It was the day of the big cross-country run. Students from seven different primary schools in and around the small town were warming up and walking the route(路线)through thick evergreen forest.

I looked around and finally spotted David, who was standing by himself off to the side by a fence. He was small for ten years old. His usual big toothy smile was absent today. I walked over and asked him why he wasn’t with the other children. He hesitated and then said he had decided not to run.

What was wrong? He had worked so hard for this event!

I quickly searched the crowd for the school’s coach and asked him what had happened. “I was afraid that kids from other schools would laugh at him,” he explained uncomfortably. “I gave him the choice to run or not, and let him decide.”

I bit back my frustration(懊恼). I knew the coach meant well—he thought he was doing the right thing. After making sure that David could run if he wanted, I turned to find him coming towards me, his small body rocking from side to side as he swung his feet forward.

David had a brain disease which prevented him from walking or running like other children, but at school his classmates thought of him as a regular kid. He always participated to the best of his ability in whatever they were doing. That was why none of the children thought it unusual that David had decided to join the cross-country team. It just took him longer—that’s all. David had not missed a single practice, and although he always finished his run long after the other children, he did always finish. As a special education teacher at the school, I was familiar with the challenges David faced and was proud of his strong determination.

The Meredith family lived in a small community. As the economy was in decline, some people in the town had lost their jobs. Many of their families were struggling to make ends meet. People were trying to help each other meet the challenges.

Mrs. Meredith was a most kind and thoughtful woman. She spent a great deal of time visiting the poor. She knew they had problems, and they needed all kinds of help. When she had time, she would bring food and medicine to them.

One morning she told her children about a family she had visited the day before. There was a man sick in bed, his wife, who took care of him and could not go out to work, and their little boy. The little boy -his name was Bernard-had interested her very much.

“I wish you could see him,” she said to her own children, John, Harry, and Clara. “He is such a help to his mother. He wants very much to earn some money, but I don't see what he can do.”

After their mother left the room, the children sat thinking about Bernard. “I wish we could help him to earn money,” said Clara. “His family is suffering so much.”

“So do I,” said Harry. “We really should do something to assist them.”

For some moments, John said nothing, but, suddenly, he sprang to his feet and cried, “I have a great idea! I have a solution that we can all help accomplish(完成).”

The other children also jumped up all attention. When John had an idea, it was sure to be a good one. “I tell you what we can do,” said John. “You know that big box of corn Uncle John sent us? Well, we can make popcorn(爆米花), and put it into paper bags, and Bernard can take it around to the houses and sell it.”

In ancient China lived an artist    1     paintings were almost lifelike. The artist’s reputation had made him proud. One day the emperor wanted to get his portrait (画像) done so he called all great artists to come and present their     2     (fine) work, so that he could choose the best. The artist was sure he would    3    (choose), but when he presented his masterpiece to the emperor’s chief minister, the old man laughed. The wise old man told him to travel to the Li River～perhaps he could learn a little from the greatest artist in the world.

Filled with     4     (curious), the artist packed his bags and left.     5     he asked the villagers on the banks of the river where he could find the legendary (传奇的) artist, they smiled and     6     (point) down the river. The next morning he hired a boat and set out     7     (find) the well-known painter. As the small boat moved,     8     (gentle) along the river he was left speechless by the mountains being silently reflected in the water. He passed milky white waterfalls and mountains in many shades of blue. And when he saw the mists rising from the river and the soft clouds    9     (surround) the mountain tops, he was reduced to tears. The artist was finally humbled (谦卑) by the greatest artist     10     earth, Mother Nature.

5 . Molai grew up in a tiny village in India. The village lay near some wetlands which became his second___________. He learned the value and beauty of _________ there from a very young age.

When he was 16, Molai began to notice something _________ happening around his home. A flood had hit the area earlier that year and the _________ it caused had driven away a number of birds. _________, the number of snakes had declined as well. He _________ that it was because there weren’t enough trees to protect them from the _________. The solution, of course, was to plant trees so the animals could seek _________ during the daytime. He turned to the _________ department for help but was told that nothing would grow there. However, Molai went looking on his own and __________a nearby island where he began to plant trees.

