1 . In Eric Carle’s book, the hungry caterpillar (毛毛虫) eventually becomes a beautiful butterfly. It can enjoy a rather ________ role — one that’s more colourful and less stressful. I see butterflies as a symbol for ________. For humans, however, it’s not easy to make that ________. It can feel scary to leave the ________ things behind. And there are ________ related to moving to new settings and taking on different challenges.

For me ________ my job meant that my pay dropped significantly. I accepted some training and invested( 投资 ) time in networking. It was scary but exciting because I was ________ my career. Like a butterfly, I started to dip in and out of new things. I didn’t want to be ________ at ground level anymore. I had a much wider viewpoint. As the next stage of my career began, I was full of ________ to run projects of my own. Suddenly I was working in an exciting industry. The new environment ________ me. I could make full use of my experiences and strengths. But sometimes ________ making changes is also a choice; it can cause others to make choices for you, often not to your ________.

In my experience, if you spend your life ________ a butterfly, it’s pretty hard to catch it. Instead, if you go to places where there is a good chance that your gifts are ________ for that situation and you just sit there, a butterfly will ________ come and sit on your shoulder.

2 . I’ve noticed that conversations with my children have started to turn into something I don’t like. It could be my _______. I don’t always _______ before I open my mouth. For example, my kids would call to tell me about something that’s been _______ them. As soon as they’re finished, I go into mom mode.

“You should...”, “You need to consider...”, “If I were you, I’d...” “Mom!”

The tone is full of _______ and annoyance.

When I get one of my adult kids on the phone, I become a(n) _______ on everything, which I’m obviously not. I want to be part of their lives and _______ them from making mistakes that seem so obvious to me.

I’m hardly _______ in this. Over lunch the other day, a friend told me that her son _______ listened to anything she said. “It’s like talking to a wall!” I know that feeling well. But I’m learning slowly that talking at is not the same as talking with.

Giving advice to children can be full of problems. Though we may see ourselves _______ the wisdom of our years, they see something else. They see a ________ parent who hasn’t accepted the fact that they’re adults with their own thoughts and feelings. They’re not ________ any tips. They may not even want a(n) ________ solution to a difficult problem. What they’re hoping for is a safe place to talk with a person who loves and ________ them no matter what.

Because of this, I’ve given myself the ________ of becoming a better parent by being a better listener. It’s not an easy task for parents like me but I’m ________.

3 . The first day of school we were challenged to get to know a new classmate.I_______around when a gentle hand touched my shoulder.I found a little _______lady with a warm smile.

She said，“Hi! I’m Rose.I’m 87 years old.Can I give you a hug?” I laughed and heartily_______，“Of course!”“Why are you in college at such a young，innocent age?”I asked.She_______replied，“I’m here to meet a rich husband, get married, have children，and then travel around.”“No，_______，”I asked.I was curious why she _______this challenge at this age.“I always _______having a college education and now I’m getting one!” she told me.We became instant friends.

_______，Rose became a campus icon(偶像)and she easily made friends wherever she went.She loved to dress up and she enjoyed the_______from the other students.

At the end of the semester we invited Rose to speak at our football banquet.I’ll never forget what she________us.“We do not stop playing because we are old;we grow old________we stop playing.Here are the secrets to staying ________.You have to laugh and find ________every day.You’ve got to have a dream.When you lose your dreams，you die.________ we have many people like this walking around!”she said.“There is a huge ________ between growing older and growing up.Anybody can grow older.That doesn’t ________ any talent or ability，”she added.“But growing up requires ________ the opportunity in change，having no   ________.The elderly usually don’t regret what they did, but regret things they did not do.”

One week after graduation that year，Rose died peacefully in her sleep.She taught us ________   that it’s never too ________ to be all you can possibly be.

4 . My parents and I never really saw eye to eye on anything. When I was young it was just the ________ stuff — the length of my skirt or the movies I wanted to watch. ________ , as I got older, I found that there was a lot more that we didn’t ________ — my choice of friends or what I wanted to study at university.

