1 . It’s been a_________year for Saavedra, 25, her husband and their two little girls after the family _________on rent payments when the husband lost his job.

The family’s struggle(斗争)began when Sandra’s husband Erik Martinez was out of _________for several weeks. The family was unable to make that month’s rent on their small flat, and they struggled to _________their other bills.

Sandra worked in the evening, so Martinez could be home to _________their two girls with their homework. But the money she earned was not enough to make ends meet. And as their rent payments to the landlord(房东) _________, they had to empty their _________. They had no _________but to stay in the shelter(避难所), while Martinez _________to work and they were able to save some money. Later, a social worker, Christine Quinn, aided the family in __________for government’s help and __________them a two-bedroom unit in East Orange. “Any day when a family moves out of a(an) __________is a great day, especially right before Christmas,” she said.

Sandra was excited to finally have a place her family could call __________— and she even bought a Christmas tree. She hoped to prepare some holiday __________for her husband and kids. “I’m going to bake a cake now that I have an oven,” she said __________.

2 . I have been afraid of heights since young. In my middle school there was a training program called “The Leap of Faith”. Students had to climb a ladder to a platform (平台) 11 meters above the ground and then ______ the platform and grab a swing.

I was ______ like a leaf before I took the first step. I climbed up and, when I got to the top, I was so ______that I felt faint. I literally couldn’t_______ My teacher, who was standing below, suggested that ______ jumping off the platform, I just sit on the edge and then slide down. I sat there for 10 minutes and finally, with the ______of my classmates, I slid down crying the whole way. I heard two boys ______me behind my back. I was so hurt.

Over the next two weeks, I jumped off steps and swung on the rope. I wanted so badly to ______ that I could do it, and I wanted to ______ the guys who had laughed at me. Two weeks later in a PE class I ______ jumped off the platform. I have never felt so ______ of myself.

Sometimes situations are ______, but that doesn’t mean it is impossible to deal with them. People will doubt you, but ______ is the best revenge (报复) for them. When you attain your goals, you’ll feel a great sense of ______. So, keep dreaming and don’t let your ______ get in the way.

3 . 98-year-old Mae Amburgey survived the historic 2022 Kentucky floods after her granddaughter shared an alarming photo.

Mae_________escaped with her life after her apartment was flooded. The water level rose to 4 feet, _________ her, her son Larry, in his seventies, and her grandson Gregory.

They tried _________ several times to call for help, as most of the phone lines were down due to the _________. Eventually, Gregory took a picture of his grandmother sitting on her bed with her legs dipped in the _________ water below and sent it to his sister Missy, who lives in Green Oaks, Illinois, and the instant she _________ the photo, it broke her heart.

She _________ this photo on a social networking website. _________ it, she wrote, “My grandmother, uncle and _________ are stuck in the house across from the high school. Anyone who has a boat around that area, please __________!”

The shot soon went viral (走红), attracting many people’s __________. There were emergency boats nearby, but they failed to come because they couldn’t __________ the large portion of floodwater with a powerful current (水流). Both Larry and Mae are __________, and young Gregory couldn’t help them __________ on his own. However, before the family lost __________, one kind stranger entered the __________ just in time as the water kept rising.

The man __________ the home and helped each person get out. The three men helped Mae out and swam against the __________ current to safety.

No one knows who the man was, and he __________ before anyone could thank him. We hope his __________ comes back to him in some way.

4 . In July of 2022, my parents and I were in Venice on holiday. At around one in the afternoon, we stopped at a restaurant for lunch. As we were _________, a strong man with a long beard entered the restaurant. He was clearly _________, unsteady on his feet and slurring (含糊地说) his words. Seeing this, a young waiter, around 15 or 16 years old, came up to help him to a seat and take his _________. But the man pulled the boy towards him _________ and rattled off (飞快说出) his food choice in loud, unclear words. Puzzled, the boy took the order and ran into the _________. A few minutes later, the man began to get _________ and complained loudly. The boy appeared hurriedly and started _________ the man. _________ in his nervous rush, he accidentally knocked over a glass of water on the customer.

Suddenly, the angry man rose from his seat and raised his hand to _________ the boy. The boy was so __________ that he began to cry. The other __________ were watching the scene quietly. The other staff seemed __________ — the cashier looked on coldly; the cook __________ came out from the kitchen.

Just as the man was about to hit, a middle-aged man from a nearby table __________ and placed himself between the boy and the __________. A fight ensued (接着发生)— the drunken man __________ took out a knife, but the tall, well-built man pinned him down to the floor until he __________. Turning his attention to the boy next, the man held him until the boy __________ crying. He ordered a cup of tea for the boy, talking to him in a __________ voice until he felt better. Then, the middle-aged man __________ the bill and left the restaurant to thunderous applause.

5 . Just before cold midnight, we walked as usual into the only local coffee shop for a cup of coffee to stay awake as we had to work into the early morning. At the time, many of the________would appear here for warmth and free bread left by other customers.

I held a cup of coffee to________my hands, and then I naturally________, I noticed a man who would________sit in the same corner. The corners of my mouth instantly bent up, and he________back, whispering a low “Hi”, Thus began an active________that felt natural and comforting. I learned his name was Dennis. His parents________him when he was a child. He had been in and out of foster care (寄养) until he became homeless after________.

About twelve years later, I was________the construction of a city transportation system. My staff was very ________, but one man________went above and beyond in helping me. As I finished my________and was leaving, he came over to me and asked, “You don’t remember me?”

“It’s you, Dennis!” I yelled as I threw my________around him. We hugged and________like reunited family. It turned out that after our first meet, he had chosen to turn his________around. Then he was________and worked as a bus driver. I barely________him in his uniform.

