1 . “You can get a kitten,” I promised my daughter Cali after her father and I divorced (离婚). After _________ in our new apartment, we headed to North Bay Animal Services.

One orange-and-white kitten drew Cali’s _________.

“_________, we’ve got two of those,” said the attendant. “They are _________, Caramel and Butter.”

“Can we take them both?” Cali _________.

“We have to follow the _________ of our new apartment,” I said. “Only one cat, remember?”

“I know,” Cali _________.

We brought Caramel home. Caramel seemed _________ without his twin and Cali cried for it. Two weeks later we drove back to the _________, hoping our landlord wouldn’t realize there were two of them because they looked __________.

However, we were told Butter was __________ four days ago.

Two years later I had a new boyfriend Brain. The first time I went to his home, I saw a flash of orange and white. Caramel? I thought, __________.

“That’s my daughter’s cat Butter,” Brian said.

After comparing the adoption papers, I __________ Butter was Caramel’s twin!

“They might not __________ each other after two years,” Brian said. But when brought together, Caramel and Butter nuzzled (依偎) each other with __________.

Today Caramel and his brother are inseparable. As are Brian and I, and our daughters after our marriage.

2 . I was on my way to go to a job interview when I was stopped by Officer Jenkins. When I ________, both of the brake lights went out. Thinking that I was stopped for a(n) ________ traffic check, I reached for my driving license and registration. I was even ready for a(n) ________.

As he ________ the car and saw I was pulling out my stuff, he ________ said, “Don’t worry about pulling anything out. I just want you to be ________ that your brake lights are out.” I was immediately ________ because I had just got them replaced last month. I explained to him how the garage mechanic wanted to ________ me $600 just to run a test on the wiring of the car.

He looked at me with a ________ and told me to pop the trunk. With a simple tap here and a tap there, Jenkins managed to get the brake lights ________ again.

I was moved by his ________. He could have easily given me a ticket, but he stepped out of ________ role and into mechanic role to make sure I was straight. His action reminded me of the profound impact a ________ act of kindness can have. It’s a call to recognize those who go the ________ mile, who do more than what’s ________ of them.

3 . Once a famous painter lived in a certain city. Thousands of people used to come to see his art exhibition. People would never get tired of ________ his works.

One day, he thought, “Do people praise me only in front of me and talk about ________ in my works behind my back?” The next day, he ________ early and took one of his paintings to a busy square of his city. There he kept his painting with a(an) ________ written below — “Whoever finds any mistake in this painting should ________ a mark on that place.”

In the evening, when he went to the square to see the painting, he became ________ as there were hundreds of marks on his painting. Seeing this, he got very disappointed and ________ picked up his painting and went home. This incident left a negative (消极的) influence on him and he ________ painting and started shying away from meeting people.

His friend realized that the painter was troubled by something and ________ him the reason. The painter told him everything with a sad heart. ________ it, his friend asked him to do one thing.

The next morning he put a new painting at the square. With a note written below it — “Whoever finds any mistake in the painting, ________ it.” In the evening when the painter and his friend went to check the painting, it was still the same as it was in the morning. The painter was ________ to see this. His friend noticed his amazement and said, “Do you understand something? There is no ________ in taking the opinions of people who only want to find fault with others. ________, understand that fault was not in your picture but in asking for ________ from such people!”

4 . At three years old, I was diagnosed with neurofibromatosis (神经纤维瘤), a condition that causes tumors (肿瘤) to form in the brain, spinal cord and nerves. Although I struggled to play sport like my friends, I still had a(n) ________ childhood with my younger siblings’ company. But by age 15, I needed surgery to ________ all the tumors in my hand that were causing ________ when I moved.

In the years that followed, I had many more ________, though I got on well with life and studied at university, ________ my mum’s footsteps in education field. I loved children but I’d made a decision of not having children ________, because the chances of passing on NF to them were too ________. Instead, having cared for 40 kids in a foster care, along with getting a job in childcare, gave me such ________ and I wanted to make each moment ________.

