1 . I was never a fan of football, or any sports for that matter. At primary school, my classmates spent lunch break ______ on the playground, while I was in the library getting pleasure from ______ . In Games lessons, to fit in, I ______ to be interested.

As I got older, I ______ trying to fake (假装) it. Instead, I showed off my dislike for football as a sign of ______ “It’s only a silly game!” I’d tell Dad, as he ______ me to watch a match.

But, sometimes I’d find myself ______ an opener like, “Cor, a terrible season we’re having, eh?”, or ______, “Who do you support?”, and feel my heart sink, knowing my reply would surely ______ .

And then I became a dad, and I didn’t want my boy Harvey to ______ this desirable social skill. So I bought him ______ to watch our local team, Boreham Wood. And, because he kept asking me what was going on, I stayed relatively ______ on the game.

Almost without noticing, my ______ of support when “The Wood” scored a goal were actually real, as were my sighs when “we” missed a penalty kick (罚球).

Harvey was ______ , and we’ve since returned to Meadow Park five times, each time feeling a ______ connection with the team’s supporter community.

2 . Valentina Dominguez, a nine-year-old from Texas, was travelling with her parents and her doll, Beatrice. After finishing their _______ in Bali, Indonesia, they stopped over in Tokyo before _______ their flight back home.

However, upon arriving home, they _______ that Beatrice was missing. Only then did they realize they hadn’t seen her since they were on the airplane. Valentina’s family was extremely _______ at losing the doll. Her father expressed his sadness. The family reached out to the airport and airline but weren’t able to _______ Beatrice, they took to social media.

First Officer James Danen, an American Airline pilot saw the post and located the missing doll in Turkish Airlines’ Lost and Found. Since Danen’s flight routes often included Tokyo, he realized that he could help out Valentina. “It’s my _______. I like helping people,” he explained.

And that’s how First Officer Danen ended up _______ the doll to her home in Texas. The New York Post _______ that he took pictures of the doll in the airport. He also brought along Japanese treats and a map showing Beatrice’s _______. “Was she well behaved on the flight?” Valentina asked. “Very well behaved,” Danen answered.

Valentina is ________ to be reunited with Beatrice. Valentina shared, “She brings me ________ and she’s my best friend. When she was missing, I felt like my heart was broken.”

First Officer Danen could ________ have overlooked the social media post owing to so many on it. But, instead he took the time to ________ someone else. This heartwarming story serves as a reminder of the ________ a simple act of kindness can have. That kindness knows no ________ is the message conveyed in the story.

3 . Driving is a dangerous activity. Every single day people, for a variety of reasons, are hurt or killed in accidents. One woman, an emergency nurse in the Phoenix, ________ to let a man in an accident become just another motor vehicle death ________.

On the morning of July 26, Leigh Ann just ________ her fourth straight night shift. After a stress-filled day at work, Leigh Ann was ________. She was heading home along the way when she noticed a horrible ________ in the distance. As she got closer, she ________ it was a cement truck turn on its side.

Obviously, it was a(n) ________ accident, and emergency first responders had not yet ________. Leigh Ann knew that she had to act. She hurried over to the truck, ________ crossing the usually busy highway, which was empty at the time.

She then quickly ________ the situation. She discovered the driver was trapped, still ________, but injured and losing blood at an alarming rate. The nurse ________ the man, and then used the man’s belt to stop any further blood loss. Leigh Ann ________ him until the rescue team took him away.

As for what put her in that ________ to help that man, Leigh Ann said. “My professional spirit does direct my ________. I’m far from perfect, but at that particular moment, my previous work encouraged me to give a helping hand.”

4 . Mae Beale, an 82-year-old retiree, just earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management from University of Maryland Global Campus (UMGC).

Beale decided to _______ to school in her late 70s, and she _______ her diploma on May 18, the day after her 82nd birthday.

In her younger years, Beale worked as a _______at different health care agencies in Washington, DC. While working at the Department of Health and Human Services’ Centers for Medicare and Medicaid, she helped plan several large events and everybody was _______with it, which inspired a _______change.

In 1994, at the age of 54, Beale started her._______ event-planning business and meanwhile started working toward her associate degree in Business Management at Howard Community College.

After _______ the associate degree program, she decided to_______a bachelor’s degree, one class at a time.

