1 . On the morning of Jan. 21st, 2023, I was taking the subway to work as usual. A quiet subway ride felt like a mini ________ from my busy life. Yet I found myself spending that ________ time browsing my endless messages on the phone.

One day, I put down my phone and started writing ________ notes to people who had contributed to a donation activity I had ________. When I got off the train, I was in a noticeably ________ mood. Then an idea struck me that I could write one for every day of that year. As an organizer and consultant, I had no ________ of people I could write to, so I picked out a different ________ for each month to keep on task. January was “charity”, February was …, and I thought of ________ names right away.

In July, my “________” month, I had become good at getting my memories back and ________ people to send my notes to. On the top of the list was Jenny, a(n) ________ chef. She had cooked at my favorite restaurant (It is now closed down). I thanked her and specially mentioned her biscuits ________ into the Roman number Ⅵ for our sixth wedding anniversary.

________, I received a note back from her, ________ “I have never received such a touching letter before. It was ________ expectation and unbelievably thoughtful. And so needed at a time when I’m ________ professionally. Your letter was a fantastic reminder that ________ back is a good motivation for moving forward.”

Part of the ________ of what I did was ________ with people like Jenny — people, who weren’t ________visitors in my life but made a lasting impact. And I wouldn’t have known if I had not reached out.

2 . They don’t call Vusi Sindane “the crazy cyclist” for nothing. The software engineer _________ a 3, 000 km bicycle journey in June, all to _________ money for 10, 000 pairs of school shoes for children in need.

When he worked in Limpopo, he saw _________ the poverty faced by _________ kids. “My biggest cause is education, and when I saw barefoot children walking to school in Limpopo, I knew something had to be done,” he says. He _________ with a non-profit organization which supplies school shoes to children in _________ areas.

However, the pandemic _________ his plans to do his cross-country cycle in 2020 and 2021, and a(n)_________ injury last year meant he could only get going in April this year. Prior to his 13 April departure, he _________ his training with six weeks of __________ cycling with his mentor and training partner. But Vusi quickly discovered that nothing could’ve __________ him for what he would encounter and have to __________. “The first day was like a reality __________. Although I’d been planning and considering this for nearly six years, the reality is that there’s __________ on the road, there’s climbing, you must use your body physically, and it’s hot-especially in Limpopo. I was almost __________ by many high mountains. I tried to __________, but the bike isn’t moving. My hands were hurting, and my injured knee was constantly in pain. My muscles __________, and my mind was like, ‘This isn’t worth it’,” he said.

To __________ himself, he began thinking about the people who inspire him. He shared his __________ on social media, many people __________ to him and more encouragement came.

3 . Seven-year-old Everett Botwright is a bright, imaginative kid. Like many children on the autism spectrum (自闭症), he also _________ with the smell and taste of many foods. So when the boy showed great interest in Star Wars Kraft Dinner, his parents were _________. “It was amazing,” father Reed Botwright says. “My wife cried. She hadn’t seen him _________ in, not to mention addicted to a new _________ in a long time.”

There was only one _________ . After buying all the _________ they could find in their hometown of Nanaimo, B. C., the family _________ needed more. In February, Botwright _________ a request on Facebook, asking for _________ tracking down the limited-edition pasta.

The __________ went viral. Thousands shared Botwright’s post on __________ media, including Star Trek legend William Shatner. Star Wars Kraft Dinner __________ from across North America. “People have reached out and many thanked us for __________ our struggle,” Botwright says.

Kraft Heinz Canada donated $10,000 to autism charities, __________ 144 boxes to the Botwrights and even asked Everett to select the __________ Kraft Dinner shape. On his birthday, March 7, he __________ the Minions (小黄人). Nanaimo’s Real Canadian Superstore donated 411 packages, and a class of Ouebec teens sent a shipment; __________ boxes came from as far away as Florida.

The __________ number: over 800 boxes, and Botwright says, “We’re still counting.” Everett is __________ thank-you cards for every donor, and Botwright says the outpouring has taught his four kids, ages three to eight, a lesson: “There is __________ in the world.”

4 . If seven days of living with noisy dogs seems like a lot, imagine being there for 400. That’s how long a little dog named Queen lived inside a shelter. When Queen was 3 years old, she’d still somehow been _________ time and again during those long months. Then Scott Poore decided to _________.

