2 . One month ago my kind grandmother, Nonie, was put into hospice（临终安养院）. This was as much a （n） _________ as anything, since it _________ her to go home with what she needed, rather than being _________ in the hospital. It wasn't clear whether or not she was all that close to _________ . My mother said it could be a   _________   still or it could be any time. My parents _________ I should pick a proper time to visit her in New York.

Three weekends were possible for me to make a _________ in the coming months ： October 20th, November 10th, or December 1st. The _________ in October was certainly the least convenient as I was pretty _________, and I'd have to get all the arrangements in order very ____________. But I chose it because if I waited just out of____________, and Nonie died before I saw her, I'd never ____________ myself. It turns out I did the ____________ thing. When her driver came to pick her up today around noon, Nonie passed out, and never____________ .

My trip was a ____________ one, but I got to spend a full day and a half ____________ next to her and asking her questions. Some questions got more ____________ answers. I wanted to know more about her and my grandpa's love story and how they can stay happily ____________ for nearly 70 years , dedicated to each other until the very end.

My grandpa got dementia(痴呆),and he almost____________ everything slowly. ____________, for years he still remembered Nonie. He died two years ago, and Nonie told me she'd been asking the Lord to take her ever since.

3 . It takes a special person to see a life in danger and go out of his way to make a difference. But that’s exactly what Kole Devisscher did when he_______the thin ice of a river to save 10-year-old Chartrand from _______.

The young man was_______for his bravery by MP Joy Smith. Smith_______him with a certificate and said Devisscher would be nominated (提名) for the Governor General’s Medal of Bravery.

Describing the _______ , Devisscher said he thought it was something _______when he saw a blue jacket in the river. _______for Chartrand, the teenager decided to back up his truck and take another look.

When Devisscher realized somebody was_______in the cold water, he immediately took_______. “I got out of the truck and grabbed the tow strap (牵引绳) from the backseat.” explained Devisscher.

“He couldn’t quite grab onto the rope because his hands were already turning blue. Then I made a loop on the hook and got him to put it around his shoulders.”

Devisscher’s dad, Gerry, says his son remembered some of the________he learned while snowmobiling over the years. “He was listening. He just couldn’t refuse to________it. He wanted to help, ________at that time I was nervous he went out there.”

To honour Devisscher’s ________ and to thank him for saving her son, the mother of the boy gave Devisscher Nathaniel’s eagle feather.

“When he called, saying he________ someone, it didn’t sink in at first. Today’s the first time I’ve heard the whole________.”

“It’s just________that a young man like Kole stopped... He got him out of the river and he calmed him,” MP Smith said at the presentation ceremony.

“I think he is an outstanding young man, and all of Canada should be________of what he’s done.”

Devisscher said he just________ others would do the same. “It feels good, not everybody gets this ________. It’s pretty awesome,” said Devisscher. “I hope someone else would do that for me if I was under the same________.”

4 . My youngest brother, Andre, has an Autism Spectrum Disorder(自闭症). ________, in his last almost sixteen years, he has grown to be six-foot-two, has played just about every ________ sport, has entered high school, and has learned to ________ communicate verbally, an obstacle many children on the Autism Spectrum ________ overcome.

I remember the first time I realized he would not be able to speak until much later than the rest of us. I remember the ______ on my parents’ faces as they shuttled him around to all sorts of   ________ and doctors for treatment. I remember his preschool class photograph, where he looked so ________ of the other students that he was almost ________ the picture, being so far away from them; today he can stand right next to his teammates or classmates for _______ without any fear.   

I remember __________ him to ride a bicycle on our front lawn on a beautiful perfect day in May, and I remember the first time he sailed off from under my hands and didn’t ________ ; I don’t think he talked much then, but his smile ________ my world. I remember the keyboard he carried every day to school because he _________ the skill to write, and I remember the first card he ________ his name on for me. I remember my eighth-grade paper that won second prize at States where I talked about what a _________ from God he was. I remember the people who read it at the ceremony in Manhattan and who agreed that I was __________ .

