1 . John Clark was a postman. He was fond of dogs. However, when he was delivering letters (送信), he found that ________ dogs were his friends. One particular (特别的) dog called ________, who lived at No. 108 Turner Road, was one of John’s ________. Whenever John came near his ________ house, Spot would not lie in and ________ out on John, barking (狗吠) and trying to ________ his ankles(脚踝).

After a heavy snow ________ was freezing (结冰) that morning. The road was covered with ________. John was afraid of ________ down, so he ________ his bike and walked with ________ steps. Unfortunately (不幸地), John slipped(滑倒) on a patch of ice, which was opposite to No. 108 Turner Road. Spot ________ this as John together with his bike made such a big noise. Spot jumped onto John’s ________ and tried to bite his neck. Quick as a flash, John, ________ hands were full of letters, bit ________ on the leg.

John Clark said later, “It was the ________ thing I could do. I don’t approve of (赞成) ________ to animals, but that dog ________ had it coming. Since that day I’ve had no ________ at No. 108. Spot always hides round the ________ of the house when he hears me coming.”

2 . It’s hard to talk to dad sometimes. His silence about his feelings and thoughts made him mysterious and hard to see through. You could never break his hard shell and get to know him. And he seemed to want to stay that way too.

But a year ago when my relationship with my wife and career took a hit, I needed my dad to pull back the curtain so I could see him as real and accessible. I was facing serious problems, and I wanted to know whether he had faced them before and how he had found his way, because I felt like I had lost mine. In desperation, it occurred to me that sending an email might be the key, so I wrote him one, telling him about my regrets and fears, and I asked him to answer, if he felt like it.

Two weeks later, it showed up in my inbox: a much-thought, three-page letter. Dad, a 68-year-old retired technologist and grandfather of four, had carefully considered my message, and crafted a response. He mentioned his lost love, the foolish mistake he made in career and the stupid pride he had between him and his parents. He comforted me that “life will still find its right track despite many of its twists and turns.”

I closed the email and started to cry, because I wished I had opened up earlier but was grateful it wasn’t too late. I cried because at 33, in the midst of my own struggles, his letter instantly put me at ease. And I cried because in the end, it was so simple: I just had to hit “Send.”

We’ve since had many email exchanges. This increasing communication opened a door into his world. My problems haven’t been magically solved, but getting to know my dad better has made the tough stuff more manageable and life sweeter. It’s hard to talk to dads sometimes, but I’m glad I found a way to talk to mine.

5 . Long long ago, there was a king who liked to write stories. He was so proud of his stories that he showed them to many people. Although the people didn’t like the stories, they were afraid to say that. Instead, they all said his stories were good.

One day he showed his stories to a well-known critic (评论家) . The critic said that they were bad. The king got very angry and sent him into prison.

After sometime the king sent his men to the critic to tell him that he was free. When the critic returned from the prison, the king invited him to his palace to dinner. Again he showed him some of his stories and once again asked him what he thought of them. The critic said nothing but turned to the soldiers who were standing behide him, and said, “Take me back to prison.”

6 . “You should get a cat,” my doctor said. “A cat?” I couldn’t even look after myself. I took a deep breath and carefully considered the idea of welcoming a feline (猫科的) friend into my life.

Adopting an animal during the height of the pandemic was far from easy. When my partner and I found Cinnamon, her adoption profile made her out as the perfect kitten. We filled out the paperwork and had a few weeks to prepare for her arrival.

When she came home, it became increasingly obvious that Cinnamon didn’t understand “no”, “stop it” or “don’t do that”. She was the worst cat I’ve ever owned. I was beginning to doubt my doctor’s advice.

We decided to start taking her for walks. I could barely leave the house before, but my heart couldn’t say no to Cinnamon. Cinnamon showed me what bravery looked like if there was a dog at a park, she would run toward it. She jumped without knowing where she would land. She loved adventure. I found myself mirroring her behavior after a while, jumping out of bed without a second thought. I began to find the motivation to get out of bed in the morning.

Cinnamon unfortunately passed away after a medical accident, leaving a cat-sized hole in my heart the day she left us at only six months old. I’m no stranger to sadness or grief, but losing my pet so suddenly was the most confusing emotional experience I’ve ever had. She was supposed to help me through more of my life than the three short months we had her.

Our time is often cut unpredictably, unmistakably short. It would be a shame to live life being anything less than brave and adventurous.

7 . On May 12, 2008, a deadly earthquake rocked 23-year-old Liao Zhi’s apartment building in Sichuan, causing it to fall down.

