1 . 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 work wasn’t huge. _________,   she was doing small, local good things. _________, she changed my views on the world and for some reason, I felt I should let her know how her example _________ impacted 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? I assumed that maybe I was _________ of being too nice. I guess I felt strange __________ 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 __________ 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 also her response 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.

2 . During the 1930s, the Great War broke out. A 25-year-old American soldier, probably never thought that his life would change forever when he volunteered to go to France.

One night while the American unit was returning to the base after a bloody fight, Suleyman stumbled into the ground and noticed a bit of movement from the bush. Being stuck between two choices either its enemy or an animal, Suleyman found a five-year-old girl from the bushes shivering with cold and utmost fear. Due to the atrocity of the war, the girl was abandoned by her family and the whole village was killed.

During the war, it was impossible to find the child’s family so Suleyman took this little French girl under his wings and gave her an American name Flora which means like the flower. Soon, Flora became the apple of the eye of everyone living in the army camp.

For one and a half years, Flora and Suleyman became inseparable; however, every fairy tale comes to an end. When the war ended, Suleyman was sent back to USA, while Flora was put in an orphanage, the Normandy School, which was founded by the American government for orphaned French children to have an education.

For years, Suleyman always thought about Flora. When the French National Olympic Team was playing in the Summer Olympics in Los Angeles in 1984, Suleyman gazed through the audience on TV, hoping to catch a glimpse of Flora, but he never could.

At the age of 85, Suleyman attended the 60th anniversary reception of the Great War where Suleyman shared his story with American and French officials. After hearing his story, a French journalist started to investigate the story, and all government files were read in detail. The moment the journalist helped dial the number, in tears, Flora said Suleyman was her hero, and everything came flooding back to her.

3 . Zachariah Fike has an unusual hobby. He finds old military medals _______ in antique shops(古董店)and on the Internet. But unlike most collectors, Zac tracks down the medals’ rightful _______, and returns them.

His effort to _______ families with lost medals began with a Christmas gift from his mother, a Purple Heart with the name Corrado A. G. Piccoli, found in an antique shop. Zac knows the

Through the Internet, Zac _______ tracked down Corrado’s sister Adeline Rockko. But when he finally _______ her, the woman _______ him with questions: “Who are you? What antique shop?” However, when she hung up, she regretted the way she had ________ the call. So she called Zac back and ________. Soon she drove to meet Zac in Watertown, N.Y. “At that point, I knew she meant ________,” Zac says. “To drive eight hours to come to see me.”

Before hearing from Zac, Adeline hadn’t ________ the medal was missing. Like many military medals, the one Zac’s mother had found was a family ________. “This medal was very precious to my parents. Only on ________ occasions would they take it out and let us hold it in our hands,” Adeline says.

Zac and Adeline got to know each other well after their first meeting. They’ve talked about planning a ________ to Italy, hoping to visit some of the ________ Corrado could have stayed at during the war. Adeline says, “Zac’s ________ of our family now.”

Zac recently returned ________ lost medal to a family in Alabama. Since the first Corrado’s medal, Zac says his ________ is now 5 for 5.

5 . I couldn’t walk or speak until the age of 6. My brother and sister often made fun of me for being different and slow. My brother found it _________ that I couldn’t remember what the tutor had taught me and would say how _________ I was. Mum had to explain to him that I was different.

She tried to get me enrolled in various _________ Every time, she would explain to my classmates about my _________ so that I wouldn’t be bullied in school. Despite the best _________ of my teachers, I _________ to cope with the pace of the lessons and transferred(转学)from one school to another. I remembered _________ schools at least four times.

My life _________ when I was 10. Mum and I chanced upon a group of _________ with disabilities training in the open field of the nearby university. Mum __________ them and found out they were Special Olympics athletes.

At the time, I was physically __________ I had problems walking and had to hold someone’s hand for __________ . I also had problems with my eyesight. When Mum asked if I could become a Special Olympics athlete, we were __________ surprised that the answer was “yes”. I started simple training every Saturday. Although it was __________ , I never gave up. Neither did my family. Mum had to work on weekends and Grandma helped to ensure I never __________ a single session of training.

