When the last customer left KFC, it was already 10:30 pm. Adam, an 18-year-old college student, dragged himself home. He had been working at KFC for over a month that summer vacation.

Entering his room, Adam found his younger brother Bill sitting on the edge of his bed with an uneasy expression on his face.

“Sorry, Adam. I … I did something wrong,” Bill sprang up and said nervously.

“What is it?”

“This afternoon I sneaked (溜) out for a ride on your motorcycle and accidentally hit our neighbor Osman Brook’s car. I was so scared and I … I hurried home in panic.”

“Is the car seriously damaged?”

“The left headlight got broken.”

“It’s truly your fault and it’s really dangerous to ride a motorcycle at your age. Besides, it’s illegal,” Adam raised his voice, obviously annoyed. Hearing this, Bill lowered his head and bit his lips hard.

“Anyway, it’s no use crying over spilt milk. I will deal with it tomorrow. Now you go to bed and have a good sleep.”

The next morning when Adam got up, Bill was still sleeping soundly. Adam was more determined about what he ought to do as an elder brother.

After breakfast, Adam took out all the money he had earned and went out of the house with it. In the yard he saw his motorcycle, on whose side the scratches (划痕) were clearly visible. Adam shook his head and sighed slightly. Then he squared his shoulders and quickened his pace to Osman’s house.

When he arrived, he was welcomed by Osman’s wife Mary, who told him that Osman had gone to the garage to have his car repaired.

“I have something important to tell him. Can I wait until he comes back?” Adam requested eagerly.

“Of course. He should be home soon,” Mary invited Adam in, served him a cup of coffee and began chatting with him.

After half an hour, the door opened and in came Osman. Having said hello to each other, Osman and Adam both sat down on the sofa.

Adam cleared his throat and began to speak.

Just then, there came a knock at the door.

2 . I am a single father with two young daughters. It had been a(n) ______ year: Being out of work ______ me of a reliable income and thus was always low on money. I hated to ______ my girls. But as New Year approached, with little choice, I was ______ to tell the girls, “It looks like our gift will be the gift of our ______ for each other.” Still, I couldn’t stop feeling ______.

Then, unexpectedly, a(n) ______ occurred to me. I ______ $1, 000 in a contest. To give them a ______ I kept it a secret and went shopping on my own. Back home I wrapped presents in the basement for my girls, all the time ______, “Boy, how amazed they will be! “The next morning, to ______ the gifts, I went to the living room and   ______. There were already dozens of presents-all with my name on them. My girls had felt ______ that Dad wouldn’t be getting any gifts, so they’d ______ wrapped their favorite stuffed animals and other toys so that I would have a happy new year.

As I stared at the gifts through ______ eyes, I promised myself that this was the best New Year that I had ever had.

6 . “April 30th, 2006, is officially our Gotcha Day, also known as the day the adoption (收养) became final,” explains Ken S. of Centreville, Virginia. “We’d just spent 35 days waiting to ________ them, and it’s impossible to express the ________ of that moment.”

Finding their kids wasn’t an easy process for Ken and his now ex-wife. The ________ who needed homes were in a crowded Ukrainian orphanage (孤儿院). After ________ countless files, they ________ Valeria and Timothy.

At first, they were ________ that the pair, who’d been ________ from a home where they were neglected (疏于照顾), would have a difficult time ________ their new life. Indeed, when Ken gave them a box of desserts, they swallowed the whole thing in ________, fearing there wouldn’t be more.

“They had crumbs (屑) flying out as they tried to ________, but they were so ________ that they wanted to eat all the food as fast as they could ________ it was taken away,” he says. “All they would get for lunch and dinner in the orphanage was a small bowl of soup with one cube of meal and one slice of bread. It was ________.”

But the kids adapted to (适应) their new lifestyle at a lightning speed. By the end of the summer, they were speaking ________ English and in love with American choices like McDonald’s Happy Meals and Disney movies.

How did they get through such a huge transition? Ken says the best thing they did to make their family forever was both the easiest and the hardest: loving them ________ and making sure they knew it and never forgot it.

THE TEACHER’S HAND

Thanksgiving Day was near. The first grade teacher gave her class a fun assignment—to draw a picture of something for which they were thankful.

Most of the class might be considered economically disadvantaged, but still many would celebrate the holiday with turkey and other traditional goodies of the season. These, the teacher thought, would be the subjects of most of her student’s art. And they were.

But Douglas made a different kind of picture. Douglas was a different kind of boy. He was the teacher’s true child of misery, weakness and unhappiness. His father died in a car accident and the driver wasn’t turned up yet. When first introduced to the teacher, the tiny shy boy greeted her in a timid tone, with his head down. She felt as if her heart was broken when he hesitated back and forth, glancing now and then at other kids playing games. She promised that she would help him out. As other children played on the playground, Douglas was likely to stand close by her side, one hand in hers. One could only guess at the pain Douglas felt behind those sad eyes.

Yes, his picture was different. When asked to draw a picture of something for which he was thankful, he drew a hand. Nothing else. Just an empty hand.

His abstract image attracted the imagination of his classmates.

When the children had gone on to other assignments, she paused at Douglas’ desk, bent down, and asked him whose hand it was.

8 . Lessons of a Monitor

Time goes by fast I can still remember the day when I _________ stepped into senior high school. On my first day, I stood alone in a comer of the classroom, _________ in the world of my own thoughts. Other students got to know each other quickly, _________ I wasn’t speaking.

Soon, the class bell rang. We all sat silently in our seas. Mr Song, our new teacher, _________ into the classroom. As he finished his introduction speech, Mr Song asked, “Who wants to he the monitor?” So many students tried their best to _________ their hands.

As usual, I quietly sat in my seat. I had never _________ being a monitor because I didn’t believe I could do it well. _________, to my surprise, Mr Song turned to me and said, “The boy at the back, you’ll be the monitor, OK?” Looking into his trusting eyes, I could not _________. Although I thought about the _________ tasks I would face, I decided to accept it and said, “OK, I’ll do it!”

That was my first time that I __________ and showed my determination (决心). And it __________ me forever. Carrying out the monitor’s duties every day, I discovered my hidden __________ for leadership (领导). I came to understand the importance of standing up __________ difficulties. Now I can stand __________ in front of the whole class and give a speech. And I never shy away from asking teachers questions. Standing up has given me __________ and courage. And these qualities (品质) will stay with me on the journey of life, no matter what I experience.

A Hole in the Fence

In a small village, a little boy lived with his father and mother. He was the only son of the family, so his parents, especially his mother spoiled him very much. Gradually, the boy got angry easily and teased others with his words. He scolded kids, neighbors and even his friends due to anger. His friends and neighbors avoided him, for which his parents were very worried and depressed.

His parents advised him many times to control his anger and develop kindness. Unfortunately, all their attempts failed. Finally, the boy’s father came up with an idea.

One day, his father gave him a huge bag of nails. He asked his son to hammer one nail to the fence every time he became angry. The little boy found it amusing, so he agreed to do what his father said.

The first day the boy hammered 38 nails into the fence. Then it began to become less. He found it was easier to hold his temper than to drive those nails into the fence.

Gradually, the number of nails hammered to the fence was reduced and the day arrived when no nail was hammered! Yes, the boy did not lose his temper at all that day. For the next several days, he did not lose his temper, and he did not hammer any nail.

Now, his father told him to remove the nails each time the boy controlled his anger.

Then, his father told the boy,