1 . The Happy Hitchhiker (徒步者)

Several years ago, I decided to visit my best friend, who lived in Napier. _________ I was short of money, hitchhiking was the only way to go. Carrying a small bag on my back, I set off on a sunny morning, and soon I got lifts. I enjoyed the conversation with the drivers, and was _________ enough to have made some distance before it got dark.

As I walked along a tree-lined country road, I _________ where I would spend the night. It was summer and the weather was warm so I thought I could sleep under a tree. An elderly gentleman came up and asked me where I was _________. I told him that I was hoping to get to the next town, “Op-o-tiki”.

He laughed and asked if I _________ “Opotiki”. Being English, I was not familiar with the correct pronunciation and replied that I did. “It’s still a long way. You won’t get there before dark,” he said. “So come with me and we will put you up for the _________ .”

Opotiki was a further 25 km away, so I _________ him to a comfortable, warm house nearby. He introduced me to his wife who was preparing dinner. They invited me to have a nice cup of tea, and even a hearty beef casserole (砂锅).

After dinner we all _________ for a while about where I was from and how I was finding the town, and then I was shown to my room. My host was a retired sea captain, and he told me that he was used to being up early and would wake me up. I had a very comfortable night’s sleep.

The next morning I woke to a cup of tea and a nice hot breakfast. I thanked them for their care, when the lady handed me a sandwich saying that it should _________ me going until I reached Opotiki. We had a laugh and said goodbye with each other. I have never forgotten their amazing __________ .

2 . The silence of the Reference Library was broken only by the sound of pages being turned over. There were about twenty people in the room, most of them with their__________bent over their books. The assistant librarian sat at a desk in one corner.   She had a look at Phillip as he came in, then went on with her work.

Phillip had not been to this part of the library before. He_________around the room almost on tiptoe, _______of disturbing(打扰)the readers with his heavy shoes. The shelves were filled with thick books: dictionaries in many languages, biography and some others. He found nothing to interest him, _______he came to a small area on photography, which was one of his hobbies. The books in this area were on a high shelf out of his__________, so he had to fetch a small ladder(梯子) in order to get one down. Unluckily, as he was _______down the ladder, the book he had chosen slipped from his hand and fell to the floor with a__________crash. Twenty pairs of eyes looked_________ at him together. Phillip felt himself go red as he ________up his book, which did not seem to have been damaged by its________.

He had just sat down when he found the young lady assistant standing alongside him. “You _____be more careful when you are holding these books,” she said seriously. Satisfied that she had done her duty, she turned to go back to her desk. Then a sudden________struck her. “By the way, how old are you?” she asked Phillip. “Thirteen,” he told her. “You’re not________in here under the age of fourteen, you know,” the assistant said. “Didn’t you see the notice on the door?” Phillip shook his head. He _________the assistant to ask him to leave. Instead, in a more _____tone(语气) , she said: “Well, never mind. But make sure that you don’t disturb the other readers again, or I shall have to ask you to leave. ”

3 . In 2022, my 4-year-old son, Tyler, needed to have a serious surgery (手术). My wife and I took him to Children’s Hospital.

There were a lot of worries in our hearts in the waiting room. When a nurse called us to the doctor’s office, our _______ only grew. A young doctor told us that he would perform the surgery and began to _______ what the process (过程) would be and all the risks of a surgery like this. My mind went to the _______ possible result. I just couldn’t help but feel like: What was I going to do if I _______ my son?

But he then did something that was very _______. He looked us both in the eye, put a hand on each one of our shoulders and said, “Your son is my son.” I will never _______ that because that sent a calm through me. What he said was very helpful and meaningful.

After the surgery, he _______ to us, looked us once again in the eye and said, “Our son is just fine, and you could see him here in a few minutes.”

I can’t tell you how _______ we both were for having him there and for what he said to us. I’ll never forget that doctor. And to this day, anytime I have a chance to volunteer or donate to Children’s Hospital, I’ll make sure I’m one of the first ones in line. I hope that I have the _______ of seeing him again someday to thank him for his ________ words.

4 . On a bright afternoon, Jordan, Mahir and Mahir’s father gathered at the foot of a mountain. “Hey, Jordan, over here!” Jordan’s best friend, Mahir, waved his hand, pointing to a crack in the side of the mountain. “We could ________ this!”

Jordan tied his safety harness (系带) and checked his rope. He weighed one of them in his hand, determining its weight. Then he looked for ________ locations, considering the difficulty of the task. “That crack is ________ narrow. I don’t think we’d get up very high.”

