1 . Putting down the book I was reading, I turned to my mum. “Next year, when I go to high school…,” I started, thinking of all the novels I’d soon finish. But before I could finish my sentence, Mum ________ my words. “There will be no high school,” she said. “We don’t have ________ for uniforms or school shoes or books.”

My family were very poor and the kids all ________ school, including me. Years later, I met George and got married. Life went on,________ the desire to study never left me. “When we retire, I want to go to university,” I told George. I wanted to ________ to myself that I could do it.

In 2015, we ________ and I seized my chance. At the age of 66, I was ________ to a program with the University of the Sunshine Coast which helped ________ students prepare for university.

Walking onto campus that first day in February 2017, it was clear I was the ________ student there. My biggest challenge wasn’t the course work; it was the ________.

Before ________ my first paper, I turned to two girls next to me. “How do I send this in?” I asked. They kindly showed me, but as I clicked “send” I was ________ all that work had disappeared into the black hole of cyberspace never to be seen again.

I loved campus life and ________ all my subjects. When I was invited to ________, I cried. I couldn’t believe I’d done it. My family all came to my graduation ceremony in April 2023 and sat in the front row.

If you’re thinking of getting a ________, just do it. I have three great grandchildren now and if I can get a degree aged 73, so can you.

The sea was shining across the horizon as my husband, Michael, and I looked out over the rocky cliff（悬崖） of Gleesons Landing in Yorke Peninsula. "Careful Abby doesn't fall down the rocks here," Michael warned as he pulled out his fishing rod（鱼竿）. Abby was our two-year-old rescue dog（搜救犬）we'd adopted one year earlier.

Leaving Michael to his fishing, Abby and I wandered off. We'd been walking for a while when we saw a small path that led down the side of the cliff towards the beach. Abby raced off and as I followed, my leg caught on a rock and I fell down the cliff. Landing three meters down, my left leg cracked violently. Shocked, I tried to keep myself calm. I couldn't feel any pain but when I tried to get up, my body just fell back down. "Go and get Daddy," I signaled to Abby as she paced nervously beside me. At first she refused to leave my side. But somehow she realized I needed her and raced off.

Alone and staring out to sea, my world faded to black. Staying awake some time later, I discovered Abby hadn't returned. Suddenly, I heard movement coming from above. "Sue?" Michael called out. Relief flooded through me as I looked up and saw Michael and Abby. "I think I broke my leg," I shouted back. "I'll go get help," he promised. "If I try to reach you myself, they'll be rescuing two of us."

Faint and tired, I held on to consciousness. Abbey came down to me and kept me company until the rescuers arrived. They carried me on a stretcher（担架） to a helicopter, where I was flown to hospital in Adelaide while Michael and Abby drove.

At the hospital, the pain caused by the fall finally hit me.

“She led me to the exact spot where you were,” Michael explained.

3 . A woman’s 16-year-old dog went on a little adventure of his own, leaving his owner both ______ and pleasure.

When Jenny Hazard discovered that her old dog, Bear, had ______, her world broke down at once. ______ the worst thing would happen due to Bear’s age and heart condition, Hazard searched for him like crazy. It didn’t take long for her to notice the gate was ______, and Bear was nowhere to be found.

“After about 15 or 20 minutes, I was just in tears,” Hazard said, ______ her concern for Bear’s health.

Feeling hopeless, she ______ social media, sharing a photo of her dear dog and ______ the community to take notice.

Then the dog’s story took an ______ turn when Hazard received a text message that not only reduced her worries but made her ______. It turned out that Bear wasn’t in any danger — he was at the ______, about a mile away, having the time of his life.

“Great, he’s fine, so I’m not worried — but what’s he ______ there?” Hazard told the media, laughing ______ .

As more was ______ about the story, Bear was found hanging out with a group of girls. The owner of the dance hall reported that the two ladies had obviously ______ Bear on the street and that their first stop was indeed the dance hall.

