1 . On Sept.17, 2022, a father and son set out to begin the Ironman competition in Cambridge. Jeff Agar, 59, and his son Johnny, 28, weren’t ______ competitors. Johnny’s cerebral palsy (脑瘫) presented a big ______. But his dream of being a runner never stopped.

______ to show Johnny that he could pursue his dream of being an athlete, Jeff helped him engage in ______. They began waking up at 4 a.m. so Jeff could run while ______ his son in a special wheelchair called a racing chair. Every morning, they ______ themselves to run increasingly longer distances. ______, Johnny could even run a few miles using a rolling walker. Soon, they ______ 5K races, then on to Ironman competition.

The race began with a 2.4-mile swim. Jeff and Johnny dived into the Choptank River. ______ jellyfish stings (伤), they completed the swim in 90 minutes and moved on to the bike ride. Nine hours later, they ______ the final part: a marathon. After 16 hours, 55 minutes and 35 seconds — with only minutes to ______, father and son crossed the finish line together. Seeing the ______ scene, the crowd burst into cheers.

For Jeff, the race was more than just ______ the finish line; it was about giving Johnny his moment to ______. A father’s love and a son’s courage turned a disability into a story of ______.

2 . Here I was, sitting in the roller coaster (过山车) cart of Kingda Ka in New Jersey, the tallest and second fastest roller coaster on Earth. My friends shouted in excitement, while I shakily _______ my hands on my shorts. “How can you be so excited when...”

My words caught in my throat and melted into screams as the roller coaster suddenly _______ forward. It was the fastest _______ I had ever experienced in my life: 128 miles per hour. I screamed at the top of my _______ as fear froze me up from inside. We rapidly moved up the skinny hump (驼峰) rising into the clouds at a ninety degree angle, having crossed the track bringing us forward in mere _______.

_______, close to the highest part of the hump, I _______ a little. My screams became less terrified and more energetic. Once we reached the _______ of the hump, I could almost touch the sky.

And then we were spiraling (盘旋) downwards, curving and twisting and _______ towards Earth at the same speed. ________ I realized it, we had already met the ground. It was a thirty - second - long ride. I managed to ________ the entire ride without a breakdown.

I gasped in surprise. It was over. I had not only survived the ride—I had ________ it. My friend turned to me, her eyes ________. “Are you ready for the next roller coaster?”

My head felt light as we walked away from the ride spinning with something I didn’t ________ recognize. It took me a few minutes to put a name to it — thrill. “I’m ready for anything.”

Until today, that ________ ride that I went on 20 years ago is still kept alive in my memory.

3 . Last year, as my 9-year-old son, Leopold, and I prepared for a ski trip to Keystone, I set a rule: We would say yes to everything. Leopold is a picky eater and can be ________ to try new things.

Before the trip, Leopold and I agreed we should say yes to everything. We started saying yes ________ we even boarded our flight. The next day, after we got ________ at our hotel, I took Leopold to meet his snowboarding ________. My hope was that Leopold would seize this ________ to snowboard on a mountain of this size. On the first day, I skied by myself, played it safe and stuck to the long ________ green run. On the second day, I thought of Leopold, who, the day before, had kept to our ________ and faced his fear of heights. In the spirit of ________, I challenged myself to ski an intermediate blue run. It was steeper but I did my slow, diligent S-turns and I ________. When Leopold and I reunited, he asked if we could go in the outdoor hot tub. It was a 2-degree day, and the only thing I ________ more than being cold is being cold and wet! When I started to   ________, Leopold reminded me of the rule. Yes, it was cold, and yes, I was wet. The experience was a ________ as Leopold and I braved it together.

And there lies the charm of saying yes on vacation: It ________ you to step out of your comfort zone. Though it’s not always ________ to say yes to everything, developing a sense of adventure helps us live life to the fullest — ________ you sometimes end up cold and wet.

7 . My mother, 85, once a legendary talker, stopped talking months ago. To _______ her silent days, my sister and I would turn on music program and TV series, but she ignored them and always stared at the wall, looking somehow _______. And then, one day, a baseball game was broadcast. It seemed to have totally touched her. She turned away from the wall and then started to _______: “Oh.” “Good.” “Nice!”

