1 . One day a small gap appeared in the cocoon (茧), through which the butterfly would come out. A boy, who _______ passed by, stopped and watched how the butterfly was trying to _________ of the cocoon. It _________ several hours. The butterfly was trying very hard, but the _________ was as little as before. It seemed that the power would _______ the butterfly soon.

The boy decided to _________ the butterfly. He took a penknife and cut the cocoon. The butterfly immediately came out, but it was very small and _________, and the wings were _________ moving.

The boy continued to _________ the butterfly, thinking that now its wings would __________ and it would fly. ________, that did not happen.

The rest of its life the butterfly had to drag its weak body and wings that wouldn’t unfold. It was unable to fly because the boy did not realize that a(an) __________ to force itself through the narrow gap of the cocoon was __________ for the butterfly, so that the life-giving fluid would move from the body to the butterfly’s wings and that the butterfly could fly. Life forced the butterfly to leave its shell so hard that it would gain the ________ to grow and develop.

Just like the butterfly, if we were allowed to live without meeting difficulties, we would not survive. Life gives us __________ to make us braver and stronger.

2 . Most airplanes are constructed with seats in rows of two or three Mathematically, someone in my family of five has to sit by a ________. I always ask to be that person and consider it the greatest ________ to meet someone remarkable.

From the time I could speak, I realized that overcoming communication ________ was an essential key to ________ the enormous potential in constructing meaningful relationships with others. My father is a successful scientist, but he has been ________ since birth. My childhood was spent understanding his intelligence while sometimes ________ to convey ideas because the words I chose were too ________ to lipread. But I learned how to employ my own approach to face the challenge. Gradually, I developed a ________ for communication skills.

Since kindergarten, I have loved Chinese culture. In my Junior year of high school, I ________ a competitive scholarship to study in China for the summer, learning Mandarin and the eastern culture. Dropped into Chengdu and ________ to speak the language fluently, I found myself a toddler (学步儿童). However, I didn’t quit. At the end of the program, I was voted to ________ the 500 scholarship recipients (被授予者) to deliver a speech in Chinese. My speech did win cheers. Finally, I returned home with a cultural awareness beyond expectation, possessing lifelong ________ with former strangers whom I now communicate with in Chinese.

Thanks to the strangers in my life, I learn that one must embrace (拥抱) certain new experience. I’m so ________ to confirm that stepping out of my comfort zone can, actually, ________ experiencing something from slightly interesting to life-changing. On the flight home from China I ________ chose to sit next to a stranger and it didn’t disappoint.

3 . For the past 18 years, my daughter has been around me all the time. Now that she is in college, the _______ of our relationship has totally changed and our relationship is completely _______. I’m not going to be there every morning to have breakfast with her. I won’t know when she’s mad or when she’s happy. Here’s a little story of our new _______.

A week ago, my daughter wanted to _______ so she called me during the day as I was in meetings. I _______her later on, but she was in class. At midnight, she reached out _______ to ask if we could talk. Well, guess what? I was _______ . I thought we would talk the next day, but she was not   _______ .

Research shows that parents are _______ when their children are grown up, but for me that is when I start to get concerned. I am always left to________ , how can I, as a parent, remain ________to my daughter to guide, support and love through life's changes?   

We may have to ________ the way we communicate. My daughter encouraged me to go digital. That’s how I ventured into the world of social media, following her updates and occasionally sharing my own experiences. Through this   ________ presence, the physical gap is ________and I feel I still have an active role in her life. This experience serves as a reminder that ________, however scary, holds the promise of growth in our shared journey.

4 . When I was in third grade, my family and I took on an unforgettable trip across the country. It turned out to be more than just a/an _______ journey; it was a journey of discovery into our _______. Every day, Dad _______ us with his trusty road map. Mom, the heart of our family, shared folk tales and painted pictures about the upcoming _______. We went through diverse _______from the thick forests to the vast deserts of the West.

