2 . “Allie, did you write this signature (签名)?” my third-grade teacher asked me. I looked down at the paper on his desk. My mom’s handwriting was terrible.

“No, I didn’t,” I said. “My mom is ________.”

I have a complicated (复杂的) relationship with my mom because of her blindness. Sometimes I become annoyed about the need to ________ her with daily tasks. Helping her too often adds to my daily burden. Therefore, just as a parent teaches their child to be ________, I always try to guide my mom towards self-reliance (自立).

Even though our roles often feel reversed (颠倒的), my mom and I have a quite traditional mother-daughter ________. I admit I have secretly tried to use my mom’s ________ to my advantage in the past, like pretending to eat a salad I didn’t like. But I haven’t gotten away with everything. My mom is not able to see, but she can sure ________ well! I’ve been caught ________ my pears into the trash can due to the loud noise it made.

My mom has never allowed her blindness to ________ her from being a good mother. When I was in a car crash last year, the first thing I did was to ________ my mom. Putting down the phone, she was ________ on her way. The ________ happened only a few minutes ’walk away from my house, but reaching me required her to walk across a busy street on her own. Watching my mom find my car, stepping ________ through the grass to get to me, gave me a feeling of relief. I have taken on the responsibilities of an adult from such a young age that I have forgotten I still need my mom’s protection and ________ .

Throughout my childhood of living with a blind parent, I have rarely thought about how my family is different from others ’. Although my mom will never really know what I ________ , she will always know who I am and how I’m feeling by the tones (语气) of my ________. Her being blind doesn’t make her any less of a parent — or her signature any less valid (有效的).

6 . It was the end of the school day, and I was tired. I grabbed a pile of about 130 exam papers to _________ on the train ride home. I’d bring them back the next morning.

My principal (校长) pushed her head into my classroom and said, “Friendly _________! You need to make sure your word wall is _________ by tomorrow morning.” She then moved on to the next classroom to _________ the message. I sighed and thought, “Are you making a(n)_________? What a waste of my time!”

My principal was _________ about making our school beautiful, while my goal was to get my students to pass the Algebra Regents Exam. She wanted every classroom to have a word wall, where student’s works on creative projects would be _________. She brought in beautiful planters (花盆) that _________ the hallways with greenery. However, I assume that school and classroom _________ aren’t important when it comes to learning. To me, spending time and money making our school and classrooms beautiful was just a distraction (使人分心的事). Those things don’t __________ my students with math.

However, after three years of teaching, I went to graduate school in part to study how resources __________ teachers and students. What my research found __________ me: When teachers __________ their classroom environment resources, their students did better on standardized tests. My principal was __________. She was creating more than just a beautiful __________—she was building a welcoming and positive environment for students to learn and teachers to work.

7 . I was heading home after giving my colleague a lift. I took a _______ as the snowstorm was approaching.

Then the snow started and was coming down _______. Within minutes I was in a whiteout.The windows were _______ and getting covered with snow, so I slowed down and rolled down my driver's side window, thinking I could better _______ the road edge and keep to a straight line. But really, I had no _______ where I was. I stopped and kept the car running to stay_______. I called 911.The operator told me to wait things out for the night.

The call left me in _______. Breathe, I told myself. An idea occurred to me. I _______ my location online and explained what I was _______, wishing for anyone to come to my rescue. Soon enough, people started chiming in on my post. I got a ________ from someone who was going to put me in touch with people nearby. I had never been more ________.

Then I saw a big ________ in the dark. He had walked about 500 metres to get me, ________ the wind and snow each step of the way. “You’ll be OK. Follow me.” He turned around and started to trudge through the snow, sure of the ________. I drove slowly behind him. When we reached his house,I burst into tears of ________.

8 . Granny fell ill before Valentine’s Day. She had to ______ our planned zoo trip, which she had been ______.

“Remember to say hi to the monkeys for me,” Granny ______ us up before we left. We did go and have fun, but I kept ______ Granny could have been with us.

Tex spotted some ______ and suggested taking a picture in front of them. While we said, “Cheese,” Indi accidentally said, “Happy Valentine’s Day, Granny!” This slip of the tongue (舌头) reminded me. I ______ taking pictures of different animals and ______ them into a zoo valentine for Granny. Everyone loved that.

At home, we ______ out the printed pictures on the table. Since it was ______ to fit so many pictures onto a heart-shaped card, we ______ to create a whole bunch of valentines, each card representing an animal.

______, our print didn’t have color ink, so we ______ the black-and-white pictures with markers and made speech balloons for the animals. When we were done, I made a couple of ______ on the cards and tied them together to make a book. It took forever to finish, but it turned out ______.

“Oh, you little sweet potatoes!” Granny smiled when we gave her our ______. “You sure did turn this lady’s frown (眉头) upside down! I love you so much.”

9 . My mom loved to pass her wisdom to me: ”Nothing beats a good bite that bites back.” She was referring to her bitter-taste foods like dill pickles and rhubarb (大黄叶). But I was not a big fan.

Three years ago, I finally decided to ask if I could ________ out her rhubarb while weeding the garden. “________ not!” Mom gasped, throwing me a(n) ________ look. Clearly, I had underestimated her________ for it. However, as I continued ________, I thought about how rhubarb is one of the first to appear in spring. It ________ the snowy ground before the arrival of other plants. How can anyone fail to ________ it? When those first sprouts (嫩芽) appeared, Mom would count them like a ________ counting a newborn’s fingers and toes.

When I was a kid and my mom gave me that pie, it made me ________ to try. In my teens, it made me complain about the bitterness. Even ice cream or candies did not ________ the deal for my young taste buds (味蕾). Rhubarb was something to be ________ at all costs.

Then, last summer, I came across the ________ for her rhubarb pie in an old drawer. So I decided to give it a ________. A few attempts later, I served rhubarb pie to family and guests. All agreed, including me, that it tasted incredible.

Since then I’ve come to a ________ about rhubarb. Rhubarb’s taste may be lost on children, but adults can________ it. Like my wise mother, I now understand that “Nothing beats a good bite that bites back.”

10 . Being part of a community can help people feel less lonely in life. Oliver Johnson is only 7years old, but he sometimes feels lonely and abandoned.

As Oliver’s birthday drew near, his mom Katherine Johnson ______ to do something to make her son feel ______ in society. Knowing Oliver loves ______ more than toys and video games, and always wants to sit behind the wheel, Katherine shared a simple post on Facebook ______ if any truckers would give her son a ______ in their trucks for $50. She hoped just one trucker would see the post and ______ . Later, Barry, the owner of a transportation company, saw Katherine’s ______ . Unexpectedly, Barry appealed to the truckers of his company to turn up for a truck rally (集会) in honor of Oliver’s birthday. Thirty-four truckers ______ right away. However, on the big day, more than twice that number ______ . Barry was very grateful for his staff members showing a lonely child what a ______ community looks like. “When it comes to kids, these truckers will always come out,” Barry said. Oliver was ______ surprised by the truck rally, and he couldn’t have been more ______ . “We all could sense he was surrounded by happiness,” said his father, Simon Johnson. “To be perfectly honest, the big day meant more than we could have ever ______ ,” he added, “‘thank you’ just doesn’t ______ what’s happened.”

None of the truckers accepted a cent for their time or expenses. It’s an act full of ______ ! Thanks to everyone who made this happen to the special kid.