1 . Last summer, I was suffering from too much stress. I’d just graduated from a(n) __________doctoral program and was exhausted from the years of research, study and writing. I took a __________to celebrate, but the academic intensity had become a __________. Sitting on the beautiful lawn of the hotel on Mackinac Island, I just felt like I should be studying or working __________.

Generally seeing natural beauty would have __________ me, but I couldn’t slow down. I couldn’t help looking at my cellphone __________in case I missed something important. “Enough,” I murmured. I needed to unwind, but why couldn’t I?

A dragonfly (蜻蜓) buzzed around me.With each __________, this creature’s wings __________ color — blue one moment, green the next. Dragonflies usually fascinated me with their quick movements that __________ me of acrobats (杂技演员) in the wind, but I wasn’t in the __________ that day. What I needed then was stillness, not movement. Suddenly, the dragonfly came to rest on a blade (叶片) of grass in front of me.

I watched that dragonfly carefully for many minutes. So did the dragonfly. “It’s not a matter of relaxing,” it seemed to say. “Life is so short.Be here in the __________ and let the mood take care of itself.” Suddenly, it __________ me that this beautiful creature, which only had months to live, was “instructing” me about the __________ of life and I felt much relaxed. The dragonfly seemed __________ that its message had been delivered. It sprang from the grass and flew away. I didn’t see it again. But I would never forget what it taught me: Be here and _____________ yourself.

4 . I live in a town, about half a mile from the banks of a river, It had been raining buckets that week and there were _________ warnings for nearby areas, but not where I was.

As a precaution (预防), I’d _________ sandbags outside my garden door just in case water managed to flow through. As I fell asleep, I was _________ by the sound of rushing water.When I swung my legs off the bed, I was _________ to feel cold water already up to my kneesand rising fast. Trembling, I _______ my phone on the table and _________ the flashlight. Water was coming from the garden door. The river must have _________ burst its banks and broke the sandbags. And now I had to get out--fast!

With the water up to my waist, in bare feet I started to paddle (蹚水) to my only _________ the door leading to outdoors. Finally, I made it to that door and _________ to pull it open, but the water’s __________ was high. Anyhow, with great efforts, I made a __________ of about 30 centimeters, enough for me to get through. Rushing down outside, I __________ that if I hadn’t woken up in time, I would have drowned. Many houses around us were __________ , including a home for the disabled.

I learned to be grateful through the experience and determined to live each day to its __________ .I will remember a famous saying: “Don’t remember the day when you lost everything. Remember the day you__________ .”

Once upon a time, in a small town lived a man     1     couldn’t see. Yet, he carried a Lighted lamp wherever he went at night. One night, he came     2     a group of travelers. One of them asked, “Hey, man! You can’t see anything! Why do you carry a lighted lamp then?” The blind man replied, “Yes, unfortunately, I am blind but the lighted lamp I am carrying is for people like you who can see. You may not see me coming and end up     3     (knock) into me. That is why I carry a lighted lamp.”

6 . It was June 15, and in two days I would be turning thirty. I was insecure about entering a new decade of my life and feared that my best years were now behind me.

My daily routine included going to the gym for a workout before going to work. Every morning I would see my friend Nicholas at the gym. He was seventy-nine years old and in terrific shape. As I greeted Nicholas on this particular day, he noticed I wasn’t full of my usual vitality and asked if there was anything wrong. I told him I was feeling anxious about turning thirty. I wondered how I would look back on my life once I reached Nicholas’ sage, so I asked him, “What was the best time of your life?”

Without hesitation, Nicholas replied, “Well, Joe, this is my philosophical answer to your philosophical question.”

“When I was a child in Austria and everything was taken care of for me and I was nurtured by my parents, that was the best time of my life.”

“When I was going to school and learning the things I know today, that was the best time of my life.”

“When I got my first job and had responsibilities and got paid for my efforts, that was the best time of my life.”

“When I met my wife and fell in love, that was the best time of my life.”

“The Second World War came, and my wife and I had to flee Austria to save our lives. When we were together and safe on a ship bound for North America, that was the best time of my life.”

“When we came to Canada and started a family, that was the best time of my life.”

“When I was a young father, watching my children grow up, that was the best time of my life.”

“And now, Joe, I am seventy-nine years old. I have my health, I feel good and I am in love with my wife just as I was when we first met. This is the best time of my life.”

7 . My name is Maggie and I am a big red maple tree in the center of Central Park in New York. Every part of me is _________ shaped. I love seeing all the people _________, stare at me, and say “That tree is beautiful!” Those _________ make me feel special.

One day, I see a big storm _________ my way. I can hear all the frightening sounds nearing, but the most frightening one is the sound of almost half of my bark being torn off. I feel _________. What will people think when they walk up to a worn-down tree in the middle of Central Park? Will they cut me down? This _________ makes my branches ache.

Hours later, when the storm _________, a nice opossum family comes to me and asks _________ they can spend the night in one of my holes. The baby opossum is so cute that I can’t _________. Soon, round two of the storm comes. It __________ another part of my bark, but it doesn’t __________ me as much because I have a distraction: the opossum family. Other animals see my __________ act and come to me, too. Even though I feel great for __________ all the animals, I still haven’t completely forgotten about what people might think about my __________. Beyond all expectations, people love me even more for protecting all those animals from the terrible storm. This serves as a __________ to me that “beautiful” doesn’t always refer to looks.

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.

10 . The bond between mother and daughter is irreplaceable. One of the most famous women scientists of the 20th century, Marie Curie, worked _______ her daughter Irene in the field of radioactivity（放射性）, each of them _______ earning their own Nobel Prize. Today, there are more _______ mother-and-daughter pairs showing what happens when _______ works together.

In April 2020, Dr. Cynthia Kudji and her daughter Dr. Jasmine Kudji have become the first mother and daughter to _______ from the medical school at the same time and be placed in the same hospital. Cynthia Kudji put her dream of becoming a _______ on hold when she became pregnant at 23. She worked as a nurse for almost a decade _________ making the decision to attend the medical school at the University of Medicine and Health Sciences. _______, her daughter Jasmine attended Louisiana State University School of medicine.

At first, it was _______ for them to live and study so far apart from one another. “I thought initially it was hard because my mom and I had always been really ________ so I had to get used to the ________,” Dr. Jasmine Kudji explains to Afro Tech. Although the experience was difficult, it also had ________ results. “Sometimes people struggle to find someone who ________ their struggles, so for that person to be my mom was extremely helpful,” she adds.

After years apart, both Cynthia and her daughter earned their M. D. degree. Then on “Match Day” when recent med school graduates ________ the results of their residency (高级专科住院生实习期) applications, Cynthia and Jasmine learned that they were ________ in the same hospital.

This pair of mother and daughter proves that family can do anything together.