1 . Once upon a time, there was a shepherd (牧羊人). He _________ dozens of sheep. He tended (照料) the sheep in the daytime, and kept them in the sheepfold (羊圈) at night.

One morning, the shepherd found that one sheep was _________. His neighbor helped him check the sheepfold. “There is a hole in the wall of your sheepfold. A wolf went in through the hole, and took the sheep away at night. You should _________ the sheepfold quickly and fill up the hole,” the neighbor said.

However, the shepherd was _________ to the neighbor’s advice. He replied, “I have already lost the sheep. It is no _________ repairing the sheepfold.” The next morning, the shepherd found that another sheep was gone.

The neighbor said, “If you had _________ my advice, you wouldn’t have made the same mistake. Aren’t you going to take action right now?”

The shepherd filled up the hole _________ at once. After that, _________ of his sheep was taken away by the wolf.

If there is a mistake, we should _________ it as soon as possible. In this way, we can avoid more __________.

2 . Many years ago, a teenage boy named David arrived at a children’s institution in England. He was referred to me, a (an)_________, by his head teacher. David had lost both his parents and was understandably sad and_________. I met with him twice, but he _________ silent.

I recognized the limitations of psychology in _________ his deep pain but found that empathetic listening and shared activities like chess provided a safe space for David to _________. So we played every Wednesday afternoon in _________ and without any eye contact. I _________ to ensure he won once or twice, providing a sense of _________ and success.

Gradually, David began to _________. He arrived early and __________ participated in setting up the chessboard. It seemed as if he enjoyed my __________. I thought David needed someone to share his pain with, and he sensed my respect for his __________. Months later, I watched David __________ over the chessboard. Suddenly, he looked up at me and said, “Your __________.” After that, he started talking and making friends. He wrote to me about his bike rides and plans to get into university. Later, he really started living his own life.

David showed me how one can reach out to another person without __________, just with a hug, a shoulder to cry on, or an ear that listens.

4 . Henry remembers the day well. It was a day that would change his life. He was sitting at the kitchen table, watching his ten-year-old granddaughter, Sophia, do her homework. She had asked him a question about history and was now _________ him with big brown eyes, waiting for an answer. Henry looked at the kettle and then out of the kitchen window. Henry can still hear himself say, “I’m sorry, my dear. I don’t know.”

Henry had spent forty years working as a librarian in a school. He was now _________ and spent his days looking after Sophia. However, he felt that he should be doing more with his life, though he was in his seventies with grey hair and _________ wrinkles in his forehead (额头). As Sophia continued her homework, he read an article in the newspaper about the health _________ of older people going back to university. The article said that it kept the brain _________ and helped prevent loneliness. He made the _________ there and then. The next morning, he would go to Birkbeck, University of London and take a _________ in history.

After four years, Henry got his degree in history. “_________ the course has given me such a sense of achievement,” he says. “It has also made me _________ about doing all the other things that I’ve never had the courage to try before. It’s __________ too old to learn.”

5 . At 13, I resolved to be an amazing teacher, overwhelmingly driven by a _________ desire for superpowers, which some of my gorgeous teachers had.

In fifth grade, Ms. Charlotte, an English teacher could magically _________ us to different worlds every day. She encouraged us to find something beautiful on our way home or to school. Perhaps, it could be a _________ of freshly baked bread drifting from someone’s house, or the sound of breezes slightly rustling leaves. She _________ curiosity into us. She guided us to bravely _________ joy, peace, love, hope, sharing, modesty, loyalty, duty, kindness, friendship, sympathy, generosity, creativity, truth and faith.

She told us stories from books we would otherwise never _________. Currently, I still remember highlights of the classic she shared, The Old Man and the Sea. After Santiago, an old fisherman came in empty-handed for eighty-four days, we couldn’t imagine what difficulty he had _________ a huge marlin. At the sight of the beautiful huge _________, he was unable to _________ his excitement, with a bright smile __________ to his face. Yet, a __________ battle lay ahead. He felt faint but held on the great fish with all his strength. “I moved him,” he thought, “Pull, hands. Hold up, legs. Last for me, head. You never went.” For two days and nights __________, the huge fish dragged the boat drifting. The elderly was in danger. Once, twice more, once more he tried and he felt himself extremely __________ when he turned the fish. Finally, the fish was stabbed (刺，戳) and tied to the boat.

What a man! So Ms. Charlotte inspired us to fight for our own pride and defend it, __________ the fact that life will set obstacles on the way to future with challenge, hardship, perhaps loneliness too, which will take all of our courage. It is true that a man can be destroyed physically but cannot be defeated spiritually.

Now, dear teachers, we love you and thank you from the bottom of our heart! I will keep the __________ song you’ve taught us in mind.

When your dreams come alive you’re unstoppable

Take a shot, chase the sun, find the beautiful

We will glow in the dark turning dust to gold

7 . It was 4:30 pm. As I was packing up, I noticed my colleague had left his laptop bag in the office. So I decided to bring it to him. It took me about 15 minutes to get to his house, where I _____ the bag and got right back on the road.

Suddenly a snowstorm came and within minutes I was in a whiteout. I stopped because I was afraid of driving into a farmer’s field, or worse. I kept the car _____ to stay warm and called 911.They told me to sit tight and wait things out for the night.

Those seconds after the call were _____. Breathe, I told myself. Panicking won’t help.

I texted my colleague, joking about my good deed ending in _____. He suggested I share a satellite view of my _____ on my social media. And I did so, praying that anyone who knew the residents of the nearby farms could get me rescued.

Waiting in the car, I doubted whether _____ would be able to come. Soon enough, though, I got a message from someone who was going to put me in touch with them.

At 8 pm, I saw a tall figure in a yellow raincoat striding toward me in the dark, carrying a flashlight. I’d never been more _____ to see someone in my life. It was André Bouvier, who’d walked about 550 yards to come get me, fighting the wind and snow each step of the way.

He turned around and started to trudge through the snow, sure of the direction. I drove behind him, feeling my heart begin to beat more _____. When we reached his house, I burst into tears, all my fears turning into relief and _____.

The experience has been a game changer for me. I now ______ challenges with a sense of calm I’d not known before. But best of all, it brought André into my life.

8 . 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.

10 . A few days before my high school ended, I was sitting in my English class. My classmates were talking about who would be the first person to shed tears at _________ . Then, everyone looked at me, and I began to ________ right then and there. I am not an emotional person,but the _________ of leaving this place hit me hard. I never knew how much this building and the people in it ________ to me, until my last days.

High school isn’t for everyone, but there is something for everyone in high school. You just have to ______ out what your“thing”is. I ______ found my “thing” in high school and that was Student Government. For once I had a(n) ________ . I served as the representative of my class, and it gave me a ________ to convey not only my own, but my classmates'_______ to teachers and our school.

But there were a lot of times when I felt ______ . I sat in the classroom looking at the clock, ______ for the end of school day. I ______ the days until summer like it was my job. But now I ______ I could take back all of those moments.

My biggest ________ to anyone still in high school is to make your school a place where you want to go. High school goes by very quickly. You only get one chance to be a high schooler, so take ________ of it.