Jenny Hazard thanked the ladies and then posted the ______ story online.

Quan Peng, a man in a wheelchair, set off from Beijing in August 2014, and     1    (visit) 43 cities and towns in five provinces so far. In the next six months, he hopes to make    2     to China’s southern tip — his final destination.

“I see it as a battle.” Quan said, “I’m not just battling against my disability,     3     also against discrimination (歧视).”

Quan has traveled on a tight budget. He has slept in a tent or in his chair, and camped out in hospitals, banks and public toilets. The few times he tried to stay in hotels, but he     4    (turn) away. “Restaurant owners would refuse     5    (take) me in because they see me as a beggar; I go to a hotel and they would tell me they are     6    (full) booked.”

Quan,     7     was housebound for eight years, wants to use his wheelchair trip to raise     8    (aware) of the need of disabled people around the country. Even in cities like Beijing and Shanghai, which are     9    (well) equipped for the disabled, Quan says he was not able to take a bus. “I would like to try my best to let people know that we are able to create value. We are not useless people    10    (stay) in bed all day long,” said Quan.

9 . A waste collector’s quick thinking and heroic actions saved the lives of a man, a woman, and their pet dog as a fire broke out in a small house in Birmingham.

The event happened around 8 a. m. when several 999 calls reported the fire. Firefighters from Tipton, Dudley, Bilston, and Wednesbury stations raced to the event site. Upon arrival, they felt a sense of relief to find that Steve Whitehouse, a 49-year-old Refuse Operative employed by Serco, had already rescued the people inside.

Steve was collecting waste with driver Kevin Marriott when they saw the fire. Without hesitation (犹豫), Steve took action — climbing a first-floor balcony (阳台) three times to ensure the safety of the trapped persons and the dog.

“I saw a young woman crying from the balcony to attract people’s attention, and all I could think of was that I needed to get to her as quickly as possible,” Steve told West Midlands Fire Service. He successfully pulled the woman to safety and then went back up to rescue a painful young man and his dog.

“The smoke was getting thicker. I managed to pack the dog in a blanket, jumped back down to the ground, and got the owner to throw the dog to me. I then went back up to help him,” Steve described.

Once the rescue task was complete, Steve turned his attention to warning neighbors of the danger, while Kevin helped those who had left their homes. After taking a moment to recover over coffee, the two continued their daily rounds.

Chris Green, the officer responsible for the event, praised Steve’s great courage, stating, “He is a hero. To save the lives of two people and a dog is amazing. We will be putting him forward for official recognition.”

The fire is believed to have started when an e-bike battery burst while on charge at the bottom of the stairs, cutting off the residents’ escape route.

What a great year we had had! A new baby daughter, a job promotion (晋升) for my husband, and a new home were among what we had received. My husband and I were grateful for them. We wanted no gifts for Christmas, because our cups were running over. So my husband and I decided to teach them to learn to share.

After dinner, we talked about doing something special for someone else at Christmas. Our oldest son said, “Why don’t we find a family who needs help and give them presents?”

All of us were excited about the idea. We didn’t know exactly how we find our “Christmas family”, but we did know we wanted to help. The next morning I made calls to friends who might know of someone in need. That evening at dinner I described the family I had found. The father was a repairman but lost his job two weeks before. He hadn’t landed a new job yet. There were three children in the family. The wife gave birth to a new baby, who was the same age as ours. But unluckily, the baby had been taking many tests as doctors tried to determine why she wasn’t developing properly. They had spent almost all their savings on the treatment, with little for daily necessities. They were in great trouble. Of course, they had little hope of having gifts for Christmas.

“Can we give them some of our clothes?” asked our daughter. We all agreed that her idea was good, and so the children ran to their bedrooms and began sorting out the clothes they had outgrown. But my husband and I knew that clothes were not enough.

On Christmas Eve, my family went for holiday shopping.

Then we were off to deliver Christmas gifts to our special family.