1 . Carman Kelly, 82, needed a walking stick to push shopping carts (购物车) back to a certain area daily at an Arizona supermarket. Elizabeth Rizzo, a customer, wondered why the lady was still______at such an old age. She didn’t know that days later she would help change the lady’s______.

After______that the Walmart employee (雇员) was doing the job to clear about $10.000 of medical debt (债务), Rizzo made a TikTok video about her______

The video has been widely______and been viewed more than 15 million times. Through GoFundMe, a popular crowdfunding(众筹) website, Rizzo and her_______raised more than $129,000 for Kelly.

“I was______the amount (金额) we were able to collect,” Rizzo says. “I believe in the   _____of people and I believe if you______their heart, they’ll come together.”

Kelly doesn’t know how to_______Rizzo and the TikTok community. “There aren’t enough words to tell you how I feel,” she tells Rizzo.

Rizzo says she has a______grandmother. “My grandma_______when I was 15,” she says. “I always wished I had her in my adulthood. Now I’ve got my grandma back.”

She______walking down the streets as a young girl. Her grandmother told her to move any rock she saw to the side of the street so people wouldn’t______it. And her grandmother taught her to be kind to others. And it’s those lessons of ______that encouraged her to help Kelly.

2 . A New Jersey man Chris will never forget his 62nd birthday. That’s because his sons ______ his phone number on a large roadside billboard (广告牌) inviting people to call and wish him well. So far, he has gotten over 15,000 calls and texts from ________ persons.

It was his sons who ________ a billboard and stuck their dad’s phone number on it. They thought it would be something of a local joke to amaze their dad, with their dad getting a few calls from ________. But after the affair was a hit on social media, things got a bit out of   ________.

The billboard was ________ on March 6, and until now more than 15,000 birthday ________and calls as well has poured in. He tried to reply ________, but he eventually gave up responding. Instead, he changed his voice mail to “Thank you for calling to wish me a happy birthday, I really, very much ______ it ...”. Chris ________ his sons’ trick last Thursday, when he got a call from a man named Nick who wanted to wish him a happy birthday. “How do you know it’s my birthday ________ ?” Chris asked, to which the man ________ “I saw it on a billboard”.

The ________ news is that the billboard isn’t torn down, so the madness isn’t ________ to stop anytime soon. However, his sons have suggested that next year they may rent an even larger billboard to show their love and ________ to their dad.

3 . A second-grade education has not stopped rubbish collector Jose Gutierrez. He is bringing the gift of reading to thousands of Colombian children.

Back 27 years ago, Gutierrez set out to save books from the _________, driving a rubbish truck through the country’s richer neighborhoods. Now the ground floor of his small house is a community library.

Books are _________ for children in low income neighborhoods with up-to-date reading _________ at bookstores too costly. In Bogota with a population of 8.5 million, the public _________ amount to just 17 altogether, all located faraway from poorer areas.

Influenced by his mother, Gutierrez himself has had a（n）_________ for reading. So far, he has gathered over 25,000 books, including the book Gutierrez initially _________, a copy of the _________ novel Anna Karenina that was later _________ by The Little Prince and other famous ones.

Now, Gutierrez still _________ the rubbish for additions. His __________ as Colombia’s “Lord of the Books” has won him thousands of donated books, many of them posted to 24 other libraries alike across the country. Moreover, Gutierrez has traveled to book __________ in Mexico and Chile to share his experience of starting a library with the __________ books.

Gutierrez says though he doesn’t __________ technology allowing books to be read digitally, he prefers to read the __________ words on paper, saying “There is nothing more __________ than having a book in your pocket, in your bag or inside your car.”

4 . Simply finishing a marathon is a big achievement, but one woman in Thailand didn’t just run all 26.2 miles — she also _________ a little dog, Chombueng!

Runner Klongsanun was _________ a local marathon on Jan. 20th, 2023 when around mile seven, she noticed a seemingly _________ young dog along the roadside.

While other runners reportedly passed by the dog, Klongsanun, a dog lover, decided to pick it up and finish the _________. However, she still had 19 more miles to go. For anyone running a marathon, carrying any kind of _________ for 19 miles can make a marathon even more _________ and tiring. But instead of putting the dog down or _________ it to a looker-on to hold, the _________ Klongsanun crossed the finish line with the tiny dog in her arms.

