1 . Our family was sitting on the porch swing enjoying the summer breeze when my husband pointed to something on the swing’s chain next to him. We _______ forward to see a large praying mantis (螳螂) attaching to the chain. We held our _______ and watched, not wanting to scare it away. We sat and _______ chatted for the next half hour as we watched the insect _______ up and down the chain. It seemed _______ by our presence, and we were _______ to observe its slow, precise movements.

We wouldn’t have _______ it if my husband had not pointed it out. Too often, we move through life, _______ of the beautiful blessings surrounding us each day. The _______ of sitting and watching an insect for half an hour is something I do not want to ________ for granted. Too often, I define myself by my productivity. I start my morning with a checklist and ________ my worth by how much I get done by the day’s end.

I’m learning to ________ my tireless striving for productivity and simply ________ the gifts of this beautiful world when I see them. Each creature displays a small ________. To sit and watch a unique bug like a praying mantis is an act of admiration. I think I’ll ________ and sit for a while in search of another beautiful bug just to appreciate the beauty of nature.

2 . On Sept. 17, 2022, a father and son set out to begin the first of three legs of the Ironman competition in Cambridge, Maryland. Jeff Agar, 59, and his son, Johnny Agar, 28, weren’t the ______ participants. Johnny has cerebral palsy (脑瘫), resulting in his difficulty walking and muscle weakness. Jeff would act as his arms and legs, ______ carrying the weight of his son throughout the race. To ______ as completion, competitors must complete a(n) ______ 140 miles of swimming, bicycling and running in under 17 hours.

From the day Johnny was born, Jeff and his wife refused to let their son be ______ by disability. ______ to show Johnny that he could pursue his dream of being an athlete, when he was 15 years old, they ______ him up with my Team Triumph, an organization that helps kids with ______ engage in endurance (耐力) sports.

Johnny became ______ to racing, and Jeff wanted to be a part of it. Jeff began waking up at 4 am to run while ______ Johnny in a racing chair. Every morning, he ______ himself to run increasingly longer distances.

After 16 hours, 55 minutes and 35 seconds, the father and son ______ the finish line together. As the crowd ______ and congratulated Johnny, Jeff kept a low ______ . “He didn’t want attention to his finish line moment,” says Johnny. “He wanted it to be ______ .”

3 . Critical thinkers start by asking questions about whatever is in front of them. They consider ______. If this, then what? If that, then how is the outcome different? They understand that every action has a ______, and they think about all possible outcomes of decisions before they make them. Asking questions helps this process.

Once you have asked every question you can come up with about a matter, ______ information that will help you answer those questions.____! Do some research. You can learn almost anything on the Internet, but it’s not the only place to do your research. _____ people. I’m a big fan of polling (民意调查). Ask the experts around you. Gather ____ and various opinions you can use to make your own determination. The wider the variety, the better.

You’ve got _____ information, and now it’s time to analyze it all with an open mind. This is the most _____ part, in my opinion. It can be pretty difficult to recognize the filters that were instilled (灌输) in us from our first families. We are products of our environments, of the ways in which we were treated as a child, of the role models we've had throughout our lives, of the opportunities we have said yes or no to, of the sum of all of our experiences.

Try to be as aware as possible of those ______ and biases (偏见), and turn them off. Question everything during this step. Are you being _______? Are you speculating? Assuming anything? This is the time to look at every thought as _____ as possible. Do you know it to be absolutely true? What are the facts? Have you considered the situation from every different point of view?

Critical thinkers are more interested in solutions than in placing ____ complaining, or gossiping. Once you’ve reached a conclusion through critical thinking, it’s time to communicate and ______ a solution if one is called for. This is the time for compassion (同情), empathy (同理心), diplomacy. Not everyone involved will have thought the situation through as ______ as you have. It’s your job to understand that, and to _____ solutions in a way that everyone can understand.

4 . Only positive thinking is not enough to attain our goals. Our _________ act as beacons (灯塔) that tell us where we want to go, but we need some “negative” thinking to light up that _________ and to expose the obstacles we will face along the way.

