1 . On a hot summer day when I was 13, I was bored in my attic (阁楼) bedroom. Thinking about how to _________ that boredom, I leaned (斜靠) sideways, and my hand landed on a floorboard, which _________ up and almost hit me in the head.

When I looked inside the open space _________, there was something like a book. I _________ it out. It was old and small: Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations. I wondered whom these quotations were supposed to be _________ to, because I’d never heard of this book. And _________ I was bored, I decided to see what was inside the book. I started to _________the pages, reading about different _________. I learned about comfort, hope, love and even loneliness.

I began spending all my free time reading Bartlett’s. It felt like a new world _________before me. I learned about different quotes and phrases, and I got to __________ how language could be used to __________ complex emotions. I also realized how those emotions I’d felt while reading Bartlett’s became __________ in the characters I encountered in novels.

When I went to college, Bartlett’s came with me. Over the years, I’ve kept my __________ copy, which I still often refer to. I’ve bought a few of the newer __________, but the first one is the one that __________ me, that helped me escape from the boredom, and see more than my young mind and heart could understand.

2 . When my father was a teenager, he had been declared a prodigy (天才) by his art teacher. He ________ to become an art teacher and had some ________ of his paintings. But when my mother got ill, his creative life ceased.

I remembered my father’s ________ for art. One day, I asked whether he was interested in drawing a cartoon. My father was not much of a ________. When learning to drive, I had asked if it was more important to ________the cars ahead or those behind. “Both.” Then he was ________ for the next three miles.

He gave no ________ answer to my query (询问). I asked again the following day. Still no real ________. I ultimately ________ the idea. I understood he had enough on his p late already. But a week later, I received an email from my father — with a(n)________. I downloaded the file and there was the cartoon I had asked him to draw!

We began to draw cartoons. The process of creating gave hi m ________. As he built his art muscles back up, his teenage self’s enthusiasm ________.

He is now painting, drawing and talking so much I have to ________ I’m getting a call to escape his ________. If he were to ask me whether I was prouder of the cartoon or of him turning his life around, I would say, “________.”

3 . There are many examples of everyday kindnesses we often take for granted.

Last night, during my eldest son’s basketball game, we ________ to be sitting next to a lady with a young son. The little boy turned to my youngest son, smiling at him, and ________ said, “Wanna be my ________?” During the next 20 minutes, the two boys played together happily. It was a ________ scene, and reminded me how ________ it can (and should) be to make new friends.

A few hours earlier, we went to a downtown cafe for an afternoon treat. There were no open tables for four, so we ________ a table for two, and crowded into the small space. Just at that time, one young lady came over and ________ to trade her larger table with us. It was a simple act but showed us a ________ heart.

Just a couple of days ago, I sold my first book to a friend of mine. She paid the amount I charged and asked, “Is that enough? It doesn’t seem like it will ________ shipping.” Truthfully, I had not ________ correctly for the shipping charge. After that, I received a(an) ________ sum of money. I was so deeply humbled by her act of ________ and desire to encourage me.

Though often ________, these small acts of service, friendliness, and human care are what it takes to make the world go round. With everyday difficulties ________ us, these small gestures of goodwill can easily ________ a spark of positivity.

4 . It all began on a cold, rainy day．

Sarah, a poor single mother, was ________ to make ends meet. While waiting for the bus with her two children, Sarah ________ an old man sitting on a nearby bench. He was shivering (颤抖), his ________ jacket providing little protection against the freezing weather.

Sarah ________ the man and offered him her coat. She knew it would make her cold, but the thought of this stranger ________ while she had something to give was too much to bear. ________ by her selflessness, the man thankfully accepted the coat and gave back a smile. Little did Sarah know that her simple act of ________ would make a huge difference.

A man, who saw the heartwarming ________, took a photo and shared it on social media. The post quickly became a ________, with thousands of people sharing and commenting on Sarah’s ________. Encouraged by her, people began organizing events to ________ those less lucky. Schools added lessons on the ________ of helping others, and businesses started a “pay it forward” project, where people could buy more and leave the ________ meal for those in need.

Reflecting on this unbelievable journey, we can ________ our individual power, which may create an effect that would ________ reach every corner of the globe.

5 . We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give. This saying perfectly shows the _________ of giving, and how it helps to _________ our own lives. One of the most frequent ways of giving is through voluntary work, where we help others without receiving any financial reward _________.

I once volunteered to _________ one-room flats where the less fortunate lived. When I first entered the flat, I was _________ at the living conditions. It was overcrowded with people and household items covered with dust. _________, I could not contain my judgement, and was instinctively _________ about the owners of the flat. However, as the cleaning proceeded, I talked to them. Learning about _________ that the family had met with, I was regretful for my initial _________ judgement of them.

Another time when I volunteered to teach life skills to students with cerebral palsy(脑瘫), I found they were very __________ of the teachers. They often said “thank you” and smiled whenever I helped them even with a __________ task. This experience has allowed me to be more mindful of the things that I take for granted, and to be more careful of not letting insignificant things __________ me.

Voluntary work has provided me with the opportunity to gain more __________ into the lives of the less fortunate and count the __________ in my life. Instead of just being absorbed in your own __________, extend a helping hand to others.

