1 . I was always interested in biology. However, it wasn’t until I saw a _________ about cave diving in senior high school, in which I watched divers pass by urchins (海胆), that I realized I wanted to _________ cave animals. The video didn’t mention the   _________ in those underwater houses, but I _________ they must be there. More than just naming them, I wanted to learn about their _________, which meant I needed to study them in their _________ habitat.

Cave diving requires special _________. In this photo taken during a sampling trip in March in Belize, you can see that I was carrying lights and navigation tools, and bringing extra air tanks. I was using a net and test tubes to collect tiny and nearly _________ animals floating in the water. Since then, I’ve come to _________ that caves are full of life: shrimps, sea stars and urchins, all __________ the low-light environments.

Although underwater caves might seem far removed from surface environments, research has shown that these worlds are __________ in many ways. If pollutants get underground, they can __________ affect many ecosystems.

The cave ecosystem is suffering from climate change. If we didn’t take action to __________ these amazing caves, they could be gone before we have the __________ to fully understand them. And everything that makes them unique would __________, too.

2 . I was having coffee with a friend recently when she leaned across the table and said, “No matter what I do as a parent, I feel like I’m being taken for granted. All my child seems to do is shout at me, ________ me or ask me for things. I just feel so ________.”

Let’s face it — parenting is often a ________ job. Before we have kids, most of us have unrealistic ________ of what it’s going to become a parent. Maybe you watched family members ________their kids, or witnessed tired parents in the grocery store whose kids were ________ and thought to yourself, “I’ll never do it that way.” But as every parent eventually finds out that ideal image we have pre-kids is not ________. It’s hard work to raise children, and most of us are ________ trying to do our best.

It’s not easy to set ________, give consequences, and stay consistent as a parent. ________, your child isn’t going to show appreciation to you for doing it. If you’re feeling taken for granted, remember that one of your main ________ is to teach your child to be a responsible adult. And, as every parent knows, this is a tough and ________ job. We have to teach and ________ them how to behave appropriately in each ________. They may not always like it when we lay down regulations, but they ultimately ________ them — not only for their behavior, but because it makes them feel safer. Do remember: their thanks will come later.

3 . Pets are always part of a family. Pets and kids who grow up together have very close _________. This is especially true in the case of 9-year-old Milly Kukuczka, whose beloved dog Bella _________ shortly before Christmas in 2022. The girl was _________ but she turned her sadness into a labor of love for _________ animals.

This year, when Milly’s parents asked her what she wanted for Christmas, she went to her room to prepare her _________. To her parents’ surprise, _________ toys for herself, Milly gave her parents a flier (小广告传单) she made for a pet drive to collect toys and treats for pets without forever _________. All she wanted was to hold a pet drive, so all pets could have a toy for Christmas.

The Kukuczka family _________ Bella before Milly was born. The dog was Milly’s _________ and her best friend. Milly’s mom said that they were always side by side, and she wanted to do everything with Bella. But Bella was diagnosed with cancer around a year before she died. It was difficult for the entire family, especially for Milly. Now, this young girl wants to keep her love for Bella __________ by helping other pets.

Milly’s parents were all onboard to help their daughter organize the pet drive. They __________ out to the Dumb Friends League in Denver where the family chose their cats and __________ the pet drive on social media. The response was very __________. There are 50 toys there already and they have boxes of treats and cat scratchers (抓扒工具).

Milly is __________ the pet Father Christmas and she will deliver the __________ to shelter animals at the Dumb Friends League just in time for Christmas.

4 . I came to the sport of triathlons late in life. I spent years accompanying my super-fit brother to triathlons and waiting for him on the hot sidelines while he swam, biked and ran for hours. Then a light bulb turned on in my brain. I could _________, too, instead of suffering intense _______.

Starting with what I knew best, I began swimming. I swam up and down, _________ my54-year-old body that my skills haven’t _________. Thankfully, muscle memory was _________, leaving me confident for the first session. For the bike part, cycling wasn’t as enjoyable as I remembered, but I didn’t _________. Tough as it was, all I cared about was finishing the ride. To exercise for the run, I joined a running group. In the beginning, I could merely run 3 miles, but I kept moving forward. I could _________ achieve the goal in a couple of months. Still, I remained rather _________. How would I swim 1.2miles, bike 56 miles and then run 13.1 miles in one day?

