1 . This world is not really peaceful. The heartbroken scenes in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine are _________ day by day. I cannot help thinking about my unique family situation. I am the father of two adopted boys, one from Russia and the other from Ukraine, and I _________ them when they were very little.

Young men now, each _________ his way in life, but they still carry a strong _________ of their origins, although Alyosha less so than Anton. While Alyosha does not often _________ the land of his Russian birth, Anton’s feelings for Ukraine run deep: When Crimea (克里米亚)joined Russia in 2014, Anton was 17．

I’m grateful that _________ the conflict, they behave as if their _________ is one of blood.

In addition to _________, another word comes to mind: absence. I often see crowded _______ of mothers and children everywhere, huddled (蜷缩)in dark and __________ spaces on the news now. But my boys aren’t there. I also often see children crying as they hug tightly fathers who must __________ themselves to wars. But my sons are here, and I am available to them.

Especially, in these __________ times, when it is easy to draw battle lines and take __________, events have, instead, pushed my sons __________ together. Staring at them, I realize that I am not looking at a Russian and a Ukrainian; I am looking at two people who love each other so much that doing the other __________ is unthinkable.

2 . The caller said she was in trouble and that he could help. Mom________it and lost thousands of dollars. It took us months to recover her money and her________.

One April morning, my mother’s phone rang. The man that greeted her sounded________“Someone has____to your bank accounts and can take all your money.” The warm voice was exactly what she badly________during her isolation from the community due to COVID-19. The man said he needed information to ensure the money was safe and she tried to follow his________though her brain injury made it rather hard.

He explained slowly what to do and hours later, she said she had to relieve herself. “OK, but Stay on the line_________we will lose our progress.” Then she________the phone on the shelf in the bathroom. Suddenly the phone buzzed with a text-it was my father, checking in. She typed back there was a problem, but she was ________it. Then she________out her worn, printed-out packet of passwords from a pile of books and entered them.

My Mom thoughts he had labored for hours protecting her family. ________, the scammer (诈骗犯) had taken away her personal information and money. After learning the truth, my mother sought to________the conversations with the scammer but just said, “I can’t remember. I don’t know what to do. This was so stupid.”

I tried different means and________got the money back. We didn’t blame her as the internal shame my mom felt could turn into something more________depression and even suicide.

The other day my dad mentioned, “You know, another scammer called your mama. She did the right thing, though. She hung upon him and called me.” My mom was smiling at me and I knew she was________.

3 . My childhood was mostly silent. It was full of love, laughter, anger and sadness like any family, but these things occurred _______. The knowledge instilled (灌输) in me was _______ by watching my mother as she moved through her silent world.

I loved to watch her hands, which were always _______ me things by showing me how, as she watered, weeded and dug her garden. The hands were rough with cuts and _______, but filled with wisdom.

Sometimes, those same hands spoke to me literally. Basic _______ language started in the family quite suddenly but then _______ just as quickly. My mother _______ that lip-reading was quicker. She would look at me intently and _______ words such as, “watch this” or “this is how”, or “never touch this plant”. We often went for hours like this, _______ a word spoken and yet we were talking in various ways the whole time.

As I grew up, I began to ________ why my mother spent so much time in her garden. Her deafness had come during an era of little tolerance for diversity, and much ________ of disability. The world outside was demanding and unforgiving while her garden was full of kindness and ________. For her it was the only place under her ________.

My mother’s knowledge is deeply ________ inside me. I now have gardening hands, with cuts and scars, and cherish their ________. With any luck my kids will have them one day, too.

4 . After dinner, Jim showed his sketch (素描) to Mom. “You have a lot of talent.” Mom held Jim’s drawing up to ________ it. “Thanks, Mom,” Jim replied and couldn’t help but notice how ________ she looked. Then Mom fell onto the floor and was taken to the ________.

Jim’s heart ________ when he saw the pitiful collection of coins and bills in the money box. “Er... this won’t be ________ , I’m afraid,” the doctor said when Jim presented the box to him.

It was getting ________, but Jim wasn’t prepared to go home yet. ________, he sat down beneath a streetlight and drew lines on the ground with a stick to form his mother’s smiling face.

When he’d finished, Jim found a(n) ________ man standing behind him. He gave Jim a friendly smile and said, “I’m the editor-in-chief of a local art magazine, and I love what you’ve done here. With your ________, I’d like to use a photo of your work for the cover of our next issue.”

“Of course, please,” Jim said immediately as he ________ that this could be a chance to help Mom. He didn’t ________ understand everything the man said, but there was nothing to lose by trying.

