a spring in your step if your commute started at Stevenage station, where you’d be ________ by a cat called Nala.

Usually found sitting on a ticket gate, four-year-old Nala lives close to the station with her owner Natasha Ambler, and often ________ the station at rush hour to enjoy attention from commuters. Ambler ________ a Facebook page called The Adventures of Nala where hundreds of people have voluntarily ________ photos of the adventurous cat.

Recent photos posted by commuters include Nala ________ in line for her canned food at a supermarket, napping on newspaper stands and ________ with commuters at the station barriers to get their attention.

Nala wears a GPS tracking device so that her ________ can be kept track of, and is usually found at the railway station or the ________ leisure park. As well as the usual collar with her name and owners’________ information, Nala wears a tag to let people know that she’s not ________.

According to the BBC, Ambler reported that she’s not ________ about Nala in the slightest: “She’s obviously ________ and she’s very happy doing what she does — I just hope one day she doesn’t actually try to get on a train.”

7 . My wife, Hannah, and I don’t usually keep houseplants. But after my ______ with the terminal brain cancer, I loved the idea of having something new and green around.

My friend Mitch gave me what he said was a lucky bamboo plant in a deep-green pottery bowl. ______ the plant gave me a sense of accomplishment at a time when I sometimes felt ______ . Since my diagnosis, I had to rely on help from others. Watering the plant, small act as it was, connected me to a core part of my old ______ and taught me I could still be a caregiver.

Over the next few months, I recovered ______ surgery. And the bamboo had nearly doubled in height and its leaves were shiny and lush. Then, ______ , no matter what I did, the leaves kept browning and ______ to the floor. I grew more and more ______ and uneasy. I couldn’t ______ the feeling that the plant had become a ______ of my own health. Its fallen leaves might signal the ______ of my brain cancer.

Later, I realized I had wrongly connected my nurturing of the plant with my own survival, over which I had no ______ . As my anxiety lessened, following the online ______ , I transplanted the bamboo to a larger pot to give it more room to grow. It began to thrive again.

If the plant ______ me, I hope it will comfort Hannah and remind her that our large community will continue to ______ her after I am gone.

8 . A forest after a wildfire

Throughout my career, I’ve had many chances to enter various wildfire areas. But I’ve ________ had the opportunity to see the immediate scene after a fire.

So when I ________ into a recently burned forest, my first reaction was the deathly ________ hung in the air. There were no birds, no breeze caught in the leaves of a tree, or animal noises. It felt as if life itself had totally ________ from this place. What was even worse, the burned-out forest meant that a large amount of ________ alongside the road was no longer ________ by the under-growth (灌木丛) . Oil cans, glass, plastic bags—you name it, and you can find it.

Knowing there was a story here that needed ________ , I raised my camera with a heavy heart, no matter how ________ . Photographing burned-out areas is ________ , since there is really only a bunch of burned-out wood. Through my lenses, I sought to connect viewers to the ________ of the disaster.

For a nature photographer passionate about environmental protection, it’s important to ________ the ugly as well as the beautiful. We need to put those two things together, so while ________ hope, we are aware of what has been taken from us, and how ________ that loss can be. Without that balance, we risk becoming used to a world shaped by destruction and not the one of ________ . Nature will regenerate, but now, we must consider what ________ we humans play in that process, too.

9 . “What are those?” Jennifer asked me. I looked over at two large raised beds (苗圃) and answered, “Those are potatoes.”

In class, she usually ________ herself in the work in front of her. Today, however, she frowned. “But...” she started with her voice fading to a ________ . With a sinking feeling I knew where this ________ was going. “But they’re green.” she started again. “Well, the bits we eat,—the ________ —are brown, while what you are looking at is the part above the soil.” I tried my hardest not to sound ________ .

Looking ________ , Jennifer shook her head. I knew the situation certainly called for immediate ________ . I reached over to the potato plant,________ it by its branches and leaves, and pulled. As the plant was ________ into the air, several large tubers (块茎) dropped onto the ground. I held the plant high in the air,________ a few more potatoes that were still attached at the roots.

Jennifer stood with a shocked look on her face. I held one out for her to touch. As she took the potato in her hand, understanding ________ across her face. Once ________ from the stems and leaves, the tuber was now something that she recognized.________ , she smiled and said, “I had no idea where they came from.”

For me, that best ________ how much pupils seem to know about their food and its production. This is why I started an eco-garden at school. We need pupils to be given opportunities to interact with nature and inspired to be ________ of the world around them.

10 . Our dog Bree is a Staffy cross. She ________ more like a cat than a dog. Unlike other dogs, she will very happily eat up her dinner ________ what is being offered. She does not hang around us waiting for pieces to fall her way.

That is, of course, unless I am making toast (烤面包) for my breakfast. She always makes her way to the ________ and sits very straight and tall at my feet as though to say “Look at what a good girl I am!” as soon as she catches a ________ of bread toasting. I ________ her, broke off a little bit of crust (面包皮) and fed it to her before ________ some spread to my toast. This became our “thing” — if I was having toast she’d join me for breakfast. She seemed ________ and I didn’t think a little crust would ________ her. Unfortunately, the day came when I fed her a piece of toast with a generous ________ of butter and jam. Clearly, she thought it was ________ as she now turns her ________ up at dry crusts and will only eat toast topped with a tasty spread.

This incident ________ me of a smart Chinese proverb: It is ________ to pass from a poor life to a rich one, but difficult to go back in the other direction. When it comes to ________ children, we should watch out for this. ________, they might be spoiled (宠坏) easily.