1 . In present times, stress is one of the major causes of mental illness and physical illness. Stress is no _________ to us. Everybody has met and experienced it. It lives in our homes, workplaces, and _________ follows us wherever we go, in some form or other. But do you know why you can’t _________ it?

You get stressed because you _________ to get stressed. This is ridiculous (荒谬的), you might say. You’re right. Who would _________ that stress is a choice that we make? And why in the world would we choose stress? Well, it is because we do not realize that we’re doing that. It happens _________. Choosing stress is easy, but the other way around is a _________ task.

Most of us would take the easy _________, the path of minimum efforts. We’re under stress at times _________ we don’t do anything that we should do — just because either we’re __________ or we don’t have __________ in ourselves. When you don’t complete your task on time, and the __________ draws near, stress envelops you.

If you did your task or carried your __________ as it should be, then you would not be stressed. Choosing not to get stressed is like swimming against the tide. Initially (最初), it __________ effort because you are used to going with the flow of your __________ behavior. So we need to overcome our laziness and self-abasement to be stress-free.

2 . Tommy hated school and was always looking for excuses not to go.

If he sneezed, he _________ his mother to write a note to tell his _________ that he had a cold. If he had a headache, he asked his mother to take him to the doctor _________ school hours.

He spent _______ time at home than he did at school. On the days that he did go to school, he _______ for excuse to come home early.

One day he came home from school in the middle of the _______.

His father was _______.

“You are home early,” he said. “Is the school closed today?”

“_______, Dad,” Tommy said. “It’s open. I came early.”

“_______ did you do that?” his father asked him. “ What did you ________ to the teacher?”

“I told her that I had a ________ baby brother and that I had to come home and help ________.” “But your mother has had ________,” his father said, “a boy and a girl. You have ________ a baby brother and a baby sister.”

“Yes, I know, Dad,” Tommy said. “I’m ________ up my baby sister for next week.“

3 . A mother with cancer has been moved by the kindness of a stranger as she fights with the terrible disease. Jerina Edwards and her family were _______ at a Chinese restaurant when a customer offered to _______their bill.

In a touching note written on the bill for the meal, the _______ explained the inspiration behind his Christmas kindness. The kind­hearted stranger who offered help _______ how his own life had been affected by cancer five years before. “I lost my _______ to cancer five years ago,” he _______ on the bill. “I know how _______ it can be going through this. My children lost their mother. Your meal is on me.”

Ms Edwards _______ the kind stranger alongside a photo of the bill posted on the Love What Matters Facebook page. The widely­shared _______ has since been viewed more than 35,000 times. “We went out to eat last night at a little Chinese place after church. Right as we were getting ready to ________ our ticket, the waitress brought us this instead，” she said. “Someone in the restaurant had paid our bill and left us this ________. More than anything, having cancer has shown me that there are a lot of ________ people in this world and that I am ________ for my own family.”

Although her diagnosis (诊断) was not terminal (致命的), Ms Edwards said cancer had ________ her family and herself so much. “It has been hard,” she said. “I have fought; I have been sick; tears have been shed; I have missed out on things; I have lost my hair, but I will live. My parents will ________ have their daughter; my husband will have his wife; my children will still have their mother.” She ended her emotional post with a personal message to the stranger at the restaurant. “Whoever you are—thank you.”

4 . Johnnie Cowboy and his wife Monica call on people to think of their old neighbors who generally don’t handle the heat as well as younger people in hot weather.

They don’t _________ anyone to do what they themselves would not. Actually, they’ve done this for a decade.

They live in Kingsbury Towers Apartment, and the apartment is called _________ by thousands of residents. All of the residents know that at some _________, Cowboy and Monica will come knocking on their door to make sure they’re _________!

Each day, they go through their _________ to chat with elderly neighbors who might not be able to get out as _________ as others. They make supply runs for them and _________ their air conditioning is working. Monica says she will often call the management if they can’t _________ the resident inside.

Since older people are more likely to suffer heatstroke (中暑), staying _________ is important to help maintain their __________. However, sometimes it’s hard to tell if you’re overheated when you __________ alone. That’s where their visits __________!

No one asked the __________ to check on the well-being of their neighbors, but they did it __________! Sometimes we just have to do what’s __________ without being asked.

5 . On May 22, 2011, a hurricane struck my hometown. It destroyed 8, 000 buildings. ____ more than 1, 100 people, and took 161 lives. The roof of my parents’ house was broken. In seconds, the home they’d known for years became ____.

As soon as my parents were safely relocated(重新安置), I ____ to save their remaining possessions. ____, I discovered most of their fumiture and clothing had been ruined.

My parents had ____, however, that I could save some of their books and pictures. Unfortunately, every time I tried to ____ a photo album from a drawer or a book from a shelf, the nonstop rain wetted what I was trying to protect. I felt hopeless, so I ran outside. Suddenly, a short, thin, elderly man ____ at my side. It seemed like he rose up through the ground or fell out of the sky. He said to me in a very ____ voice, “Everything is going to be all right.” Then he ran through the rain toward the house and climbed up to the roof. I ____ him until I remembered I was supposed to save my parents’ prized possessions. I went back inside and ____ some towels and plastic bags in a cupboard. Using the towel to dry off several photo albums and books, I placed these treasured things into the plastic bags for ____ from the rain.

Suddenly, I realized it was no longer raining in the house. Looking up, I saw he’d____ in putting waterproof canvas(防水帆布)over the whole house. I ran outside to thank him, but there was no____ of him. I wanted to tell him how ____I was for his help.

