1 . Grainne lived alone. My morning routine _________ with her daily walks to and from her gates, and we began having _________ there.

She was an easy conversationalists, with a good habit of focusing _________ on me as we talked. She told me she was 87, and she was surprised I was only 26. I found myself _________ her things I hadn’t necessarily told anyone. “I have never felt at home anywhere, I’m traveling to find out where I _________.” I told her.

We both looked forward to my daily _________. However, as our friendship grew, my beloved grandfather was seriously ill. I _________ to go back to India soon.

The day before I left Dublin, I went to say goodbye to Grainne. We both knew we were likely talking to each other in person for the _________ time.

Shortly after my return to India, my grandfather _________. I emailed Grainne telling her “I lost the only person who made me feel less __________.” Grainne wrote back, an email full of __________. She said: “I hope you understand you don’t fit into places. You fit into __________. You will always fit where you have people to fit with.”

Although I was never able to __________ Grainne again, my friendship with her continued through emails. It was one of the most __________ friendship I’ve ever known. I was 26 and alone in a foreign country, and she was 87 and alone in her own home. Together we made the world __________ again.

2 . She could have just quit. The race was long ________, and it was raining cats and dogs. But Bou Samnang was running for her country—Cambodia—so she kept going, racing ________ on a track. And for that, she is being regarded as a(n) ________ .

“I wanted to show people that in life, ________ we go a bit slow, we will reach our destination ________,” she said afterwards. “So we should not ________. We should try our best.”

Bou Samnang participated in the women’s 5,000-metre race on May 8 at the Southeast Asian Games, which Cambodia hosted for the first time. “I knew I was ________. The rain was so heavy,” she said. “I had the right to ________ the race, but first I have a duty to ________ Cambodia. So I did not quit.” In a video, the roar of rainfall was mixed with cheers and shouts of ________ as Bou Samnang finally neared and then crossed the finish line, almost six minutes ________ the winner. She clasped her hands to express her thanks to the ________, her face wet with tears and rain as she lifted her country’s ________. The athlete said later that she was disappointed to finish last, but also happy to hear people supporting her and surprised that the video attracted so much attention.

Bou Samnang’s ________ has won over fans around the sporting world, ________ everyone that sports are about more than winning and losing.

3 . Tobias, a 35-year-old Belgian musician, has become popular on social media for his excellent grasp of the Shanghai dialect. He has been sharing his everyday experiences, which he _______ in Shanghai dialect, on video-sharing and lifestyle _______ Douyin and Xiaohongshu, winning thousands of followers and millions of _______

In the videos, he speaks_______ Shanghai dialect, which many non-locals believe is as difficult to learn and _______ as a foreign language. He talks about walking on the city’s streets, enjoying the food and music, and _______ his daily life in the city. Tobias started shooting and _______ these short videos for his own practice purposes. He didn’t expect so many people would be watching them, following him and sending him _______ and encouragement.

Tobias did not bury his nose in textbooks or _______ intensive study to learn Shanghainese. He said his learning __________ involved getting immersed (沉浸) in a language environment, having a positive attitude, and speaking __________ “without being afraid to make mistakes” . He was not thinking too much when he started learning the Shanghai dialect — it was just for __________.

Tobias said he did not expect he would __________ the promotion of the Shanghai dialect, but it would be an __________ and pleasure if his posts encouraged his followers to learn and pass on the dialect. “I believe a dialect is the heart of a local __________” said the musician.

4 . The fear of rejection is one of my biggest fears. Keeping myself in a ______ bubble (气泡) and doing what I can perform well were my favorite. But I had to step out of the bubble eventually, with the first important out-of-my-comfort-zone ______ being applying for college.

The ______ of my first college rejection is still fresh. I remember grabbing my phone trying ______ entering the password to the application website. When the letter started with “Thank you for your ______”, I was cut to the quick.

