1 . Nowadays, shopping online enjoys great popularity, but my_______to clothes shopping developed via supermarkets.

With four children, I spent a lot of time in supermarkets. When they started selling fashion, I found myself_______out fancy items for myself. My wardrobe quickly_________up. Whenever I felt bored or_________, I bought myself something new to wear. One day, when I_______the total money I'd spent over the previous month, I got a real_________. So I decided to change.

One New Year, I made a(n)_______: I would stop buying clothes for a full year. My family laughed in_______because they knew how I loved to shop, but this made me more_______to do that.

The start of the year was especially________, as all the sales were on, and I really love the________. It almost made me________to see all the lovely dresses and coats, knowing I couldn't buy any of them. But I got through January,________away in February and sorted out my wardrobe in March. That was when I found________items of clothing. Some of them still had the tags (标签) on! Then I was re-wearing things that had barely seen the________of day since I'd bought them. I even wore the same dress to two parties________, where I had much fun with my friends and no one________my dress. I suddenly________that I didn't need lots of new clothes.

I survived my year without________clothes, and now think________before I buy anything new.

2 . During the first meeting with my future mentor (导师) when I was an undergraduate student, he asked why I wanted to join his lab. I _________ responded with the first thing that came to mind: “Because you're_________” He let out the loudest laugh have ever heard and told me students usually say “gain research experience to apply to graduate school” or they _________ his research fascinating. I was so _________ I hadn't thought of a wise answer like the other students. I didn't even know what graduate school was, but it sounded fancy.

I am the youngest of 14 children from a Vietnamese family. I knew college would be an important step and was thrilled when I got the offer. But I knew _________ nothing about college and had no one to turn to for _________. Everything was novel and challenging, and I was always several steps behind, which _________ my confidence. I spent more time trying to work out how to pay for college and wondering whether I should _________ than I did studying.

No wonder I blew that interview with Dr.D. I reached for my backpack to leave, thinking this meeting was over. To my _________, Dr.D told me he appreciated my honesty, and welcomed me to his lab where I worked for two years afterwards. He laid a(n) __________ for my faith and self-worth and taught me __________ it means to be a good mentor.

From the start, Dr.D consistently asked me for help and ideas. At first I was surprised. What could I possibly have to offer? __________ my blank stares as he tried to extract ideas from me, he __________ with incredible patience. He never doubted I had something worthwhile to ____________Over time, I began to believe it, too.

When I was __________ what to do after graduation, he told me to go where people needed me and happily helped me. Beyond that, his consistent encouragement __________ me that I had the value to offer and was worthy of support, which had been particularly __________ for me as a first-generation college student from an immigrant family.

When I became a professor and mentored my own students, many of whom __________ me of my younger self. I strive to be __________ with my time, compassion and expertise; respect mentees’ unique backgrounds and contributions. As I say to my students, how can we expect others to see that we're __________ if we can't see it ourselves?

3 . 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.

4 . Novels. Why do I read them? I was most ____ to read when I was a kid. I suspect this was because my only purpose was ____ and escapism. From all 21 Famous Five stories — in order, naturally — to Anna Karenina, ____ into a basket on a cycling holiday, I was ____ to another world. Then, for A-levels and a degree, I read to pass ____. Slowly, tellingly, the joy ____. And I was no good at the exams either. When those last exams were done, more than 30 years ago, I was done with novels. I had ____ love.

Gradually, it has come back, but it’s all ____ now. I find I’m reading whole novels mainly to ____ intelligence to help understand what I’ve been feeling; feelings that I’ve been ____ to express myself. For some reason I ____ The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte. The _____soon starts to fade, and all you are left with is how it made you feel. This is nice, but what makes it all worthwhile is those specific ____ that I make sure to harvest and go back to. ____, Helen says of her new life in the big city: “At first, I was ____ with the novelty and excitement of our London life, but soon I began to be tired of its ____.”

A few months later, I ____ Anne Bronte’s resting place in Scarborough. Standing there, I____ this little passage and appreciated anew how ____ it resonated (产生共鸣) with my own feelings about London. And there the poor young woman lay, gone 173 years and still making ____ friends. That’s quite something.

