2 . When I was a kid, my mom set aside some breakfast food for supper every now and then. I remember one night after a long, hard day at work, my mom placed a plate of eggs, sausage, and a plate of extremely burnt biscuits on the table. I waited to see if my dad would get annoyed.

All my dad did was to reach for the biscuits, smile at my mom and ask me how my day at school had been. I don’t remember what I told him that night but I do remember watching him add butter and jelly on that ugly burnt biscuit and ate every bite of that thing. He never made a face nor uttered a word about it!

When I rose from the table that evening, I remember hearing my mom apologize to my dad for overcooking the biscuits and I will never forget what he said, “Honey, I love burnt biscuits every now and then.”

Later that night I went to say goodnight to my daddy, and I wondered if he really liked his biscuits burnt. He wrapped me up in his arms and said gently, “Your mom put in a hard day at work today and she is really tired. Besides, a little burnt biscuit never hurt anyone!

As I have grown older, I’ve thought about that many times. Life is full of imperfect things and imperfect people. Learning to accept each other’s faults and choosing to celebrate each other’s differences contribute to a healthy, growing, and lasting relationship. We could extend this philosophy to any relationship, such as a husband-wife, parent-child, or friendship. Don’t put the key to your happiness in someone else’s pocket. Keep it in your own. So, please pass me a biscuit, and yes, the burnt one will do just fine.

Ballet (芭蕾) was a way of life in Kelly’s family. Her elder sister Serena was now dancing at a top college. Though Kelly’s mom always wanted her to follow in her sister’s footsteps and Kelly herself was good at ballet, her love for ballet had faded years before and she was eager for a new challenge. One day at school, as Kelly left the dance studio she walked past the gym, fascinated by boxers (拳击手) training inside the boxing ring. She was deeply impressed by how hard they hit and how fast they moved. In fact she had long been attracted to boxing.

She pulled a piece of paper from her backpack. The big title Boxing Club Tryout (选拔) caught her eyes. That was what Kelly really wanted to do. She knew her mom had high expectations for her when it came to ballet. Tired of trying to keep up with her sister, Kelly was ready to create her own way.

The next day, she gathered her courage and told Serena about her new passion. At first Serena didn’t understand and thought she was just joking. But when she saw Kelly was serious, she replied, “You know Mom wants you to be a ballet dancer, right? Besides, boxing is only for boys, and you’re so good at ballet. Lean into your strength, Kelly.”

“But this is where I want to put my strength,” Kelly insisted, “and what exactly does ‘only for boys’ mean, anyway? Boxing is a sport for everyone!”

Gradually, touched by her determination and passion. Serena began to understand and support her. Kelly could feel it. Her sister was going to respect her decision no matter what. But that was nothing compared to the preparations for the tryout, where she was required to show her footwork and punching (击打) abilities with other candidates. Kelly wasn’t naturally good at boxing, but she had made up her mind to stick to her choice.

Paragraph 1: Then Kelly began her training for the tryout, keeping it a secret from her mom.

Paragraph 2: The following Monday, results of the boxing tryout came out.

4 . About one year ago, a couple with three children moved into the apartment next door to me. I never heard any noise from the children. Instead, I often heard he parents yelling angrily at the kids, not in a nice tone, but in a ________ one.

We often ________ in the hallway. I always greeted them, but the only ________ I ever got was a “hello” from the eight-year-old girl. I usually went out to see my doctor and one day when-I returned, they were just ________ their apartment and the little girl was ________ the outside door open for the others. I remained in the car doing ________ things because I wasn’t eager to be snubbed(冷落) again. Finally, I got out of my car and walked towards the door. The parents were telling their daughter to hurry and get into the car, but the little girl was holding the door, ________ me! I hurried although I was still in pain from my injury.

I forgot to tell her how grateful I was for her kindness. Later I wrote a note saying how much her act of kindness had ________ an old man’s heart.

