1 . Thirteen can be a challenging age. Not only did I have to _________ my changing body, I also had to deal with the _________ move from my country home to a crowded suburb.

When we moved, my beloved _________, a small brown pony, had to be sold. Feeling alone, I couldn’t eat or sleep. I missed my friends and my pony. My father realized that and _________ an old horse for me in the market. I named him Cowboy.

Cowboy was without a doubt the _________ horse in the world, and he was pigeon-toed and knock-kneed. But I didn’t _________ his faults. I loved him beyond all reason. I joined a riding club and _________ rude comments about Cowboy’s looks. I never revealed how I felt, but deep down inside, my heart was breaking. This _________ experience made me determined to do something.

And then I realized that my only chance to _________ would be in the timed-speed events. I chose barrel racing (绕桶比赛). For the whole next month I woke up early every day, rode Cowboy five miles to the arena (比赛场), and we __________ for hours in the hot sun.

My turn __________ came. At the signal, we dashed toward the first barrel, quickly whipped around it and with perfect precision rounded the second and thundered on to the third. We tore around the final curve and shot for the __________ line.

No cheers filled the air. The end of our run was met with surprised __________. With the sound of my heart pounding in my ears, I heard the __________ call our time. Cowboy and I had beaten other fancy horses!

I gained much more than a blue ribbon that day. At thirteen, I realized that no matter what the difficulties, I’d always come out a __________ if I wanted something badly enough to work for it. I can be the master of my own destiny.

2 . One winter morning, my friends and I went to play hocky at Fresh Pond. When we arrived, we realized that we forgot to bring the goal. “Go and________the ice while we go back to get it,” they said.

So when they went back, I was going to test the ice. I started along the________and felt it was solid. As I ventured farther out, the ice got________, and it was exciting to see underwater plants under the ice.

________, I heard a massive cracking sound around me. Before I knew it, I was in the water with just my head sticking out and my arms________my hockey stick. No one could hear my cries for________. I was hyperventilating (呼吸急促) while trying to________my crisis.

________all my strength, I hammered (用力击打) the blade (刀刃) of my stick into the ice ahead of me to________some kind of anchor (锚)________I could pull myself out of the cold, watery hole. As I pulled my chest onto the ice, it broke. I tried again, and it kept________. Again and again, until I finally could get to ice that could________my chest.

When I finally emerged from the water, there came a new________—I couldn’t stand! So I crawled (爬) along the________until I finally made it to shore.

In the warmth of my home, my mother told me that Fresh Pond is________by warmer underwater springs and I should never skate there again. Now she tells me!

3 . Water scientists have issued one of the strictest warnings yet about global food supplies, saying that the world’s population may have to switch almost completely to a vegetarian diet over the next 40 years to ______ disastrous shortages.

Adopting a vegetarian diet is one option to increase the amount of water ______ to grow more food in an increasingly climate-unstable world. Animal protein-rich food consumes 5 to 10 times more water than a ______ diet. One third of the world’s arable(适于耕种的) land is used to grow crops to feed animals. Other options to feed people include eliminating waste and increasing ______ between countries in food surplus and those in deficit.

Competition for water between food production and other uses will ______ pressure on essential resources. The UN predicts we must increase food production by 70% by mid-century. This will place ______ pressure on our already ______ water resources, and we also need to allocate more water to satisfy global energy demand, which is expected to rise 60% over the coming 30 years, and to generate electricity for the 1.3 billion people currently ______ it.

Overeating, undernourishment and waste are all on the rise and increased food production may face future constraints from water ______.

We will need a new recipe to ______ the world in the future.

A separate report said the best way for countries to protect millions of farmers from food   ____ in sub-Saharan Africa and south Asia was to help them invest in ______ pumps and simple technology, rather than to ______ expensive, large-scale irrigation projects.

Farmers across the developing world are increasingly relying on and benefiting from small-scale, locally-relevant water ______. These techniques could increase yields up to 300 % and add tens of billions of U.S. dollars to ______ incomes across sub-Saharan Africa and south Asia.

4 . What if the good life isn’t really…all that good?

What if the very things so many of us ______ for—a high-paying, powerful job; a beautiful house; a wardrobe (衣橱) of nice clothes in desirably small sizes; a fancy education for our children to prepare them for ______ on this way of life—turn out to be more ______ than they’re worth?