One day, while hiking through the Grand Canyon, I _______   a particularly rough path. Frightened, I _______, not knowing how to proceed. That’s when my parents _______ .

As Dad showed me footholds, Mom coached me with calming _______and reminded me of the breathtaking views that lay ahead. Then, I________the confidence as my feet ________ solid ground again. When I finally overcame my fear, I felt we became ________ as a family.

From then on, every evening, we’d gather around a campfire for what we________called “Family Reflection Time”. During these sessions, we’d share laughs, ________, and insights from the day’s experiences.

The trip taught me that the true meaning of travel isn’t merely about reaching the destination but about the personal growth that happens on the route, and the family bonds formed when facing ________ together.

5 . A family from Canada was on a year-long trip around the world to create visual memories before their three children lose the sight. Mia, Colin, and Laurent were suffering from a disease without effective __________, which would gradually take away their __________.

The parents, Edith and Sebastien, decided to __________ with their children early last year. The __________ flew from Montreal with no fixed __________. During their travels, they played with schoolchildren in Botswana, danced with people in Tanzania, and stayed on a banana farm. In Thailand, Laurent even touched an elephant, calling out in __________ at how rough it felt.

Each day, Edith and Sebastien watched their kids __________ physically and emotionally. Mia grew taller and needed more independence. Both Laurent and Colin became more confident and outgoing, __________ to chat with strangers.

By the end of last year, the family had travelled 83,700 kilometers and visited 13 __________. When the kids reflected on what they had __________ about the world and themselves, Colin said, “There’s a lot of __________ and poverty, but lots of good and interesting things, too.” Mia __________ her head, “Yes, this has been a magic year we’ll __________ for the rest of our lives.”

The couple wanted their kids to lead __________ lives. Whether they are blind or not, they will find their __________.

6 . Like most of her schoolmates in rural Zimbabwe, 12-year-old Melisa has just one type of food in the meal container she brings from home. Today she finds____sweet potatoes. Her friend Nyarai has plain rice. Others’ tins ____roasted nuts, dried fish. Or boiled corn. “We bring different foods, but nobody has a______meal,” explains Melisa. Kids with too little food have fainted in class or _____dropped out of school.

But now Melisa and her schoolmates are getting_____when it comes to what they and kids with too little food are getting more, because they are sharing what’s in their tins. At lunch, students_______around the schoolyard in small groups that they call “lunch-tin clubs.” With their parents’_____, they split up their food. Nyarai finds her rice tastier when she shares it with Farisai and Linnet, who share their drink or dried pieces of meat with her. “_________brings variety to the food we eat,” Farisai says. “And it is good for our health too. ”

The clubs also_____ new friendships. Although Dennis and Prince live near each other and are classmates, they_____talked or played together before. Now, Prince says, “We are best friends at school and at home.”

Irene, a student teacher, sees another____to the clubs. Kids now freely share school supplies without quarreling. The school does not have enough for everyone, so two kids may sit on one chair, and four may use the ____book. “It’s difficult to share food when you are________” Irene says. “If you can do that, it becomes_____to share many other things.” TheLunch-Tin clubs contributes to sharing food and forming_______.

7 . A 40-minute taxi drive has, unexpectedly but luckily, become a ride for a lifetime. One day in October 2021, Bill Sumiel, 71, who had dealt with kidney failure(肾衰竭)for 2 years, was _________ outside a hospital for the taxi called online. Though he was on the transplant(移植)list, no _________ had yet appeared.

Timothy Letts, 31, the driver who took the _________ arrived on time. During the 40-minute _________, Sumiel said that he was looking for a kidney donor(捐赠者). Letts _________ that he’d be a good one, given that he didn’t drink or _________. Sumiel agreed, though he didn’t think much of it as they kept driving. Letts, _________, couldn’t stop thinking about it.

Letts believes in helping others, so donating a kidney “was something that was always on my _________,”he says. So, about a quarter-mile away from Sumiel’s house, Letts said, “I’d like to see if I could be a match to _________ you a kidney. ”

“I was __________,”Sumiel recalled. Shaking so hard, he could hardly write his name when they __________ contact information.

