Ling’s eyes shone brightly as she picked up the mail and spotted a letter with familiar handwriting-her grandmother’s. She eagerly tore open the envelope and unfolded the letter, “Dear Ling,” the letter began, “I miss you a lot after you left. How’s the school life? I hope you are finding joy in your studies and making new friends. Remember, my dear, no matter how challenging things may seem, you can always find a way to deal with them well. Take care and know that you are much loved.” As Ling read through the letter, each word seemed to remind her of the golden days spent in her grandmother’s comfortable village home, surrounded by green fields and rolling hills. Now, living in a big city with her parents, she entered a new school and left her former teachers and classmates. Everything in the city was so unfamiliar that she felt it was difficult for her to adapt to the new life.
The next morning, as Ling struggled through another day of feeling disconnected and alone, she made a decision. She approached her parents with a heartfelt request. “I miss Grandma and our village,” she said. “Could we visit her this weekend?” Her parents, understanding her feelings, agreed and planned a surprise visit for the upcoming weekend. Finally, the happy weekend came. As Ling boarded the bus back to her beloved village, the familiar landscape rolling past her window relaxed her anxious heart.
Ling’s grandmother was initially surprised to see Ling appear at her doorstep suddenly, and embraced her with open arms, quickly putting on a pot of Ling’s favorite tea as they settled into the familiar rhythm of heartfelt conversation. As they drank the tea, the pleasant smell of the tea brought back a flood of precious memories, and Ling shared the details of her new life in the city. Her grandmother listened attentively, her eyes filled with warmth and understanding. Happy time is always so short. Ling and her parents embarked on the journey back. Before going back. Ling saw her father and grandmother whisper something.
注意：1．续写词数应为150个左右;
2．请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
On the way back, Ling’s father had a conversation with her.
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This weekend marked a new beginning for Ling.
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Having nice things can make you feel good, but at the end of the day, what truly matters is that we have people we love and care about in our lives.
Still, when someone is asked to sacrifice something in order to be with their loved ones in good health, it can be hard. That was the situation one man was put in two decades ago when his wife was diagnosed with cancer.
Years ago, Wesley Ryan learned his wife, Laura, had been diagnosed with cancer. The medical bills were piling up, and he knew in order to continue making ends meet, he would have to sell his beloved car.
Wesley loved that car and even nicknamed it Christine, based on the 1958 Plymouth Fury from Stephen King’s book, Christine. However, Laura meant more to him, and Wesley wanted her to continue getting the care she needed. So he handed over the keys.
“I know how much it broke him in half seeing that car drive away from him,” his son, Jake, wrote online. “It’s a day that I’ll never forget.” Jake and his sister, Jeni, knew they wanted to help their dad reunite with the car he’d loved so much. And over the years, the siblings had saved up enough money. So they started an online search and surprisingly, they were able to track down the old car online.
Actually, the man who bought the car found out about Wesley’s story and the meaning behind the beloved vehicle by accident. Moved by the sacrifice one man had made for his family and how his family stepped up to repay him in the sweetest way possible, he soon got in touch with Jake, who purchased it as soon as possible. And after careful consideration, Jake and Jeni decided to surprise their dad in a nearby parking lot. Moreover, Laura, cancer-free for 13 years at the time, joined them for the big reveal.
注意：1.续写词数应为150个左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Finally, the day came when Wesley reunited with his beloved car.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Wesley’s hands trembled as he reached out to confirm that it was real.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________When I was about four years old, I started washing my face on my own. However, I always ignored the area behind my ears on purpose though my mom would often remind me.
One summer, in July of that year, my mom drove me to my grandparents’ house for our annual summer holiday visit. When we arrived, I was told that Grandma had gone on a trip with her friends and wouldn’t be back for another two weeks. Feeling a bit down, I went to the yard to play while my mom and grandpa caught up on some things. Although I couldn’t hear their conversation clearly, I had a strong feeling they were talking about me based on their gestures and expressions. Later, my mom returned home, and she would come back to pick me up two months later.
