1 . One day, we had a family dinner. While the adults were busy with their serious talk outside, I was left alone in the ________ to help my grandmother wash dishes. ________ my grandmother would tell me stories about her childhood.

Born just before WWII, my grandmother ________ an entirely different childhood lifestyle from mine. She did not have a chance to go to ________. Like in typical families, where boys were ________ much more than girls, my grandma had to stay at home to do ________. The only opportunity (机会) she could seize to ________ was when her brother was having Chinese ________ with the family tutor. She would sit quietly at the far end of the long dinner table, listening ________. This training taught her to read and write her Chinese upside down — a skill that has turned out to be quite ________, especially whenever we share the newspaper. On most weekends, my grandmother, a young girl then, and her brother would go to the ________. There, they would walk through deep water, sit down cross-legged underwater and hold their ________ while they watched all action going on around them. This is something I ________ — her ability to open her ________ underwater and still sit comfortably on the seabed.

My childhood is quite ________ compared with hers. I am ________ that I did not need to ________ the hardships like she did. I've never faced the problem of ________. I guess our different childhood background is what makes my grandmother such an amazing person to ________ to: her stories always make my history textbooks ________.

2 . When I decided to buy a house in Europe ten years ago, I didn't think too long. I liked traveling in France, but when it came to picking my favorite spot to _______, Italy was the clear winner.

During my first visit to Italy, I _______ to ask for directions or order in a restaurant. But every time I tried to _______ a sentence of   Italian together, the locals smiled at me and _______ my language skills. That encouragement helped me to get through the language _______. After I made Italy my permanent home, I discovered how _______ Italians are. Neighbors will bring me freshly made cheese and will come to my door to _______ me to close the window in my car when rain is coming. It's these small _______ of kindness that make a new country feel like home.

As a foodie, the way to my heart is through my stomach, and nowhere fuels my _______ quite like Italy. Each town has its own traditional ________, and every family keeps a recipe passed from one generation to another. Families ________ for big meals on Sundays, birthdays, and whatever other excuses they can ________. These meals are always ________ by laughter and joy. Whatever ________ life in Italy might have, the problems are ________ once you sit down to a big meal with friends and family.

3 . I’ve been motivated — and demotivated — by other folks’ achievements all my life.

When I was a teenager, a neighborhood friend ________ a marathon race. Feeling motivated, I started running ________, but then two things happened. First, a girl I met one day told me she was ________ for a “super,” referring to a 52.4-mile double marathon. Then, the next day I went on my longest run — 15 miles. To be honest, I ________ it! Between the girl making my ________ seem small and the pure boredom of jogging, I decided that the only ________ I’d ever run again is if a big dog was running after me!

So I ________ cycling. I got a good bike and rode a lot. I ________ of entering cycle races until I flew to San Diego to visit my sister. While she was at work one day, I ________ her bike and went for a ride. The ________: the roads there went through large valleys where I’d be riding uphill for miles at a time. I’d never faced such ________. That day, I got ________ by about 100 “local” bikers who were used to such roads. When I got back home, suddenly riding my bike didn’t seem quite as ________.

I’ve ________ a lot since then. I’ve come to accept that whatever ________ I set for myself, they just have to be my own.

4 . I used to be worried about what I should buy my dad for Father’s Day. I’d _________ countless stores for something that my dad would like. But I never had _________. That was years ago when I was _________ and thought every holiday was about _________.

Those years it was usually months after Father’s Day that my dad _________ a gift because he always told me he never “_________” anything. So I stopped getting him things and, _________, started taking him out to movies, to restaurants or to shows, which brought him much laughter.

We should _________ spending time with our fathers doing something they’ll _________. If he is fond of fishing, go fishing with him. Anything you can do to spend time with your father is better than anything you can __________ in a box and put a bow on, unless of course, you put yourself in a box, pop out and hand him tickets to a show or a game.

If, however, your mind is still set on getting a(n) __________ gift as well, then replace that thing that needs to be __________. That’s probably what I’m going to do next year for my father. Sorry, Dad, but this really will be the last summer your lawn mower can __________. If your dad is anything like mine, he’ll __________ until whatever needs to be replaced is __________ broken. And by that I mean it’s there-is-no-possible-way-it-can-be-fixed broken. So __________ it for him.

Many people may no longer have a(n) __________ with their dad. So for those who are lucky like me, it’s a __________ to take our dads for granted. The times we can laugh sure __________ the times we can’t. Now, do something with your dad to make him happy. __________ the materialistic gifts. Bring on the laughs.

5 . Becky Turney lost her 19-year-old son two years ago. Turney _______ her son terribly and wanted to make him part of her big day. She _______ photos of her late son in her wedding party and left a chair _______ where he would have sat had he been alive.

Turney didn’t _______ that her husband had flown in a special _______, Jacob Kilby, for their big day, and had not told her until moments before she walked down the aisle (过道) to start her new life with him.

When Turney’s son, Triston, _______ at 19, he donated his _______ to save the lives of other people in need. One of the people he _______ was a young man named Jacob Kilby, who _______ his heart.

After Triston’s heart was donated to Kilby, Turney and Kilby exchanged __________ online but had never met __________ until Turney’s big day. Turney’s husband had __________ flown Kilby out to Alaska to stand in as a groomsman (伴郎), but Turney had already reserved a __________ for her son.

However, when Turney arrived at the aisle, her husband stopped the __________ to introduce Kilby to her and tell her why he was there. Turney was __________ that her husband had done something so __________ and said she responded like a little girl __________ up and down.

Turney’s husband __________ that hiding Kilby from his wife took some effort until he introduced him as a groomsman. He joked there was no __________ eye in the room and that he got __________ for ruining people’s make-up.