Scott runs a(n) _________ that creates fundraisers to help animal shelters. Once he heard about how _________ Queen had become from living in the shelter for so long, he decided to do what he could to draw some attention to the _________ dog.

After he met her, he was even more determined to help her find her forever _________. He ended up spending plenty of one-on-one time with her after he publicly _________ into Queen’s kennel (狗窝).

As you can _________, animal shelters are not a great place to get any rest. Scott admitted he barely _________ during his days in the kennel. But all of Scott’s efforts were __________ when a father and son saw a report about Queen and her new roommate and decided to __________ and take her home.

As for why he didn’t __________ Queen himself, he reminded people that his charity came in contact with so many __________ animals every single day. Once Queen had found her people, this dog __________ moved on to find the next animal that __________ needs him.

“What helps me get through the emotional __________ of my work is I move very quickly to the next animal that needs my help,” he explained.

We’re so __________ to people like Scott Poore for __________ those without voices. Being willing to give up your own __________ for an animal’s happiness is the ultimate good __________. Thank you, Scott!

5 . Once upon a time, the villagers in a small village lived their poor lives. Very few people could read _________ one girl named Hannah. She loved to explore and would spend hours in the woods away from the village, looking for new things.

One afternoon, when Hannah was on one of her adventurous _________, she came upon a (n) _________ cottage. The cottage looked very old in its condition. She _________ opened it and she was left amazed. In front of Hannah was a room full of _________! She realized that she found a hidden _________, which could satisfy her love of reading.

She _________ the books for many days. They were very _________, filled with different stories. The little girl was so _________ by one of the characters from books who strove for good that she determined to learn from him. She learned that the true __________ of good lies within one’s own heart and makes people change! With the __________ in heart, she decided to share the stories with the villagers.

Making this her mission, Hannah started telling stories every day at the __________. At the start, only very few villagers came for the stories. But she didn’t __________ and the word of her telling stories spread rapidly, causing more and more __________ to come. Soon, the word of Hannah’s __________ spread to far-off towns. People traveled from different places to just listen to her stories. The villagers helped her rebuild the cottage for __________ more people to enjoy the stories.

She later __________ workshops there in which she taught her fellows how to read. Hannah was their mentor (导师) and everyone __________ her.

Hannah continued her __________ throughout her life. She was __________ for the good she did even after she was long gone.

6 . 18-year-old Lilly Baker was driving when an elderly woman in a wheelchair caught her eye. The woman was ________ to cross a train track but got stuck. Without ________, Lilly stopped to rescue her. Little did she ________, however, that doing so would ________ a narrow escape for them both.

With all of her ________, Lilly tried to pull the elderly woman to safety, but she faced difficulties. ________, in their attempt for freedom, they ended up ________ twice. Still, Lilly remained ________. She got an added rush of this determination when she saw a train coming right at them.

“He was honking (按喇叭) wildly and the lights started ________,” Lilly recalled. Soon after, Lilly managed to pull her and the woman out of the ________ way. Had they been much closer to the train, neither of them would have ________ it. “It’s a near-death ________,” Lilly said. “The railroad company told me that I was 18 inches away from getting ________.”

Ardmore Police Chief Jereme Robison was sent to the ________ to help. Despite his experience, he was ________ by the risky rescue. He took this moment to stress the fact that anyone can be a hero, no matter who they are. “________ comes in all shapes and sizes,” Jereme said. “You don’t have to be a 6’5 guy that’s ________ to get out and do something.”

The elderly woman has major leg injuries but, ________, she’s in the hospital and is expected to be okay ________. As for Lilly, she said she couldn’t be more grateful for the ________ to help someone.

7 . As an insurance(保险)agent, I have to visit clients(客户)at their homes. I had a(n) ______ client named Ms. Gooden. She is a sweet lady and always does her best to keep me at her home as long as she can. One day, she told me that her children lived far away from her and she felt ______. As I was leaving, she ______ the flowers she wished she had in her yard. She said that when she was a child the ______ flowers she could remember seeing were the ones ______ on the large flour sacks (面粉袋). I asked her, “If you had flowers what ______ would you have?” She answered me back that any color would be ______ to her.

One day when I knew she had a(n) ______ with her doctor, I went to a flower shop and bought many colorful flowers. I went to her home and ______ them in an area of the yard ______ when she looked out of the window, she would ______ different kinds of beautiful flowers.