After dinner that night, Grandpa asked me to take a bath before going to bed. Since I loved taking baths, I happily agreed. With the bathtub (浴缸) filled with water, Grandpa reminded me, “Just make sure you clean the area behind your ears really well. You wouldn’t want potatoes to start growing there, would you?”
“Potatoes?” I stopped in my tracks and turned back to look at him. “Yes, potatoes. If you don’t clean the dirt behind your ears, potatoes might actually sprout (发芽) and grow there,” he explained, causing my eyes to widen in surprise. “But I don’t have any potatoes behind my ears, Grandpa,” I said as I ran my fingers along the back of my ears. He took a quick glance and replied, “Oh, I see a couple of sprouts: starting right there!” He urged me to get into the bathtub immediately and scrub (擦洗) them away thoroughly.
I nodded, still in disbelief. This was the first time I had ever heard such a thing. Why hadn’t my parents warned me about this before? I wondered, but couldn’t find an answer. Nonetheless, I felt shocked by Grandpa’s warning.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
I hurried to jump into the bathtub, carefully scrubbing behind my ears.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________“What are you looking at behind your ears?” Grandma asked me curiously.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________My 10-year-old son and two friends attended a wonderful basketball camp on 6 August 2023. The camp was over two hours long, with more than 60 kids in attendance. I watched how much fun my son was having throughout the day.
A few minutes before the session (一场) ended, there was a shooting contest. Only a few kids were chosen to compete, and my son was not one of them. The contest winners received prizes and recognition, and some children were also selected as “All Star” due to their excellent performance. Again, my son was not selected.
My son was struggling to deal with his disappointment. Of course, as his mother, I would have loved to see him win an award. He absolutely loves the sport, and he is impressive at rebounding (篮板球). He would have enjoyed the honors. It would have also been fun to see either of his friends selected. But sometimes it doesn’t work out that way.
When the camp ended and we walked out, I could see how disappointed he was. I love my kid’s confidence and his competitiveness, but it can also lead to dealing with disappointment and frustration.
At the camp, he played a basketball game with kids he had never met, guarded them fiercely and took shots easily against them. As his mom, I was thrilled he spent the day without his iPad. All in all, the day felt wonderful. The last thing that I wanted was for these awards to ruin the experience.
I could see how he was feeling about the day. I decided to simplify it for him. I did the math and figured out the shooting contest and awards were about 6% of the total camp. The rest of the camp, the parts that he enjoyed, were 94% of the day. Even though the kid loves math, it was hard for him to see the contests and awards as a small part of his day.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Paragraph 1:
At night, I went to chat with him.
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Indeed, we should learn how to be more positive.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________In 1940, I worked in the checkroom of the railway station. I saw everybody that came up the stairs.
Harry was a young man who came to the station and waited at the head of the stairs for the passengers from the 9:05 train.
I remembered seeing Harry that first evening. He wasn’t much more than a thin, anxious kid then. He was all dressed up and I knew he was meeting his sister, who he hadn’t seen for many years.
Well, the passengers came up and I had to get busy. I didn’t look toward the stairs again until nearly time for the 9:18 and I was very surprised to see that the Harry was still there. His sister didn’t come on the 9:18 either, nor on the 9:40, and when the passengers from the 10:02 had all arrived and left, Harry was looking pretty upset. Pretty soon he came close to my window so I called out and asked him what his sister looked like.
“She’s small and dark. She is nineteen years old and very neat in the way she walk,” he said. “She has a face that has lots of spirit. I mean she can get mad but she never stays mad for long, and her eyebrows come to a little point in the middle. She’s got a brown fur, but maybe she isn’t wearing it.”
“I couldn’t remember seeing anybody like that,” I told him.
He showed me the telegram he’d received: ARRIVE THURSDAY. MEET ME AT THE STATION. MAY. It was from Omaha, Nebraska. “Well,” I finally said, “why don’t you phone to your home? She’s probably called there if she got in ahead of you.”
He gave me a sick look. “I’ve only been in the town for two days. We were going to meet and then drive down to the south of the city where I’ve got a job. She doesn’t have my address.”
注意：
1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
When I came on duty the next day, Harry was still there and I asked more about his sister.
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One day, after about two weeks, I thought I could say something encouraging to him.
