1 . By now, most of us have picked up at least one pandemic (疫情期间的) hobby. And there’s a seemingly common pandemic hobby trend: People who haven’t been able to go anywhere are making imaginary travel plans. Maybe you’re among those who have spent hours researching locations―even though you’re not actually planning to travel.

It turns out that you aren’t alone. People who seem to be interested in public safety recommendations are still planning trips they don’t intend to book. And, when I suddenly found myself addicted to an imaginary girls’ trip to Joshua Tree, I wondered whether this was a healthy distraction (注意力分散).

“It’s an escapist imagination,” said Regine Galanti, a psychologist, adding that there’s nothing wrong with escapism during a global pandemic.

On the one hand, distractions are often beneficial right now. We are a full year into living with COVID-19 as a pandemic, and that means you’ve probably had to navigate a range of emotions like discomfort, sadness, or even boredom. So any hobby that doesn’t harm anyone or endanger your well-being is probably a worthy attempt.

Even if vacation planning is your happy place, Dr. Galanti suggests you “actually think about what you’re trying to achieve.” Why? “Maybe what you’re saying is, I need a vacation from work,” Dr. Galanti explains. “Then take three days off even if you are not going anywhere. “When you figure out what you’re looking for, you might be able to find a small socially distanced adventure in your backyard or a quiet place. Vacation planning is a good way to spend some time, but there might be an even better way to get what you’re desiring.

Anyway, when uncertainty is all around us, creating things to look forward to isn’t a terrible idea. And when things are safer, you’ll have all your plans in place.

2 . Just before New Year, the principal (校长) called me into his office and asked me to read a poem written by me at the New Year party. “Sure,” I said with a smile, my dreams of being a famous ________ floating in my mind.

For weeks, I worked on my poem, ________ bettering the structure, sound, and voice. I reread my Emily Dickinson and William Wordsworth for ________. I practiced reciting it aloud. I revised, revised, revised. By December 30th, the day of the event, I was ________.

Well, I was confident until I looked around and realized how many people were there. And how big the hall was, and how ________ I felt about myself. How could I ________ a piece of my poetry to 800 people? My heart was beating so hard I thought everyone around me could ________ it. I was nervous. I could feel cool shakes run down my back. I couldn’t remember why I had said yes to the ________. Then the light darkened, the crowd quieted. It was starting.

Suddenly, I was on stage with the bright white lights blinding my view of the audience and the feeling that my ________ was closing up. I leaned in to the microphone and tried out my ________ as I read the title: “Let There Be Light.” My voice boomed (声音低沉洪亮) from the speakers loudly and sounded much more confident than I felt.

The room was ________ as I began my piece, and I tried to focus on the words and ________ the people. The words somehow ________ in the right order, the lines flowed together properly, and I even remembered which words to ________. I finally came to the last line of the poem and breathed a deep sigh of relief. It was over.

The room was dead silent. Maybe no one liked it. I felt like I was going to faint. Then out of the silence there was ________, cheering, and smiling. I had done it. I had shared a piece of my poetry with the world.

4 . I woke up with a painful back this moming.This was not______,since my back has given me problems for years,but today no stretching or moving would loosen it up.Still,I had five dogs waiting patiently by the door to go out for their mormning walk as usual,so I slowly bent down and started to pull my______ on.When I did,though,I saw that my shoes,like my body,were showing______ of wear.

From the split in one shoe,I knew that it wouldn’t be too long ______ I had to replace this pair,I only wished I could replace my back along with them.

Later,after walking the dogs,watching the sunrise and eating breakfast,I was feeling a lot ______        inside.My backpain had faded too,and my smile had returned.It was then that I remembered a letter a friend had sent me recently.Inside,she had pasted a ______picture of an old,wom-out pair of work boots,sitting on the ground.Their leather was cracked and their laces were worn,but they still looked ______ ,because inside,someone had planted a beautiful bunch of flowers.The flowers had grown tall and strong, ______their curious container.This picture reminded me again that ______ my body might have felt like a worn-out pair of shoes at times,inside it was a ______that continued to grow every day in love,peace and happiness.

At some point in your life you need to ______ who you really are.Are you the body that ______older every day,or are you the soul within it that remains forever ______ ?One day the loving spirit within you will have to ______out of its worn-out pair of shoes and walk on______them. May it bless everyone it meets along the way,heading for its Heavenly Home.

6 . J.K. Rowling frequently shows there is magic every day. Her Harry Potter series has helped people through times of stress and depression and she is always there to deliver wise words of encouragement.

She is one celebrity who is very active on Twitter. So when a single dad named Matt Burke sent her a message thanking her for the series, she noticed. Her series had helped strengthen his relationship with his 9-year-old daughter Bailey.

He included a link to his article titled Being a Broke Parent. He explained how he hadn’t found a level of financial stability that allowed him to pay bills on time and take his daughter on more activities and events. The family also doesn’t have the Internet or TV, which means there’s no “digital babysitter”, and he has to rely on his own creative ways to bond with his daughter. Since he received the series, the main thing that has occupied them these days is reading books together.