All those memories, plus a million more, often bring me to __________ or to smiles or to both. I laugh and I cry at every moment I’ve had as his big sister. You would never know what efforts it has taken for him to ________ all these years, and that he has already progressed more than we ever dreamed it __________. He has never let his _______ define him.

5 . I met him first on a summer day in 1989. I ______ into his ugly small shop to have my shoes repaired. It wasn’t much of a job，so I _____ while he did it. He greeted me with a ______ smile，“You are ______ in this place，aren’t you？”

I said I was. I had ______ into this street only a week before.

“This is a fine place，” he said. I ______ there with my shoes off，______ around as he got ready to make repairs. He looked ______ at the leather. It was worn through because I had ______ to have the repair job done. I grew ______ impatient，for I was eager to meet a friend，and I had to get there without delay.“Please hurry，” I begged.

He looked at me ______ his glasses，“We won’t be long. I must do a good job. You see，I have a tradition to live up to.”

A tradition？In this ugly small shop that wasn’t ______ from so many other shops on the streets of New York.

He must have felt my ______ for he smiled as he ______，“Yes，my father is a good shoemaker.” He always told me，“Son，do the best job on every shoe that ______ the shop，and be proud of your own work. Do that always，and you’ll have both happiness and money enough to live on.”

As he ______ me the finished shoes，he said，“These will last a long time.” I left ______，my friend would be waiting for me ______.

That evening I ______ the shop. There he was. When he saw me，he waved and smiled. This was the beginning of our _____ that came to mean more and more to me as time passed.

6 . I sat down at my desk and started writing a letter of thankfulness, but when it came to actually putting the letter into the mailbox... I _______ ...I couldn’t do it. I suddenly felt a sense of ________ and insecurity (不安).

The letter was to an old teacher with whom I kept in _______ on Facebook. For months, I read about what she _______ on her Facebook page, which helped me to live my life differently. Her volunteer (志愿者) work wasn’t huge. _______ , she was doing small, local good deeds. ________ , she changed my views on the world and for some reason, I felt I should let her know how her example _______ influenced me.

I could have easily sent her an email but that seemed not enough for such an important thank-you. That’s why I ended up ________ the letter before. But now here I was, standing before the mailbox, unable to put the envelope inside. What was stopping me? It suddenly hit me that I was ________ of being too nice. I guess I felt strange _________ it wasn’t like she was my best friend or a relative. But I think my ________ was too heartfelt. Thinking this over, I put the envelope in the mailbox _________.

Weeks later I received a message from her. It turned out she was ________ a hard time and my note _________ a lot to her. She said she had no idea she was playing such a big _________ in others’ life.

Not only did this letter make her happier, but her response(反应) to it brightened my world and ________ my level of happiness as well. I was so _______ that it had such a great influence on her that I decided to write a(n) _______ letter to someone each month. Now it’s easier for me to _______ the goodness in others and be more _________ for this beautiful life I’m living.

7 . The day I received my letter of acceptance to New York University, I was extremely excited. It was my dream university, and my ______ were pleased for me. But they also hadn’t ______ me to get into such a competitive school. In fact, the best thing they ever did for me was to ______ me from doing things ______. When I was in elementary school, they offered to buy me a present ______ I got a C.

It ______ when I was in third grade. An only child in an Asian family, I had just ______ with my family from Taiwan to Los Angeles. Months into third grade, I developed a strong feeling of ______ about getting bad grades. Seeing my anxiety, Dad said, “Kate, tell you what. If you get a C or ______. I’ll buy you a present. If you score higher than that, I won’t buy you anything, because you won’t ______ it.”

Clearly dad wasn’t the ______ Asian tiger parent, pressuring me to work tirelessly for the best ______, and neither was my mom. They didn’t want to push. They wanted me to be ______ and healthy. Dad’s ______ of a “failing grade” gift amazingly ______ my worries and pressure. What’s more, I ______ getting A’s and B’s throughout high school, but without the added stress and fear of failing. I think it was my parents’ lack of stress on grades that gave me ______ to encourage my own desire for achievements.

