Yours,

Li Hua

7 . Jack Ma is known as one of the richest Chinese. _________, he was not born rich. He grew up at a time when China was _________ from the world, and like every family in China, his family didn’t have _________ when they were young.

As a child, Ma had _________ just like any other kid. He liked collecting crickets(蟋蟀)and making them fight. Without money, the only way Ma could change his life was through _________. After high school, he _________ to go to college, but failed the entrance exam _________. After a great deal of studying, he finally passed on the third try, going on to _________ Hangzhou Teachers College. He _________ from college in 1988 and started applying to as many jobs as he could.

He received more than a dozen __________, including from KFC. But he didn’t give up trying and finally was employed as an English __________. Ma loved his students, though he only made 80 yuan a month at a local university.

Ma had no experience with the __________, which was not very accessible to most Chinese, but he was __________ the Internet when he used it for the first time in 1995. Ma’s first online search was “beer”, but he was __________ to find that no Chinese beers turned up in the results. It was then __________ he decided to found an internet company for China. That was the first step to his future.

8 . The competition Michael Stone, a blind man, faced today was fierce. The pole was set at 17 feet. That was three inches higher than his personal best. Michael faced the most_______day of his pole- vaulting(撑竿跳) career.

As long as Michael could_______he had always dreamed of flying. Michaels mother read him many stories about flying when he was_______. Her excitement and enthusiasm made Michael’s dreams full of_______and beauty.

From the age of 14, Michael_______every day with weights and running. The program was carefully_______by Michael’s father.

All of Michael's vaults today seemed to be the_______for his hard work. As soon as he_______on the mat full of air，the crowd stood on their feet in surprise. Without hesitation，Michael_______began preparing for his next attempt. He seemed________of the fact that he had just surpassed (超出) his personal best by three inches and that he was one of the final two________in the pole vaulting event.

When Michael cleared the________at 17 feet 4 inches, again he showed no emotion. What he needed were constant________and strong determination. As he________his turn and heard the other let out a sigh, Michael knew the other vaulter had________his final jump. He knew it was time for his________jump. He knew it was time to________when he heard the singing of some distant bird.

As he began________, something felt wonderfully different, yet________. Michael Stone was now flying, just like in his childhood________.He set a new world record National Junior Olympics record.

A few months ago I left my hometown for Canada to study. I felt nervous because I was going to    1    new place with new people. What worried me at first    2    (be)that I couldn't speak English    3    (fluent), and I also couldn’t understand    4    (they) customs. Everything was different     5     my own country. I had to deal with everything alone

It was a sad moment    6    I had to say goodbye to my family and friends at the airport. Suddenly, I felt unwilling     7     (leave)my hometown because l grew up there and had wonderful     8    (memory) of the familiar place. However，I know studying abroad was a    9    (decide)that I made myself I had to accept the challenge.

By now I have got used to the new life here already, though I’m looking forward to     10    (spend) the coming vacation with my old friends back home.

10 . My First Marathon（马拉松）

A month before my first marathon, one of my ankles was injured and this meant not running for two weeks, leaving me only two weeks to train. Yet, I was determined to go ahead.

I remember back to my 7th year in school. In my first P.E. class, the teacher required us to run laps and then hit a softball. I didn’t do either well. He later informed me that I was ＂not athletic＂.

The idea that I was ＂not athletic＂ stuck with me for years. When I started running in my 30s, I realized running was a battle against myself, not about competition or whether or not I was athletic. It was all about the battle against my own body and mind. A test of wills!

The night before my marathon, I dreamt that I couldn’t even find the finish line. I woke up sweating and nervous, but ready to prove something to myself.

Shortly after crossing the start line, my shoe laces(鞋带) became untied. So I stopped to readjust. Not the start I wanted!

At mile 3, I passed a sign: ＂GO FOR IT, RUNNERS!＂

By mile 17, I became out of breath and the once injured ankle hurt badly. Despite the pain, I stayed the course walking a bit and then running again.

By mile 21, I was starving!

As I approached mile 23, I could see my wife waving a sign. She is my biggest fan. She never minded the alarm clock sounding at 4 a.m. or questioned my expenses on running.

I was one of the final runners to finish. But I finished! And I got a medal. In fact, I got the same medal as the one that the guy who came in first place had.

Determined to be myself, move forward, free of shame and worldly labels(世俗标签), I can now call myself a ＂marathon winner＂.