1 . I used to find award show speeches inspiring when celebrities encouraged people to “chase their dreams.” However, as I grew older, I ______ the toxicity (毒性) behind this notion. Pursuing our dreams is not always easy due to various ______. For instance, I ______ to be a singer but lacked the financial means to audition for competition shows. Later, my dream ______ to becoming a manga editor, but I faced ______ like language barriers, travel costs, and difficult exams.

Though there is hope, considering many celebrities started from humble beginnings, achieving dreams remains ______. As someone who once had ambitious aspirations, these “chase your dreams” speeches gave me ______ hope. I take issue with such celebrity speeches because they suggest that anyone can ______ whatever they desire simply by wishing for it. ______, reality tells us otherwise. I am not trying to be ______, but rather realistic. Growing older has taught me that some dreams are meant to stay as dreams.

Nonetheless, I am grateful that my dream of becoming a singer did not materialize. I have found other passions — writing and editing — and ______ pursued them as a career through college. I have no regrets about this path. If we do not ______ exactly where we want to be, it is alright. Life sometimes presents obstacles that ______ us from choosing our first preference for the future. Our dreams may not always be ______, but that does not mean good things are not in store for us. Life often takes us on different paths. Do not lose hope, for you have a bright future ahead, ______ the choices you make.

2 . When I was 24, I moved to America, 11,000 kilometers away from my homeland. This was _______, especially fitting into an unfamiliar environment. Working from home increased my _______, as I was cut off from social interactions. However, serving as a volunteer at a local animal shelter _______ everything.

Upon arriving at the shelter, I was _______ to a small, grey and white cat named Luna immediately. Found abandoned and terrified of humans, Luna _______ in the corner, shaking. Her lonely green eyes seemed to _______ my own sense of displacement in this foreign land. My task was to slowly gain Luna’s _______ and help her adjust, which felt similar to my efforts to _______ this new place.

As days turned into weeks, Luna and I developed a _______. The process of feeding her, speaking softly, and the ________ required to look after her made this little creature gradually open her heart to me. Her ________ encouraged me to step outside, make new friends, and become part of the community.

My time at the shelter provided a valuable ________ into settling down in a new country. It is an inspiring experience of ________ gaps of language and culture and a journey of personal growth. From it, I realized the value of time, love, and a(n) ________ heart in forming meaningful relationships. This journey aided me in finding a sense of ________ in an unfamiliar land.

3 . In the town of Riverbridge, life was simple. The townsfolk knew each other, and the most exciting event was the weekly _________ written by a 15-year-old boy named Kally Mahzoo.

One day, a hobo (流浪汉) arrived and _________ a camp under the bridge. Before long, local stores began reporting _________. The townsfolk were quick to point fingers at the stranger. Kally, however, was not _______. He decided to investigate, visiting the stores. He noted the items stolen— _______ food and necessities. He then went to the hobo’s _________ and asked him about the thefts. The hobo   _______ any involvement, his eyes reflecting sincerity. Kally believed him but needed _______.

Over the next few days, Kally kept a close eye on the stores. He noticed the stolen items were always from the _______ shelves, easily accessible to a child. Hiding behind a barrel, he watched as a group of children entered the store. As the store owner was busy __________ to customers, one of the children slipped a loaf of bread into his bag. Kally had found the suspects. The children, ________ red-handed, confessed to the thefts. Their families were too poor to afford even the __________. Kally wrote about his findings in his column, clearing the hobo’s name. The townsfolk, __________ of their quick judgement, apologized to the hobo. The store owners, __________ the children’s dilemma, decided to help their families.

Life returned to its simple rhythm, but with a newfound respect for the young boy. And under the bridge, a sign was fixed that read, “Never __________ a book by its cover.”

4 . I’d been exploring the 40-hectare woods around our cottage my whole life and I knew the way well. So it was a _________ when I found myself lost there.

