1 . Recently my wife and I were faced with a difficult situation while traveling by car in the mountains with our hired driver. It was going to be a long ride and we were ________. Just as we began to doze (打盹), the engine made a strange, loud noise and then stopped working.

The sun was just setting and the air was getting ________. We tried communicating with the driver but with little success. He told us he was going to get help and then left.

In a(n) ________ location with no houses in sight, we started to hear the cries of wild animals. We also didn’t have much food it was getting colder and darker. I began to ________ confidence. Should we leave the car and seek shelter? Would our driver ever ________? Was he a trustworthy man? We were very ________.

A couple of hours passed. ________, the headlights from another car could be seen in the ________. An unfamiliar man got out of the car. He looked ________ at first until his mouth opened with a big friendly smile. He asked us to get into the car with him. He had such a kind face, so we knew we could ________ him. We climbed into the car.

Before we left, he put a note on the windshield (挡风玻璃) of our car with his phone number on it. Then he drove us to a nearby village, and we ________  his family. They offered us tea and local foods, and everyone asked us questions and were thrilled to have ________ guests.

Later that evening, the phone rang. It was our ________. He had kept his word and ________ the car. We prepared to leave and thanked our new friends.

I will never forget the ________ and hospitality (好客) we received on that day because we relied on a stranger for help.

2 . A Story on an Island

A ship was lost at sea and the only survivor was washed up on a small, inhabited(无人居住的) island. He prayed _________ for God to rescue him and for hours he just _________ at the horizon(地平线), waiting for a heaven-sent _________ but it never came.

Then he decided to do something. _________ tired and upset, he _________ some branches and dry grass. Hours of hard work paid off and a little shelter was built. The “Robinson Crusoe” began his life on the island. Believe it or not, a couple of days going by, he _________ and it seemed not that hard.

But then one day, after _________ for food, he arrived home to find his little shelter in flames and the _________ rolling up to the sky.

The _________ had happened: everything was lost.

“God, how could you do this to me!” he cried with __________ and anger.

Early the next day, __________, he was awakened by the __________ of a ship that was coming near to the island. It had come to rescue him!

“__________ did you know that I was here?” he asked one of his rescuers.

“We saw your smoke __________,” they replied.

It is easy to get __________, when things are going bad. But we shouldn’t lose heart, because God is at work in our lives, even when we are in pains and sufferings.

Remember, next time your little shelter is burning to the ground, it just may be a smoke signal that calls for the grace of God. For all the negative(消极的) things we have to say to ourselves, God has a/an positive answer for it.

3 . As French author Andre Maurois once said, “Without a family, man, alone in the world, shakes with the cold.” Indeed, families who give us love and _______are an important part of our lives. But even in a loving family,_______can’t be avoided.

One day, I was doing my homework and my sister_______.Busy with homework, I didn’t talk to her and just kept working: But when I took a_______, I turned my head to the place where my sister was sitting._______, I found my notebook had a lot of messy drawings on it.

At that time, I was full of _______and walked out of my room, shouting at my sister. “You are really a_______and I hate you.” Hearing the words, my sister_______out crying and tried to explain her behavior. But I_________ since I didn’t want to hear a word from her. The ________afterward lasted for a long time________us. To solve the problem, my father brought me to the living room and asked: “Have you noticed what the drawing is on your notebook?”

I shook my head. Then, under the ________of my father, I looked at it carefully, it________,“Happy birthday”. At that moment, I knew how ________I was. Though drawing on my notebook wasn’t right, my sister’s love and __________ were sincere. Feeling guilty, I said sorry to my sister. Instead of staying angry, she smiled back at me.

4 . Both my parents were educators, and for the past 40 years I’ve done the same thing. As_________, we know why kids don’t learn. But one thing that we _________discuss is the value and importance of human_________. A fellow teacher once said to me, “They don’t pay me to_________the kids. They pay me to teach a lesson.” I replied, “Kids don’t_________from people they don’t like.”

For years I watched my mother take the_________at break to buy snacks for kids that needed to_________, and bath soap for kids who didn’t smell so_________. Years later, after she retired, I watched some of those same kids come through and say to her, “Ms. Walker, you made me feel like I was _________. And I want you to just see what I’ve __________.”

When my mama died two years ago at 92, there were so many__________students at her funeral (葬礼). It brought tears to my eyes, not because she was __________, but because she left a treasure of relationships that could never __________.

Every child deserves a champion, and an adult who will never __________on them. We’re educators. We’re born to make a__________.

5 . My husband and I have little money lately. We haven’t eaten out for a while, so we went to a _______ last night.

When we saw the_______, we knew we could only afford to get a small pizza, so we would have enough money left for_______. Before long our pizza that was cut to 4 pieces arrived. My husband wanted to act like a_______, so he would like to put a piece of pizza on my plate. Unluckily, it dropped onto the floor. I knew he would be _______about othersˈ opinions on him. I told him, “Honey, don’t let other people_______ us. We still have three pieces left.”