I now realize I was ______ when I thought I didn’t receive a present from my dad that day. He gave me two invaluable (宝贵的) ______: the space to develop my own desire for excellence, and the healthy mind to ______ it.

8 . I sat down at my desk and started writing a letter of thankfulness, but when it came to actually putting the letter into the mailbox. I_______. I couldn't do it. I suddenly felt a sense of_______and insecurity (不安)．

The letter was to an old teacher with whom I kept in_______on Facebook. For months, I read about what she set down on her Facebook page, which helped me to live my life differently. Her volunteer (志愿者) work wasn't huge._______，she was doing small, local good deeds. Gradually, she changed my views on the world and for some reason, I felt I should let her know how her example_______influenced me.

I could have easily sent her an email, but that seemed not enough for such an important thankyou. That's why I ended up_______the letter. But now here I was, standing before the mailbox, unable to put the envelope inside. What was stopping me? It suddenly hit me that I was_______of being too nice. I guess I felt strange because it wasn't like she was my best friend or a relative. Maybe my_______was too heartfelt. Thinking this over, I put the envelope in the mailbox_______.

Weeks later I received a message from her. It turned out she was going through a hard time and my note________a lot to her. She said she had no idea she was playing such a big________in others' life.

Not only did this letter make her happier, but her response to it brightened my world and________my level of happiness as well. I was so excited that it had such a great influence on her that I decided to write a(n)________letter to someone each month. Now it's easier for me to________the goodness in others and be more________for this beautiful life I'm living.

9 . I was on my way from school to the train station,with a shopping bag in one hand,my laptop in the other,and a heavy bag on one shoulder.

Suddenly,I was tripped(绊倒)by something and fell down to the ground.__,I got bad cuts on my knee and elbow,and they started bleeding.My laptop__on the road,and a bottle in the shopping bag was__,leaving the bag all wet.My first act was to pick up my laptop,__I couldn't raise myself.After a while,I realized that I would probably__the train.That means I had no way to get home that night.

I thought nobody else was__,so I was allowing myself to cry a little,when a young lady__.She checked me to make sure I had no serious injuries,and__my face was fine.After she told me about that,I breathed a sigh of__.She asked where I was heading.I told her that I wanted to catch the__train to go home."Your train has already left,"she said.Then a taxi happened to have__,and the lady asked the driver to__me to my home."I can't__it since it’ll be a long drive,"I__strongly.Thinking for a second,she__me￡30,which was more than I would__on food every week.Suddenly,__came to my eyes!

I wish I could have a__to thank her personally one day.However,I even didn't have a clear__of her looks.Finally,I decided to always get ready to lend a helping hand to strangers to repay the__I received from her.

10 . Dad is a liar(说谎者), definitely. He never tells the truth about anything_______, or anything that he thinks is bad to me, even though I_______that I don’t mind hearing these things.

He is the kindest man I have ever met, who never_______others, as well as the_______man, for he’s always hard on himself. Every time I_______home from college and asked Dad how his_______was getting on, he would always reply, “Oh, couldn’t be_______!” When I asked my mum the same question on the phone,_______, she honestly told me every_______with Dad’s business. I didn’t blame Dad for his________. I felt a deep sympathy for him.

Dad is a miser (吝啬鬼), undoubtedly. I hardly see Dad wear________clothes. In fact, his closet is half empty. Even in this half, two-thirds is occupied by Mum’s clothes and the other________belongs to him. I urged him to buy some new clothes,________he simply shook his head, “The old clothes are still good enough.” Were they? I saw________in them.

It________my heart up when I saw Dad________terribly with his hand covering his mouth. When the pains became unbearable, he________took some pills.

So it surprised________when the day came that Dad got sick. He was lying in bed. And all the family gathered around him. I knelt(跪) by his bedside, tears filling my eyes.

Dear Dad, you’ve been________yourself too hard, which you should not have. I know I might as well________a river to flow backward as hope to talk you out of working so hard. But I still want to say, “Dad, take better care of yourself!”