“At the time of a test, a person rises or falls.” said Ghanim, Mahir’s dad. Shaking his head in ________ over the foreign proverb (谚语), Jordan examined the crack. It was nothing more than a sliver in the solid face of the cliff. He shifted in his harness as Mahir gave the proverb his own explaination: “If you’re not reaching the ________, you’re not trying hard enough.” Jordan recognized the bit of advice from a previous climbing lesson.

His own father’s voice resounded in his thoughts, as if in a half-forgotten dream. “Climb a mountain, son, and you climb the insecurity in your own life. You climb over your shadow, climb over your ________.” That was five years ago, before the automobile ________ that took his dad’s life. Jordan’s father swiftly turned his car and effectively ________ a car from going over a cliff. The sudden move had saved the people in that car. But his father’s car went off a cliff. ________ with the difficult situation, Jordan’s dad had never hesitated before making the decision.

And now Jordan wouldn’t either. ________ on his balance, he took a deep breath and began to climb. Finally, they made it to the peak of the mountain.

5 . A New Friend and Perspective (视角)

I picked up the phone, slowly dialing the number to her house. All I could think was what we could possibly have a conversation about. _________! I didn’t think I could have anything in common with someone who is 50 years older than me.

“Your grandmother won’t be around forever,” my mom said,_________ I just did what she told me and painfully _________ my grandmother. What I didn’t know was that the phone call would change my attitude to life and my grandmother.

When she answered the _________, I planned to have a small conversation. Instead, she invited me to lunch. _________, I replied with a “That sounds great.”

When I_________ the phone, I immediately regretted agreeing to the lunch date. How was I going to fit this _________my busy schedule of homework, games, and friends? It was not my ideal Saturday, but I sucked it up and _________ anyway. Me and my grandmother… nothing to talk about.

_________, my Saturday morning wasn’t painful. I was interested in listening about her recent trip to Europe and how she saw the famous Eiffel Tower. She told me stories about her sewing class and her friends. I wasn’t aware that 60-year-old people had a social life. It turned out that her life wasn’t as __________as I thought. For once, I was __________without friends and without my cell phone. We planned to meet again at her house. This time, my mom didn’t have to __________me.

During the next visit, we sorted through three shoeboxes of photographs. There was an interesting story for each one. I learned that as humans, we __________ human experiences, no matter what age.

Ever since I made the first phone call to my grandmother, we have talked at least once a week. I regret not calling her __________. Her advice has taught me things that can’t be learned in a textbook. She taught me to be open to new things, to enjoy the simple things, and to appreciate what life has given me. I have __________a friend, a mentor (导师), and a new perspective.

6 . One spring morning, my husband was in the yard cutting down an overgrown tree.

He then __ it across the front yard and put it on a pile of wood.

I was inside the house tending to some things, when suddenly he came into the house, looking __ and said, “I’m not sure if I should tell you this. ”

“What?”I said, totally expecting the very worst.

“Just come with me, ” he said. I __ him out to the yard. He pointed. “There, ” he said.

In front of us were four baby birds in the tree branches, having fallen out of their nest (巢) during the terrible ride, __ amazingly all still alive.

I immediately picked them up and made a “nest” in the front of my T-shirt. My husband just looked at me and said, “You won’t be able to keep them ___. You have never nursed a bird back to health before. ”

Luckily, we were able to find the nest in the center of the tree. I placed the baby birds inside the nest. They had no feathers (羽毛), so these tiny birds had no protection __ the sun. I thought they wouldn’t make it through the day. As we stood far enough away from the nest, I wondered if their mother would ever find and __ them as her own.

I couldn’t believe it! Within a few minutes, a Blue Jay flew in and was jumping around the nest. She then flew up to the nest and __ herself on her babies, spreading her wings to __ them. And soon, the father joined the __ and continued his task of bringing food to the family while she warmed and kept the baby birds safe.

On one rainy day, I remember seeing her wings were spread especially wide across the nest. It was a __ sight, to see how a bird with a tiny brain, the size of the tip of my little finger, still had the will to so deeply __ her babies.

Then one day, all four baby birds jumped out of the nest and were gone. The parents had done their job and now the youngsters were __ to go make nests of their own.

I ended up __ that nest. Whenever I look at it, it reminds me to never give up no matter how bad things look, and be inspired by the inner___ of the Blue Jay parents to provide for their family.

7 . I had always wanted a dog. My parents told me when I was old enough and _______, I could have one.

One day I hopped off the bus, not knowing what awaited me inside. I walked through the door, and to my _______, a white and black puppy greeted me with many puppy kisses. A very special friendship was born that day.

