1 . Rivers are very important. Humans rely on them for food and water. But rivers can destroy things, too. They can flood, or rise over their banks, making the water run into the nearby land. Floods can also kill humans and wildlife. However, floods are not always bad. Some ecosystems need them every once in a while.

Flooding can not only harm animals but also destroy habitats. For example, a flood in Australia in 2022 caused massive animal habitat loss. Flood waters can pick up dirt (泥土) from riverbanks, which makes the water dirty. Too much dirt will clog rivers and streams, preventing the river from flowing. Sometimes flood waters can carry pollution to the sea and harm marine life. In addition, flood waters can carry disease, including hepatitis A (甲肝) and cholera (霍乱) .

However, not everything about floods is bad. Sometimes they bring new life to ecosystems. Flood waters carry nutrients to the nearby land. Over time, the water dries up and leaves behind particles (微粒) of dirt and mud. The particles are called sediment (沉淀物) which can be good due to its ability to improve the dirt and helps plants grow. Floods are important to some animals as well. For instance, some animals see floods as a sign that it is time to mate or migrate. Floods leave sediment on river beds where baby fish can grow and carry nutrients for small animals in the water to eat. Moreover, in dry seasons, water might dry up, but floods help refill the wetlands, keeping the ecosystem going.

Floods are a part of nature. They can destroy living things and the environment. But some ecosystems need floods to survive.

8 . A little girl created a perfect gift for her mother’s birthday. It was a drawing of a _________ on white paper with the words “For mom: love, love, love” decorated with hearts. She folded (折叠) her letter, but then she _________ it.

For most people, that would be the _________ of this story, but this story had a different result. James Carrell _________ the letter. He had just called his mother, wishing her a happy birthday. After he hung up, Carrell saw the _________ on the ground outside of a hardware (五金器具) store in Manvel. “I realized it was a gift,” said Carrell. “I _________ it up and saw the flower and hearts. It really _________ me.” Carrell thought the letter would brighten someone’s day and that maybe he could find the _________, so he posted it on the Internet. The message moved a lot of people, _________ one man.

“I was sitting at my friend’s house and saw a man’s reply,” said Carrell.

The comments included one from Robert Alvarado. He wrote, “I can’t __________ you found my baby’s letter.” Carrell reached Alvarado to __________ the letter. It took a few days, but the men finally __________ on Thursday night, one day after Alvarado’s wife’s birthday.

“__________ the letter made it home,” said Alvarado “We are thankful for what James Carrell did.”

We often forget the power of __________ things, but for this family from Alvin, Carrell’s small act left a(n) __________ impression.

9 . What Is a Boy?

Between the innocence of babyhood and the seriousness of manhood we find a delightful creature called an “boy”.     1    . They all believe that the pleasure of life is to enjoy every second of every minute of every hour of every day and to fill the air with noise until the adult males pack them off to bed at night.

    2     When you want him to make a good impression, his brain turns to jelly, or else he becomes a wild creature bent on destroying the world and himself with it.

    3     He has the stomach of a horse, the digestion of stones and sand, the energy of an atomic bomb, the curiosity of a cat, the imagination of a superman, the shyness of a sweet girl, the brave nature of a bull, the violence of a firecracker, but when you ask him to make something, he has five thumbs (拇指) on each hand.

He likes ice cream, knives, saws, Christmas, comic books, woods, water (in its natural habitat).     4     He is not much for Sunday schools, company, schools, books without pictures, music lessons, neckties, barbers, girls, overcoats, adults, or bedtime.

    5     Nobody else gets so much fun out of trees, dogs and breezes. Nobody else can put into one pocket a rusty knife, a half eaten apple, a three-feet rope, six cents and some unknown things. A boy is a magical creature — he is your headache but when you come home at night with only shattered pieces of your hopes and dreams, he can mend them like new with two magic words, “Hi, Dad!”