1 . It’s time to register for tenth grade, but my parents could not pay the tuition. ________ I   was   the   top   student   in   my   class,   I   was   sent   home.   This was a ________ experience, as I loved being in school and ________ wanted to continue my education. I went home and helped my father at his tire - repair shop.

________, things took an unexpected turn three days later. One of my classmates ________ to tell me to go back to school because my tuition was fully paid. I returned to my classroom, but I kept ________who had done this for me. I________ the registrar to reveal the donator’s name , only to be told that the donator wanted to keep it a ________. Upon my ________ and on condition that I didn’t go and thank the person, she ________ me that it was my English teacher, Olivia Balian. When Ms. Balian noticed my desk was ________, she asked why I was not in school. Learning the reason, she paid my tuition with her salary. The whole year I sat in Ms. Balian’s class, thinking about her ________ gesture but unable to express my________ .

________, I received two master’s degrees. Almost 40 years later, I visited Ms. Balian. She had ________ from teaching long ago. She was as ________ to see me as I was to see her. I was finally able to thank her. I ________ to assist her in any way possible, but she ________ all offers.

While this story is about Ms. Olivia Balian, it is also a story that one person can make a great ________ to the lives of others. ________ her timely assistance, I probably would have spent the rest of my life repairing tires.

2 . In 2014, Mom wanted to live closer to us. My husband, Kevin, and I found a lovely ______ for her. The next day, she ______ me to complain about the food in a nearby restaurant.

I asked Kevin. “Do you think I complain a lot?” Kevin hesitated a few seconds before saying no. I realized that the family nature of complaining had taken ______ in me.

I decided to keep a better watch on my______. Things went fine for a few weeks. I was delighted at my ______. But every time Mom called, I got ______. I felt ______ to change by myself.

A few days later, I received from my friend Torry a ______ with one word on its cover: Blessings. He encouraged me to keep writing things I’m______for.

The next morning, I ______ the journal and wrote the date, then two things I was grateful for. Number one, friends who ______ me. Two, my caring husband. ______filled my heart. Maybe this was it. Not just the missing piece to help me ______the complaining but a joyous replacement:______.

Over the next few months, as I ______ to list blessings each day, I noticed little things I’d been ______ to: how the wind made the leaves ______; how the smile of a baby ______ my heart.

Looking for things to be thankful for ______to a deeper shift in me. Life didn’t suddenly become trouble-free. But a new awareness of the ______ around me made me see how lucky I was.

3 . Sydnee Geril knows life wouldn’t be the same without her service dog Tulsa. After all, the pup has ___________ her since the moment they met. The girl has a rare form of bone cancer.   ___________, she has a fear of needles, which means she often faints during the treatment. ___________, she has Tulsa to keep her smiling.

Geril was diagnosed with cancer in October 2017. She underwent nine months of ___________. While staying in the hospital, she found ___________ in visits from therapy dogs, which inspired her to ___________ a dog. She will never forget how ___________ she was the day she met Tulsa.

Life threw Geril another ___________ when her cancer returned eight months later. That’s when she ___________ to train Tulsa as a service dog. But it is a ____________ process. While the 2-year-old pup is still ____________ how to do her job, she’s already been a huge ____________. Tulsa can sense when Geril is about to faint and ____________ her by placing a paw on her leg. ____________, Geril has 10 to 30 minutes to react.

Unfortunately, when COVID-19 began, Geril had to ____________ bringing Tulsa with her to the hospital. She couldn’t ____________ catching COVID-19 through the dog’s fur. As the months passed, Tulsa’s ____________ affected Geril’s health. But everything turned around when she discovered a uniform which covers the dog’s ____________ and helps control shedding.

Now, Geril has her best friend at her side whenever she ____________ her. “I’m so happy to have her back,” Geril said.   “I honestly did not ____________ how big an impact she had until I didn’t have her. ”

4 . This is an amazing story about Lucio Chiquito Caicedo of Colombia.

At 104, Lucio finally_________his PhD program at the University of Manchester, an_________he has been working toward for 30 years. Curious to know the_________behind this? That’s because his dissertation (学位论文) , which was required for graduation, _________him solving a hard math equation (方程) that_________numerous people after it was first discovered 200 years ago.

