2 . In 2001, a storm hit Houston. More than 70, 000 houses were flooded, including the _______ of Sarah Feldman and her family.

At the time, they were on vacation in another city, so they didn’t know what kind of _______   they were going to face when they got home. But then Feldman’s grandpa called with _______ news: All of her books had been destroyed in the flooding.

Feldman was 14 at the time and loved _______ books. To cheer her up, Feldman’s father took her to the library at Yale University, where she _______ a conversation with Bill Carver, a man who worked in the library. When she told him about her collected books being destroyed, he _______ that he would send her a book in the mail, so she could restart her collection.

After _______ to Houston, she received his _______ , titled The Medieval Art Book by Barbara A. Shailor. Carver included a note that _______ : Dear Sarah, this is a rather scholarly book, which may be ________ mature for your age, but I thought it might help you shape your ________ library collection. And as the years progress, this book may grow in ________ to you.

Feldman, who is in her 30s now, has fallen in love with medieval art since ________ that book. She has tried to find Carver years later, with no ________ .

“If I could speak to him today,” says Feldman. “I would like to tell him how much that small gesture has ________ my life.”

5 . Ricky often looked out of the window during one of my ninth-grade history classes early in my teaching ________. He was quiet, and his good grades and mild manner were the reason ________ I did not move him away from the seat by the window.

One day, I ________ over his shoulder and quietly asked, “What are you looking at?”

He said, “I am looking at the band.”

“If you like the band so much that you have to look at them during this class every day, I want you to go down to Mr. Overby (the band teacher) and tell him that I ________ you. Tell him that you want to be in the band,” I said.

The next day Ricky went to Mr. Overby and told him I had sent him and he wanted to be in the band. He added that he did not know how to play any instrument.

When Ricky visited me ten years later, he ________ me for telling him to go to Mr. Overby because he fell in love with music and discovered his musical talent that had not been ________. His musical talent resulted in him getting a(n) ________ to college and earning a degree that allowed him to provide for his family. Most of all, ________ had brought great pleasure and satisfaction to his life.

After Ricky thanked me, I ________ that he did all of the hard work it took to become the wonderfully talented person that he was. I did not make him walk downstairs to join the band, practise his ________, and get the good grades that led to his college scholarship.

Ricky responded that I could have yelled at him for looking out of the window. Instead, I gave him a(n) ________ that changed his whole life.

After he left, I thought about his words. I ________ that I was teaching children with every word I said, every action I took, and with every decision I ________. Ricky’s story ________ my teaching bar. Most of all, I have never forgotten the lesson Ricky taught me, a ________ teacher.

7 . A sudden illness took away most of Rebecca’s hearing when she was only six years old. Afterwards, she says her ________ went too. Unable to listen, she ________ to communicate with the great help of her family and friends. Rebecca felt lonely, but she did not ________ herself. She says her biggest concern was ________ to live like a normal person. She taught herself to

read lips, and learned to speak confidently without being able to hear herself. ________, she found the right place to flourish (茁壮成长).

Today, working at the Qetan Sewing Center, Rebecca rediscovered something she greatly ________: a sense of belonging. “The center has a really ________ impact on me in terms of being able to meet people. The environment is ________, which helps you move forward,” says Rebecca.

Better still, Rebecca has also found a professional outlet. “I’ve always been ________ the arts. Drawing and logo design are major parts of our work. I ________ this very much,” she says.

Rebecca says her ________ of self-discovery is not yet over. Every day, she is seeking to ________ herself. “Open your mind to the ________. Take positive ________ to achieve your goals. Keep an eye on your future.”

The way that Rebecca lives her life demonstrates this idea that you can achieve your goals ________ you stay focused.

8 . When 19-year-old Emily Bhatnagar from Maryland, USA, found out her father had stage four thyroid cancer, her _______ was a little different than you might expect. To _______ her father, who she also describes as her best friend, she decided to start a book drive called For Love and Buttercup, _______ books for kids with cancer.

“It was very much an overnight idea,” she explains. “I _______ a message on an app called Nextdoor asking my neighbours for _______ book donations. I was only expecting a few here and there, but the response was truly incredible and it was just the _______ I needed to co-exist with my grief rather than letting it _______ me.”

“It was _______ heartbreaking to watch my dad go through cancer and see him _______ a little bit of himself each day, but the book drive allowed me to develop a newfound sense of ________ mixed with an even greater sense of compassion to help others in any form. I wanted to help kids. They’ve always held a soft spot in my heart.”

Using ________ she earns from working at her parents’ bread shop, Emily has bought many books out of her own pocket. ________, she receives donations through her Amazon wishlist.

Emily and her older brother spent a whole summer driving around town, ________ boxes of books into their car. “It was such a privilege knowing people have carried these books all their lives through generations, and they wanted to gift it to my ________.”

The project has seen huge success, with For Love and Buttercup donating over 15,000 books and won ________ from The The President’s Volunteer Service Award.

10 . A week before Christmas, my grandmother passed away. My boss ________ gave me several days off to go home for the funeral (葬礼) in Nova Scotia. I planned to leave on the 20th so that I could get home ________ to help my mother with the preparations for both the funeral and a very ________ and busy Christmas.

Here, my string of bad luck began: my plan was ________ by a big storm, and I had to ________ a ferry ticket for the 22nd, the last day that the ferry would run. I left as the roads were still ________, and I was two-thirds of the way through the long drive when my car ________. I was so anxious that I almost ________. Just then a car stopped nearby. A lady came out and asked whether I was asking for ________. After hearing what I said, the lady took out her ________ and quickly helped me put on my tire at no charge! I was filled with ________. Thanks to her ________, I was able to catch the very last ferry.

The woman is a stranger, ________ she tried her best to help me get home. I’ll never ________ the kind stranger, who made a hard Christmas a lot easier, for both me and my family. I ________ the world is beautiful because there are lots of kind people in it.