This fear is ______ elsewhere: from a job market or when asking someone out. Compared with rejections in workplaces, being ______ in social occasions sting (刺痛) even more. At least the former mainly comes in email or phone call form, but social rejections are all terribly ______. Each rejection felt like a ______ reminder of “you’re not good enough”. Because of this fear, I ______ so many opportunities to grow.

Luckily, getting over the fear takes just a shift in _______. So next time, think this way: ______ rejections does not mean you’re not good enough, but that you’ve tried your best for the time being. This optimism will ______ the pain of a rejection.

This fear will never truly ______, as everything we do has rejection attached to it in some way. Uncertainty is ______, but without experiencing the scariness, we would never grow, would we?

5 . During my teens, I was the champion of the sports day every single year, and my mother won the moms’ trophy (奖杯) every single year. Why? Because she was always chasing me to _______ me for various “crimes” I had committed, and I was running _______ not to get my ass kicked.

We had a very Tom and Jerry relationship. She was the strict disciplinarian; I was the _______ boy in the whole neighborhood. She would send me out to buy _______ , and I wouldn’t come right home because I’d be using the _______ from milk to play video games at the supermarket. Lost in the games, time would _______ away until a sudden jolt (震惊) of reality arrived in the form of my mother’s belt-wielding (挥舞) presence. Thus began our _______ race.

When I was little, she always caught me, but as I got older and faster, and when speed _______ her she’d use her wits. If I was about to get _______, she would turn to the ________ weapon, the two magical words “Stop! Thief!”. In my birthplace, nobody gets ________ in other people’s business-unless it’s public safety incident, and then everybody ________. So with her yelling “thief”, even strangers would instantly join the ________, mistaking me for a genuine thief.

Reflecting on those exciting days two decades later, I’ve come to understand that amid the ________ of our wild chases, amid laughter and shouts, my mother and I were deeply ________ by our unique, unforgettable game.

6 . In 2001, Nathan Ogden raced down an Oregon ski slope, launching himself off a jump over 30 feet into the air. While he had done this many times, something was ______ on this day. He jumped further than planned, causing his body to fall hard against the ski slope. He tried to stand, but his legs wouldn't move. It was soon ______ that his neck was badly injured.

Over the next few months, he remained _______ that he would walk again, despite what the doctors said. Gradually, as he ______ sense to his legs and a little independence, his doctors called his progress“miraculous.”

But he wanted to progress faster. He worked ______ to regain use of his upper body, and while he could hardly move his legs, he was ______ that one day he would walk again. He eventually regained 50% of his body movement, but more _______ was yet to come. In 2003, Ogden caught pneumonia(肺炎) and fell unconscious in his sleep.

When his wife couldn't wake him, he was ______ to the Emergency Room, where technicians______ dropped him to the floor while x-raying his lungs. For the second time, Ogden had ______ his neck. But this time, the break was higher up,______ his permanent loss of bodily movement below the chest.

Sometimes Ogden felt ______. He noted being physically disabled was extremely difficult and that he lost his job, friends and almost his marriage. But Ogden tried to be ______ throughout the coming years.

He continues to fight a daily battle against ______. With his wife and children supporting him,he has been skydiving, snow skiing and water skiing. He is even writing a book to inspire as many as possible to believe in hope and _____. While he might never leave the wheelchair in this life, his spirit is rising higher than his legs could ever take him.

7 . Sargassum is the smelly seaweed piling up on beaches across the Caribbean. It isn’t something most people ________ kindly. But for Omar de Vazquez, a gardener, it was something like a(an) ________.

Years ago, as part of his gardening business, Omar launched a beach cleanup service to ________ the leafy seaweed. But, as its ________ intensified, he started considering how to turn it into something useful, and in 2018 he ________ a way to use it in building blocks. He started his company—SargaBlock to market the bricks which are being ________ by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) as a sustainable solution to a current environmental problem.

“When I look at SargaBlock, it’s like looking in a ________,” he says, comparing his company to overcoming his personal ________, including drug and alcohol addiction. “That was a time when I felt unwanted and ________, like the sargassum people complained about.”