This was a huge_________, which he was well aware of. But he chose to_________. Holding a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering and a master’s degree in science and technology, he is quite_________in his field. He wasn’t about to_________a 200-year-old problem to defeat him!

He has been actively working on his dissertation for the last 30 years, but life got__________, and he could only spare a little time to devote to the __________he’d been trying to solve for decades. However, when the lockdown(封禁) took place, it suddenly__________him to concentrate on it.

Lucio __________the rare opportunity. He began working tirelessly, __________himself to his research, and ended up solving the equation! He handed in his__________ to the university. At first, he was a little__________that the approval process would take a long time. __________, his work was accepted relatively quickly. Then, at last, he was __________a doctoral degree.

At 104 years old, Lucio__________to meet a professional goal, proving that it’s never too________to achieve your dreams!

5 . I have a collection of all the Our Canada issues in which I have had letters, pictures and stories published. Each one holds a(n) _______ moment for me. And each one always makes me smile and fills me with a sense of _______ for making one of my biggest desires come true.

I remember my mom _______ me to read at the age of three. Not because I was particularly smart, but more out of the need to give me something to do and keep me _______. Quickly I went from asking to have a book read to me, to “reading” it back the way I thought the story should go, and finally to reading everything _______. My mom had opened up a world to me that I _______ knew existed.

And so began my _______ for reading and writing. I would read soup can labels in the store and street signs. I branched out into _______ stories in my diary when I was 11. I started _______ pictures when my mom bought me a camera.

In 2016, my mom got me a subscription to Our Canada. She encouraged me to ________ my photos and stories. Gathering up the ________, I submitted a photo for the Theme Pics Challenge on Our Canada’s Facebook page. Imagine my ________ when I got a call from OC editor Maryanne Gallagher saying my photo had been ________ to be published. I was so ________! I called my mom and her words were, “This is just the ________, Debbie. You wait and see.”

My first real ________ was about collecting amber glass, Vaseline glass and tea cups with my mom. I ________ each of my free copies when I am chosen. I keep them ________ and bring them out, smiling, super proud and ________ that I was given this opportunity to ________ what I see and how I feel with so many.

6 . Bobby had attempted to climb the big snowy mountain. He had tried it at least thirty times but had always_________. He began at a god pace, focusing on the snowy summit, imagining the wonderful _________ there. But as he went on. and his strength dwindled (减少), his gaze would _________and look at his worn out boots. _________ , when the clouds had gathered round him, and he understood that he wouldn’t be able to_________ the view from the summit that day, he would give up and return to the village below.

On one of these _________he went up the mountain accompanied by old Peeper, the town optician (配镜师), who witnessed the_________. Peeper encouraged Bobby to try again, and he_________him with a pair of special sunglasses. “If it starts_________over, or if your feet start hurting, put these glasses on. These are__________glasses; they’ll help you. ”Bobby accepted the gift without giving it much mind, __________when his feet started hurting again, he put on the glasses. Just as nearly always seemed to happen, __________returned in the form of cloud cover. But this time it was so__________that he could still see the summit through the clouds. And so Bobby kept climbing, __________his pain, and finally arrived at the summit. His feeling of__________was incomparable with the mountain below surrounded by a sea of clouds. Bobby didn’t remember the clouds being as thick as that, so he looked more __________at the sunglasses, and understood everything.

Peeper had engraved a light __________on the lenses, in the form of the snow-covered summit. It was made in such a way that you could only see it if you looked__________He thanked Peeper for using that little__________to help him see that his aims were not __________, and that they were still there, where they had always been.

7 . One day, my friend and I went to the Moth Café.

The ________ of this Café is absolutely superb. There are cute lights with plants________ from the ceiling. Some of the tables have marble tops and there are seats________ in fur. It is so pretty________ and has a pleasant feel about it at the same time.

The________ is huge pages with drinks and food. The drinks were so interesting — herbal drinks, ________, smoothies and coffee with so many flavors. I________ to try the peppermint (薄荷) tea latte (拿铁) and it was really delicious! My friend________ the rose tea latte and that was super delicious________. These drinks are expensive! It was $8 but I would definitely get it ________ because it was great!