This man was an angel sent to help me in my hour of need. He was a light in the darkness. He gave me ____, comfort and hope.

6 . I'll call him Peter because I didn't know his name. He was a waiter in a restaurant to which I had taken Robert, my five-year-old son, for his ______. Robert wore his new ______, proud and joyful.

Peter greeted us warmly and brought his ______ close to Robert's level to talk with him. Robert lifted his left foot so Peter could see his boot and then he asked Peter to ______ it. Before I tried to stop his ______ request, Peter got down to Robert's boot and took a long smell. Then he thanked Robert for ______ the special smell. Robert smiled at Peter's reaction.

When ______, Robert took more time than a fast-food customer should. Eventually, he ______ an orange juice. Peter praised his ______, which brought a bigger smile to Robert's face. Peter followed us ______ with our food as the birthday boy picked the perfect table. My heart was filled with thanks for this man who made my son feel ______. Though Peter did what Robert asked calmly, I still criticized (批评) Robert for his impolite deed.

Peter treated all customers with extreme ______ and politeness. Eight years later, Robert can still feel Peter's   ______. In life, we often ______ people by material worth or university degrees. However, the true ______ of a person comes from how they treat others.

7 . High school senior Jonathan Walker is unquestionably celebrating an amazing milestone in his life. The Florida teen has been ______ into 27 universities and received up to $4 million in scholarships.

“It was just a surprise to see that they wanted me to ______ their institution, and that they were offering me ______ . It was just a ton of excitement,” Walker said during an interview with ABC News’ Linsey Davis.

Colleges and universities that included Harvard, Stanford, Yale, and MIT all ______ to enroll (登记) the 18-year-old Florida student.

______, the teen was very surprised when he was admitted to all of the universities. He told CBS Miami in an interview, “That’s such a ______ thing to occur, but it did happen.

However, ______ he has been accepted to all of his choices, the teen is working on ______ the list down. “I’ll be able to make a pretty confident _______.”

Actually, Walker is also active in the science club, the international Baccalaureate program, and the school football team. The amazingly ______ 18-year-old has also been working with a partner on a wrist device that ______ people who are blind and deaf to communicate better with people.

“My parents ______ me a chemistry set (化学用具) a couple of years ago. And then from there I really ______ that I could use engineering to help people. And so I just became super interested in ______ devices that could help disadvantaged communities and people ______ a challenging period,” Walker said.

8 . “You’re going to buy me a bicycle?” I asked in_________. “Have you forgotten how old I am?” “No, I haven’t, and what_________does it make? Everybody of our age who travels in a motorhome has bicycles,” my husband said. I could not believe my ears.

When I was six, a girl was hit by a car while riding a bike and_________instantly. My parents told me bicycling would kill me. So, I never_________to ride.

But after I had children, I satisfied their_________to own bicycles and taught them to ride at an early age. Of course, I never_________that I would buy one for myself.

_________, I didn’t want to mess up my first travel before it started and I knew I needed to face my_________, so I decided to go along with this. One is never too_________to learn a new skill, I told myself.

After buying a bike, we were on our way to my first__________. With sweaty hands and a flying heart, I__________held the handlebars(车把) and balanced on those two wheels. There were a few sudden stops and__________starts over the course of the next thirty minutes, but I did it. I learned how to ride a bike.

Since that day, I have__________throughout Texas, California and Virginia. Bicycling has truly__________my retirement years, given me more self-confidence and, more__________, taught me that a simple, courageous act knows no age.

9 . William was one of my students. He adored plants but struggled with his reading. After the mid-term test, William’s ______ showed no sign of improvement. Until the last few weeks of the year, when we ______ the life cycle of plants, William excelled. I'd never seen him so ______ in the classroom.

As a class project, each child planted a sunflower seed in one of the containers and ______ its growth. I did this every year, with varying ______. Planting the seeds was exciting for many of the students, the ______ part much less so. It took too long to see results from daily watering, and most kids lost ______ and interest. As a result, they forgot to ______ their sunflowers-to-be.

But not William. Every afternoon, William made sure all the containers were ______ and nurtured (培育). By the last week of school, the ______ were about four inches tall, which really ______ me. In years past, few seeds successfully produced new shoots. And those that did had never gotten so tall. But these were ______. These were William’s sunflowers.

This is what it means to be a ______. At that moment, I knew I didn’t have to ______ William. I’d seen that special seed planted inside him. Others would too. And, one day, he’d start to ______, mature and shine —just like his sunflowers.

10 . Christmas is a time for giving and receiving. However, is it ________ for close family and friends? Do we even spare a ________ for those in need? Our children receive so much throughout the year.

As parents we want our daughters to be ________ for what they have and to think of those who don’t. That’s why my husband and I want them to ________ the spirit of giving back from a very young age.

Through their school, the girls have a charity which they ________ . Every Tuesday they take two loaves of bread to the school food bank. Twice a year they donate ________ clothes, toys and books to shelters. They also volunteer on weekends. As my husband is a regular blood donor, the girls ________ to donate as well. Unfortunately they are too ________ as the start age is 16.

Children mirror the ________ of their parents and if you often reach out to others by giving generously, they will ________ . Christmas is the perfect time to teach them to give back to those less ________ .

Teaching the gift of giving back not only promotes personal growth, it also ________ them a sense of belonging and pride. It will create ________ that they are making a difference in someone else’s life no matter how small the ________ . It teaches them love, kindness, patience and so on. These ________ will help them carry it forward in their adult life.