Among the debris, Ms Liao, a dancer, heard the search and rescue team_________her, but she didn’t have the energy (力气) to_________. Then she heard her father calling her name. She thought: “I must_________my father again.”

She made it out alive after being trapped for 30 hours but she_________everything: Her home, her daughter and both her legs.

In the hospital, she managed to bear the pain and_________with other patients.

They asked her: “How are you still laughing at this point?”

“Because I am still_________,” she replied.

Two months after the earthquake, she was asked if she wanted to take up dancing_________. At the time, she was still in recovery (康复), but that did not stop her determination. “I_________to get on the stage (舞台) one more time,” she said.

However, from treatment to the adjusting (适应) of prosthetic limbs (义肢), Ms Liao said it was a(n)_________journey. “It was common to be in so much pain,” she said.

After seeing many patients couldn’t adjust to their prosthetic legs, Ms Liao almost__________the wheelchair.

“I had to be__________everywhere: To the shower, to the bathroom ... I didn’t have any__________.”

In the end, she refused to__________anyone and decided to have prosthetic limbs fitted.

Today, she can be seen dancing and rock-climbing.

“It’s easy to lose__________in difficult situations,” she said. “I was that close to giving up many times — but I am__________I didn’t.”

One day, our family drive twenty miles to a beach with my dog, Prince, which stomach seems to be always crying out for food, to have a picnic. Soon after arriving, I said, “Let’s to eat the sandwiches. Prince and me are hungry. ” “Not right now. Swim first. ” my parents said. They placed the picnic basket in the shore, with a towel covering the food. We had much funs in the cool water. But a short while late, screams came from my mom. Rushing out the water, I saw Prince licking his lips. I bet whether he wasn’t hungry anymore. And everyone else was.

9 . Last Saturday, I went out to have breakfast with a friend. It was _______. But what wasn’t so lovely was the lady who took our _______. She spoke in a way that was _______, unhappy, certainly not friendly and sort of rude. Working in hospitality(服务行业) myself, I _______. When it was my _______ to approach her and order, I thought to myself, “What can I do here to cheer her up, to appreciate her, to make her _______?”

I had nothing.

Surely there must be _______ I could sincerely compliment her on. Then I _______ instantly. It was her _______. She had the most incredibly well-spoken and clear voice. It was SO good. And that was what I would ________ her for.

So after she took my order and gave me the same unfriendly attitude, I told her. I said: “I hope you don’t mind me saying so, but you have the most ________ voice. It’s so clear, well-spoken and sounds so ________.” I told the lady her voice would be ________ for voice-overs(配音) and she could be a hostess for radio programs.

Her face ________, and she smiled — the first time I had seen her do so, and I noticed her whole attitude ________. The customer behind me received a totally different kind of ________, a better one. And it was all because of what I did. Something so ________!

There was a time when this sort of thing would have ________ me, or I’d have been too shy and awkward to say such a thing. Not now. Now I must.

Why? Because I have the ________. The power to completely change someone’s day by something as simple as a few kind ________. And you have this power too. We all do.

10 . What do you do when you were born with only two fingers on each hand and your legs were amputated (截肢) at the knees when you were three? Lee Hee-ah _______ that in her life. And her legs _______ at her knees. When Lee was born, doctors told her mother Woo Kap-sun that her child wasn’t _______. But Woo was determined her daughter would _______ a successful life.

When Lee was old enough to go to school, her mother decided that she wanted her daughter to take _______ lessons. She felt it would help her _______ hands because playing piano could make them stronger. In addition, she felt that _______ she could master the piano, she could master _______. But for six months, piano schools _______ them down. Then the teacher who did accept the task got ________ and wanted to quit.

It became a ________ of determination between the mother and the daughter that led to a ________ in which Woo actually threw her daughter on the floor in ________. Lee got back to the piano bench and for the first time played the children’s song she had been trying to learn. That was the ________ point and one year later Lee ________ the prize in a piano concert for kindergartners. It was at age 7 that Lee won Korea’s 19th National Handicap Conquest Contest (全国残疾人征服比赛) and was ________ to her by the President of Korea. Today Lee, 22, has won lots of awards, and is a ________ traveled concert pianist with more than 200 appearances. Lee thanked her ________ for challenging her to master the piano and said that although her training was ________ as time went by, the piano had became her ________ of inspiration and her best friend. Nothing is impossible in life. It’s only our thought and belief that matter.