There lived two brothers, John McNeil and James, in a village in Kentucky in the north of America, who had lost their parents in a terrible earthquake ten years before. Worse still, ten-year-old John McNeil suffered from serious autism. He often stayed at a corner without saying anything with others and frequently ran everywhere, so his brother James was concerned about his safety.

On a windy, cold day, John McNeil forgot to put on his shoes and ran out the door. He headed straight for the 125-foot electrical tower behind the McNeiI home and didn’t realize the dangers of the structure. That day his thoughts were set on climbing to the top of that tower, touching the sky. Maybe he thought he could meet his parents in the sky. What a poor boy!

His seventeen-year-old brother, James, was always close by. James always made sure that no danger came to his little brother. But today was different. Today, John ran out the door unnoticed. He was making his way to the sky step by step by the time James saw him. John, like most autistic children, had no idea about fear or danger. James, on the other hand, realized that he had to face his greatest fear of all — the fear of heights.

However, James understood the danger of the electrical tower but chose to follow his younger brother secretly, trying not to look down, all the way to the top. He finally reached his brother and held him with his right hand. With his left hand, he held a metal bar to help stabilize them both. What a thrilling scene!

James was shaking. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Hundreds of people came together at the base of the tower. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

5 . Some people look as if they are simply born with the certain social skill that enables them to make friends with such ease that it seems pretty unbelievable. They end up having tons of friends in no time.     1    . Some have to work a bit harder in order to gain someone’s attention and friendship. The good thing is, there are many ways to improve your social skills and make your friend circle even bigger.

◎    2    

Having fun on your own is the first step towards making a good basis for a future friendship. If you learn how to have fun on your own, it is more likely that you will meet someone who has similar interests and also needs a friend.

◎Expand your view and find new things to do

When you have many things you like doing, the better chances are that you will be meeting people who are also into the same things. You can also make friends with someone without the same hobbies. There is no rule that you have to be friends with those who like the same things.     3    .

◎Social gatherings are the best way of meeting friends

Every time you have a chance to get together with others, don’t miss it.     4    . Or, if you really prefer staying at home, there are always online groups with people, who prefer hanging out with others from the comfort of their homes as well.

◎Make the circle of your friends with confidence

After doing everything above, you will notice at one point how you’ve got your confidence back.     5    . Just being confident, satisfied and happy will make you a friend magnet and bring you friend circles.

6 . Whenever I visited my grandfather Jack, he burst with questions. Each time I _______, however, his face would settle into a puzzled expression. He’d leaned closer. My _______ grew louder and louder until I was practically shouting at him. Then he raised his hands, and _______ me away with a resigned sigh.

Jack loved company, and loved having long _______. But by the time he turned 80, more than 70% of his _______ was gone. Jack spent thousands on medical-grade hearing aids. They were functional, but made all noises loud. The devices became even less _______ as his ears got worse and worse. Simple conversations were _______ in shouting matches and frustration. Phone calls were impossible, either.

When I visited him in the fall of 2022, I_______ a pair of earphones. The earphones had a new _______ that lets a mobile phone transmit audio from the microphone directly to compatible (兼容的) hearing aids working with an app. I put them in my grandfather’s ears, ________ the app on my phone and spoke into it. Then I watched Jack nod his head in ________. He understood my words! And when he responded ________ and in complete sentences, it felt like a ________ had closed. Both of us were excited. For the first time in years, Jack and I talked clearly.

These days, Jack and his new earphones are ________. He’s far less lonely. He can finally meet people again and ________ entire conversations, as long as they speak into his phone. He is smiling the biggest smile I have seen on his face in years.