1 . As a writer, I miss rejection slips. Not that I enjoyed receiving those pre-printed slips of paper, but at least when I got one, I was pretty sure that a flesh-and-blood _______ had put it in the envelope. And there was always the chance I might see a handwritten sentence on the bottom, _______ the piece almost made it. When an editor at McCall’s wrote, “I’m afraid I have to say no on this _______ piece, but try me again on another, would you?” It was almost as _______ to me as if she had said, “We’ll _______ it and here is an advance for you”.

Nowadays, rejection slips seem to have disappeared with the use of online submissions. Most editors don’t feel it a must to _______ they have received, read, or considered your work because they receive so many _______ each day.

For me, there are three _______ of rejection slip pain. The first is _______ brought on by finding a flat “no” on a ________ piece of paper, then followed by anger (how could they ________ a piece that is obviously so much ________ than most of the stuff they print), and, finally, rebirth: I will live to ________ a new piece another day.

Learning to ________ rejection seems like part of growing up as a writer. Despite the many letters of acceptance I have received, my folder of “Noteworthy Rejection Slips” is far ________ than that of “Noteworthy Acceptances”, which indicates to me the fact: I still have some growing up to do.

3 . The doorbell rang one mid-December evening. I frequently had unexpected visitors in those early days after my husband’s ________. But when my 6-year-old son opened the door, nobody was there. ________, on the doormat was a box, tied with a silver ________ and a note that said “On the First Day of Christmas...” A mystery.

Sam had died that fall, ________ me the single parent of our two boys, 6 and 8. My sons and I had already ________ to deal with Halloween, and Thanksgiving without Daddy. Still, I was afraid of Christmas. How could December have ________ without my husband?

The next night, the doorbell rang again. Another ________ came, decorated with the same silver ribbon (带子) and ________ the same card reading “On the Second Day of Christmas...”

For the next couple of nights, my boys waited near the front door to see who was leaving the gifts, but the bearer would always choose the moment they left to ________.

I didn’t know who the secret Santa was. But there was one thing I did know. In those dark days of ________, somebody was shining a light our way with a simple but ________ message: “You are loved.” It was such a strange feeling, to be left in darkness on the one hand and drawn so firmly toward ________ on the other. I believe hope will make a(n) ________.

After 11 days of offerings, we weren’t sure what to ________ when we approached home on that 12th night. I trusted there would be ________.

4 . The true test of an effective team is one where the members operate as a self-managing team. The _________ allows the members on the team to establish teamwork, adjust its work processes, and _________ a communication channel to the rest of the organization.

I followed up with one of our customers to see first-hand what a very successful team looked and felt like. Here is their story on what they do to _________ as a team.

This team _________ eighteen members that worked in a manufacturing facility in Texas. Their working _________ were not the best. During the night when I _________ them, they were performing a hot and dirty job and _________ that, they worked from 12 pm to 8 am. Their _________ was not the best and the products they were making had a terrible _________, which most people can’t stand.

The reason why I know this information is that when you have the opportunity to see how a team really works, you want to __________ their secrets. So I was looking for answers.

As I stayed and communicated with the team members to find out how they worked together, they described to me their requirements for team development.

They said, “Each member has a good time, and we are in tune (协调)with each other, and we have a great __________ of team spirit, believe in our __________, and run the operation without a formal leader in the middle of things. We have a ‘shared’ philosophy.”

Their hard work and effort paid off as they became known as “the stars” of the company. They were described as “__________” compared to other 156 teams. They were motivated by the positive attention, and the __________ that went along with being the best.

It is clear that this team developed to compete for the goal instead of against each other. This team has stayed __________ and self-directed because of being allowed to become more than their “individual selves”.

I had a very special teacher in high school. Her husband unexpectedly died of a heart disease. About a week after his     1     (die), she shared some of her thoughts with us.

When the class was nearly over, she     2     (move) some things aside on her desk and sat down there. With a gentle look of reflection, she said, “Before class is over, I’d like to share something with you. Each of us     3     (put) here on earth to learn, share, love and enjoy. None of us knows when this fantastic experience will end. It can be taken away     4     any moment.”

Her eyes began to water,     5     she went on: “So I’d like you all     6     (make) a promise. From now on, on your way to school, or home, find something beautiful to enjoy. It doesn’t have to be something     7     you see. It could be a scent (气味), or it could be the sound of the soft wind slightly touching the     8     (leaf) in the trees ...”

The class was completely quiet.     9     (pick) up our books, we went out of the room one by one silently. That afternoon, I noticed     10     (many) things on my way home from school than I had in a whole term.

8 . My 10-year-old son attended an amazing half-day basketball camp with more than 60 kids. I watched how much _______ my son was having throughout the day.

Before the camp ended, there was a ________ competition. Only a few kids were picked to ________, and my son was not one of them. The competition ________ received prizes and recognition. And a few kids were titled as “all-stars” for effort,________and participation (参与).   Again, my son was not________.

When the camp ended, I could see how ________ he was. He certainly loves the sport, and his jumping skill is ________ . He would have enjoyed the recognition. But sometimes it doesn’t ________ that way.

In my mind, the day was ________. At the camp, he played with kids,________ them fiercely (激烈地) and took shots easily against them. But it was hard for him to see the result s as a small part of his day. The last thing I wanted was for these results to________ the experience.

It’s my job to help my kids think more ________. I did the math and figured out the shooting competition and awards were about 6% of the total camp. The rest of the camp, the parts that he________, were 94%. If my son felt most of the day was great—that’s a win. We can ________ the parts that disappoint us, as long as we are willing to focus on the bigger picture.