She was a smart dog. We _______ play for hours, spending our days learning and growing together.

Eleven years we were together, best of friends. Unfortunately, arthritis (关节炎) and old age set in on her. My parents knew what had to be done, but they let me find and make the decision myself.

She was _______ so much and the medicine didn’t seem to help anymore. She could _______ walk. I looked into those deep brown eyes and _______ it was time to let her go.

I carried her into the vet’s (兽医诊所) and placed her on the table. She leaned her head forward and gave a lick to my hand as if to say, “I understand. Stay _______.” Her tail was wagging (摆动) in a circle as always.

The vet asked before giving the final shot, “Are you sure?” With a heavy heart and tear-filled eyes, I nodded yes. The final shot was given. My eyes fixed upon her wagging tail. In a matter of seconds, it _______. The vet listened for a heartbeat, and said, “It’s over.”

I took her home and buried her in the pasture, where she loved playing and chasing rabbits. It was the _______ thing I had ever done.

Recently I went back to her grave. Growing on her grave was a single wildflower. It was swaying in a circle, just like her. I know now that, that special friend will be __________ me always.

8 . It is not always easy to discover yourself. From a young age, I had a strong sense of who I would become —but an accident changed everything.

To me, skating was more important than anything else in the world. Nothing else filled my heart with so much ________. I spent 24 hours a week   ________ my skills.

I had no social life or interests other than skating. But I was rewarded with first place medals in nearly every _________.

Unfortunately, during one competition, I fell and was badly hurt. The doctor told me that I couldn’t skate anymore. The pain in my back was hard to bear and even basic daily tasks became   ________.

My passion (激情) had been taken away. I lost heart and had no idea what I would become. After eight months of suffering, something had to   ________ . Instead of sitting around and wasting my days, I began to work with local community service projects. By volunteering as a swimming teacher and summer reading assistant (助教) for kids, I got an idea of who I wanted to   ________ . After a few months, I found a new _________. Little by little, I stepped out of the shadow and   ________ my confidence.

Sometimes, ________in life will get in our way. We can choose to stay behind or try to get past these challenges. My accident was a challenge that failed to stop me from   ________ success. Today, I’m a very confident and optimistic person.

9 . On a Monday morning, a bus full of bright-eyed kids was on the way to school along with Connor and his brother Seamus. The bus was being driven by a 60-year-old driver, McDougal. _______, both the brothers heard McDougal fall to the floor of the bus.

“I didn’t see him fall. I heard him _______ the ground, and then the bus started veering (转弯) all over the road,” Connor recalled the moments before _______ set in.

After the bus driver fell down, Connor and Seamus _______ the emergency situation. They realized that they must jump into action. Otherwise, the students on the bus would be in danger of getting _______. Connor knew that no matter what happened, he needed to get the bus to stop moving. So he _______ and pressed on the brake (刹车) and told Seamus to call 911.

Meanwhile, Seamus tried to keep his fellow classmates _______ and in their seats. He told everyone it was going to be okay and the police were on their way. Seamus even gave one crying frightened student a _______.

The bus didn’t veer off the road because of the _______ thinking and actions of these two brothers. The bus could have hit another vehicle or perhaps something worse could have happened. Thanks to the ________ efforts of these two young men, they managed to save the lives of everyone on the bus.

10 . Yes Day

My friends and I were having breakfast at a Mexican holiday resort (旅游胜地) while enjoying the cool sea breeze. It promised to be another ______ day, as we embraced the break from our busy routine.

We were looking over the list of the resort’s activities. After we ______to convince (说服) each other of what would be best to do, I said, “Let’s have a YES DAY and say yes to EVERY activity, even if it’s not in our comfort zone. Let’s ______ and enjoy ourselves in unexpected ways.”

I hate ______ , but the zipline over the resort was at the top of our list. I was scared when I climbed into position. I wanted to back out, but my friends cheered me on. So, I jumped off the platform and screamed the whole way down. But I was glad I ______ it. Besides the ______, I also appreciated the amazing views. Thankfully, I didn’t say no, otherwise I would have missed this wonderful experience.

My friend Katie, who didn’t want to do karaoke, also had to face her _____ of being the center of attention. We danced and sang, laughing all night long. We were _____ brave enough to attend a wedding party and danced on a glass topper over a swimming pool.

We still talk about our magical Yes Day! When we see the photos from that magical time, we are so happy. In fact, we may miss so much if we only ______ what we are comfortable doing. I believe we all______ Yes Days.