2 . I didn’t expect parenting a teenager to be this hard. Lately, my son and I disagree at every corner. About schoolwork. His attitude. Screen time. On and on. _________ I say is met with an eye roll. My fuse (导火线) is admittedly shorter than normal right now, due to some unrelated _________ and illness.

On a recent _________ home, after picking up. my teen from school, we made a quick detour (绕行) for a grocery _________. As soon as the food was _________, my child snatched from the trunk a box of individually wrapped and processed snack cakes I’d unwillingly allowed.

As he oohed and aahed through mouthfuls of yellow cake and frosted coating, I silently questioned my decision to _________ him to do so.

But before we’d even _________ the parking lot (停车场), he asked me to _________. I just wanted this errand (差事) to be done. But then my son _________ me: He asked if he could share a few of his treasured treats with a homeless man, who stood coatless outside the store.

Of course, I stopped the car.

Actually, I hadn’t even considered the homeless in my rush to get home, __________ my car was packed with food. Without hesitation, my teenage son __________ the stranger a few little cakes. The man __________ us, and we continued on our way. Actually, my kid seemed __________: “What if he doesn’t like them?” he said. And a few seconds later, my son __________, “Mom! He’s already eating one!”

Throughout our journey home, we frankly discussed how difficult it must be for people experiencing __________. It was a __________ conversation with no quarrel or negotiations. __________ a time to reflect and count how much we have to be thankful for.

When we eventually turned into our garage, that same teenager expressing __________ for my recent illness—announced “You’re not unloading any of these bags. I got this, Mom.”

Yes, parenting a teen is harder than I __________. But it’s also __________: And, in that moment, you realize you’ve actually raised a pretty awesome human being.

3 . My brother Joe liked driving cars. He was especially _________speed. It was enough to make mother _________.

As a little boy, Joe would often say to me. “Sister, when I am old enough to drive my own car, I will fly so fast that angels will run scared.” With a big grin (咧嘴笑), he would _________ the scene. I could have told him it would _________ happen. But I didn’t tell him that.

Joe was born blind. But he could _________ like anyone. I didn’t want to be the one to _________ Joe’s dreams._________ would do that for him, soon enough. Up to then, didn’t he _________ his happiness？

Growing up is a _________ between disappointment and surprise, between dreams and reality. When Joe was 12, I think he knew he would never get a license (驾照). As with the other hard facts of life, he seemed to accept it without question or sadness, as if it were __________ more than a card drawn at random (随机地).

One hot summer day when he was 16, Joe, with the help of stick, found his way to my stepfather’s car.

He felt the heat of the __________, opened the door and climbed in. Under the seat, he discovered 6 cans of beer. And he drank all. He found the keys, shouted, “Hooweeee!” and __________ it up.

I have heard various versions (版本) of this story. They all __________ this: the car’s engine __________. My mother fainted. My stepfather rushed outside.

__________, for everyone, the Ford didn’t move an inch. But to this day, Joe still swears (发誓) that when he found those keys and fired that old engine up, he heard the angels.

Due to a medical error, 44-year-old Safiya became blind. She felt    1    （help）. And all she had to depend    2     was her husband Meraj. Meraj wanted to help Safiya gain her confidence again.

Finally, Safiya felt ready to return to her job,    3    now would she get there? She used to take the bus, but now too frightened to get around the city by herself. Meraj promised    4    （ride）the bus with her.

For two weeks, they made the journey together each morning and Meraj    5    （take）a taxi back to his office. Finally, Safiya decided to try the trip    6    . Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday…Each day she went on her own. It went perfectly.

On Friday morning, Safiya took the bus to work as usual. When she got off the bus, the driver said; "Lady, I sure envy you. You know, every morning for the past week, a gentleman stood across the corner    7    （watch）you. He makes sure you cross the street    8    （safe）, and he won't leave until you enter your office building."

Tears of    9    （happy）poured down Safiya's cheeks. Her husband had given her a gift    10    （powerful）than sight—the gift of love that can bring light.

8 . My brother and I are exactly one year apart. We look like twins, but we are completely _________ . By the time we got to middle school it was clear that my older brother _________ meditation (冥想),while I was a born _________ who preferred the theatrical, even when off stage. I took his relative silence to be offensive. We simply didn't _________.

I didn't _________ having a tense relationship with my brother because I was involved at school. _________, I threw myself into the world of musicals. I practised singing in the bedroom every day to remain at my best and be _________ for roles; my brother would meditate on a window seat. He might feel high school was already hard enough _________ my noisy singing. So space to practise became a（n）_________ between us because we shared a room.

At the start of the semester, I practised “Circle of Life" for a musical. This was the first time I __________ to learn a song, because my voice cracked (破音)as I switched to a head voice. I was annoyed in that period and __________ practising, declaring I had reached the ceiling of my singing career. For the first time in years my brother __________ quiet when I got home.

After two days of this, my brother asked me to __________ him in meditation. Feeling my anger at my inability to manage this song __________,I accepted. My brother said, "When your mind floats away, you simply come back. Don't blame yourself" I got the message, and it soon became my new __________. I kept trying at the song, no longer getting __________ at myself. And just in time for the trial performance, I was able to __________ power in my singing despite the switch to a head voice. It was important for me to learn that you don't have to always get everything __________ the first time and that good things come with continual __________.I now understand why my brother favours the __________.

A MOTHER’S DAY SURPRISE

The twins were filled with excitement as they thought of the surprise they were planning for Mother’s Day. How pleased and proud Mother would be when they brought her breakfast in bed. They planned to make French toast and chicken porridge. They had watched their mother in the kitchen. There was nothing to it. Jenna and Jeff knew exactly what to do.

The big day came at last. The alarm rang at 6 a.m. The pair went down the stairs quietly to the kitchen. They decided to boil the porridge first. They put some rice into a pot of water and left it to boil while they made the French toast. Jeff broke two eggs into a plate and added in some milk. Jenna found the bread and put two slices into the egg mixture. Next, Jeff turned on the second stove burner to heat up the frying pan. Everything was going smoothly until Jeff started frying the bread. The pan was too hot and the bread turned black within seconds. Jenna threw the burnt piece into the   sink and put in the other slice of bread. This time, she turned down the fire so it cooked nicely.

Then Jeff noticed steam shooting out of the pot and the lid starting to shake. The next minute, the porridge boiled over and put out the fire. Jenna panicked. Thankfully, Jeff stayed calm and turned off the gas quickly. But the stove was a mess now. Jenna told Jeff to clean it up so they could continue to cook the rest of the porridge. But Jeff’s hand touched the hot burner and he gave a cry of pain. Jenna made him put his hand in cold water. Then she caught the smell of burning. Oh dear! The piece of bread in the pan had turned black as well.

As the twins looked around them in disappointment, their father appeared.

The twins carried the breakfast upstairs and woke their mother up.