2 . An unpleasant smell floated into my nose as the bowl of fried stinky tofu settled onto my grandmother’s dinner table. I immediately sat back. The smell ruined my appetite, and I pushed the dish away.

“It’s supposed to stink. Just give it a try!” my grandmother said.

Holding my breath, I unwillingly took a bite. To my surprise, the tofu beneath the fried skin     was warm, soft, and mouthwatering. Thus, stinky tofu became more than a household tradition. It became my favorite dish.

Along with the stinky tofu, I would meet my Uncle Chan on every visit. As an immature boy, I never understood my uncle’s condition of Down syndrome(唐氏综合征).He was an unfriendly and terrible creature in my eyes. He constantly walked around the house, talking to himself. Whenever he was within view, I would run away in fear.

However, one day, my view of my uncle suddenly changed. I was just getting out of my bed when I heard soft steps approaching. It was my uncle. My muscles froze. He slowly sat next to me and touched my face gently, as a mother would stroke (抚摸)a baby. A wide smile emerged from his blank expression. How beautiful his smile was! I could not help but smile back. My fear disappeared gradually, and my muscles relaxed.

My uncle very much resembles stinky tofu. Stinky tofu smells unpleasant on the outside, yet feels warm and soft in the inside. Like stinky tofu, my uncle’s Down syndrome made me keep my distance at first. Yet, I learned that deep inside, he is harmless and has a loving nature.

The outside and inside of the stinky tofu exist as two extremely different worlds. Perhaps that is what makes it such a tasty dish. Not only is it delicious, stinky tofu offers a valuable lesson: never judge people at first glance, for true beauty comes from the inside.

4 . There was a time when I thought my dad didn’t know a thing about being a good father. I couldn’t _________ him ever saying the words “I _________ you.” It seems to me his only purpose in life was to say “No” to anywhere I wanted to go and anything I wanted to do, including getting a car. Some parents bought their kids cars when they got their driver’s licenses. Not my dad—he said that I’d have to get a job and buy my own.

So that is what I did. I got a job at a very nice restaurant and _________ every penny I could and when I had enough to buy my car, I did! The day I brought that car home, my dad was the first one I wanted to show it off to. “Look, dad, a car of my own. If you ever want a ride, I’ll only _________ you five dollars.” I offered with a smile. “I see,” was all he said.

One day, there was something wrong with my father’s truck. So he needed a _________ to work. The sun wasn’t even up when we left the house, _________ it was already getting warm out. It was going to be a (n) _________ day. As I dropped my dad off, I watched him, dressed in his work clothes, getting his _________ from the truck(车尾箱)of my car. Watching his sun weathered face, and even from a distance I could tell there were _________ lines than I ever remembered being there before. I realized how hard my dad works for the family. My father is a cement finisher(水泥修整工).

In that instant, it __________ to me that he actually __________ on his hands and knees to sweat over hot concrete(混凝土)to make a living for his family. And he did this day in and day out, however hot it got. Never, not once, had I heard him __________ about it. To him we were “worth” it. And never once did he “charge” us for it.

When he closed the trunk, his tools set off to the side, he walked over to my window to __________ me five dollars. I rolled down the window and said “Good-bye, dad. Keep your five dollars. It’s my __________. Don’t work too hard. I love you.”

His __________ met mine, then glanced away in the direction of his waiting tools, he cleared his throat and said, “Oh, and... me, too.”

5 . In 1969, watching the landing of Apollo 11 on the Moon on TV from his parents’ farm in Canada, Chris Hadfield was amazed and excited. On that day, at only nine years old, Chris made the most important decision of his life: He was going to be an astronaut.

There wasn’t even a training program in Canada to become an astronaut; but Chris was determined. He spent a great deal of time studying and fixing engines. After school he joined the Canadian army where he learned to fly many different types of planes. Chris did a lot of research for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in the United States and had special training. Finally, in 1995 he rode his first rocket into space.

Chris became the first Canadian astronaut to walk in spare, and went on a number of space missions throughout his career. The most memorable was his five-month stay on the International Space Station (ISS) as commander, between December 2012 and May 2013.He posted on social media thousands of photos of Earth and videos of himself explaining how things work in zero gravity. His followers could watch him sleeping, brushing his teeth, washing his hands, or preparing “space” snacks in zero gravity, which turned him into a social media phenomenon.

Today, Chris travels the world giving talks about his work. He once said, “Decide in your heart of hearts what really excites and challenges you, and start moving your life in that direction. Every decision you make, from what you eat to what you do with your time tonight, turns you into who you are tomorrow. Look at who you want to be, and start sculpting yourself into that person. You may not get exactly where you thought you’d be, but you will be doing things that suit you in a profession you believe in. Don’t let life randomly kick you into the adult you don’t want to become.”

6 . Agnes Lloyd’s 70th birthday came, but the day went normally. Her husband _______ many years ago. She had not heard from her children for a long time, which was _______.

The last bell of the day rang. She picked up her _______ and walked towards her car planning to buy herself a chocolate dessert although her doctors don’t _______ it for her age. But who cares? It was her birthday, and she _______ it.

The thought made her smile as she _______ her car when a sudden “MRS. LLOYD!” _______ her. Agnes dropped her purse onto the ground. She looked around and was _______ by what she saw.

Her students were standing there carrying birthday signs. She hadn’t _______ they had prepared such a surprise for her. Her student Christian came over, picking up her purse, and ________ her to the rest as they all started singing Happy Birthday.

As the song continued, tears ________ in her eyes. As they finished the song, small pieces of coloured paper began flying all over the place ________. But that wasn’t the best part.

Some of the students parted and her three children stepped out holding a birthday cake with two ________ that formed the number 70. “Happy birthday. Mom!” They exclaimed together, and that’s when Agnes lost her ________ for the first time.

Don’t forget your parents, ________ your life gets busy. We need to act and remind them that they are loved.

10 . When I was a little girl, there was the magic of Mercurochrome(红药水). It was good for cuts, scratches(抓痕), or other_______. My brother and I tested and_______the powers of Mercurochrome many years ago.

It was summer and hot. Mama was not feeling well and had become_______tired. She told us that she was going to_______on her bed. Only a few minutes had passed when Ronnie_______a scratch on his knee that needed immediate_______.We tiptoed(踮脚走) into Mama’s room and asked her if we could put Mercurochrome on Ronnie’s scratch._______on her back, Mama had fallen into a deep sleep and made no answer.

We stole into the bathroom and took the Mercurochrome and_______Ronnie’s knee. Undoubtedly, he immediately began to feel better._______, we tiptoed into Mama’s room to show her that we had taken care of our scratches without__________her. But she was in sound sleep. Then we whispered that__________Mama didn’t feel well, perhaps Mercurochrome would make her feel__________.

Twenty minutes__________, we painted every scratch and every freckle(雀斑)of Mama’s skin. She had Mercurochrome__________her legs, arms and face. At Ronnie’s encouraging, we__________tried to paint her fingernails and toenails.

When Mama screamed in__________, we knew that she was awake. With all the__________, it didn’t seem at first that she was feeling better,__________she burst into laughter as she stared at her image in the mirror.

We laughed a lot the next few days. If anyone had asked us, we would have__________that Mama had been cured by the__________of Mercurochrome.