As a Chicago native, she was once a devoted Dodgers _______, mainly because of that barrier-breaking miracle named Jackie Robinson. But she didn’t _______ love baseball. As she was a single mother of two, we couldn’t _______ many games when I was young. But she managed to take us to see the old Washington Senators play, where workers _______ free baseball bats. To her _______, my sister and I never developed the baseball interest, but she made other baseball friends. For years she was the only woman in Rotisserie League. She came in last every year. But winning wasn’t the _______. She just wanted to be part of the game. As with all other men in her team, she ________ to follow her heart more than her head.

Maybe I shouldn’t have been surprised that game awakened her that afternoon. I turned off the TV and asked if I could get her anything more. “More ________,”she said. She meant me, but I realize now that she also meant the ________. Over her difficult years, baseball was a more ________ partner than most anything else. I ________ her that night and promised I’d visit her the next day. But when I did, she slept peacefully forever.

Still, spending that last magical game with her was a ________. Even better: This time, she won.

8 . Ethan was passionate about playing the guitar. Every day after school, he would rush home, _______ his guitar, and lose himself in the melodies. One day, an opportunity _______ Ethan’s door. The village was hosting a talent show, and Ethan decided to participate. _______, doubts started to creep into his mind. The fear of failure began to _______ him.

But Ethan’s grandfather shared his story. He had a dream of becoming a _______ but filled with self- doubt, so he decided to seek guidance from a wise old artist. The artist listened to his worries and offered him a _______ to paint a picture on a large canvas in front of a crowd. _______ by the challenge, he hesitated. The wise artist smiled, “Paint from your heart and _______ your soul into every stroke. The beauty lies not in _______, but in the authenticity (真实) of your creation.”

Encouraged by these words, he painted with passion, letting his emotions guide his brush. The crowd watched in awe as a beautiful masterpiece ________ on the canvas. Finishing the story, Ethan’s grandfather said, “That day, I realized that success is not ________ by how perfect we are or how we ________ others.”

Inspired by his grandfather’s story, Ethan practiced ________ and poured his heart into every ________. When the day arrived, the audience was captivated by his performance. At that moment, he realized that his self-doubts had held him back, but now he was ________.

9 . Monday morning, I was running late for work, making my way through the ______ subway station. Finally, I managed to ______ a packed train and got off at my stop. As I walked to my office building, I noticed a girl, around 8 years old, ______ by her little brother, selling pens. She ______ me, saying, "Please buy a pen." Burdened by my ______ , I initially ignored her and politely ______ , saying, "I don't need a pen, thank you." But she ______ and urged me to stop," Just take one." At that moment, I felt ______ , exclaiming to myself, "God, how did I get myself into this?" Eventually, I ______   and purchased a pen from her.

The girl's face ______ lit up with joy. I couldn't understand why such a simple 2-rupee pen would bring her such happiness. ______ , I inquired further. She revealed that she sold pens for family food and desired to buy a lollipop for her brother, which cost 10 rupees. To ______ this, she needed to sell 5 extra pens. Her words left me ______ , totally shocked by her harsh reality. Deeply ______ , I bought three lollipops—one for her, one for her brother, and one as a small ______ for myself.

At that moment, I realized that it is through opening our hearts to others that we truly experience the beauty life has to offer.

10 . If it takes a village to raise a child, then January 17, 2014, was the day it took a village to save a child.

Waiting and praying were a daily ______ for Michelle as she’s one of the hundreds of American children ______ a new liver. But recently the prayers were more ______ as she’d been showing danger signs that made the transplant critical, but the telephone was as silent as the snowy scene outside.

Then one morning, the phone rang, saying a hospital in Omaha had ______ the right liver donor and it was a(n) ______ for Michelle. But they needed her there ______ 12 hours.

The family couldn’t tell what to do first — overjoy or ______. Because they were, snowbound, 600 miles away. ______, the phone lines were still working, so they put out a call for help through the radio station, which immediately broadcast ______ messages for practical suggestions.

Teresa Amshoff heard the story and suggested that the church parking lot would be the perfect helicopter landing spot. As precious minutes ______, the Amshoffs rushed out, pleading for help to clear the lot. Neighbors came without ______. In half an hour, 50 volunteers were working in sub-zero winds to clear the snow.

With dusk ______, the family finally made it to the church, where 150 people, leaning on shovels, were surrounded by mountainous piles of snow. As fire trucks arrived to provide lights for the helicopter, the crowd ______ to 300, applauding and waving as the helicopter flew off into the snowy night.

Michelle’s ______ was successful. It was the success not only of a skilled medical team, a family with the fight to survive — but the success of a whole village that would never ______.