Luckily, Omar grew up in nature and poverty, which ________ his character and turned him into someone who takes action. He wanted to make something good out of something everyone saw as bad. Omar then put his idea into ________, mixing 40% sargassum with other organic materials, like clay, which he then puts into a block-forming machine. The process was ________.

The UNDP selected Omar’s work for their Accelerator Lab, which ________ and recognizes innovative solutions to environmental challenges globally. The idea is that some of the most timely and creative ________ come from locals suffering from environmental dilemmas ________.

8 . I have had no interest in football for as long as I can remember. While my classmates played, I _________ to stay in the library. I never _________ the passion for the game and would throw away the sports section of the newspaper, as if it _________ the rest of it. As I grew up, I proudly wore my _________ .

But occasionally, whether in a taxi or when meeting a friend's father, I found myself faced with a _________ opener like, “Terrible season we’re having, eh?” or simply, “Who do you support?” My heart sank, knowing my response would unavoidably _________ them, despite their good intentions.

I realized that my _________ had closed off many conversations, outings, and even potential friendships I might have _________ enjoyed. Although I couldn't change the fact that I found football boring, I began to regret being a(n) _________ .

Then I became a father. I didn’t want my boy to __________ this valuable social experience, so I took him to watch the Lions play. During those matches, we sat close to the field, surrounded by families who had a genuine __________ with the players. My kid’s questions kept me somewhat __________ in the game. Slowly, I started to__________ for the Lions.

During one victorious match, we even met David, the Captain, who happily __________ for a photo with my son. __________, I had an answer to the question,“Who do you support?”

9 . Three years after getting lost in an unexpected snowstorm in Sheffield, a cat named Oscar has been reunited with his family.

After Oscar’s _______ in January 2020, his owner Katie Salt checked CCTV (监控) put posters up around the area and _______ the word on social media. They also reported him _______ to Petlog with whom he is microchipped, and contacted various shelters and vets in vain. In a press _______ from the Kennel Club, Katie said, “We _______ concluded he must have died during the snowstorm, but we still scanned our _______ everywhere, whenever we were out driving, and to be honest this never _______ .”

Three years later, Katie received a _______ from a vet to say that they had Oscar—he had been living in a garden just six miles away! The garden’s _______ had been looking after Oscar and when Oscar was ill, this kind man, who possessed the garden, took him to a vet for ________ , where they found a microchip and were able to finally ________ Katie. Now ________ , he has been enjoying warm cuddles with his long lost family.

Bill Lambert, a spokesperson for Petlog, said, “We’re so ________ that Oscar and Katie have been reunited. Their story shows just how important it is for owners to ________ their pets, keep their contact details up-to-date with their microchip database, and to ________ hope no matter how much time has passed.”

10 . Leadership is not just the ability to lead a team, it is a journey of selflessness.

“Alright, class! We are going to work in groups to create a mind map!” Mrs. Low said. “This is a great________

for our group leaders to prove themselves worthy of that ________.” Mrs. Low then raised one of her________ with great expectations. The class burst out ________. Rita and John glanced at me warily. I raised my head________, the gleaming badge (闪耀的徽章) with the words “Team Leader” on my ________. I took out a piece of paper and pointed to John, “Hey you! Make a list of the stuff that we have learned.” John did not________; he simply bit his lip, muttering, “Is this really leadership?” I turned to Rita, “And you! Start drawing the mind map!” Rita angrily slammed her hand on the table. She________, “Why do you have to be so bossy?” It was as if I was standing in front of a mirror, looking at my________, wondering if I was proud to see how I was behaving then. Questions stuffed my mind until I felt it was about to________.Suddenly, Mrs. Low tapped on my shoulder, and explained, “Leadership is not just about being a leader. It is to serve others, not yourself. It is a(n)________journey.” Her words had lit a light bulb in my brain,________all my confusion.

Taking a deep breath and________my pride, l dashed to John and Rita and apologized. Their annoyed expressions________smiles. The following time witnessed our________cooperation. It didn’t take long before we finished the project. Deep down, I recognized that this was just the start of my lifelong journey to become a true leader.