Burke admits that he thought he was “too cool” for the books when they first came out and he was in his twenties, but he’s loving reading them now. “We switch off chapter by chapter reading them out loud,” Burke explains. “This not only allows her to get more used to reading aloud in front of someone, but it gets me directly involved in something she loves, and it gives me the chance to be very dramatic when I read my chapters and bring myself into the characters in the book, which has proven to be a ton of fun.”

After hearing Burke’s story, Rowling said how honored she was when Harry Potter was a part of his family’s life and offered Burke more signed books. Besides, people are also offering to send Burke more books as gifts. For Burke, this experience, far more than gifts, will be what he treasures.

7 . I lay in the hospital bed with my six-year-old daughter, Elizabeth, holding her in my arms. “Mommy, will you stay with me the whole time?” she asked, looking up. “You know I can’t be in the operating room,” I said carefully, not wanting to frighten her. “But Daddy and I will be waiting right outside.” Elizabeth nodded, but she stills looked anxious.

Elizabeth had broken her right leg in July. Seven months later, it still hadn’t recovered. In fact, it had gotten worse. She was here in the hospital for surgery.

I wanted to promise that this would be the last time she’d have to go through this and that everything would be okay. But what if something went wrong again? How could I comfort my daughter when I needed comfort myself?

There was a knock at the door. A nurse? I thought. Time to say goodbye already? But the woman who came in wasn’t a nurse. “Hi,” the woman said. “I’m a volunteer here, and I’ve got something for Elizabeth.” She handed a bright-blue box to my daughter.

Elizabeth sat up and took the box. She opened it and started pulling out goodies one by one--candies, stickers, a lovely toy in the shape of a star. She hugged the star, cheering up for the first time since she entered the hospital. “Thank you,” she said. “I love them.” There was a big smile on her face. It has been so long since I saw that big smile.

The gift was a great comfort not only to my daughter, but also to me.

9 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。

When I was little, I lived in a house with a beautiful garden full of all kinds of flowers, and roses were the most beautiful of them. There was nothing I enjoyed more than sitting in the garden with my mother as she read stories to me. When I was in primary school and old enough to read, I enjoyed reading stories aloud to her.

I will never forget one day when I was in the third grade. I had been picked to be the princess in the school play, and for weeks my mother had rehearsed (排练) my lines so hard with me. But no matter how easily I acted at home, as soon as I stepped onstage, every word disappeared from my head. Finally, my teacher took me aside. She explained that she had written a narrator’s (旁白、解说员) part to the play, and asked me to change roles. Her word, kindly expressed, still hurt, especially when I saw my part go to another girl.

I didn’t tell my mother what had happened when I went home after school that day. But she sensed my pain. Instead of suggesting we practice my lines, she asked if I wanted to take a walk in the garden.

It was May and roses were blossoming and, under the trees, we could also see yellow dandelions (蒲公英) in the grass, as if a painter had painted our garden with red, yellow and green. I watched my mother casually bend down by one dandelion. “I think I’m going to dig up all these weeds,” she said, pulling it up by its roots. “From now on, we’ll have only roses in this garden.”

“But I like dandelions,” I protested. “All flowers are beautiful --- even dandelions.”

My mother looked at me seriously. “Yes, every flower is beautiful in its own way, isn’t it?” She asked thoughtfully. I nodded, pleased that I had won her over. “And that is true of people too,” she added. “Not everyone can be a princess, but there is no shame in that.” Relieved that she had guessed my pain, I started to cry as I told her what had happened. She listened and smiled, patting me gently.

“But you will be a beautiful narrator,” she said.

注意：

1．所续写短文的词数应为150左右；

2．续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好。

“But you will be a beautiful narrator,” she said,

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After the play, I took home the dandelions.

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It was the last game of the season. Cali had been playing soccer all summer. She really enjoyed chasing the black and white ball across the grassy field. But still, Cali had not scored one single goal. Cali was-pretty-good-at passing the ball, but she couldn’t kick the ball past the goalkeeper. She wondered if she should quit soccer.

“Don’t give up,” said her coach. “You just need to keep trying and you will get better.”

“Don’t give up,” said Uncle George and Aunt Lisa.

But it was half-time, and Cali was feeling frustrated. Every time she got a chance to kick the ball, it would go in the wrong direction or a player from the other team would take control of it. Maybe she would try a different sport next summer.

The break was over. The two teams walked back onto the field, both determined to win. Cali heard her aunt whisper in her ear. “You can do it.”

Cali smiled at her aunt and headed to her position.

The score was tied with one goal each. The yellow team was pretty good, but Cali’s blue team was fast. Cali was off to the side when the ball headed her way. She ran over to it and kicked it. She watched it land right in front of a girl on the yellow team who expertly stopped it and sent it back in the other direction. Cali sighed.

The little girl watched the ball go back and forth between the players. Her heart wasn’t in the game anymore. Cali decided she’d wait until the game was over and then she was going to hang up her soccer boots for good.

She was woken from her daydream by some music. It was the sweet, happy jingle of the ice cream truck. It was driving right beside the soccer field, playing its music loudly to attract customers. The truck stopped. The music kept playing.

The players on both teams turned to look at it.

By the time the other girls had noticed, Cali was positioned right in front of the net.