“I wanted to make certain I had the time to _______ to whichever class I was taking, ” she said. “I was like the tortoise (乌龟). Slow and   __________ wins the race. ”

Despite being   __________ than most of her classmates, Beale was a star student. She graduated with __________   and made the dean’s list several times during her time at UMGC.

And   she     __________others to pursue higher education with an __________     mind. “Expose yourself to as many   __________as you can because you never know what life will present. ”

5 . One spring evening, I was incredibly worn after a long day of school. I wished for _________ but I had to drag my heavy feet to the violin studio.

I was playing Moldau to Kate, my teacher. I simply couldn’t play with _________, though. While I followed all the _________ on the sheet music, I still _________ to make music describing spring with full-blown flowers sound like flowers dying bitter deaths. Kate _________ attentively and then frowned (皱眉), asking me what the piece’s mood was. I stared at her, _________.

Pulling out paper and a pencil, she asked, “Can you _________an image of what you think a typical day in the forest during spring would look like?” Hesitantly, I started to let my _________ fly. Soon a scenic forest full of life was _________ in my mind.

Minutes later, I completed my drawing. “Now, play the piece again with this. __________ imagery in your mind,” Kate said. I closed my eyes and began to play, just as its theme was introduced, with __________ expression I had never done before.

As I __________ the piece, there followed a short silence before Kate said, “That’s the best playing I’ve ever heard from you.” Her eyes were shining. “Who knew painting out the scenery would help you better __________ the music? Sometimes all we need is to use our creativity and try different methods when facing difficulties.”

The __________ violin lesson taught me more than just music. I also learned a valuable __________ skill, which I applied to my daily life.

6 . Enjoying a swim at their local beach was once a daily pleasure for Melati and her sister, Isabel. But in 2013 when Melati was 12 and Isabel just ten, the sisters started to lose ________ for swimming in the waters near their home on the island of Bali. More often than not, plastic bags would circle around them as they ________. Then as they walked back to shore, red and white plastic shopping bags would ________ their legs and body.

Melati didn’t think much about it until later in 2013 when her teacher gave a lesson on world ________ like South Africa’s Nelson Mandela and England’s Princess Diana, whose efforts had inspired movements of ________ change. That day Melati walked home in ________, thinking something needed to be done to preserve the beautiful island from becoming ________ by waste.

Melati and Isabel started by sharing the idea with others. Soon they’d ________ a team of 15, made up of schoolfriends. They ________ their group ByeBye Plastic Bags(BBPB). Its mission was ________ stop people in Bali using plastic bags.

The following year the BBPB team spent their lunchtimes ________ meetings and organizing an online petition (请愿) to collect signatures to ban plastic bags. Within 24 hours of ________ more than 6000 people both local Balinese and people from around the world had ________. “This was the first moment when we knew, we were onto something,”Melati says.

Years later, the girls’ enthusiasm has resulted in big changes. In 2017, they organized Bali’s first beach clean up. Around 12,000 people collected 36 tonnes of rubbish. In 2018 BBPB ________ the government to ban single-use plastic bags and straws. The ban took effect in July 2019.

Today BBPB is a global youth movement and has over 50 teams in 29 countries. “We didn’t start with any clear ________,”Melati admits. “We didn’t know how we were going to complete a seemingly easy task but we knew that we wanted to and had the desire to figure it out.”

7 . Man’s best friend is being credited with saving his owner’s life during a scare.

81-year-old Harry Smith of Port St. Lucie, Florida is a man of _______. He takes his 9-year-old dog Sarah Jane for a walk around the lake across the street from his house twice a day, every day. Smith, who uses an electric wheelchair to _______, was on one of his regular walks when something _______ happened. The left wheel of his wheelchair got _______in a pit (坑), and as he tried to reverse out of the dirt, his wheelchair lost traction. He ended up rolling down the _______ and flipping off his wheelchair into the lake.

Sensing her owner was in _______, Sarah Jane began barking loudly as Smith _______to keep his head above water. Her persistent barking_______ the attention of two neighbors working in their driveway across the street, who rushed over to see what the _______ was about. One of those men was Edward Shuling, who said he ________ thought the dog may have gotten into a fight with an alligator, before he saw Smith’s head sticking out of the water. Shuling instantly________ in.

A second neighbor, Aby “Jacob” Chacko, was ________ closely and happened to spot Officer Adam on his way down to the water. Together, the three men________Smith out of the water and back to safety, much to his and Sarah Jane’s________.