It’s long been believed that the psychological ______ associated with being a “low-status individual” —i.e., poor, grow ______ as people move up the social ladder. It turns out that’s true only to a point. Once you get ______enough, the mental and physical health ______ associated with greater affluence (富裕) fade away. In fact, research indicates that as you near the top, life stress ______ so dramatically that its harmful effects almost cancel out many ______ aspects of succeeding.

Scott Schieman, a professor of sociology at the University of Toronto, has a phrase for this: “the stress of high status.” In 2005 and again in 2007, he surveyed 1,800 Americans of all income levels and is now ______ his research to more than 6,000 Canadians. What he found turns received sociological wisdom on its ear: “People with higher level of education and in higher-status occupations and mid-to-higher ______ groups are experiencing higher levels of ______,” he says.

Why? The very trappings of ______ can make life harder if you’re the sort of driven, work-devoted person that high-status individuals tend to be, another supposed benefit that can be punishing: power. Having authority over others binds people to all sorts of interpersonal ______ and management anxiety, ______ “too much” stress, Schieman says. “This is the stuff that simply keeps people up at night.”

5 . Alwan, owner of a Bronx corner store named Lucky Candy, aims to help kids in the neighborhood from needy families—and keep their math skills sharp too. The ________ is simple; answer a math question-say, what’s 8 x 8 + 50?——and get five seconds to ________ as much as you can from the shelves of Lucky Candy, all ________ . Lucky Candy is located on a.busy street in the Bronx, which is what’s known as a food ________ ,where affordable,healthy food is often in short supply.

For Alwan, ________ is as essential as breakfast. So he thought up this clever way to brighten his young neighbors’ days.

“I think about questions I used to get ________ at school when I was in elementary school,” Alwan says of how he ________ questions for the kids.

When a young math genius gets an answer ________ , one of two things usually happens. Some kids rush for the candies, and who could ________ them? Others grab things like rice and   ________,clearly thinking of family at home.

Alwan ________ the sprees(玩乐)with his paycheck. But his boss， also his father，Aobad, doesn’t mind ________ too. A Yemeni immigrant, Aobad knows that in one of the ________ , most competitive places in the U. S., a bit of help goes a long way.

At present, Alwan’s story is ________ quickly on social media not only because of the emotional reactions of the participants but also Alwan’s connection to his ________.

6 . Brad stood silently outside Dr.Gardner’s office. Over the years Brad had been in the office of his boss more times than he could count but never like this. This visit ______ him and he was certain his shallow breath and sweaty forehead would betray his feeling of alarm the moment he entered the room.

“Come!” The voice, strong as ever, shocked Brad. He walked into the room, closing the door.” Do you know why I asked to see you?” Dr.Gardner asked without ______ from his desk.

“No,”Brad ______ , as he sat down in the chair opposite his mentor.

“I am out,” Dr. Gardner responded. “There have been ______ that I’m no longer up to the job.”

“That can’t be true,” Brad said, ______ to be surprised.

“______ it,” Dr.Gardner interrupted, “You’ve heard the whispers. It’s not been the best-kept secret, Brad .”

Brad knew Dr.Gardner was right. Everyone did know, especially Brad since he had been the one to send the anonymous letter that ______ Dr. Gardner’s failing eyesight and shaky hands.

”I have something for my successor (继任者).” Dr.Gardner opened his top desk drawer and pulling out a rectangular box. Brad sat silently as the old doctor handed the box to him. He had often thought of this moment and each time Brad felt greatly _______. Yet now, with his dream finally within reach, all he felt was a(n) ______ feeling in the pit of his stomach.

The box seemed ______ . Inside was an old scalpel (外科手术刀). Its blade still shined but its wooden handle was as worn as the box that ______ it.

“This scalpel was given to me by my mentor.” Dr.Gardner said, ______ the silence.“ He passed it ______ to me with encouragement and a(n) ______ .He told me that as a surgeon I held life and death in my hands each time I stepped into an operating room. I’ll leave you with the same words. Your scalpel is ______ a tool. How you use it is up to you.”

7 . Gerry Keene was about 20 minutes into his caving tour in the Tom Moore cave system near Perryville, Missouri, when one of the kids with him spotted a dog ahead of them.

The dog, curled (蜷) up on the mud floor, looked rather _________, because when they approached with lights and greeted her, she just _________ lifted her head but wouldn’t move at all. It was _________ that the dog was not in the right place, but they had no idea how to rescue it. They _________ a light for her and went out to get help.

