1 . Last year, my son Leopold, then 9, and I went on a ski trip to Keystone, Colorado. Leopold, a picky eater and a little ______ of new experiences, inspired me to create a “yes rule” for our adventure. We agreed to ______ every opportunity, no matter how unappealing it seemed.

Our ______ began at the airport breakfast buffet, where we both ______ our comfort zones. I tried a vegan meatball and Leopold ______ look a small bite of hash browns (土豆饼). Neither of us ______ our choices, but we appreciated the experience.

Back at the hotel, Leopold met his snowboard ______ . He had taken a few lessons before, but never on a mountain of this size. I hoped that Leopold would ______ this opportunity.

While Leopold was at the snowboard school, I was on the slopes alone. The first day I chose an easy green run. On the second day, ______ , I thought of Leopold, who, the day before, had kept to our ______ and faced his fear of heights to learn how to ride a chairlift (缆车) , so I ______ myself to a higher- level blue run. It was steeper than I expected, but I managed to ski down successfully and felt a sense of ______ :

That afternoon, despite the freezing temperatures, Leopold wanted to try the outdoor hot tub. Though initially ______ , I remembered our “yes rule” and joined him. The contrast between the cold air and the warm water was refreshing and we shared a ______ moment.

Our “yes rule” was so successful that we decided to include the rest of the family on future trips. Adopting a “yes” mentality on holiday encourages us to push our ______ and live life to the fullest.

2 . On July 31st, 2024, 17-year-old Quan Hongchan and 18-year-old Chen Yuxi, China’s young diving duo (跳水二人组) _______ the world with their excellent performance at the Paris Olympics. They won the gold medal in the women’s synchronized 10m platform diving event. Their perfect dives helped China get its _______ gold medal. The excitement didn’t stop there. Just a few days later, on August 6th, Quan Hongchan got _______ gold medal by winning the women’s 10m platform diving competition. Her dives were so amazing _______ they left the judges and audience in surprise and respect.

Quan, known for her bravery and fearlessness, had been training _______ for this moment. Her _______ paid off, as she stood on the top of the podium (领奖台), holding the gold medal high. When a reporter asked her whether she would _______ next Olympics in Los Angeles, she said that the future should be thought about in the future, and we should live in the present. Quan’s teammate and friend Chen Yuxi, winning silver, couldn’t help _______ and felt happy _______ Quan’s achievement. Together, they had faced many challenges and prizes, making their friendship even ________.

The victory (胜利) not only brought joy to the Chinese people but also encouraged the young athletes (运动员) around the world. It showed the power of teamwork and the human spirit.

3 . A couple, who began raising money for _______ 40 years ago after their daughter’s battle with cancer, are about to _______the l million mark. Their youngest daughter Sally Kay was_______with cancer when she was a teenager. She _______successful chemotherapy (化疗) and totally recovered from the disease at the age of 18. On their way home after her final surgery and chemotherapy, Sally said, “Mum, I’m one of the _______ones so I’d like to give something back.” This got her parents Mike and Bridget Locke thinking. The couple decided to raise money for, _______research to find a cure and they have stuck to their promise raising £956,000.

The devoted pair have spent the past four decades working _______ to raise cash for Cancer Research. They have raised thousands through supermarket collections, breakfast mornings and golf events. Mike discovered a love of making marmalade (橘子酱) and has sold over 2,000 jars all for charity .

It became their _______job after Mike retired 30 years ago. “It makes me feel I’ve done something_______ ,” Mike said.“I’ve enjoyed it because l think l m doing something useful with my life.” Bridget, a former local newspaper our journalist, said, “I think it’s in my blood to raise money, Even as a small child during the war, I used to do a collection and was given a(n) ________for raising more than the other girls.

Mike, who was awarded a Member of the British Empire in 2007 for his services to Cancer Research, added. “A few years ago, I mapped it out on a graph and worked out that we should hit the1 million mark by the time l turn 90.Well, I________ it to 90 but we still haven’t hit l million.” So he has ________ a fundraising page online to get the £44,00. He needs to________ his target. Sophie Bus son from Cancer Research said,” What Mike said and his family have achieved is extraordinary. Their ________will enable scientists to find new ways to________, diagnose and treat cancer and we are incredibly grateful to him.”