6 . When Julia came upon a number of sketches (草图) her grandmother had made decades ago, they took her breath away. She already had a very _____ relationship with her grandmother. Her grandmother had helped _____ Julia. She was at her grandmother’s house nearly every day when growing up. However, this was something else. She wanted to know the story.

In the 1940s, Julia’s grandmother had been admitted to a_____ school. Before she could complete her courses and make a career for herself, she had to _____ to support her family financially. It was a(n)______ dream her grandmother set aside along with many sketches she had made.

Decades later, though, the granddaughter also developed a_____ for fashion. And when Julia found those sketches, she felt yet another _____ between her and her grandmother. She was inspired to bring these sketches to _____ for her grandmother. The only problem was that Julia didn’t know sewing (缝纫).

She didn’t let that_____ her. Getting materials from second   hand shops and watching YouTube videos, Julia taught herself_____ to sew. And when she posted the _____ from sketches to reality of one of her grandmother’s ideas, the video became popular online   _____ , her grandmother was also impressed with her fashion talent.

Julia is not sure where the project will take her, but her main _____is just having fun with Grandma doing these videos, _____ time with her grandmother. It’s inspiring to see such an intimate, intergenerational relationship — two women connect through a _____interest.

7 . What will we be doing in ten years’ time? Can we become the person we aim to be? Will we get into the school of our _________? Clearly, having plans for the future doesn’t mean they will become _________. For us, it is how we live that matters.

The young Arthur Conan Doyle, born in Scotland in 1859, had _________ worked as a doctor in London. But Doyle’ main _________ was to writing historical novels and get _________ in the academic field. However, _________, it was not his published historical novels but the Sherlock Holmes detective stories, which Doyle wrote as a doctor, that became a _________ of the time.

After Sherlock Holmes made him a(n) _________ name, Doyle gave up medicine and entirely turned to writing historical novels, which was his early _________. The public, however, couldn’t get enough of Sherlock Holmes, so Doyle had no __________ but to kill off the famous detective in a novel in 1893 to __________ his “serious” writing. Later, requested by __________ fans of Holmes, Doyle was forced to bring Holmes back to life. Doyle’s published historical novels have remained largely __________, but Sherlock Holmes has been entertaining readers for years.

Extremely successful and known, Doyle’s career failed to turn out as __________, though. However, it still shows us a(n) __________ that whatever the future unfolds for us, just live the life to the full.

8 . I was halfway across Indiana headed home to Kentucky when my car broke down. My phone was ______, too. I managed to get to a gas station, but it was Sunday in the early fall, and there was no ______ on duty. I was working my way through university then and had little money for ______ the car.

I sat alongside my car for several hours trying to ______ the heat when an older gentleman ______ to fuel his car.   He asked about my car, and I ______ my predicament (困境). To my ______, the gentleman told me that he had a daughter my age, and then he opened his trunk and ______ a tool set.

Right then and there, this total ______ examined my engine, explaining as he worked that my spark plugs (火花塞) hadn’t been charged for so long that they were ______ to function.   After about an hour, he ______ that my car was safe to finish the trip.

______ came at the hands of a stranger. ______ his clothes, working on a hot September afternoon, this man ______ a college student from disaster, just because she could have been his ______ .

9 . In a village in Malawi, Africa, people faced constant drought and poverty. A young boy named William Kamkwamba had a dream of bringing ________ to his village.

When famine (饥荒) came, William had to ________ school to help with farming. However, he kept reading books for the wonders of ______ and the endless possibilities it offered. ________ by his teacher’s bicycle flashlight, he decided to build a large windmill (风车) to ________ the battery, and then use a water pump to water the land so as to ________ solve the famine.

After many difficult conversations, his father finally chose to ________ his son and handed over the only broken ________ to him. William used the wheels and also ______ the local junkyard for some ________ parts. He worked really hard every day. Due to ________ education and resources, it was a ________challenge to turn bits of old materials into a working machine.

After countless ________ and failures, the boy’s windmill finally started ________. Weeping with joy, the boy and his father hugged tightly. This is the story of “The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind,” a story of hope, strength, and the strong spirit of a young boy who changed people’s lives with the power of ________.

10 . Something went wrong with the lady when my wife and I were waiting at the boarding gate at the airport. The woman fell down on the seat and quickly lost _______ of her body. I went over and half knelt down before her to _______ if she was okay.

I introduced myself and _______ she was Jackie. I was not a medical doctor, but I _______ to help her in any way she needed. I took her hand in one of my hand and _______ her head in the other, carefully asking what was happening. _______, Jackie explained that when she was exposed to too much _______ and stress, her body went into overdrive. Anyway, she had had the condition for thirty years and would be “perfectly _______ soon”.

I asked her if she needed a wheelchair to board the plane and then my wife got one for her. _______, due to some miscommunication, the airline stuff would not ________ Jackie because she didn’t take her medical report with her. Jackie looked ________ again and turned to me.

I explained what had happened to Jackie. With my help, everything went on well. Fortunately, Jackie soon ________. I felt great, too.

Don’t be afraid to listen to ________ and help them out. Everyone has their own ________. Sometimes, we just need to ________.