Letts got in touch with Sumiel just a few hours later, and by the next week, Letts had __________ the hospital. The result was that they were a __________ match.

Months after they ended up in the same car by ___________ Sumeil and Letts had their surgeries. It was a __________. Today Sumiel is doing well —thanks to Letts.

8 . With new term approaching, as a new teacher, I needed to find a reference book in our school library. Therefore, I went in search of the _______. Before leaving, I struck up a(n) _______ with her and then I was completely _______ by her experience.

During the winter break, she had gone by herself to Death Valley, a rarely visited desert. She just rented a car and packed up some simple equipment. All the way, she _______ saw another human being as she drove or _______. The photos she showed me _______ me from freezing New England to the brilliant sunshine of Death Valley, where she could appreciate the appealing landscape. But what really _______ me was how fearless this woman is. So weak is she that I used to think that she was _______ to step out of the comfort zone.

I asked her if she was _______ of being out in the vast wilderness alone and she said no ________. She even loved being alone surrounded by such incredible ________, seeking the meaning of life. Further talk revealed that her life has been ________. She was a young single mother with 2 kids and worked at odd jobs day and night to ________. To her credit, she obtained her degree in education and found a decent job.

Actually, our brief talk inspired me to lead a more ________ life and she taught me to see a person beyond the ________.

9 . One morning, standing at the head of our class, John Evans, a ragged-looking boy seemed to be an unfortunate sight. We weren’t sure what to think of the ________ dressed newcomer, but whispers of ________ began drifting from row to row.

Mrs. Parmele introduced him, trying to sound _________. John looked around and smiled, hoping somebody would ________ back. Nobody did. I held my breath, hoping Mrs. Parmele wouldn’t notice the ________ desk next to mine. She did and pointed him in that ________ . John Evans slid into the free seat, which was quite ________ for me.

However, I gradually found him a pretty ________ boy, actually pleasant to be around . Through my nightly ________ , my mother had grown to know John quite well. One night before going to bed, I said to Mother, “Mom, tomorrow is John’s birthday, but he’s going to get nothing. Nobody even ________ .” Mom said, “I’m sure everything will turn out to be fine.”

The next afternoon, I heard a ________ sound coming from the hallway singing the birthday song. Mother came with a plate of cupcakes and a ________ wrapped present. She put the cupcakes and gift on John’s desk, saying “Happy birthday, John.” John graciously ________ his cupcakes with the class. Mother smiled.

Since then I’ve never heard from John again. Whenever I hear that familiar song, I remember the ________ tones of my mother’s voice, the glint(闪光) in a boy’s eyes and the taste of the sweetest ________ .

10 . My grandmother suffers from Alzheimer’s disease. Seeing her condition worsen over time, and knowing I could do nothing, created a feeling of ________ in me.

As the years passed and my understanding of the disease grew, my frustration turned first to anger, then resignation (顺从), and finally ________. Though the disease was bound to slowly eat away at her, there were ways to ________ its progress. Every night the two of us would sit together and ________ while my grandmother would count beans. The exercise could help to keep her mentally ________.

Gradually her counting became slower, and she would lose track of things more ________. While at night we would count beans, in the day I involved myself in studies of ________. My earlier feelings of despair gave way to ________; advances in genetic engineering offered the possibility that one day those like my grandmother could be cured, or ________ from developing Alzheimer’s in the first place.

Seeing my grandmother slip away ________ me to take biology courses to learn more about cells, the nervous system, and genetic information, which helped me better understand how our ________ of this disease has grown in the past decade. ________ I began to see new possibilities for preventing diseases like Alzheimer’s.

Nowadays, my grandmother cannot count beans anymore and doesn’t ________ me at all. Once she used to tell me stories and I whispered to her all my problems. Now I am a ________ to her. How I wish one day I could contribute to a future, where no child has to watch their grandmother count the ________ they have left together.