The manager_______ this and came over with a broom (扫帚) . He_______ the pizza and said he was sorry that the oven (烤箱) had been turned_______, or he would have brought another pizza for us. At the end of our meal he________ to our table again to thank us for being here. Then he gave us one coupon (优惠券) for a free small pizza. We were________because he could have chosen a________ attitude when he saw the pizza we dropped during their closing time. Instead, he chose to make sure we could left________. My husband was going to give him tips for our meal that we had prepared, ________ the manager didnˈt take them. To some people it might not be important, but to us it meant a lot. Our rare treat of enjoying a night out was made more________.

6 . I remember my high school English teacher telling me not to apply to Cornell University. My teacher said they wouldn’t accept me and even if they did I wouldn’t be able to ______ it through the years. I almost _______but a few days later I came across a former teacher, who told me ______ , “You apply. You can do it.” His words made all the ______. I put in my application and was ______.

Too often we think it’s our _____ to help make someone aware of “reality”. We think we must point out how ______ the job market is as well as how bad the economy is. This world never lacks “realists ” or ________. But it calls for more optimists and encouragers who say, “I believe in you. Have the ______ , and you will have the power to make it come true. We may ______ lots of barriers, but we’ll get the project finished. Even if you fail, it’ll lead to something more ______.” I know that every one of us loves working for and with people who ______ the best in us. We love being around people who bring us______ and uplift us.

While we sometimes can put up with the ______ people，we will always ______ those who encourage us and hold a special place in our heart for them. ______, everyone can be that person who leaves a positive ______into someone, which will flower sooner or later. ______ someone up who is feeling down.________your team with your positive energy.

Share encouragement. It ______ and we all need it.

8 . “The silence is killing me,” I thought as I locked my phone, hoping a new message would light up the screen. After 27 messages, two phone calls and a voicemail, I’d just sent my final text to the person who ________ to be my best friend at college.

We met in our freshman year and, since we ________ almost all the same core classes, rapidly became inseparable throughout college. We ________ stayed up together for studying, and were each other’s partner for late-night pizza runs. Then one day after graduation, she suddenly ________ responding, apart from claiming she “didn’t have enough time for herself”. That breakup was the most ________ I’d experienced. After four years of building such a ________ relationship, I thought I’d at least receive a(an) ________ for why she wanted to end things. ________ I received only a brief, indirect message about self-care and what hurt me most was a (an) ________.

Over the past few years, the concept of “drawing boundaries” has ________ in the pop psychology. Discussions of cutting people off and protecting your energy ________ dominate social media. And after nearly three years in ________ the ways the Covid-19 pandemic has ________ many of us to reevaluate our relationships with others show up everywhere in pop culture.

The ________ of self-care are fairly obvious: by prioritizing our own well-being, we’re able to engage in emotional healing, build confidence, ________ anxiety and simply rest. However, an extreme focus on self-care can lead to a(an) ________ perspective of the world in which we always put ourselves first, even when we’ re in the wrong. This doesn’t just. ________ us -it can have real, painful consequences for the people around us.

Sometimes it can feel ________ for us to remove ourselves from conflict or discomfort under the mask of ________. However, walking away from these relationships without a real conversation actually ________ us and our loved ones of an opportunity for growth.

9 . Mr. Hart, a London taxi driver, has a new black taxi. He hurries through the busy _________ every day. One day when he was having a short rest, a young man jumped into his taxi. “To the station as fast as you can,” shouted the man in a very _________ way. “My _________ leaves at 3 o’clock.” Mr. Hart did his best, but there was a lot of traffic. At every corner there was a _________ light. “Hurry up, man, I don’t want to _________ my train,” said the young man. “And I don’t want to have an _________ ,” replied Mr. Hart quickly. While he was _________, Mr. Hart suddenly recognized the man’s _________. He was a _________. The police were looking for him. His picture was in the __________. Mr. Hart drove through the streets and red lights. Soon there was a police car __________ him. Mr. Hart raced on until he __________ the station. He stopped in front of the station at two minutes to three, and the young man quickly jumped out of the taxi. “__________!” cried Mr. Hart. At the moment the police car stopped, too. “Quick! he is the thief!” shouted Mr. Hart. Two policemen __________ into the station. Three minutes later they __________ with the young man.

“Well done!” a policeman said to Mr. Hart as they were taking the thief to the police car.

10 . Early in my teaching career, I heard countless excuses for why students didn’t have their homework. As time passed, I became_____________of hearing “I don’t have my homework because…” So I_____________accepting any excuse.

When I moved to another school, I _____________ my students “No excuses!”. I collected homework each class. When a student didn’t have it, I never asked why._____________, I sighed loudly, shook my head and recorded a zero in the _____________ book.

Then, one afternoon, Anthony _____________me. “Could I talk to you a minute?” he asked _____________, not taking his eyes off the _____________ . “I know you said it doesn’t matter _____________we don’t have our lessons done, but I don’t want you to think I’m ____________ because I come to school without mine so often.”

Anthony ______________up at me for the first time. “It’s just that… well, my dad moved out, and my mom waits tables at night, so I have to ______________ my little brothers. Sometimes they cry a lot, and it makes it hard to______________”

“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 in my______________ after school and worked on it before you go home?” He swallowed hard and ____________.

The things I learned that year weren’t taught in the classes I’d taken in college. I discovered that not all kids come from homes that are safe and ______________. Not all kids have a ______________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”______________much better than “No excuses!”