The next time I visited her home, she asked if I knew anything about the ______. I told her no and we both smiled ______ at each other. While I was sitting there she began to tell me about all of the butterflies and bees that came to ______ her garden. She continued to talk about her ______ “friends” in her life.

As I was about to leave I ______ she was watching over her garden and its visitors ______. She didn’t even try to keep me from ______. I realized at that moment that Ms. Gooden had been suffering from what a lot of elderly people suffer from — ______. The few dollars spent on the flowers were well worth the ______ those flowers brought to her face and to my heart.

8 . In 2017, Barbara and Jean decided to spread the holiday spirit with Christmas gifts. Little did they know that this simple act of _________ would develop into a heartwarming tradition and, _________, the creation of their nonprofit organization, Resident’s Hope.

In their _________ year, they spent around $120 to provide Christmas gifts for 13 individuals at Nurses Helping Hands. The joy and _________ they witnessed inspired them to _________ a more ambitious mission — to bring the _________ of Christmas to as many nursing home residents as possible.

Fast forward to Christmas Day in 2022, and the dynamic two _________ an incredible milestone. Through their nonprofit Resident’s Hope, they had the _________ of serving over 400 individuals across five different nursing home facilities. The _________ growth of their initiative (行动) was a ____________ to their consistent commitment to making a positive impact on the lives of those often ____________ during the holiday season.

This heartwarming success ____________ Barbara and Jean to take their mission to the next level. In July 2023, they ____________ founded Resident’s Hope as a nonprofit organization. Their ____________ initiative, the Christmas Giving event, became the driving force behind their cause. “Our organization ____________ to nursing home facilities, shops for personalized gifts, elegantly wraps them with their signature bow, and ensures ____________ delivery so that residents can enjoy Christmas presents,” the founders ____________.

Resident’s Hope has become a ____________ for seniors in nursing homes, offering not just gifts, but a sense of community and connection during the holiday season. The organization’s impact ____________ to grow, and the founders are determined to make each Christmas brighter for those who may otherwise be ____________.

9 . No one expected this from me. There had been an air of ________ rising within my family for months, and I felt totally overburdened with the school work and activities I had on my plate. So I ________.

I had completely no idea of returning home. It ________ some begging for a place to stay on the first night. I got enough cash for a room at a hostel on the second night by ________ my electronics (电子设备).

I spent the first few days full of optimism, ________ out around downtown New York. But that ________ soon gave way to fear. My money was running out fast, ________ me into financial responsibility. I ________ only what I needed at the lowest price when I was ________. Survival stress was a different beast than academic or familial stress. I was ________ as well as I could, but I was still greatly underprepared for living ________. So I took one more day to enjoy the city and my ________, and then I went home.

It had been less than a week, but it felt like much ________. Going back was much harder than leaving. Repairing my ________ with my parents was a difficult process. And missing a week of school was ________ enough, so my grades were in need of serious ________.

When all the dust settled, I didn’t want to run away from my ________ anymore. I grew up a lot that week and learned how to ________ self-control. I won’t ________ what I did to anyone. It didn’t provide any long-term ________ to any problem.

10 . Nothing seemed to be going well. We were ________ in rush-hour traffic. My 3-year-old son was singing along with Phil Collins from his seat. But I was not in the ________ to sing. My manager had just told me that, despite my ________ performance, he did not foresee giving me more responsibilities in the near future. The message really ________   me.

His decision planted a seed of ________. But I reminded myself that I’d already ________ I could be, as a working mother, an ________ scientist on a tight schedule. The past 7 years had witnessed, as a part-time university ________, I’d made full use of every minute and won all my colleagues’ respect. My work never ________ the research team.

With little expectation, I ________ the three senior managers. One did not respond. One had nothing to offer. The third invited me to chat. He ________ listened to my story, and then told me I was ________ to join him in building a vaccine research unit. I answered in ________ that I knew nothing about vaccines. He said, “You will learn. You will make it.”

A few ________ nights later, I decided to take a chance on the ________. The worst thing to happen was that I would fail. But I already felt like a failure, so why not ________?

I soon discovered a new passion. My career path with the unit ________. I took on more ________, developed new skills, and led fantastic projects-all because of a ________ that I’d felt forced on me. It ________ me out of my comfort zone and further than I was willing to go.