________ young plants in the dry season was ____________for a lone boy. Molai built at the __________ of each sapling(幼树)a bamboo platform, where he placed earthen pots with small holes to____________ rainwater. The water would then drip(滴落)on the plants below.

Molai __________ to plant trees for the next 37 years. His efforts have resulted in 1,360 acres of naturally-grown land that has become home to many plants and animals.

7 . For most people, having things stolen feels like an offence. Robbie Pruitt admitted that he got ________ when he discovered the theft of his mountain bike last September. But soon enough, his ________ took a turn. After letting go of his anger and frustration, he found himself on a road to sympathy ________.

For Pruitt, a keen bicyclist, the first thing to do was ________ his stolen bike. But when he went bike shopping, he found few available, which got him thinking: What if the ________ of bikes was Covid-19 related, and what if the person who'd taken his bike really needed ________ to get to work?

With that thought in mind, Pruitt ________ a plan and posted it on the community website. He ________ to fix bikes free of charge for anyone who needed it. He also asked for unwanted bikes, which he would repair-again ________. And then he would donate them to folks who could truly use them but didn't have the ________ to buy one.

The day the post went live, Pruitt received thirty ________ bicycles. Then came more than 500 ________ for detailed information. By the end of 2020, Pruitt had repaired more than 140 for donation or to be ________ to their owners.

Pruitt tries to give his donations to families that are ________ struggling. ________ simply satisfying a material need, he has provided an opportunity for kids in his neighborhood to learn how to fix their own bikes.

In addition to ________ skills, Pruitt's lessons teach teamwork, encourage self-worth, and promote feelings of community. ________, the kids have gained a sense of accomplishment.

"It's a really great ________ for kids,“ said a neighbor in an interview with the local newspaper. "Pruitt is certainly providing a ________, but it's not just the bikes. It's the relationships in the community. It's the ________ that he can make on people."

8 . Last year I decided to do some volunteer work. I began to________on the Internet and discovered Volunteer USA. Three months later I________myself on a plane to Phoenix, Arizona. I was________at the thought of living with loads of new people for three months. However, within fifteen minutes of________, my worries had gone. Everyone was so________and like-minded that it was very________to feel at home.

I was sent to the Coronado National Forest for my first 8-day________. We had to________everything we needed and walk three miles to where we worked. It may not seem like a________way but in 35℃ heat and with a heavy pack, my legs were on fire.

My job was to________a stairway out of rock. This________climbing up and down the side of a mountain inhabited (栖息) by mountain lions, although I should say they were only heard,never________.

Three days later, a beautiful stairway came into being. The________of knowing that my________will be on that mountainside for years to come is massive.

But on the last night we were________in a thunderstorm. I woke up at midnight to find a swimming pool in my tent. The temperature was close to________. I had to spend the rest of the night trembling in the only________part of my tent.

________, I suffered a lot. But I know whatever I have to face in my life I was there and I________. I think I am much________for having taken part in the project.

9 . Two weeks earlier, my son, Ben, had got in touch, he’d moved to England with his mum when he was three and it had been 13 years since I’d _________ seen him. So imagine my _________ when he emailed me saying he wanted to come to visit me.

I was _________! I arrived early at Byron Bay where we were supposed to _________. The bay was _________ in sunshine, and there was a group of kayakers around 150m off the shore. Getting a little _________. I realized one kayak（皮划艇）was in _________. “Something’s not _________!” I took off my T-shirt and _________ into the water. I saw there were two instructors on board and a man lying across the middle. He was __________ violently. Linking arms with one of the instructors. I helped __________ the young man out of the water. He was unconscious and as I looked at his face, something __________ to me. Those brown eyes were very __________. “What’s his name?” I asked the instructor. “Ben,” he replied, and immediately I __________. That stranger was my son!

The instructors called for an ambulance. __________, after a brief stay in hospital, Ben was well enough to be allowed to __________ and later the family met up for dinner. We chatted about everything and then Ben __________ to me. “I just want to say thank you,” he said, “You __________ my life!”

I still can’t believe what a __________ it was. I’m just so glad I was there __________ to help my son.