One dull cold February afternoon, I had a sudden _________ to hike the hill with my two daughters. Putting on our snowshoes, we immediately _________ northwestward. While making our way up the hill, my daughters stopped occasionally to investigate unknown plants and to look at the abandoned deer beds… These really made their _________.

As the shadows started to _________, we moved further up. Soon, weariness began to _________ enthusiasm. We decided to return. Instead of backtracking over our _________ route, I chose to walk down the steep (陡峭的) side of the hill, _________ my general sense that ahead of us lay the stream that would guide us to the road. But as the terrain (地形) leveled out, I had my first major moment of _________: Where was the stream? Were we off course?

I instinctively (本能地) pulled out my phone to get my location, but it __________ in my hand in the cold air. __________, I started feeling a bit panicky. However, I quickly __________ myself, reassuring my daughters to continue walking. Focusing on the landmarks, I spotted a familiar tree and eventually __________ the road.

That winter’s day taught me a valuable lesson about habitual reliance on technology. If my phone had __________ then, I might have directly followed the GPS, ignoring the old __________ of depending on surroundings and life skills.

5 . Orange chicken, salt and pepper chips, fried rice... Max Burns lists several typical Western-style Chinese dishes that _______ him. For Burns who spent his childhood in China, those cuisines are far from _______. They are invented to satisfy Western preferences.

Actually, many Westerners regard that particular type of _______ as the whole of Chinese cuisine. The average Westerners are not as _______ and educated as they could be. That is why he tries to show Chinese food by vlogging (视频博客) about _______ Chinese dishes at home.

The food adventure has helped Burns grow into an _______ with over three million subscribers worldwide today and helped _______ some people’s ideas about Chinese food. His friends told him they were shocked by the _______ of Chinese cuisine and it took them a long time to figure out categories of Chinese cuisine.

_______, when Burns first started vlogging in 2016 after returning to England, cooking Chinese food at home was a then “________ idea”, because he was never into cooking. At the time, the ________ centered more on explaining aspects of Chinese culture. However, during COVID-19 when Burns couldn’t ________ outside, he had to learn to cook. “Then I instantly fell in love,” he ________. “The more I learned about Chinese cooking, the more I got into it.”

The cooking journey also serves to maintain his ________ with China, even though he has left China for years. Burns ________ the experiences of living in China, enabling him to teach about Chinese cuisine and build a cross-cultural bridge between the East and the West.

6 . In early January 2024, Jimmy struggled through snow and ice to summit the Vinson Massif, Antarctica’s highest peak.

After decades of traveling and mountaineering, Jimmy could _________ another achievement, a great adventurer, which _________ reaching the highest peak on every continent, and visiting both the North Pole and the South Pole in addition to visiting every country.

Jimmy had _________ spent ten years of his life, between 2007 and 2017, visiting every country in the world. The _________ journey saw him meet with many difficulties and gain achievements as well. But once he’d managed to visit every country in the world, Jimmy went into a _________.

“It had been a huge life goal, over a _________ of my life. However, when I finished that, I was a bit _________,” he said. “I started eating badly, _________ weight and ignoring my own _________.”

Jimmy decided that the best way to ____________ this was to challenge himself again. He began running ultramarathons and climbing mountains, and soon found that with the ____________ and direction, he was back to loving life again. He’s hoping that he doesn’t ____________ bad habits again after completing the latest challenges. For now, Jimmy is putting all his ____________ into helping others to achieve their travel goals.

“From an adventure perspective, what I really want to ____________ to people is just how many benefits they can get from ____________ experiences. All good things come after suffering,” said Jimmy.

7 . My mother has always been one of those rare people that sees the good in everyone and does good things. She’s had her ups and downs but has always_______a positive, sunny outlook on life and been very_______to people.

One day, my little sister fell and hurt her ankle, desperately needing a_______to the hospital emergency room. My mother immediately_______into crisis mode, packed my sister into the car, and drove to our local hospital. In such a_______, my mother didn’t call to tell my father. When she got to the hospital, she realized she needed to_______with my father immediately.