After a few months, with the __________ guidance of my coaches, I got stronger. At my regular Special Olympics 25-metre run practice, my grandma __________ me to let go of her hand. When I __________ the finish line, the team went wild. I was so __________ that I gave my grandma a bear hug. I __________ my progress to my coaches, families and friends.

In my memory, my grandfather was kind and not good at expressing himself. I never knew that he really thought. He never judged book by its cover and treated people around him equal. When I was in primary school, I sent with him a letter, telling him how much I loved him. He never mentioned that he had received the letter and I never asked. When he passed away, I cleaned out my things. I found the letter hiding in his bedroom. On the back of the letter, he writes: “I’m so glad you love me, my grandson. I love you, either.” At that moment, I was so moved that I burst into tear.

9 . Early in my teaching career, I heard countless excuses—most of them amusing—for why students didn’t have their homework. “The dog ate it” was one of them. As time passed, I grew tired of hearing “I don’t have my homework because...” So I stopped accepting any________.

When I was________ to another school, I took my straightforward attitude with me. “No excuses, no extensions!” I________ my eighth graders on the first day. I________ homework at the beginning of each class. When a student didn’t have the homework, I never asked why. ________, I sighed loudly, shook my head in disgust and________ a zero in the grade book. One afternoon, shortly after the________ bell rang, Anthony________ me. “Could I talk to you a minute?” he asked shyly. “I know what you said about our homework, but I don’t want you to think I’m a slacker (懒虫) because I come to school________ mine so often.”

Anthony looked up at me, and I could see his lower lip trembling. “It’s just that...well, my dad moved out, and my mom works at night, so I have to________ my little brothers. Sometimes they cry a lot, which makes it hard to________.” I put my hand on Anthony’s thin shoulder. “Why are you just now telling me…” I stopped in mid-sentence. I knew why. So I________ the question.

“Would it help if you stayed here after school and worked on it?” He swallowed hard and________. The next day, I announced to all my students that I’d be offering an after-school study hall.

Anthony was the first to________. Several days later, Terrell joined him, ________ by twins Sandy and Randy. Before long, I had a room full of eighth graders to work on their lessons. I never asked why any of them was there, but I soon had a large________ of “I don’t have my homework because...” stories. All were very________. None were amusing. The things I learned weren’t________ in college. I discovered not all kids come from homes that are safe and________. Not all kids have a quiet bedroom with a desk and study light. Some don’t have a home where a parent is even around. And some kids do go to bed________. Most importantly, I learned that “I’ll listen” works better than “No excuses”.

10 . At the mid-May in 2018, the 69 year-old amputee (被截肢者) Xia Boyu finally stood proud on two artificial legs on the peak of Mount Qomolangma, a symbol showcasing to the world the power of_________.

More than 40 years ago, Xia_________ both of his feet to frost bite after lending his sleeping bag to a team member during the trip to climb Mount Qomolangma.

Even though artificial legs were not _________in China at the time, Xia strongly _________ that he would one day fulfill his _________dream and so, before that day came, the best thing to do was to_________ himself by training constantly. Three years later he finally got his new legs, which enabled him to_________his sports career.

However, fate once again took a _________turn when he was in his 40s. In 1993, illness _________ on the stumps(残肢) on his legs, which required another third of his lower legs be amputated. Three years after that, he was diagnosed with lymph cancer.

Over the years, Xia never gave up his dream of climbing Mount Qomolangma. ____________ to his final successful climb in 2018, he had tried four other times to climb to the summit, but each time Lady Luck gave him the ____________.

The last time he ____________ his dream was in 2016. The then 67-year-old was only 94 meters from the summit, but a snow storm ____________ his way. Taking his team members’ ____________ into consideration, Xia made the ____________ decision to go back.

On May14, Xia felt ____________ and a strong sense of fulfillment ____________in him, standing on the peak of the highest mountain in the world.

“The key is to focus on your dreams, instead of the ____________ you encounter along the way. I didn’t regret anything that I had done and accepted everything that life had ____________ me, but I never stopped fighting against ____________,” Xia said, stressing that fulfilling one’s dream has nothing to do with age, disability or the thoughts or expectations of others, but a firm belief in yourself.