“We are thankful for Mr. Smith’s dog and the two bystanders that helped save his life!” the post reads. “And as the saying remains ________...A man’s best friend is his dog.”

8 . Anthony Madu, a boy from Nigeria, is getting the opportunity of a lifetime.

After a video of Madu_________ barefoot in the rain became hugely popular online, he has now_________ a scholarship in America. The video — which_________ Madu showing his outstanding ballet skills — caught many people’s eyes, including Cynthia Harvey, the famous artistic director in New York. “I was so_________ by his talent that I was desperate to find him,” Harvey said. Harvey_________ managed to track down Madu and helped gain an offer of a full scholarship so that Madu could get_________ in the ABT virtual Young Dancer Summer Workshop, a three-week dancing program.

Madu developed his_________ in ballet after watching Barbi in the 12 Dancing Princesses and faced many_________ afterwards. For example, the culture he grows up in_________ boys in ballet due to popular belief that ballet is not an African dance and it’s meant for girls. ____________, those didn’t discourage Madu; he worked hard and stuck to his ballet dream.

Learning his video became a real hit made Madu very____________. “I didn’t plan to be popular. The best part of being____________ is when I got a grand prize to go to the US____________ so many people don’t have that opportunity,” he said. “I hope my performance will challenge the prejudice (偏见) that male ballet dancers still face.” Madu said he was____________ to be a professional ballet dancer and that he also wanted people to know that ballet can____________ here in Nigeria.

9 . I used to be the most determined resolution-maker. Every January 1st, I would dutifully sit down and write out my resolutions for the upcoming year. I always ________ big goals, like: In the new year, I will lose 50 pounds! And run a marathon! Oh, and be the best parent ever who never ________ my children!

The problem? I never accomplished those resolutions. I’d start out strong, but by February or March, I’d be out of willpower and I’d ________ quietly back into my old habits. Every winter, I’d feel ________ and ashamed, looking back at all of the amazing things…I didn’t do.

Two years ago, I started experiencing severe stomach pain. The doctors ________ a surgery to go in and ________ it out. But ________ I could have the surgery, I found a lump(肿块) and was diagnosed with breast cancer. I started treatment for the breast cancer only to ________ that the stomach pain was from appendix(阑尾) cancer. That’s ________: two different cancers, with two different treatment plans, at the same time, in the same body. It was a lot to ________, and I won’t lie – the next year was incredibly difficult.

The experience completely changed my perspective on my life— especially about what I consider “success” and “failure.” Before, I always felt like I was ________ somewhere, but now ________ being alive and with my family felt like a huge success.

I understand the ________ of having a new beginning, but I learned that you can take the opportunity to start over at any time. January 1st is just a day, and it’s not ________. You can make the day you decide to be a better person a special day, regardless of what the ________ says.

10 . Do extroverts (外向者) make better leaders?

There is a general impression that you're better off in the workplace and in life — if you're an extrovert. Understandably, this idea is most likely to be spread by extroverts themselves, who are "_______ and proud".

In what could be _______ news for introverts, a new study has found that extroverts do have the _______ that increases their chances of success. They _______ a distinct advantage in four aspects: emotional; interpersonal; motivational and performance related. Michael Wilmot, the scholar who led the study, _______ that extroversion is closely associated with experiencing positive emotions more regularly. As happy employees are usually more satisfied, they _______ to work harder and are thought to be a better leader as a result. The way the extroverts behave also helps to protect them from stress or negative experiences at work. _______, extroverts enjoy the _______ of others, so they seem to adapt better to different social situations, which is a strong leadership skill.

_______ the research suggests that extroverts have plenty to be positive about, Wilmot says introverts should not be ________. They are not at an unavoidable disadvantage. Why is that? First, few people can be defined ________ as an introvert or extrovert since everyone displays a mixture of behaviors. Secondly, numerous other characteristics ________ workplace success, including cognitive ability, and the ability to ________ negative emotions. There are many jobs, such as computer programming, where having introverted characteristics such as ________ skills or the ability to focus, would be more beneficial than extroverted characteristics such as sociability. If you ________ his view, remember that some of the world's most successful people are introverts. Among them are legendary investor Warren Buffett and Oscar-winning actress Meryl Streep. They all prove the point that you don't have to be extroverts to succeed in life.