In the 2008 summer Olympics, Michael Phelps was ready to _________ his own record for the 200-meter butterfly swimming race. After Phelps’s first turn, his goggles (游泳镜) _______ water and he couldn’t see. To stop and _________ his goggles would mean disqualification. _________ without his sight, how was he supposed to know exactly when to turn? This misfortune could cost Phelps _________ seconds each lap (圈). So, what did he do? Had he done anything to _________ him for this moment? Yes. Phelps had been practicing something he _________ for himself: negative visioning. During his training. Phelps had already imagined in __________ how he would respond in this moment of crisis. He already knew __________ how many strokes (划水) he would take before he reached the next wall. So, though unable to see, he __________ his strokes and made quick turns. And at last he won the gold medal.

In psychology, the __________ of balancing learned optimism with practical realism — or acting against the __________ thought with the “negative” one —is called “mental contrasting”. It __________ us to lower our strong expectations about a (n) __________ outcome. So we can make wiser __________ and maintain motivation while working toward our goals.

Mental contrasting can make sure we consider realistic obstacles when __________ our plan for the future. In this way, the obstacles in our way __________ us to think more critically and __________ become the means by which we achieve our goals in the first place.

5 . 23-year-old Ganesh Baraiya is living proof that nothing is impossible. Despite facing _________ because of his short stature, he managed to become the world’s shortest doctor.

Ganesh Baraiya was born in the Talaia Thaluka area of Gujarat, India, and faced adversity (逆境) from a very young age. He was born normal. _________, at the age of four, his parents noticed that his head was _________ his body, so they took him to a doctor. They learned that the boy suffered from an _________ condition and there was nothing anyone could do. Wanting to help her son, Ganesh’s mother put a tub-like helmet on his head to prevent it from growing and give his body a chance to _________. In school, he was often _________ because of his large head and short stature, but he also had friends who _________ him and he was able to focus on his studies.

Despite his physical limitations, Ganesh Baraya was always very _________. He knew he wanted to be a doctor from a very young age, and put all his energy into his studies, working hard to get high grades. When the time came, he applied for a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery degree (MBBS), only to be _________ because of his dwarfism (侏儒症). Despite his good test results, the Medical Council of India rejected his application because of his height (only three feet), __________ that he wouldn’t be able to perform his duties in emergency cases.

Ganesh was shocked by the rejection, but he wasn’t about to give up on his dream. With the help of his school principal, he __________ the District Collector, then the state Education Minister, and __________ knocked on the doors of the Gujarat High Court. __________ of his efforts were successful, but he refused to give up. His case reached India’s Supreme Court, and justice was __________ done. In 2018, India’s top court of law awarded Ganesh the right to enroll in an MBBS, and he did just that the following year.

“I was very disappointed three years ago, but I refused to accept their refusal. Now I am very happy that I got justice from the Supreme Court,” Ganesh said. “Now I am on the way to fulfill the dream I’ve __________ since childhood. I know I’m different, but I want to live a good life like other people and make my parents proud.”

6 . In 2001, Nathan Ogden raced down an Oregon ski slope, launching himself off a jump over 30 feet into the air. While he had done this many times, something was ______ on this day. He jumped further than planned, causing his body to fall hard against the ski slope. He tried to stand, but his legs wouldn't move. It was soon ______ that his neck was badly injured.

Over the next few months, he remained _______ that he would walk again, despite what the doctors said. Gradually, as he ______ sense to his legs and a little independence, his doctors called his progress“miraculous.”

But he wanted to progress faster. He worked ______ to regain use of his upper body, and while he could hardly move his legs, he was ______ that one day he would walk again. He eventually regained 50% of his body movement, but more _______ was yet to come. In 2003, Ogden caught pneumonia (肺炎) and fell unconscious in his sleep.

When his wife couldn't wake him, he was ______ to the Emergency Room, where technicians ______ dropped him to the floor while x-raying his lungs. For the second time, Ogden had ______ his neck. But this time, the break was higher up,______ his permanent loss of bodily movement below the chest.