Keene called Rick Haley, another experienced _________, who soon arrived and joined them. But figuring out how best to get the dog out took a bit of _________, since the rescue equipment on hand was really _________ for humans. Haley had an idea of using a bag and a blanket to move the dog like a package.

The channel in the cave was tight and upright in places, so it was a little _________ to move down. It was about 500 feet from the entrance, Haley _________, when they got back to where the dog was. He did a __________ assessment to her, gently moved her into the bag and covered her with the blanket. Then they started moving her __________ towards the entrance until finally getting out of the cave. In total, the rescue __________ took about an hour and a half. The dog was soon __________ by the local people and finally reunited with her owner after __________ for two months. Keene said their cave project didn’t go exactly as planned, but was an unforgettable experience for the__________. “If it weren’t for the project, we’d have never found the dog,” he said.

8 . Charles has faced a lot of obstacles in his 87 years of life but he is not giving up or slowing down any time. He has always had a______ passion for riding motorcycles, and it is what he passed down to his son, Jack. But a hit-and-run in 2016 ______ to take their shared interest away.

Charles was left disabled, and he spent eleven______ in the hospital. But even an accident this______ could not keep Charles down for long. Upon getting out of the hospital, he started looking online to find something he could ride.

With loads of time, research, and hard work, Jack finally found ways to get Charles back on the______   again. He didn’t just______ there-he went on to help others like his dad with his own______ , which he named Charles Mototrikes,selling adaptive riding equipment.

Charles has confronted even more barriers, his latest one involving cancer.______ ,this incredibly close family has found a way to once again do what they always do:______   the good. One way they’ve done this is by having a fun gathering with friends and family before Charles begins his cancer ______   in the hospital. What______   way to spend their time together than by going on a 100-mile ride______ the Green Mountains in Vermont?

This gathering is also a way to______ what Charles has accomplished and ______   in his life. “Never give up,”

Jack said, “Look at him, 87 years old and still______ . You can’t beat that.”

9 . Postman Billy heard about Alfie Whitehouse’s heartbreak after the extremely sad 11-year-old boy wrote a letter to Heaven because of his parrot’s death. The postman then wrote a(n) ________ on social media in an effort to raise funds in order to help Alfie.

Alfie was ________ with ADHD(儿童多动症) three years ago. He was heartbroken when his parrot ________. He wrote a letter ________ to Heaven and then he ________ it in his nearest post-box. Billy found the letter on his collection round and shared it with his ________, Graham, after reading the address. The two postmen decided to share the ________ on the Internet to find Alfie and get the islanders to come together and ________ him.

After ________ Alfie’s mum, Mrs Springate, Billy set up a fundraising(募捐) page in the ________ of raising enough money to replace the youngster’s pet bird. Soon after a local man, Stephen Platt, asked if Alfie would like to have his late mother’s parrot, Stanley.

Mr Platt, ________ the cage with Stanley, met Alfie in person earlier this month. Alfie understood that the       _____ was given to him but he didn’t quite understand why. He was just really grateful that he had got another friend.

Mrs Springate said, “I want to say a ________ ‘thank you’, although that doesn’t seem like enough to show our _____. We just want to thank every single person who has helped make this happen. It’s more heart-warming than anything else. There are some really ________ people on this Island.”

10 . Lenore Skenazy is a New York journalist. When she wrote about how she had left her nine -year -old son in central New York and let him take the subway home alone, she caused a _________ media storm. Her son, Izzy, whose _________ the expedition(出行) had been, was happy with the experience. He arrived home safely, _________ about his independence. He had been begging for weeks to be _________ out on his own and to travel unsupervised(无人监督的). Ms Skenazy gave Izzy a subway map, twenty dollars and some _________ in case he needed to make a phone call. But Ms Skenazy’s actions landed her in a huge _________. Although many came out to_________ her, she was labeled “America’s worst mom” by others. “My son had simply done what most people my age had done _________ when they were his age: gone somewhere on his own, without a security detail.” She wrote_________. “The problem with this dangerous idea is that overprotectiveness is a __________ in itself. A child who thinks he can’t do anything __________ eventually can’t.”

So. are we living in a risk-averse(风险规避的) culture where we limit our children’s ability to __________ danger by never allowing them to take reasonable __________? Does western society give its children too much __________? Or did Ms Skenazy’s actions __________ her son in unnecessary danger? What do you think?