1 . Walking by Mr. Groll’s yard is the worst part of our morning walk—the unfriendly shape nearby that shades us: Mr. Groll.

“Hello, Mr. Groll.” I _________ him as I do every morning. And he never answers me. But I know he’s there, watching, behind his fence. Why does he _________ me? It’s a mystery (迷). Maybe he’s afraid of me because I’m blind. _________ scare grown-ups sometimes. Then I _________ hearing him playing with my friend Jimmy, who’s in a wheelchair. Maybe Mr. Groll does not like Vietnamese _________. No. Every Saturday Mr. Groll and my big brother, Lien, help each other with yard work.

Me and Chó! An idea _________ my mystery. Maybe I do know why Mr. Groll doesn’t talk to me! So, I attach Chó to a post, and I _________ my way along the fence.

“Mai! Be _________!” Mr. Groll’s loud voice steadies my _________ while his hand steadies my elbow (肘部).

“You solve my mystery. It isn’t because I’m blind that you don’t like me. Or because I am a Vietnamese.” I ________. “It’s Chó who scares.”

He __________ his large voice. “I like you, Mai. And Chó, too. But up close, Chó scares my ________ away,” he says.

I tell him, “Your fear of Chó may be big, but __________ is bigger. We will help. Come with me.” I hear a smile in Mr. Groll’s voice. “OK,” he says, “I __________ you, my friend.”

Then I take Mr. Groll’s hand in mine and guide it to Chó’s head. __________, Mr. Groll pets Chó’s ears. Friendly Chó—good Chó—swings her tail. Our new friendship begins.

2 . I grew up in such a family: My father was Italian, and my mother was Greek. This family _______ allowed me to learn to speak both languages with _______ . Besides speaking their native tongues, my parents often _______ in French at our dinner table; therefore, I also learned a third language. In order to further explore my gift for languages, I started to _______ French at university.

There’re many benefits of _______ different languages: It raises my cultural awareness, and broadens my horizons. Being a multicultural _______ also helps me understand and _______ with people from different parts of the world.

One day, a Middle Eastern man served me when I visited a shop. To be frank, he was _______ ignorant about responding to my questions and solving my problem. I walked away from the shop feeling _______ because he kept avoiding eye contact for 20 minutes. Later, when I recounted the ________ to my friend, he reminded me of a(n) ________ cultural truth of some Middle Eastern countries that I had ________. The cultural insight is that males and females in the Middle East are taught to ________ their eyes or avoid long eye contact with each other. This practice is a sign of propriety (得体), which can be ________ as rudeness by anyone unfamiliar with the culture.

My multiculturalism ________ me to realize that something as simple as the lack of eye contact can be a potential source of misunderstanding.

3 . Temperatures remained near zero, and frost (霜) covered the ground on the morning of Saturday, October 29, but none of this _________ the group of volunteers and students who_________ from different schools planting a new microforest. Emma Fox, the community engagement _________, got the group warmed up before their shovels (铲) hit the _______. In just under three hours, the volunteers had all of the trees planted, and Fox   _________ on what they had achieved. The group planted around 100 trees in what is called a microforest.

Microforests, with trees planted together _________ , are more powerful than having the same number of trees planted across a larger area, Fox _________. This is particularly beneficial in environments for ecological, climate, and human benefits.

In support of this, these microforests are allowed to grow free, with as little human _________ as possible. This includes not mowing (割草) around the forest to _________the grasses to grow, increasing even more biodiversity. __________ the environmental benefits, microforests offer many advantages for the students. They offer additional __________ in the schoolyard, and additional __________ educational opportunities.

Fox shared that it’s the __________ of many different organizations coming together to achieve the shared aim of __________ the environment. To make a microforest a __________, they need land, trees and volunteers.

4 . I was waiting in line at the gas bar when two small white cars drove in out of nowhere and _______ right in front of me. I wish I could calmly _______ this new situation, but I can’t. I was overcome with anger.

I got my tank filled up and drove _______ to a snack bar to grab a burger. As I sat in my car _______ an above-average tasty lunch, I was still angry about the gas pump fiends (魔鬼).

Suddenly I remembered something. I was in line at a grocery checkout and my items had been rung up _______ I discovered I had left my card in my car. I apologized and the cashier suggested I go get the card and come back. When I made it through the _______ to her again, she told me my $14 or so in _______ had already been paid for. A young man, who had a young boy with him, seeing my _______, offered to pay for my stuff.

I went into the parking lot to see if I could find my _______. I couldn’t. But as I was about to get into my car, another car ________ beside mine and a young man with a boy got out.

“I heard you were looking for me,” he smiled. “I paid your bill.” I thanked him greatly and apologized for not having any cash on me. ________, my young friend, who had a car older and more ________ than mine, said he didn’t want to be paid back. He was just glad to help out.

He more than ________ the two friends at the gas bar. And I am glad I have my ________ of him and what he ________ did to counteract my anger.

7 . One day, 21-year-old Laura Carstensen went to a concert with some co-workers. After enjoying the _______ , they got into different cars to go home. Carstensen ended up in a taxi _______   by a young man. As he drove down the country road back to town, he drove too fast.

“I was asking him to _______ . And then the next thing I remembered was that I was _______   on the side of the road outside of the car.” Carstensen said. “I was _______ . There was so much blood _______ the breaks of my bones.”

Carstensen was _______ injured. After a while, a truck pulled up near her. Two men got out and came over to ask her if they could _______ . She told them she was cold. So one of them went back to the _______ and got a blanket (毯子) for her.

After the ________ , Carstensen spent months in the hospital, ________ from injuries that included more than 20   ________ bones.

Today, she’s grateful to have ________ , and that she is able to walk again. And she’s still ________ by the kindness the truckers showed her when they ________ to help her that night.

10 . When Liam fell into the sea during a sailing lesson, he had no idea what he was in for. “I was shaking with _______,”said Liam in an interview. _______, he was wearing a life jacket, but the water was _______.

The experience left him wondering if he could _______ something that could help people stay warm in water related accidents. The following spring, Liam _______ his friend Fraser for a class science project. Together they got the _______ of “LifeHeat ”——a self heating life jacket that could one day help someone in a _______ situation.

After repeated tests, Liam and Fraser _______ calcium chloride -- a chemical (化学品) often used to melt (融化) snow and ice from sidewalks and driveways, which _______ the life jacket to remain warm underwater. Then they decided to self test their ________ by jumping into the sea. Their first ________ did not go as planned. “We put in more calcium chloride than we usually do,” said Liam. “We were starting to overheat!” While it wasn’t the result they expected, the test made Liam and Fraser feel ________ .

This year they ________ B. C. Science Fairs and won first prize. It was a special moment for Liam and Fraser as they could receive feedback (反馈) from experts to ________ their work. They hoped to turn their invention into business. “We believe that this ________ will be widely used to save more lives,” said Fraser.