The next day there was a/an ________ on my door and it was the little girl and her father. She said she was grateful to me for my note. Then I ________ her mother standing there, too. Her parents ________ me. From then on when we met in the hallway we always greeted each other, in a friendly ________.

Last night there was a heavy snow. I looked out at my car and ________ how I was going to keep my doctor’s appointment because I could not walk for a short time. This morning when I opened the front door, all the snow was ________. Isn’t it ________ that the small kind act of an 8-year-old girl can change so many things for the better? It is said that good things come from small acts.

7 . I was five years old when my little brother, Mark, was born. On the photos, I appeared so thrilled that he had finally arrived. I held and bathed him, smiling from cheek to cheek. I do not remember that feeling now.

Being the first child in the family, I was the one my parents tested their new parenting techniques on. I was their guinea pig. Mark was always the happy one, the joker, the one who won because of my battles with my parents. After too many fights, I declared war on Mark. We were now enemies. All I remember is being jealous of and angry with my innocent little brother.

Thus, I made his life a suffering. I fooled, embarrassed, and fought with him, often leaving him in floods of tears.

Our little sister was born when I was 11 and instantly she and Mark could not be separated. They pushed me aside. Did I grow into an uglier green-eyed monster because they loved each other so much?

Thankfully, Mark quickly grew tall and strong, and our conflict looked more like a cold war than bloodshed. It all ended suddenly when I went to study abroad. The hatred (仇恨) disappeared and love climbed in.

Despite all the abuse Mark suffered he has implied that he has forgiven me, or even that there is nothing to forgive, although I have never brought up the subject in too much detail. I would like to; however, it would be a selfish move to look for more forgiveness. But I prefer to remember the hurt. During all those wasted years, I should have been the loving sister defending instead of attacking.

8 . I have received many gifts in my life. I’ve never been the kind of person to say “it’s the thought that _______” when it comes to gifts. That was until a couple of weeks ago, when my kids gave me a present that _______ me away.

For years, I’ve been wanting to _______ our house, the place where my husband and I raised our kids. But to me, this house is much _______ just a building. In the front room, there’s a wall that has hundreds of pencil lines, marking the _______ of my children’s growth. Every growth stage is marked in grey, with each child’s name and the date when they were _______. Over the years, I’ve talked about how much I would hate leaving that wall behind when I moved, even though the _______ marks were made 10 years ago when my kids stopped growing.

So one day, while I was at work, my children _______ a professional photographer whose work is about _______ the beautiful things in life, from clear lakes and skies to diamonds and ball gowns. She came to our house and over several hours, took photos of the hundreds of drawings, ________ and little grey fingerprints. Somehow, she managed to photograph all those years of memories ________. Afterwards, she put all the ________ together into one image, transforming them into a beautiful ________ of my family.

Three weeks later, my children’s ________ gift made its way to me — a life­size photo of the pencil lines and fingerprints that represents the lifetime of all my family members, especially of my children’s love and ________.

10 . In choosing a friend, one should be very careful. A good friend can help you study. You can have a good time together and make each other happy. Sometimes you will meet fair weather friends. They will be with you as long as you have money or luck, but when you are down, they will run away. How do I know when I have found a good friend? I look for certain qualities of character, especially understanding, honesty and reliability.

Among these qualities, I think understanding is the most important. A good friend tries to understand how another person is feeling. He is not quick to judge. Instead, he tries to learn from others. He puts himself in the other person’s place, and he tries to think of ways to be helpful. He is also a good listener.

At the same time, however, a good friend is honest. He does not look for faults in others. He notices their good points. In short, a friend will try to understand me and accept me.

Another quality of a friend is reliability. I can always depend on a good friend. If he tells me he will meet me somewhere at a certain time, I can be sure that he will be there. If I need help, he will do his best to help me. If I am in trouble, he will not run away from me.

When I meet someone who is reliable, honest, and understanding, I know I’ve found a friend!