I went to university in another city at 17. ________ home has totally broadened my outlook (看法) on the world and has changed my opinions on lots of ________ . I’ve encountered many amazing people with different experiences. My circle of friends includes people with ________ beliefs, values, cultures and different ways of approaching life. But the great thing is that we respect each other’s ________. I’ve learnt to question what I’ve been taught and not always agree just because that is what “everybody else” ________ .

When I went home to visit my parents the first couple of times, I found it really hard to ________ . I found it hard to deal with not being able to ________ my opinions as freely as I did when I was away from home. It was really upsetting. I used to get angry that my parents weren’t in ________ of my opinions. Now, I gradually realize that ________ I want my parents to respect what I say, I have to ________ their views. While it is ________ , once I make an effort to respect their values, it is not a ________ to get along with my parents.

6 . When I was a boy, I spent much time playing alone. I didn’t ______ it too much, though. I lived outside town, next to a forest where oaks (橡树) were my ______. I would sit in their shade and enjoy their peace.

Therefore it was so ______ for me when I was in employment in a ______ processing factory. It wasn’t just the ______ work, long hours, and low pay. It was also seeing trees being cut. The red oak trees were ______ influenced because they made the prettiest hardwood flooring.

One afternoon after a long day’s work, I decided to take a walk in the ______. As I wandered, I was filled with ______ for childhood days. Feeling so down, I dropped my head and that was when I ______ it: a red oak acorn (橡子) that had somehow ______ hungry animals all winter long. Something I’d read once ______ me at that moment — “An acorn ______ a forest eventually if it wants!” I smiled, bent down, dug up a handful of dirt and carefully ______ that little acorn. Then I headed home, no longer ______, for I also realized in our life we all ______ as an acorn, but whether our future is a forest or not is up to us.

8 . Every year I write a letter to my daughter on her birthday. I fill it with ________ things that happened to her on unpleasant days or happy days. I add to the letter photos and report cards that would have ________ as the year passed.

I have a small ________ in which I keep the things that I want to send my daughter. Every week, I ________ short notes of what I can think of from the week’s events. When her birthday approaches, I ________ that box and find it full of beautiful cards and ________ memories.

________ the letter is written and all the treasures are put into the envelope, I seal (密封) it. It then becomes that year’s ________ letter. On the envelope I always write: A letter to Ann from Daddy – to be opened when you’re twenty-one years old. It is a gift of ________ from Dad to her daughter. It is a lasting ________ of her life written as she was actually living it.

That tradition of ________ her birthday letters is now one of my duties. As Ann grows ________, I can see that it is a growing and ________ part of her life, too. One day, we were talking about life in the ________. It went like this: I jokingly told Ann that on her 61st birthday, she will be ________ with her grandchildren and having fun with them; on her 31st birthday, she will be taking her own kids to school; on her 21st birthday, she will be ________ university and will be offered a good job soon. “No,” she said, “I will be too busy ________.”

One of my greatest ________ is to be alive and present to ________ that wonderful time in the future when those letters are ________ and the accumulated (积累) love walks into her life.

9 . People often fall ill because of me. _________, they can hardly blame me; it is largely their own _________. A tired person may get _________, especially when he goes to crowded places with polluted air. A sudden change in _________ is another factor. In hot summer, people turn on the air-conditioner upon returning home. They will catch a cold easily.

My latest victim is an energetic student. After school, he played football hard for two hours. Though _________, he still went to the cinema. Then he got back home and took a cold shower immediately. I seized this golden chance to _________ him. He reacted, trying to _________ me, but I was already multiplying deep in his throat. He kept sneezing (打喷嚏) and his nose was running. _________ he put on some warm clothes, it didn’t work, for there were too _________ of us. Besides, his sore throat kept __________ him, and he developed a cough to force me and my family out, but __________.

The next day he couldn’t go to __________. He had lost his appetite and was not as __________ as before. His mother made him orange juice every few hours for more vitamin C, which would help his __________. For two days he was __________ by his mother. As he rested more, his defense strengthened and I began to feel the __________. I knew I had to __________ him before long. But I am not the one who gives up easily, and I made every effort to fight back. __________, it was my turn to feel __________ now, for his defense system was staring an all-out attack against me. I became __________ and finally my time was over.

Do you know what I am?