“I have never________you. You were the only person who smiled and talked to me, and that made a new________ in my life,” he said. That seemingly minor smile had given us both an unforgettable________.

6 . The pandemic has been a dark time for many people. However, one mom found a way to make it _______ not just for her family, but for thousands of _______ using art and social media.

Angie Carel has always loved _______ with her family. “When I was a single mom, we did a lot of art because I could _______ none of the expensive digital devices. And we did art on a _______ basis,” Carel told CBS News.

When the pandemic hit and in-person learning was _______. Carel and her three daughters found themselves turning to _______ again. “Everyone was just sad. Then it _______ me that I was going to make them draw,” said Carel.

“I sent them a _______ — ‘Draw a smiling turtle. And show me your artwork this evening.’ And they did and we were laughing so hard at everyone’s drawing.” Carel added.

The drawing worked to improve their moods ________ and it also brought joy to others, because they ________ their silly drawings on social media. Carel’s friends wanted to ________, and soon, she had a whole community online ________ her drawing prompts (提示).

When more and more people were interested in her drawing prompts, she ________ the “Simple Daily Drawing” group on social media. It has grown to more than 8,000 members. Carel started asking members why they were joining, ________ they just liked art but the answers surprised her. After surveying the group’s members, she realized about 80% of the people were there to use the art for mental health.

7 . In the morning shopping rush at Tesco, Marina Herrera _______ any other shopper, stocking up for the week ahead. But she is getting all this fresh produce _______, which will be given out: when she gets home.

“All this would be regarded as _______ and going straight in the bin. It is perfect food; I hate to see any of it _______, she says.

Marina’s _______ have earned her the title of “hero” in the food waste war. _______, nearly a half of all food grown in the world is thrown out, _______ four times more carbon emissions each year than the aviation industry. _______ that has been described as the most effective action people can taker to _______ climate change.

“I wouldn’t call myself a ________,” Marina laughs. “I’m just trying to ________ more people to it, getting more people on board.” That’s why she joined the “Food Waste Heroes” programme launched by supermarket chain Tesco and food sharing app OLIO.

OLIO founder Tessa Clarke views the volunteers as heroes in the ________ for the planet, who have signed on to prevent eatable food being ________ by supermarkets and redistribute it for free in their communities ________.

“The food waste heroes are particularly ________ because they are pioneering and inspiring so many other people.” Tessa Clarke says.

8 . Charles Schulz, creator of the famous comic books, Peanuts, was one of my true heroes. He accompanied me through childhood to ________. When I was a child, I ________ and read almost all of his books. When I was in my twenties, I had pictures of his characters all over my bedroom walls. But I never expected to meet him ________.

So, last year when he came up to me at the Reuben Awards ceremony in Washington and ________ himself, I had to sit down to take a ________. During the ceremony, we got along so well that Charles Schulz and his wife said, “If you’re ever in California, please drop by and ________ us.”

How often do you get a(n) ________ from one of your heroes? So when my husband and I did go out to California, we called. To our total ________, they asked us to ________ at their home.

It was a lovely, quiet place on a hillside, with a beautiful view of rolling hills. Charles Schulz wanted to take us for a ________ in the surrounding mountains. But I had arrived with only ________ clothes, and didn’t have any shoes suitable for hiking.

“Your ________ aren’t very big; you can have mine,” he said.

Looking through his closet, he ________ out a pair of his own running shoes. When I put them on, they fitted perfectly.

“My goodness, I’m really walking in your ________!” I said with a laugh after it ________ to me that something truly amazing had happened.

9 . This morning, there was a young man from a mental illness house nearby coming to our campus. I saw him _________ at the soda vending machine(自动售货机), looking for change in his pockets. It appeared that he didn’t have enough _________ for soda at $1.5. I asked him how much he needed and he replied, “Just 2 quarters”. I reached into my pocket and _________, I had 2 lonely little quarters in my pocket. I gave the money to him and he was very happy and gave me the biggest _________. I took him back to my office and gave him something to eat.

I’ve been _________ coins for several years in a can at the office. I’m sure there was a(n) _________ amount of change in it. I _________ him the can and told him to change the coins into paper money. I told him to make sure he _________ my can because it was meaningful to me. After a while, he brought the can back to me and _________ me $30 and some change. This was the contents of the __________. He didn’t understand that the money was __________ him and thought I just wanted him to do me a favour.

We had a nice __________ about animals, science, food etc. Then I handed him the $30 and change. I told him that I wanted him to __________ the money. He asked me why I was doing this for him. I replied, “You have a need and I’m __________ that I can help.”

Isn’t it __________ what “just 2 quarters” can do? It made this young man happy, made me shed happy tears, and let him know that people care about him.

10 . A man has been tidying up his town by weeding the pavements around where he lives during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Alex Russell, from Newquay in Cornwall, said, “I just want to keep the _________ looking nice and make it _________.”

His local police force said officers had spoken to him and were _________ that he was following social distancing advice. Mr Russell said he _________ wore a face mask and gloves and kept at least 2 meters away from other _________.

Mr Russell has been receiving lots of _________ from local people, including Lisa Paul who said he had a “heart of gold”.

“He’s doing a _________ job around our community tidying up the streets of weeds and rubbish on his own,” she said. “He’s only 21 years old; it’s a _________ that other young people aren’t like Alex.”

So far, Mr Russell has _________ four streets. He said he would like to finally clear up the whole town but was __________ one street at a time.

“When I’ m with my tools, I feel __________,” he said. “And people walking past don’t worry me any more, because I __________ that I’m doing good for the community. Everybody has been so __________. I haven’t had one negative comment. Complete strangers go __________ and say well done.”

A local organization said on the Internet: “__________, Alex, you are an inspiration to many.”