6 . A few days before my high school ended, I was sitting in my English class. My classmates were talking about who would be the first person to shed tears at _________ . Then, everyone looked at me, and I began to ________ right then and there. I am not an emotional person,but the _________ of leaving this place hit me hard. I never knew how much this building and the people in it ________ to me, until my last days.

High school isn’t for everyone, but there is something for everyone in high school. You just have to ______ out what your“thing”is. I ______ found my “thing” in high school and that was Student Government. For once I had a(n) ________ . I served as the representative of my class, and it gave me a ________ to convey not only my own, but my classmates'_______ to teachers and our school.

But there were a lot of times when I felt ______ . I sat in the classroom looking at the clock, ______ for the end of school day. I ______ the days until summer like it was my job. But now I ______ I could take back all of those moments.

My biggest ________ to anyone still in high school is to make your school a place where you want to go. High school goes by very quickly. You only get one chance to be a high schooler, so take ________ of it.

7 . “But I want that blue car!”

The blue car didn’t make it through our checkout line. The tears_________up and streamed down this four-year-old face. I was overwhelmed with_________by the noisy scene we created. I wanted more than anything to_________this screaming child and charge out of there, child under my arm, marching him straight out of the_________and into the car. But I couldn’t do that.

A car accident in my teens left me paralysed (瘫痪) from the chest down. From sixteen on I was_________to create a life with my wheelchair. I relied heavily on my stubbornness and will to do things _________I even accomplished more than I would have done in my long-lost _________world.

It wasn’t until having children that my abandon to independence was forced to_________reasonable and cautious behavior. It was no longer just me that had to own up to the _________of my actions. So like any good Darwinian, I have forced myself to__________.

Kneeling down, I tried my hardest to__________that we were buying groceries and not race cars, but __________.Whether you are Mother Teresa or Judge Judy, sometimes you will not__________a four-year-old over. The kicking and screaming __________with the growing line of shoppers behind.

Becoming a__________, who uses a wheelchair comes with its bumps and bruises(磕磕碰碰) .__________, I’ve learned how to navigate with love and adaptation and be a great__________ to my children.

So, I tried again with a smile. I touched my now __________child’s forehead, from all of the rage and exhaustion of the moment. His wet eyes looked at me like I was the__________person on the planet. But his outburst stopped. And, I__________to get him out the store doors and into his car seat.

8 . I was then in my early twenties. Even though I was armed with a degree in Education, finding a ______ teaching job was not easy. I had to try some temporary ones.

This year, when a golden opportunity ______ to teach 5th grade students in a local school. I ______ it and took things seriously. I ______ myself with lesson plans, taught with enthusiasm, and stayed ______ with the students. I had no hesitation in ______ the kids when they got the answer right, and encouraged them if they didn’t.

One day when the kids were _______, a girl approached and handed me a ______ before she went home. On it was a lovely drawing full of childlike wonder, ______ by the words, “You are the best teacher I have ever had!” It really amazed me that one of my kind comments had ______ that girl’s heart greatly. I took that note home and ______ put it in a folder, looking on it as a ______ because it was very important. Anytime I was feeling down I would look at it and it proved to be a ______ .

That experience showed me the ______ of just a single kind word. It encouraged me to continue to try my best each day to ______ love and kindness through my words and actions. Wish the same for others.

9 . Every Friday night the Chevron gas station food mart offers a discount on the leftover food. To ensure the best selection, my mother and I pile into our old car and _________ in front of the mart at five p. m. sharp, ready to get our _________.

Chevron shopping _________ like this: One day my mother suddenly realized that she had maxed out (透支) almost every credit card except the Chevron card and we needed groceries for the week. Since our first _________ there, I’ve learned to believe in flexibility. In my life, it has become necessary to _________ the idea of grocery shopping. My mother and I can no longer shop at real grocery stores, _________ we still get the necessities.

Grocery shopping at Chevron has its _________. The worst is when we have so many items that it takes the cashier what seems like hours to ring up everything. A line of _________ customers formed behind us. It’s that line that _________ the most-the way they look at us. My mother never notices — or maybe she __________ not to.

I’m __________ to shop there, and I’m afraid of running into someone I know. I once expressed my fear of being seen shopping at Chevron to my mother, and her eyes shone with disappointment. I know that I hurt her feelings when I try to __________ our weekly shopping trips.

And that is why I hold on to the idea of __________ so tightly. Whenever I feel the __________ rise to my face, I remind myself at this point in my life I am struggling does not mean that I will always struggle. I know that whatever happens, we will always __________ a way to survive.

10 . By the time he was 24 years old, Imran Nuri quit his job in a bold move, and emptied his savings account to carry out an ambitious ________ he’d been bearing in mind. Nuri would drive his car to every state on a 100-day trip to find 1,000 ________ and ask them to share one thing they wish they’d ________ when they were younger. Nuri was hoping for answers that might help him ________ the rest of his life.

He ________. But to his shock, he chose a ________ person for the first time. He met a man, who had a dark look at Nuri. Nuri thought the man was going to ________ him. Then, doing the most ________ thing he’d done, he introduced himself, “I’m ________ around the country to talk to 1,000 unfamiliar people. I’m asking them for pieces of life advice about things they wish they knew ________.” The man remained silent for a minute or so and ________ said, “We should spend more time with our family.”

In Colorado Springs, Colorado, a man in his 50s who had stage 4 terminal cancer told Nuri, “Life is about the human ________. There would be no life without social interactions.”

In Tillamook, Oregon, a waitress-a college student told him, “whether it’s changing your major or changing your whole life path, you don’t have to ________ yourself for taking a step back and reevaluating your past choices. Just do what you think to be right.”

Nuri found beauty in every place as well as ________ from the people he met. Those people taught a lot. Now he always puts himself in other people’s shoes even when a person sees the world ________.