4 . Riding a bus to and from school every day is not that inspiring. But one bus driver in Florida is working to ______ that. Anthony Burgess, a 37- year- old bus driver for Pinellas County Schools is making the rides a(n) ______ experience for the students he ______. He asked the kids to bring a meaningful quote that could be ______ on the bus to inspire others.

“I wrote this ______ on the bus, by Dr. Mae Jemison, ‘Never be limited by other people’s limited imaginations,’” said Logan Roberts, an 8th grade rat Largo Middle School. “‘If you can dream, you can do it,’ by Walt Disney,” Logan added. Other ______ quotes are by Mother Teresa and other role models, or from music and movies, but what they all have in common is ______, according to Good Morning America (GMA).

Much to Burgess’s ______, some of the quotes that students ______ are things that he has told them on their bus rides. “The world is brighter because you’re part of it — Mr. Anthony,” one note ______. “What really got to me was when several of them wrote, ‘Stay awesome— Mr. Anthony.’ They ______ mine and I didn’t think that would ______ be a thing. But that was really nice.” Burgess ______.

When GMA asked him which quote was his ______, Burgess said that all of them are perfect, adding, “I didn’t realize how ______ it would be on these kids.”

5 . “We’re all waiting for you at Port Miller Swimming Pool, Alison. Are you coming with us?” asked the voice on the telephone.

“I can’t. I _________ my mother I would weed (除杂草) the garden today,” replied Alison. She put the phone down a few moments later and returned to the garden _________. As she began weeding, all she could think of was her friends having a _________ time at the swimming pool. “It would be perfect if I could be with them,” Alison thought.

“Alison,” called her mother from the house _________. “I overheard your _________ with your friends. Why don’t you join them at the pool and do this later?”

“Really? Thanks, Mom!” said Alison in a _________ voice.

She was out of the house in a few minutes and _________ Port Miller Swimming Pool. However, at the pool, Alison could not find her friends. She _________ all over the place but they were nowhere in _________. She also looked for them at their favorite places, the bowling alley, the shopping centers and the fast food restaurants. However, they seemed to have __________ completely.

When she __________ home a few hours later, her mother was __________ for her at the front gate. To her __________, the garden was spotlessly clean and neat.

“After you __________ the house, your friends came here to look for you,” her mother __________. “They had come to help you weed the garden!” “Oh!” Alison sighed.

6 . Going to school on a special day like “Pajama (睡衣) Day” is usually a happy event. But on that morning, the bus driver Larry Farrish noticed that something was very _______ about one of his _______. Levi who always flashes a big smile in the morning seemed very _______.

Actually, he was crying. When Farrish asked Levi what was wrong, Levi told him that he didn’t have the _______ for the special day.

“ It _______ me so bad,” Farrish said. “That just wasn’t my Levi, and I wanted him to have a good day.” Farrish decided that he had to _______ this. He went to Family Dollar, _______ a few pairs of pajamas and _______ to the elementary school.

Farrish began driving a school bus seven years ago. He _______ the position to be able to have weekends and summers off. But it ________ turned into a passion.

Farrish loves ________ to the kids on his route. “They become my kids after they ________ their parents,” Farrish said. “I make sure they get to and from school safe and sound, but I also try to bring some ________ to them.”

Since his kind act was posted online, the response has been ________. People went out of their way to contact him. “It feels good knowing the ________ I have had on a child’s life,” Farrish said.

7 . The day after Christmas, there was a teacher named Brittany Loubier-Vervisch from Tampa, Florida. She was _______ her lost luggage when she had an idea. Why not do more than simply search for her _______ luggage? “I got there. I’ve never_______anything like this,” Brittany said. “There are _______ mountains of luggage between the carousels (行李传送带).”

While her husband was at the Southwest Airlines’ customer service counter, Brittany continued her _______. However, it was she that also _______ to help others who had been separated from their luggage, too.