But in 2020, an aggressive tumor was found in my brain and while doctors could remove some of it, they couldn’t take out the most aggressive part. After the surgery, I had to learn to get around with the ________ of a wheelie walker, and teach myself to do basic tasks left-handed. Working in childcare was no longer ________, but I remained determined. Even though my treatment for the tumor remains ongoing, I also have lots to ________. I’ve bought a house, I do volunteer work at a shop, and have ________ Lottie into my life. My plan is to train her to be my service dog in case my condition ________.

I hope by sharing my story, it ________ others that your life is there to be lived — and that’s what I plan to keep doing.

5 . Stella was 5 when she had a surgery that left her with casts (石膏) on both legs and a bar between them. It was impossible to wear ______ pants during the recovery.

Like any mother, Puzzo promised to do anything to give Stella ______ to dress. She decided to try it herself. Soon came the first-generation version: a pair of pants was ______ and then sewed in Velcro (尼龙搭扣). It was a simple fix, but a big ______ for Stella．

At the post-operative appointment, Stella wore them. Her doctors were ______ and advised Puzzo to _____ more. “Many parents ask us all the time what to dress their children in, and now you ______ solved that problem,” one doctor added.

When she ______ what the surgeon said with her friend Joanne DiCamillo, it ______ them that this was something missing from the market. It was there that the brand Befree was born.

Later, they worked on the second generation, eventually making a ______ from Velcro to zippers (拉链). They were granted design patents for their pants and ______ their website in 2022, which became an instant hit.

DiCamillo noted that ______ buyers are not limited to just children and adults with disabilities, but including other people ______ from surgeries. Their dream is that in five years, their ______ clothes will be sold alongside traditional clothes.

It is said that ______ is the mother of invention, and this invention came from two mothers with a need: clothing for those with disabilities.

6 . Growing up as a kid in the UK, I was fascinated by insects. Wanting to protect them, I started _________ little houses for ants, using little pieces of wood and leaves. My mother, always _________ me, said that the _________ I made things, the bigger my name would become when seeing my work.

As the years went by, my designs became more _________. And I used many different _________, such as diamond fragments, eyelashes and even spider web threads.

My sculptures have taken me to incredible places. In 2012, I met the queen, _________ her with a tiny crown on the head of a pin. In 2013, beyond my _________, I received my first Guinness World Record for creating the smallest sculpture made by hand which was a 24-carat gold motorbike. In 2017, I broke my _________ with a sculpture of a human fetus (胎儿) that measured _________ 0.078 mm by 0.053 mm.

As a child, I was __________ with autism (自闭症). In school, my teachers had defined me not __________ for learning; but now, I see my autism as a(n) __________. It’s pushed me to be the best I can be. I hold workshops in schools for neurodiverse children, sharing with them my life and work and helping them create their own miniature __________ out of Blu-Tack (蓝丁胶).

The microscopic world has always been my __________ place. I’ve tried to make bigger sculptures, but small is the best for me. We need to __________ the little things in life. Small things can also be mighty, too.

7 . If Christmas and Thanksgiving are the biggest official holidays in the US, certainly Super Bowl Sunday is the biggest unofficial holiday. Like other_______, it’s a time for friends and family to_______for food and chatting. However, those who live on the edge of society don’t have the special connection.

Meir Kalmanson thought those people, too, should get to_______the big day. So, on a cold February Sunday in 2017, as he_______to a Super Bowl party being held at a New York City club, he invited six_______men he met on the streets to join him. Over hamburgers, chicken wings and soda, Kalmanson and his homeless_______watched the classic football games. Kalmanson described the scene as“_______, exciting energy”. “We were on the edge of our seats. Cheering, laughing. But the games only played just a small part in the night’s_______,” he said. More important was the men’s_______with one another and the other fans.“We were part of a bigger party that was happening,” said Kalmanson. “They gained their dignity.” For that evening, they were no longer outsiders. They__________.