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My 16-year-old daughter. Lin, had always been a cheerful girl, full of laughter. Her transition (转变) to senior high school was originally met with great enthusiasm (热情). She would come home every day, sharing with us tales of her new experiences, her friends and the fun news of high school life. But as weeks went by, she became quieter and something seemed to be troubling her deeply.
My husband and I realized something was wrong. but we decided to wait until she was ready to open up. One evening, I prepared her favorite jiaozi for supper, hoping it would cheer her up. However, that night, it was different. She seldom touched it, lost in thought. After the meal. we gathered in the living room. a space where our family had shared many heart-to-hearts. The air was heavy with unspoken words. My husband and I exchanged a quick look before I decided to break the silence. I gently brought up the subject, “Lin, you seemed worried lately. Is everything okay at school? You know you can always open up to me and your dad.”
Lin looked up. her eyes reflecting a mix of frustration (沮丧) and hopelessness. “Mom, I’m really struggling with physics. No matter how hard I try. I couldn’t understand it a little bit. I feel so lost.” she admitted, with her voice trembling slightly. My heart sank as I saw the sadness in her eyes. Physics had always been a challenging subject for her, but this time it seemed to go beyond the usual difficulties. Then I reached out, holding her hand and trying to offer comfort and said, “High school is a big step. and it’s okay to take some time to adjust (调整). The most important thing is that you’ve been honest about how you’re feeling.” My husband cut in, “We can work through this together. step by step. Remember, we are always here for you.” Then we offered her some practical advice.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Over the next few weeks. Lin followed the ways we discussed.
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Finally came Lin’s final-term physics exam.
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I had a younger sister, Michelle. But as a big brother, I rarely cared for her.
On a Sunday in March when I was 8, Easter (复活节) came. As usual, my sister and I would search for the hidden baskets full of candy and other things prepared for us. On that Easter morning, I got up early.
“Michelle!” I whispered to my sister, who was still sleeping in her bedroom. “Wake up. It’s Easter. We have to go and find our baskets.” She rolled over in bed and finally got up. “Mom and Dad are still sleeping,” I warned her as we walked out into the kitchen. “If we’re quiet, we can find our baskets without waking them up.”
It didn’t take long for me to find my basket, which had candy, toys, etc. This basket was obviously mine because it contained the latest issue of my favorite magazine. My sister continued searching in every room while I dropped my basket off at the kitchen table and started separating candy into different categories. 20 minutes later, my sister told me, “I can’t find it. I looked all over. Can you help me?” I decided to help her not because I felt sorry for her, but because I thought it was fun to find the missing basket.
We started searching through the cabinets (贮藏柜). Later, our parents were awake. Dad headed straight for the bathroom, while Mom walked out to make coffee. “Mom, I’ve found my basket,” I told her. She smiled and asked, “Where’s yours, Michelle?”
That’s when my six-year-old sister started to cry. “Let’s keep looking,” Mom said, taking hold of my sister’s hand. After searching the living room they went to the closet (贮藏室). There Michelle finally found her basket. But when she picked up her basket, we found everything in it had all been bitten and damaged by mice.
注意：
1．续写词数应为150左右；
2．请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Michelle dropped her basket on the floor, looking upset.
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Then I walked slowly into my sister’s room with my basket.
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At the end of the fifth grade, there was a burst of excitement in the classroom. The school year was almost over, and we would be moving on to a new school for the sixth grade. All the girls made autograph books (签名册) and collected signatures.
As I signed my classmates’ books, I noticed their moms had written in them, too. Such sweet thoughts were expressed, “I couldn’t be prouder of you. Can’t wait to see how you like junior high!” “You’re graduating. Congratulations! We love you and know you have a bright future!” ...
I asked my mother to sign mine, too. She was busy, but she said she’d sign it. Several days later, when I asked about it, she told me she just forgot. Anyway, she handed it back to me later. I was anxious to see what encouraging words she had written. And this is what I found on the page:
When a thing is first begun,
Never leave it till it’s done.
Be the labor great or small,
Do it well or not at all.
