1 . A lady wanted a birthday gift from her husband. For many months she had liked a beautiful ________, and knowing her husband could ________ it, she told him that was all she wanted. On the morning of the ________, her husband told her how ________ he was to have such a good wife, and how much he loved her. He ________ her a beautiful gift package (纸盒). She opened it and ________ a Bible (圣经). ________, she raised her voice and said to her husband, “With all your money, you give me a Bible?” She was so ________ that she left him.

Many years passed and the lady was very ________ in business. She owned two large companies. She ________ her husband was very old, and thought perhaps she should go to ________ him. But before she could, she ________ a letter telling her that he had died, and gave all of his possessions (财产) to her. She needed to come back and ________ things.

When she arrived at his house, sadness ________ her heart. She saw the still new ________, just as she had left it years before. With ________, she opened it and began to turn the pages. A ring ________ from the Bible to the floor and a ________ could be seen. She picked it up and found it was the ring she wanted in those days. And on the card was the date of her birth, and the words “LOVE YOU ALWAYS”.

________ your gift is not packaged the way you want it, it’s because it is better packaged the way it is! Always appreciate little things; they usually lead you to bigger things! The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched for they must be felt with the ________.

2 . I remember when I was young, people often asked me, “What are you going to be when you grow up?”

It _________ being a cowboy or some super hero. Later it was a fireman, a policeman, a lawyer. As I grew older, my dreams for the future _________. When I was in college, I set my heart on becoming a (n) _________ like my father. _________ I studied and prepared for that. I reached the _________ in the end and I was teaching _________ full-time for much of my adult life. However, there is a “thief” that goes around stealing our _________. Sometimes, the thief will come as a parent, or a friend, but the _________ thief is usually _________.

We find ourselves just about reaching the top, and a “small” __________ inside says, “You’ll never make __________”. “You __________ possibly do this.” On and on, the “small” voice predicts our failure. Failure, __________ is one of the most important tools we have, may teach us valuable __________. When we learn these lessons well, we are ready __________ success.

I always tell my children that you are __________ to do anything that your heart desires. Remember the saying, “Nothing is __________ for a willing heart.” There are __________ “overnight” successes, but with determination, they will come. Imagine __________ a life you dream of. Then in your heart, believe it will happen to you. Then work, work, work. You’ll get the picture.

So, be true to your dream, and don’t let anyone __________ it from you — especially yourself.

Life needs passion

7 . One of the biggest complaints in modern society is being over-scheduled. Ask people how they are and the answer usually is “super busy,” “crazy busy”. _________ is just “fine” any more.

When people aren’t super busy at work, they are crazy busy exercising, entertaining or parenting. And if there is ever a still moment for thoughts--for example, while waiting _________ at the supermarket or sitting in traffic—out come the mobile phones. So it’s worth noting a study published last month in Science, which shows how _________ people will go to avoid the examination for our thoughts.

“We had noted that we are so dependent on our mobile phones that people seem to find any _________ they can to keep busy,” said Timothy Wilson, a psychology professor at the University of Virginia. In his experiments involving 700 people, the majority found it _________ to be alone with their thoughts for just 6 to 15 minutes.

It could be because human beings, as problem solvers and meaning makers, when _________, tend to think about what’s wrong in their lives. When we aren’t _________ our Facebook page, the things we haven’t figured out appear in our minds—_________ relationships, professional failures, health concerns, etc. Unless there is a solution, these thoughts just repeat themselves in our heads.

But you can’t solve problems _________ you don’t allow yourself time to think about them. It has actually been __________ by our culture, which values doing more than thinking and believes answers are in your hand __________ in your head. “We all feel that busyness is normal but it’s really harmful,” said Timothy. “There’s a widespread belief that thinking will only slow you down and get __________, but it’s the opposite.” __________ negative feelings only makes them more powerful, he said. Allowing and tolerating the flow of thoughts is part of the solution itself, such as meditation(冥想).

Negative feelings are sometimes hard, but they are part of everyone’s life, especially if you are busy. It is those deep and troubling feelings, and how you __________ them, that make you who you are. While busyness may seem to prevent the flow of sadness, it may also limit your ability to be filled with __________.

What on earth does happiness mean? I can’t give you its exact definition, but I’m sure if you love and help others you’ll get it.

I’ll never forget an old lady. She lives in    1    small house alone. It is said that her husband and her son    2    (die) in a road accident years ago. Her life is bitter, but she often helps others     3    a smile. Whenever it snows, she is always the first    4    (clean) the paths. She looks after several children living nearby. I am one of them. I often remember the stories she told us and her kind smile. Perhaps she is unlucky, but I think she is a happy person. Her life is full of    5       (laugh) and love.

But I’m sad to see some people getting their happiness in bad ways. They talk    6    (noisy) in cinemas and meeting rooms; they destroy trees to enjoy themselves and they laugh at others shortcomings. Perhaps they feel happy at that time,    7     they will never get true happiness because they    8    (lose) their personality already.

Now I know what happiness is.    9    means kindness, love and unselfishness. Above all, I have come to understand that    10    (bring) happiness to others is getting ourselves happiness.

Last summer vacation, I traveled to Sanya in Hainan, China. When my dad told me one of the items on the journey would be one of the highest water slides (水上滑梯) in Asia, I asked my dad repeatedly whether I could stay at home. But my dad said that I would love it and we should go together.

Three days later, I was standing in front of that water slide in Atlantics Waterpark. The slide was located in a building. When I looked up at the tens of thousands of stairs leading to the peak of the building, I thought to myself, “If I fall from that place, I will definitely die.”

As we started climbing the stairs, I saw three words on the wall: Leap of Faith. I had never heard of these words, and at that time they reminded me of Road to Death. Five meters, ten meters ... I looked down and thought, “I am going to die today.” Fifteen meters, twenty meters ... I thought about the many things I hadn’t done and asked my dad whether I had life insurance. Twenty-five meters, thirty meters ... and we were finally at the top, ready to jump into the slide. I looked at the three people next to me and thought, “These are the last three people I will see in my life.”

Suddenly, the teenage boy ahead of me stopped in front of the slide and turned around, “Look down there. If we fall into the shark tank, we will be eaten by those hungry sharks.” We all paused and looked down at the shark tank above the slide tunnel. Just then, a younger boy next to me said, “Excuse me, if you don’t want to go now, I will go first.” Then he walked past the teenage boy and me and jumped into the slide, disappearing in an instant.

My father said to me jokingly, “Look, that boy is not even half of your height. Come on, Selina. You can do it.” The teenager turned and stared at me too, “Now, you go first.”

With a deep breath, I stepped closer to the edge of the slide.

A moment later, my father came down.