2 . Imagine suddenly waking up at midnight, ______ for air, heart pounding, feeling tense and experiencing this night after night. The ______ of the lack of sleep was the ______ need to lie down and fall asleep for 2-3 hours. This was my experience throughout the summer of 2021.

I guess it may have been in part the ______ the pandemic had on my mental health as well as other worries. During the daylight hours, I ______ myself in various ways but at night during sleep my fear and ______ would come to the surface. I ______ I needed to find ways to deal with my worries.

After much ______, I began to seek the assistance of medicine, which was a tough decision to make. But it ______ well. I made sure to walk in nature as much as possible and continued my yoga practice. Slowly, I found my way back to myself.

However, life ______ another curve ball into my life. In December 2023, those nighttime feelings that ______ me flowed into my days again. I turned to friends and family, who encouraged me to seek professional help. I ______ to a therapist specialized in this field, and together, we analyzed the problems and applied the related ______ to coping with them. While the process didn’t go ______, my symptoms gradually disappeared with my efforts at last.

In conclusion, this is what I would like to say —when in trouble, reach out for help, talk to family and friends, your doctor or a counsellor. Take time to take care of yourself, you are worth the ______.

3 . In 2010, Justin Horner was driving down a busy freeway in Portland, US, when his tire blew out. He _______ to the side of the road and made a _______ indicating his need for help.

Three hours later, _______ a van pulled up and out came a Latino family of four. Regardless of the _______ barrier, they worked together to repair Horner’s car, relying on the daughter’s broken English. One hour later, the car was _______ and the mom pulled out a big jug of water for them to drink and wash their hands. Horner thanked them sincerely and _______ to give what he had in his wallet — a $20 bill — but they _______the offer. Despite their resistance, Horner   _______ and placed the money in the mother’s hand before walking away. A few moments later, their small daughter called out and offered Horner a _______ — a tamale (玉米粉蒸肉)   — which he gratefully accepted.

As they slowly drove off, Horner unwrapped the tamale and discovered his ________ inside. He rushed over to the van to give it back, but the father ________ shook his head, saying only four words, “Today you, tomorrow me.” With a ________, he drove off.

Months later, Horner shared his experience online, which ________ thousands of likes and comments. Horner knows that the phrase, “today you, tomorrow me” wasn’t ________ by that stranger in the van. He said it’s a common expression in Mexico, where he believes the family was from. However, the idea behind it is ________.

5 . At 19, Vancouverite Karina Zhou launched her first book, Kai’s Tea Eggs, earlier this week.

Zhou first _________ the story as an entry for a picture book illustration contest. She _________ the gold award. Getting it out there for the world to see was the natural next _________: “Because it did so well in that contest, I really want to publish this,” she says. Shel Silverstein’s The Giving Tree _________ her style, and inspiration often struck as she _________ the pages of other books. “I went to every _________ I could find and sat in the kid’s sections (区域) for a long time.” she says.

Much of Kai’s Tea Eggs was drawn from Zhou’s _________. “The story is inspired by a day when I _________ tea eggs for a multicultural event at my primary school — it was a really _________ experience and everyone liked the food,” she remarks. Her book recreates that __________ through the main character Kai: a sweet child, who, with the __________ of a friendly dragon named Ming, finds the courage to embrace (接纳) and explores the foods of her Chinese heritage.

Zhou-noticed a pattern when sharing the story with people from different __________. Many said that they could __________ the experience of the main character Kai, who feels __________ about sharing the food of her Chinese culture. “Everyone has gone through the anxiety in their own unique way,” Zhou notes.

The book is Zhou’s first, but she has plans for more: “I do want to __________ finding stories that are meaningful and that I think need to be in this world right now,” she says.

6 . Barre is a workout that includes movements from ballet and yoga, and it’s been sweeping the world. But it seems that the trend never quite _______ in Malaysia until a new studio, Rebarre, popped up a month ago. Its _______ Carmen has always been passionate about fitness and dance, having spent 15 years getting trained as a ballet dancer.

_______ she loved dancing, she never _______ pursuing dance as a career. Instead, she chose to study economics in Imperial College Business School and graduated with _______.

Because of this, she was _______ by a top consulting company in London. However, Carmen realized there had always been a _______ within her that she would make her mark in the field of fitness. Despite her strong belief, it was still a _______ decision to quit for passion. Thus, Carmen spent a long time _______ her options. Carmen eventually left her job, returned to Malaysia, and __________Rebarre.

But why barre? To Carmen, the __________ of barre is that there is no __________ to entry to barre; anyone can do it.

Although some people in Malaysia have __________ the barre concept, most people are still __________with it and its benefits. Thus, building awareness about barre continues to be a great __________ for Rebarre.

8 . Dave Hall led Surprise Squad, an organization to bring surprise to those in need, on a mission to spread joy at a local Albertsons store. Their _________ was simple yet influential: to pay for the groceries of _________ customers. Among the customers was Stephanie, a disabled veteran(退伍军人)who relied on her wheelchair.

She _________ to Dave that she was shopping for food for herself and her dogs. She was down to her last $50,_________ of how she would manage after that. Dave, thrilled to help, paid for all her groceries, a _________ that left Stephanie extremely grateful.

Dave _________ a man standing beside Stephanie. _________ mistaken for her husband, Larry turned out to be a friend of Stephanie’s husband and a fellow veteran. Despite his own financial _________, Larry was determined to support Stephanie.

He stood in the checkout _________ with just a bottle of dish soap and a piece of candy—all he could afford. Dave, moved by Larry’s situation, __________ buying him groceries. Larry’s eyes were filled with tears as Dave accompanied Larry back into the shelves, filling a __________ with food and toiletries(洗漱用品), far more than Larry had __________that day. As they finished checking out, Larry __________ that he had never spent so much on groceries before. The gratitude and emotion on his face were __________.

He thanked Dave wholeheartedly and left the store, carrying not just groceries but a moment of __________ that would never fade.