After the race, Klongsanun _________ to take the dog home. Klongsanun even went back to the area where she first __________ Chombueng to make sure there weren’t any other dogs in need of __________, but she didn’t find any other animals.

“It was __________ a challenge to run almost 20 miles carrying a dog. __________, I did it because he is pitiful,” said Klongsanun. It looks like Chombueng has found a(n) __________ family while Klongsanun has a marathon __________ she’ll never forget.

5 . Instead of being a pacing-up time, winter is a locking-down time. Winter frees us in all sorts of ways.

I once had a neighbor named Earl. An old-timer and a self-made man, he _________ told me stories about Maine winters in the past. He suggested he had _________ the ice age. He backed up his old stories with _________ of old black-and-white photographs of heavy snowstorms that piled up to second-floor windows and completely _________ cars.

And I’ll never _________ what he said as an end to one of his stories, “A man couldn’t get much done once the snow came.” So what did he do once the snow came? He spent a great deal of time _________ to home and hearth, where he _________ the wood stove, sat with his wife, made pots of coffee, and read by the fire.

As I write these words I occasionally raise my head to _________ the window at the woodpile stacked (堆), the garden harvested, the apple tree _________, the lawn mowed, and the bicycle shed newly roofed.

As I tended to all those things, when did I have time to __________?

Some years ago a friend sent me a quote by Socrates that I try to be mindful of: Beware the fruitlessness of a __________ life.

The advice __________ me to look forward to the coming of winter, because I’ve finally learned that it is a slowing-down time, a gift of rest, a (n) __________ to acknowledge that most of the outdoor work that could be done has been done.

A friend of mine who lives in the Southeast recently called. In the course of our __________ he celebrated the climate where he lives, which __________ him to work outside year-round. “I’m always on the go.” he told me.

But I think I need a good time of winter.

6 . April Florie, a 57-year-old mother of two, became the first female football coach in the history of New Jersey’s 42-team Shore Conference. This ______ story of determination unfolded in Toms River, where Florie entered the world of coaching—she considered ______ the coaching staff of the Toms River East football team.

She shared, “I ______ thought everyone would say no. Who knew the first person I asked would say yes?” The person who said yes was none other than head coach, Kyle Sandberg, known for his ______ attitude to the game. Sandberg had previously welcomed two female players onto the team.

Florie’s journey to football wasn’t a calculated career move but was born out of a desire to ______ her community and school on a deeper level. She ______ to be part of the town and the school where her children attended classes and played sports. She realized football could help her reach that ______.

Florie described her first ______ in August as “frightening”. She had to ask a thousand questions and felt like she was in another world with coaches speaking a ______ language. The sensory overload was real, but her ______ to personal growth was evident to her players and colleagues. The football players and coaching staff ______ her presence and recognized her wisdom and motivation.

Florie sees her journey as an inspiration for other women who may want to step into the male-dominated world of football. She says, “I hope a nice young lady, who’s more knowledgeable in football than I am, takes a ______. I hope my own children ______ that. I hope they will be fearless and try things that they’re ______ with. If you fail, you fail. But ______ you tried.”

7 . Career hunt hits pavement

When it comes to job hunting, few consider holding a cardboard sign on the pavement a   _____ option. However, Yan Xinyi, a 21-year-old commerce graduate of University of Toronto, traveled the path less taken and received her _____.

After _____ herself on the street as an eager candidates for a job in the advertising and marketing industry, she _____ a position as a research analysts at Reprise Media, a global online marketing agency, reported The Toronto Star.

Yan had been searching for a job since she graduated early last year. “I have posted hundreds of job applications but wasn’t getting any _____,” she told The Star.

By December she _____ to make her big play. “I want to make it happen,” She told The Star, “even if I have to do something a little …_____.”

She held the cardboard and _____ resumes on the street. Whoever _____ one would get a bag of candy canes as a Christmas gifts. ______ HR from Reprise Media reached out to her online and ______   an interview.