“I was circling through the baggage claim (行李领取处) as things were coming off the line and being _______ up．If there was a tag (标签) on it with a number, I sent a _______, ” Brittany said.

In fact, Brittany was so _______ that people thought she worked at the airport!” I walked through the bags, and I sent messages like ‘Oh, here’s your bags. Is this your name?’” Brittany ________. “And they said ‘Yes’ and asked ‘Do you ________ here?’”

As she made her ________ through what she would describe as an “Armageddon of luggage”, she said she had sent between 70 and 80 texts to people letting them know where to ________ their bags. Taira Meadow, one traveler who received a text from Brittany, really appreciated Brittany’s ________. “I sent a big ‘thank you’ to you ________, texting me that my suitcase was in fact in Tampa,” Taira wrote on a social media platform.

8 . I had a terrible experience last year. One night my younger brother, Chase, was driving us home from our weekly cleaning of the church. We were both getting ________, so we picked up a couple of energy drinks at a gas station. Then we jumped onto the freeway and ________ home.

The ride was fine. My brother was focused, so I ________ my eyes. I woke up when we were close to our exit. But the car ________ turned to the right. I did not care at first because Chase often played jokes. Then I ________ it was not a joke at all.

I shouted my brother’s name at the top of my ________. He woke up from his sleep in time to slam on the brakes, though the brakes did little to ________ us down. We crashed into a streetlight, ________ us hit the dirt hill of the off-ramp (出口匝道).

Then I ________ something white and bright shoot toward my chest. It hit me and left me breathless but ________ me from the dashboard (仪表盘). The streetlight swung around, hitting two other ________ and then crashed back onto the hood of our car. One inch ________ to us, Chase and I wouldn’t be here today. A kind man ________ us out of our car, and the policeman came to ________ us. They said there were no broken ribs (肋骨) and no internal bleeding.

Our dad ________ on the scene in his car and drove us home. From that day on, we never drove while we were sleepy or tired again.

9 . Once, a daughter complained to her father that her life was ______ and that she didn't know how she was going to make it. Her father took three pots, ______ each with water and placed them on a high fire. Then, he placed potatoes, eggs and coffee beans into the three pots ______ .

After a while, he took the potatoes, eggs and coffee beans out. Turning to her, he said, “Daughter, touch them.” She took potatoes and noted they were ______ ; pulling off the shell of the egg, she ______ the hard-boiled egg. Finally, when ______ the coffee, she felt its rich aroma and a fragrant stream running down her throat. “Father, what does this mean?”, she asked with amazement. He ______ that the potatoes, the eggs and coffee beans had each faced the same ______ —the boiling water. ______ , each one reacted differently. The potatoes that used to be strong and hard became soft and weak. The eggs were ______ but now their inside became hard. ______ , the coffee beans, when ______ to the boiling water, changed the water and created something new.

When adversity knocks on your door, the only thing that truly ______ is how you choose to ______ to it and what you make out of it. Life is all about learning, adapting and ______ all the struggles into something positive.

10 . It seems that beautiful people rule the world. But Kodi Lee is a reminder that all are ________ and everybody has a voice worth listening to.

Born in 1996, Kodi Lee ________ a serious illness that left him blind and was diagnosed with autism (自闭症) later. Surprisingly, he ________ it to the talent show “America’s Got Talent”. Seeing the disabled boy ________ the stage, the audience grew silent, their faces filled with ________. They were worried for the young man who had difficulty keeping his ________ when he walked. ________, with the aid of his mother, Kodi Lee made his way to the piano bench.

________ resting on keys, lips testing the distance to the microphone, Lee changed into a performer who ________ emotional lyrics (歌词) from some inner power. It felt like the love he sang about was the only thing that was needed. The standing claps ________ to his next performance.

Although his ability to communicate is ________ in some ways, he is deeply connected with music. The most joyful thing in his life is to play the piano in front of an audience because it makes people so ________

As we look at our own ________ on our screens, save a few spaces for messages that make others happy. No matter who we are, something ________ inside us connects with people and ________ them joy, encouragement and smiles.