The following year, friends and YouTube fans asked about the next party, and so began the __________organization Super Soul Parties. Homeless people now have__________to new clothing and a barber, as well as mental health therapists and__________housing organizations.

Kalmanson grew up in a household that lived by the golden rule, “Helping those in need,__________it was a meal or a place to stay,” he says. “It’s the most important thing in life: Be __________”

8 . Ella Casano was diagnosed with a disease called ITP when she was seven. For most kids with ITP, the disease will ______ go away. But it was not the ______ for Ella. Now 13, she still has to have IV infusions (输液) every eight weeks, which ______ her a lot.

Thinking of her ______ treatment process, she ______ to design a product that could make medical experiences less frightening. She cut up a stuffed toy and used a hot glue gun to ______ her first Medi Teddy, a ______ shaped like a teddy bear. The back of the cover is made of mesh (网) so that doctors and nurses can ______ the medicine that the child is receiving.” The purpose of the design is to ______ a bag of IV fluid so that the child who is receiving it can not see it. Instead, the child will see a ______ bear face.” Ella said.

Ella was ______ that Medi Teddy should be non-profit, so she could help other kids who have ______ similar experiences. So she launched a GoFundMe to ______ money and successfully collected more than $20,000, aiming to make more Medi Teddies for the kids!

“The ______ of the little patients has been wonderful. We think we are ready to produce a better ______ product that can help hundreds of kids.” Meg said.

9 . There was once a tiny country that was suffering from a _________.It had gone so long without rain that the people there were starting to go hungry because of the bad_________It just so happened that a group of musicians were travelling the country, trying to make a living from their _________. But with so many problems in the land, no one _________to listen to music.

“But music can_________to overcome any problems,” argued the musicians, without anyone paying them the slightest attention. So the musicians tried to find out the reason why it wouldn’t rain. It was strange that although the sky was_________, not a single raindrop came down. No one could provide an answer.

“It’s been cloudy like this for many months, but not a single drop of rain has fallen,” people would tell them.

“Don’t worry, we’ll bring rain to the country,” the musicians_________, and they began rehearsing (彩排) for a concert at the top of the_________mountain. Everyone who heard the music was attracted out of_________and went up the mountain. And the_________of this strange orchestra gave the order, and the musicians began to play.

From their _________came small, playful musical notes (音符), which rose and rose into the clouds. The music was so joyous, happy and fun, and the notes started playing with the clouds’ soft, fluffy bellies, running here and there, up and down, and the whole sky turned into one big game of tickle (挠痒痒). Before long, the_________clouds were thundering with laughter.

The musicians continued playing_________and a few minutes later the clouds, crying with laughter, soaked the little country below with their precious tears,_________happiness to all. And in memory of that musical rain, everyone in the land learned how to play an instrument and,_________, would go up the mountain every day to bring joy to the clouds with their beautiful songs.

10 . A French couple in Brittany was saved from a house fire by their pet parrot after the bird made coughing sounds and cried, “It’s hot!” The parrot, aged six and named Baby, was the first to _________something was wrong in the home. He began _________ in the small hours of Sunday. This _________ his sleeping owners, and they quickly discovered that the dishwasher had caught fire.

The couple, Virginie and Gilles, said, “At night, Baby normally doesn’t talk and we don’t ever hear him.” So when Baby began _________ coughing sounds and saying, “Ouh c’est chaud! (Oh, It’s hot!)”, the couple _________ knew something was wrong and got up to _________.

Firefighters told the couple they couldn’t have _________ if they had not heard Baby’s words. The couple was so ___________ that they called Baby their _________. After the event, Virginie sent a __________to France Bleu, a social medium, with Baby sitting on her shoulder.

Baby was not the only parrot saving his owners. In 2020,__________ things happened in the US. A pet parrot saved a family in Tennessee by waking them after a fire started in their kitchen. The Tennessee parrot cried, “Fire!”__________, it had never used the word before.

Scientists say sometimes parrots __________ words in a way that is more than just copying the sounds, and are ____________ to knowing how to use the words. Some can even speak local __________ and several languages.