Joseph McConnellogue, Reprise Media’s managing director, ______ Yan being energetic during the interview. He was convinced Yan was the real deal when she ______ a PowerPoint presentation about her street-sign job search.

“We were very impressed with her ______ and her, ”McConnellogue told The Star. “She took things into her own hands, took a very different ______ to finding a job. Sometimes think outside the box and you find the solution.”

8 . I was diagnosed with an anxiety disorder at 19. My first panic attack _______ nowhere, leaving me breathless and _______. Despite taking medication, my chronic(长期的) anxiety and panic attacks required me to _______ ways to deal with it. I've learned to treat _______ as a part of my character, alongside being free-spirited, funny, and creative. As a result, dealing with my condition has made me a _______ person.

Anxiety often makes me feel energetic, and I have two ways to _______ it: Either let my legs shake and mind race while overthinking everything or use that _______ to expand my advantage. Whether I'm at work, home, or my kid's soccer practice, I always find a healthy way to _______ my anxiety. At work, I might take the long way to the kitchen or grab my water bottle to regain my _______. At home, I take the dog for a walk, ________ on my bike, or use free weights. Physical activity not only ________ anxiety but also keeps me in shape.

During therapy, my doctor ________ thinking about something wonderful when my throat feels tight and anxiety strikes. Instead of convincing myself of the worst, I recall a________ in my early 20s in Paris. The thought of cheese, pastries, and the Eiffel Tower overwhelms me with happiness, helping me ________ control.

Although my life isn't ________, accepting that anxiety is a part of who I am has made me feel less like someone with an anxiety disorder.

9 . My photographs are the items I would definitely take or guard in case of an emergency. But what else? This was the question I asked myself as a ________ came toward us.

Unlike some friends and________, we decided to stay in our home. We didn’t have to choose what we would save by ________ it into the car, but we still had to decide what required protection by storing it in our walk-in closet. Surprisingly, few items made the cut - an obvious ________ that we had surrounded ourselves with beautiful yet unessential items. We needed ________ for the truly important things: ourselves.

Because when you hear the roar of the winds, or when something ________ hard against your windows, you don’t think of photos.You don’t worry about your big screen TV, or those paintings you’ve covered with towels to protect them, or that ________ car that you still haven’t finished paying for.

As ________ goes on outside, this is what you think: My children, are they OK? Are their impact-resistant(耐冲击的) windows working ________? Are their roofs keeping out the damage? My grandchildren, are they crying out in fear? Are they ________ as their own grandparents are? My relatives — yes, even those I try to avoid — have they ________ the worst of it? My friends, will they be forced to move somewhere else permanently? You don’t think about what you own but about what you love; what money can’t buy back.

Months and years after the hurricane, I often told people that there are two parts to ________ this kind of catastrophe: the horror of the hurricane itself and then the rebuilding that follows. The ________ together of a life, however, will take months, perhaps years.

But we will do it, ________ and as a community. Of that I have no doubt. In fact, I’ll make one more prediction. Piece by piece, item by item, we will once again collect the material possessions that decorate a home. I hate to admit this, but lessons learned ________ fear aren’t always long-lasting.

10 . There was a time in my life when I lost everything. Infected by a rare bacterium, I lost the ability to walk and ________ in a wheelchair. For a whole year, I was bedbound. After that, I lost everything else.

I lost friends, who lost ________ with me and grew tired of waiting for an unlikely recovery. I lost my ________ which I had worked for decades to build — my source of independent income. There went my sense of ________ too. And I lost my marriage. I lost my house after the ________. I had nowhere to live and had to move back in with my parents.

Facing all these losses, most people would fall into ________. And I did experience depression. But, most of all, I experienced ________. I believe that my life could start over. I could ________ not only physically but in all ways.

My health ________ slowly but surely. I ________ made my health a top priority. I ate healthier foods, exercised more regularly, and constantly ________ new ways to reduce stress like meditation and yoga. Then new friends ________ my life. A new job presented itself. A new ________ partnership presented itself as well. I was grateful that these events ________ people’s true colors and true integrity.

When bad things happen, it doesn’t mean that better things aren’t down the line. We just need to ________ hope. It was more important than anything else.