Mom
My heart sank. That was it? I was disappointed that there were no words of pride or encouragement. It was just a stupid poem-another indication to me that if I couldn’t be perfect, I wasn’t good enough.
I held back my tears, not expressing my disappointment.
That page in that handmade book bothered me for years,
I battled perfectionism and low self-respect and never felt good enough for most of my life. Many times, I gave up on things after I barely got started. All I could hear was "You’re not good enough."
When my mother was in her eighties and in a nursing home, I gave her a book to fill out so we could know more about her. It had hints (暗示) at the top of each page and then blank space to respond. I wanted her to write down her memories and a lifetime of experiences, so I. along with her grandchildren, would have some precious sections of her life.
注意：1.续写词数应为150个左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
In the beginning, she was very excited.
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One day I went to the nursing home to see her, only to find her sleeping, with the book lying beside her.
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Like the Christmas before, we didn’t send Christmas cards; we called my family in Canada. Ginny and I talked to my mom. We spoke to my uncles and aunts. I hadn’t seen any of them in seven years and Ginny hadn’t met them yet, but she hoped to one day.
Those calls were completed, but I couldn’t relax. I still had one more call to make, and I was afraid. I paced up and down inside the room. I wasted time at my computer. I needed to call but I couldn’t.
Five years ago, I received an e-mail from my brother. At that time, I had been out of work for several months. My life was very stressful. My brother’s e-mail was nothing terrible but it made me angry.
I wrote back. As I typed, my anger grew. Months of frustration (沮丧) flowed into my unkind response. I said things that were not nice, but I sent the e-mail without hesitation. More thoughts occurred to me. I wrote a second e-mail.
I screamed abuse at my brother in the emails. I didn’t care if I ever heard from him again.
The next day I received another e-mail from him. I didn’t read it. I just deleted it, and then I blocked his e-mail address.
For five years, he tried to get through to me but I ignored him. I had lived with this terrible guilt. I thought about contacting him, but was ashamed of myself for what I’d said.
It was time to fix it. I picked up the phone and stepped outside. I wanted privacy. Ginny didn’t know I was calling my brother. I took a deep breath, blew out a cloud of my breath into the cold December air, and dialed (拨号) his number. Even after five years, I still knew it by heart. A phone rang 3,700 miles away in Nova Scotia.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150个左右；2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
There was no answer, so I left a voice message.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Then a week after I called, I received an e-mail.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________In a warm home, a young girl named Shireen was busily preparing for a special occasion. As she tiptoed (踮着脚走) to tie a balloon, hunger was evident in her eyes. How did her family do this every year? It was so hard to go without food or drink from lunch until sunset. She found this period especially challenging, because today also turned out to be her grandfather Babajoon’s birthday.
Suddenly the phone rang. Shireen answered to find her friend Amy on the other end, inviting her to the park. “Can I join Amy and Maya? They want to show me their new toys,” Shireen begged her mom. Understanding the struggle of Shireen, her mother gently replied, “Sorry, sweetie. You’ll get tired and thirsty running around in the sun, especially on an empty stomach.”
Disappointed, Shireen felt angry, thinking of her friends enjoying themselves. The burst of hunger and anger made Shireen question the significance of giving up meals of the period. Realizing Shireen’s upset, her mom explained that the most important thing was to know how it felt to be hungry, allowing them to understand those less lucky people’s feeling and experiences and developed compassion (同情).
To cheer Shireen up, her mom suggested baking a birthday cake for her grandfather. Her dad was passing by and heard their conversation. He considered it a bad idea, fearing that it would be too hard for Shireen on an empty stomach. However, Shireen had made her mind. She wanted to surprise Babajoon with a cake, not just any cake, but a beautiful chocolate one.
Shireen and her mom set out the materials: cocoa powder, sugar, flour (面粉),eggs and butter. Her mom selected the cocoa and flour. Shireen measured sugar into the mixer and added the butter. She liked watching the mixer turn the separate materials into a soft yellow paste. She cracked the eggs one by one into the bowl. “Oops! There’s some shell.” Shireen tried getting it out with a spoon.
注意：
1.续写词数应为150左右;
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
The process of making the cake brought moments of joy.
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Finally evening approached.
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