While waiting for my sister to be examined, my mother_______her way to the pay phone to place her call. She put her coin in, called my father and told him everything. After she hung up, the phone_______several additional coins that Mom wasn’t owed.

Realizing that the phone was_______, my mother decided to leave the________coins by the phone. She told us that in a crisis, people might not remember to bring________with them to make that emergency call.

I’ve often thought about her________from an adult’s perspective. I realize that someone seeing the money by he phone may have________taken it because not everyone was as________as my mother. But I like to believe that my mother’s faith was ________and that someone who needed them found the coins waiting there.

8 . I opened the door: the morning dishes weren’t in the sink, and the floor had been cleaned. The pile of junk mail on the counter disappeared, replaced by a single ________. Then I replayed the casual ________ I had made that morning: “You never helped out around the house...”

I picked up the letter, ________ his apology and gratitude for everything I did. But when I read the first line, I felt incredibly ________ myself.

“I’m tired of being ________ of not helping around the house. Yesterday, I washed the windows. I also picked up your car from school and took it for an oil change. Did you ________?”

I glanced through our ________ windows. My car? I did know he took it to the garage so I didn’t have to waste a precious Saturday morning on vehicle ________.

The letter continued in the same________ — a little anger, a lot of hurt. I deserved every word since I wasn’t________ unaware of his household contributions, but instead of giving him ________ for the tasks he did, I complained about the tasks he ________ to do.

I ________ a pen and notebook but my hand paused above a blank page. Careless, ________ words had rolled out so easily from my mouth, but these new words must be deliberate and meaningful, worthy of ________. I wrote, “I’m sorry.”

9 . I was born with facial differences. My first surgery was when I was 3. That same year, I started _______ lessons when my mom signed me up to learn ballet. My mom said, “When you’re on stage, no one _______ your face,” and what I think she _______ was, “When you’re on stage, people can look past your difference and _______ you for who you are.”

I’ve had nine surgeries. I am forever _______ to my family for trying to give me every chance at a “normal” life. _______, what I would have really wanted was for that ”normal“ life to be a result of a culture where typical _______ weren’t a requirement for full participation in society.

It’s a daily experience for people with facial differences to get _______ questions like, “What happened to your face?”— that’s very _______, which I think is so messed up. I see ________ a lot when strangers are asking these questions.

I want people to examine their deeply held beliefs about what they ________ is beautiful and worthy of adoration and ask why? Why do we devalue people based only on what they ________?

The next time you see someone with a(n) ________, take a moment before asking annoying questions. You can help reduce your bias (偏见) by just ________ a person’s humanity — not through a lens (镜头) of pity, but by recognizing them as someone who is probably more ________ than different from yourself.

10 . On nothing but a “wooden board and four wheels”, a group of women are speeding down windy mountain roads. For most people, this could sound _________. But for Anna Pixner, downhill skateboarding at speed brings a _________ feeling: freedom.

Austrian Pixner got _________ in this sport six years ago. When she started competing, she would _________ in crowds of hundreds of men. Journalists point out that she is a(n)_________ in this male-dominated sport, but Pixner has tired of such _________. “There’s not that much of a difference except that we _________ started a bit later. There is no media about it... if you never saw a woman doing that, it’s harder to get the _________ to do that.”

That is about to _________: Pixner’s journey is captured in a new film “Woolf Women,” which __________ her 5,700-kilometer journey with four other young women across Europe in 2019. One of the central __________ of the film is mental health. Pixner says she finds skating helpful to all kinds of mental issues. “For myself, I __________ it too. I used to be extremely anxious and skateboarding absolutely __________ me.”

Though skateboarding was once a sport on the __________ of society, it is now becoming more mainstream, and in 2021 became an Olympic event. Pixner hopes that downhill skateboarding will soon __________ its appeal to more youngsters.