Soon Mr Finn returned to interview him. It was ________ that Jim’s artwork had achieved huge success, and plenty of people ordered clothes with his art on them. Jim earned money ________.

It was a proud day for Jim when he entered the hospital to ________ Mom’s medical bill. He could never have guessed luck would come in a(n) ________ way.

5 . If somebody informs you that you have a leaf in your hair, smile politely and say, “Oh. Thanks.” When you turn to find it is the cute guy who asks smart questions, try to look as _______ as possible. Brush the _______ out of your hair as though its presence was accidental, as though you’re not upset.

Remind yourself that you will likely find another among the thousands on the _______. If he continues to walk _______ you and talk to you, then you have a difficult situation. You must decide if the attention is pity or interest. You must decide which kind of attention you’d rather have. You must decide whether you want any _______ at all.

Maybe he will not go _______ as quickly as you expected. Perhaps you will find yourself nearing a bench with him in the park at the corner. Do not tap on the bench before sitting down. Do not think about how good it would feel to be racing through the park right now, with the mud under your sneakers. Pretend to be how you imagine a(n) _______ girl would be; nod and smile in the _______ places.

Do not be too serious. Maybe he will talk about movies or books. Maybe about his school or his work. _______ with him and ask him questions.

If he seems exceptionally ________ and accepting, you may be attracted to say more about the disorders that rule your life. So ________ he asks about you, you must answer very carefully. “I play the piano,” you might say. Your favorite composer? Rachmaninoff, of course. “I like to ________” is starting to get a bit risky, but you could try it if you’re brave. “Too bad,” he may say. “You won’t be running for a while.” “I know” is a good, simple ________. Change the subject.

But even if you do, you will have to ________ home eventually. The light will begin to fade or the ________ will threaten another rain. Let him make the first move toward parting.

9 . It was the winter that I taught in a small country school on the West Coast of Vancouver Island. All little people in my class desired to learn all they could. Unfortunately, one happy little boy named David suffered from a (n) _________ disease一leukemia. More often than not, he would be _________ from our classroom to receive treatments.

Two days before school _________ for the three-week Christmas holiday, it was our regular show-and-tell time. David sat in front of us on the old worn carpet _________ a small wooden box.

“This is my first tooth,” he explained. “My dad gave me this old key. My mom says this big coin is for good _________ I have all these things so that when I go to heaven I won’t be too _________ .” A heavenly _________ fell over the class and shiny tears went dot-to-dot down the faces of the other children. The whole class were becoming more involved in the gloomy situation of David. “Maybe you guys could make a picture for me to take so I will always remember you?” added David _________ .

The rest of the day was spent doing just that. Each of us prepared a picture, folded it carefully and _________ it in David’s wooden box. Everyone gave David a special hug and received a beautiful smile __________ .

When the holidays came to a __________ , we all returned to our class一all except David. He had died in a hospital, clutching the wooden box that held his hopes and __________ , and ours.

I always recall him—a little boy who __________ his disease bravely and would one day accept his __________ . I am sure many of the students from that class, who are now grown with youngsters of their own, also remember the gifts of __________ he gave to us all.

10 . Many people admired my neighbor. One day a delivery truck dropped off a large ___________ system at her house. And the kids discussed the new sound equipment my neighbor had just gotten. Meanwhile, we were living in a house decorated ___________ and dressing our kids in second-hand clothes. We lived in ___________.

My poor mother-in-law, in town for a visit, got to hear my ___________ that night. “I feel so bitter sometimes,” I told her, as we cleared the table after dinner. “I know we’re doing the right thing, living frugally (节俭的), saving money, _____________ it feels so hard. There’re so many things I’d like to ___________, so many things I’d like to do, but we just can’t.”

She nodded as she folded a cloth napkin in silence. Then she ___________ me and said, “When you make a ___________ between yourself and others, it’s easy to focus on what you don’t have. But there’s one thing you two do that many other couples may ___________ to do. You two often go out together and take time to focus on your ____________. And that’s a very important thing.”

I stopped wiping the table and ____________ for a minute. I thought of the movie my husband and I had seen a week earlier. I ____________ the bike rides, the hikes and the picnics. Most of all, I remembered how ____________ we were together, even after twenty years. How many people can say that?

I looked around my home from a new ____________. Our refrigerator was too small for a family of six, but it was ____________ filled with delicious food. Our kitchen was small and we had no big TV, but we’re happy! And that’s enough!