Sometimes Ogden felt ______. He noted being physically disabled was extremely difficult and that he lost his job, friends and almost his marriage. But Ogden tried to be ______ throughout the coming years.

He continues to fight a daily battle against ______. With his wife and children supporting him,he has been skydiving, snow skiing and water skiing. He is even writing a book to inspire as many as possible to believe in hope and _____. While he might never leave the wheelchair in this life, his spirit is rising higher than his legs could ever take him.

7 . The fast-paced modern life in the city can be too much for an introvert (内向的人) like myself. And I sometimes really need some time to ______ my shell. Fortunately, I had the perfect ______ to learn and love gardening.

Well, after my A-levels, I stayed at my uncle’s house. At that time the gardening ______ me a lot, because my uncle does gardening with ______ and he has a beautiful garden. When I was there every day, I ______ the beauty of his garden and the interest he showed in ______ it. After seeing that, I was ______ to start gardening in my home and started doing it. Therefore, I started my ______ Garden in my balconies (阳台) with only pots of different coloured roses. As I grew up, my interest in gardening also ______ to grow. It gives me the biggest ______ .

Whenever I go to my uncle’s home, I collect more plant saplings (幼苗) for my Garden. So now my garden is full of colorful flowers and ______ , I went deeper into debt each day buying seeds, plants, flowers, soil, and pots. I preferred to spend my free time in my garden, without getting ______ . It makes me come alive and I just love that ______ .

I enjoy watering my Garden. It gives me enough physical exercise and sends me back to my work with ______ passion. The everyday sun shines bright on the plants and beautiful butterflies fly above the flowers. I smile with ______ when I cast my flourishing garden.

9 . One morning, Huang Fulin, a local farmer, rode a motorcycle to the Lixinsha Bridge in Guangzhou. The bridge, is the main ________ connecting the Nansha Economic Development Zone with Sanmin Island.

The visibility was ________ that day. However, when Huang was about 20 meters away from the bridge, he saw a thick fog, and it was very dark around. It ________ that a container ship hit the pier (桥墩) of the Bridge, causing it to ________. Huang saw a ________ coming his way. At that very moment, he ________ flashed his lights and shouted loudly, “Stop! It’s dangerous.”

The lorry driver, Wang Guoliang reversed his truck back and ________ it horizontally at the T-junction to the bridge. “My truck is about 15 meters long. By ________ the road with the truck at the T-junction, the only route to Sanmin Island, the ________ wouldn’t be able to get onto the bridge,” Wang said.

Meanwhile, Huang ________   the accident to the on-duty officers, who quickly arrived at the scene and ________ traffic cones (路障) on the road. Before more police were ________ to the spot, Officer Tang, on the other side of the bridge, stopped vehicles about to cross the bridge. Meanwhile, Tang ________ a video of the damaged bridge on his WeChat Moments to ________ others about the dangerous situation.

According to the official website, they will be awarded with the title of individuals who act bravely in a(n)________ .

10 . Forty-odd years ago, I sat in my first-grade classroom. The classroom’s speaker suddenly rang out,_________ me to the office of Ms. Susan, my art teacher. I was a _________ kid. I hated to be noticed or singled out. For me, going to a teacher’s office was my worst nightmare.

I _________ open the heavy door. Seated in front of Ms. Susan’s desk were my parents. My father held a pile of my _________. “Why do you only use a black crayon when you draw?” he asked. I couldn’t _________. All I could do was stand still.

“Show me your desk,” said my father. We _________ to my classroom. I pointed to my desk _________ .My father pulled out my crayon box. He emptied the box and a single piece of a crayon _________ in his hand—it was black. Puzzled, my father asked, “Where are the rest of your crayons?”

I quietly _________ that I’d given all the other crayons to friends. My father let out a deep breath in relief, “You were __________.”

I nodded my head. I looked at Ms. Susan—her face was __________. I learned years later that Ms. Susan, who was always a caring person,__________ that I might have __________ issues. To her my crayon choice __________ my “depressed nature”. She had called my parents in to discuss “my problem”.

Because I didn’t __________ myself, others misunderstood me.