5 . In the late 19th century, there was a poor farmer in Scotland named Fleming. He was ________ and always ready to help others. One day when he was ________ in the field, he suddenly heard a cry for help in the wetland nearby. It ________ that a boy was trapped in the wetland. Seeing the mud up to his ________, Fleming immediately jumped into the wetland and ________ to save the boy. The next day, a brand-new ________ from a distant place stopped at the farmer’s door. An elegant gentleman got off the carriage and ________himself as the boy’s father. The gentleman brought the farmer many precious gifts ________saving his son, but the farmer refused. He ________ that saving others was what he should do. It ________ that the gentleman saw the farmer’s son playing in a dirty suit. He thought about it and said to the ________, “In this case, I have a ________. You saved my son’s life and I want him to ________ the best education in Britain.”The farmer agreed ________. Later, the farmer’s son graduated from St. Mary’s Medical School in England and became the ________ Sir Fleming Alexander. He is the inventor of penicillin (青霉素), which has saved ________ lives. Years later, the gentleman’s son caught pneumonia. What saved his life? Penicillin. Who was the gentleman’s son? Churchill, the prime minister of Britain during World War II.

This story tells us that the simple and kind Scottish farmer’s ________ in saving others without ________ any return, brought his own child a good opportunity. And because of his child’s achievement, he ________ the gentleman’s child, who became British prime minister of World War II. The kindness of an ordinary farmer ________ changed the whole world.

6 . Khanna, a chef and humanitarian (慈善家), but most popularly known as the judge of MasterChef India, has a huge fanbase.

Eleven years back in 2013, Khanna was on a flight to New York. On the _________, an air hostess came up _________ him to meet a woman for a few minutes, who was _________ to speak to him.

Khanna _________ agreed, and a woman in her 60s came to see him. He respectfully _________ and said, “pairi painna,” a practice to touch the feet of your _________ as a sign of respect.

The woman said she saw him _________ the plane and so wanted to see him. Khanna asked her where she came from, and she replied that he might not have _________ the place as it’s a tiny village in Kolhapur. But Khanna’s instant _________ was, “It’s one of my __________ cities.”

She smiled and asked him to __________, too, just like a mother making her child greet. Khanna smiled, and she looked at him with __________ eyes and then thanked him.

The woman then prepared to leave and told him that she __________ every episode of MasterChef India only to see him smile because it __________ her of her late son, and it feels like his smile brings her son to __________ again.

She gave him good wishes and then left. Khanna then __________ on social media that whenever he feels __________ or under pressure, he thinks of the woman’s words and smiles and feels better.

This is what __________ is all about. You don’t realize the __________ of doing something good for someone, but it __________ affects you too!

7 . A car store in my hometown sold six to eight new cars a day. And 72 percent of this store’s first-time visitors returned for a second ________ . I was curious about how it ________.

On one particular June morning, my wife Jane said to me, “Today’s my fifth anniversary of being ________.” She suffered from it five years ago and had undergone surgery. I was ________ because I had forgotten it. To mark this special occasion, I did the most impetuous thing in my life: I ________ a new car in the car store I mentioned. I didn’t pick the ________ or the model, but I paid cash and told the staff I’d bring Jane to make those two ________. I also told them that it was my ________and hoped they didn’t reveal anything to her. Then one morning, it occurred to me that Jane always wanted a white car. So I called our sales consultant and asked him if he had anything ________ in the store. He said he had one ________ but he couldn’t promise it’d still be ________because they were selling so fast.

After I told Jane the biggest ________ to get her out of the house, we finally made our way to the car store. Jane quickly ________ the little white car. But I told her we could buy the car after our son graduated from college. Hearing what I said, she ________ walked to the front of the car. Then she ________a scream. There was a large sign, which said, “Congratulations, Jane. This car is yours. Five years cancer-free. Let’s treasure life!” I looked around and ________that there was no one in the store. Customers that came to the store were not ________ to enter; instead, the staff took them aside and ________ what was happening. Actually, our sales consultant had arranged it; ________, we could share the special moment alone.

Over the years, I’ve told this story as an example of the legendary ________.

8 . How perfect the wings of a bird are! However, they will never________the bird during flight if unsupported by the air. Upon graduation, I will be able to analyze ancient poems using________terms, and simplify a derivative (导数) problem. Despite knowing how to perform these________tasks, I currently fail to________how to change a tire or how to obtain an insurance policy.

I used to outdo my classmates________. At first, I was getting everything right. Then, I ran for Student Government but was________. How could that be? Someone must have made a(n)________. Little did I know, this was my first exposure to meaning beyond________. As I failed for the second year, I________I had been wrongfully measuring my life through my test scores. It was my________that I had never prioritized communication skills, which my fellow candidates________. I decided to change my mindset and take a new________to the way I lived. Soon I grew interested in the new viewpoints everyone around me could________. People interpret situations differently________their own cultural contexts, so I had to________to pay more attention to every point of view. To my________, I was elected to Student Government after my third year of trying.

As I further accept new life skills, I realize how much remains________in the world. What I can do is prepare myself to take on the unknown.________, my wings will continue enabling me to fly,________it is going to take more than just me and my wings; I have to continue putting my________in the air around me.