For food we________ the moth breakfast bowl. We also________ the Indian tea pancake, which was so thick and it was a lot of food for one person so we just got one and________ it.

To be________, I liked the food but I didn’t love it. I would________ for the decoration and the drinks though!

8 . “Never give up!” chanted (不停地喊着) my two young children, Max and Charley, as they marched behind their grandmother Mimi. They were having another _______, straight off the beach where they had spent the day building sand castles and playing in the waves. This time, they were _______ the mysterious ice-cream truck.

Over the years, Mimi had become our family’s beacon (灯塔) of _______. It was not a _______ she earned without effort, _______. Leading by example, Mom taught us just what one could _______ with a positive attitude.

Before starting her adventure with Max and Charley, Mimi heard the familiar clang of the ice-cream man’s bell. She turned and saw him _______ before he turned and disappeared over the dunes (沙丘). The time lag (时间间隔) between the sound of his bell and the departure of his truck was not long, so one must be quick to _______ him. Max and Charley were _______ when they didn’t catch him in time. Mimi said, “Never give up!” She explained that the truck might be ________, but they could find it at its next stop. Not knowing which direction the truck had taken, they had to ________ where to ________. My kids were tired but they ________ to move forward.

After about twenty minutes of walking, Max’s faith in the mission began to ________. He said, “Maybe we should give up. We have been walking pretty far and haven’t seen the truck yet.” Charley said, “No way! Never give up!” Max ________ unwillingly.

Just two blocks later, they found it. Max and Charley screamed with ________, “Never give up!” ________ though it was, that phrase has become our battle cry for the challenges we face. I can always ________ Max and Charley and say, “Never give up!” Upon ________ those words, they are ________ transported to a positive state of mind.

9 . When I was a baby, my parents gave me anything I wanted. Then my dad passed away when I was 7. My mom had to work really hard all year round, just to pay for the________ like our water and power bills.

Since then, when I would________ for a new toy, my mom would say “I’m sorry honey but we really can’t ________ that right now.” My repeated requests for toys________ her concern about our money situation.

Then something happened that would________ me forever. When she asked me what I wanted for my ________, I said I wanted a new video gaming system. I didn’t know it was expensive. All I knew was that my friends had ________ and that I wanted one, too. On my birthday, as I opened the ________ box, I found nothing but a pair of jeans. Мy mom could tell how________ I was and she started crying. I hugged her hard and I________ however hard she was working, she couldn’t afford to give me anything I didn’t need.

From then on, I didn’t ________ to get everything that I asked for. When I did I was so excited and grateful. Although it was hard________ the experience, I learned the ________ between what I wanted and what I needed. Now I am ________ for everything I have and I understand that it doesn’t________ what I have or don’t have. What’s more important is who I am, and who I get to spend time with.

10 . A huge smile ________ across my face as I heard the shave (剃刀) near my head.

After seeing a family friend shave his head in Dad’s ________, I knew it was the right thing for me to do. When my dad died, I was ________.

Once a week, Dad would take me out for frozen yoghurt before we ________ to the local gym, lay down in the cool grass and listened to Coldplay’s songs. “Look at the stars,” he’d sing along, “look how they shine for you.” Dad was so ________ and funny. We were best friends.

When I ________ to shave my head, The Leukaemia Foundation (白血病基金会) wanted to share my story to raise ________. I was happy to help, went on TV and talked about it. As the day for the shave ________, I was so excited.

Mum helped to ________ the shave at a local cafe with other participants. But a week before it, we had to ________ it because of the COVID-19 pandemic. “I still want to shave my head,” I told Mum.

We decided to set up a live stream on the Internet so it could go ahead with friends watching on. My family took turns shaving my long hair as my stepdad Michael read out encouraging ________ from the community. “You’re an inspiration, Tanisha,” one had ________.

After 25 minutes, my hair was all over the floor and my head was ________ bald (秃的)! Next day, I found out that I’d raised just under $3,500, which was a great feeling.

My dad was an incredible person and I’m so happy I did something he’d be proud of. Hair can grow back but Dad can never be ________. If I can help prevent just one family going through what we have, it would all be ________ it.