When I carefully _________ my crazy idea to my brother, he jumped on board immediately. The final __________ was painful and the big day eventually arrived this summer. At first, I finished swimming a few minutes ahead of my brother. However, I __________ during the bike ride. After about 22 miles, I stopped, got off my bike and __________, “I think I’m going to quit.”

“You know you won’t let yourself do that”, he replied. __________, I got back and slowly pedaled (蹬车) to the end. The run was more like a walk. My brother chose to stay with me. The sun burning, we talked, laughed and waved to the __________. We crossed the finish line together, and a great cheer went up from the crowd. It was a (n) __________ experience for me.

6 . I was driving down the highway, enjoying the freedom of the open road when suddenly, I heard a loud noise. My car shook _______, and I knew something was wrong.

I carefully _______ to the side of the road, as far away from the traffic as possible. I got out of the car and looked at the damage, with a rising sense of fear. The tire(轮胎) was completely flat, and I had no _______. I was stuck in the middle of nowhere with no one to help.

I tried to flag down passing cars, but no one seemed to notice me. They drove past me at high speed, as if I were _______. I began to feel frustrated and _______.

As the sun started to set, my _______ turned to despair. I felt like I was stranded(滞留) in the middle of nowhere, with no hope of _______. I thought about how long it would take for someone to notice me, and how dangerous it was to be stranded on the side of the road at night. I felt _______ forcing their way out of the corners of my eyes, but I tried my best to hold them back.

Just when I was about to give up, I heard a car _______. I tried to flag it down, but it seemed to be about to speed past me. I felt my heart ________, but to my surprise, the car slowed down and pulled over to the side of the road. A tall man got out of the car, and I felt a sense of ________ wash over me.

As expected, the man helped ________ the flat tire with his spare one. Before I expressed my gratitude, he ________ into the night. What a silent but warm-hearted ________. The road might be challenging, but the ________ of the stranger lit it up.

7 . When she first encountered it, it seemed more like a Western-style dragon than a Chinese one, a(n) ________ to run away from rather than a friend to be embraced. That dragon was the Chinese language, and the person staring into its ________ eyes was a young Uzbek woman, Dilsora. It was 2005 and Dilsora was studying in Tashkent. Her ________ was journalism and Chinese, a language stream her teacher had strongly ________ to her.

Before heading off to college, Dilsora caught an interview on TV ________ an Uzbek student who had studied in China. “At the time I couldn’t figure out how one could ________ such a difficult language. Little did I know that this language would be my future major in college.” she recalled. “Then, when I started studying it I found it ________ difficult, ________ of considering throwing it away and studying another language.”

However, as with many a dragon story, there is a ________ in the tail, and Dilsora’s despair ________ noble principles. As time passed by, Dilsora’s sense of devotion has paid off for her in astonishing ways. Since then Dilsora has ________ master’s and doctoral degrees at Chinese University and is now a teacher at Minzu University of China in Beijing, teaching Uzbek to Chinese students. ________, Dilsora has answered another high calling: ________ Chinese works into Uzbek, including books the Chinese president has written. The Uzbek edition of Xi’s book on poverty ________, Up and Out of Poverty, published last year, was translated by Dilsora. This book reflects Xi’s ________ for the people and the lofty (崇高的) pursuits of the Communist Party of China, she said.

10 . What do ballet dancers and short people have in common? They both spend more time on their tip toes than others. I don’t remember when I went from being a _________ person like the other kids to being a short kid. I know that by the time I was about 12, you would have difficulty making a joke about a short person I hadn’t _________.

One of the greatest lessons my dad taught me was to do something before somebody else could. If I am going to be a punchline (笑点), I’d rather be the _________ of the joke. My 50th birthday is just a couple of years away, and the jokes keep _________. I can laugh now, most of the time.

There was a lot of name-calling (辱骂). Some was cruel _________ some not. I have _________ much of the cruel, for it may make me feel upset. In junior high, a well-meaning schoolmate called me Stretch. In university, I was Shortly. When a friend said, “I will see you shortly,” to which I replied, “Sounds good, but don’t call _________ Shortly.”

Jokes and nicknames _________, there were some real challenges as a short person. Studies have shown short men tend to make less money on average. This is why I _________ in-person job interviews. I always feared my __________ would cost me an opportunity. I always felt __________, real or not.

As I get older, and __________ wiser, it doesn’t annoy me as much. There are some __________ of being short. I find airplane seats __________. I am incredible at hide and seek. I rarely bump my __________. Would I still want to be taller? Of course. But I wouldn’t be me. I am me because I am short. And I like who I am.