Growing up with my cousin since we were     1     (teenager), we became best friends—more like brothers throughout the years. That was until we had a huge disagreement. We didn’t speak what seemed like forever. Admittedly, it never     2     (strike) me then that I was the one to blame. When someone means a lot to you and then keeps you     3     a distance, it leaves this huge void (空白) in your life and possibly all because you couldn’t admit any mistakes.

During that time, I was eager for     4     (update) of my cousin, but I lost track     5     him. After four long years, I heard he was anxious     6     (maintain) contact with me. I felt the same and didn’t postpone     7     (meet) up in person. Sitting     8     comfort, we talked in     9     familiar atmosphere. It was like we had never quarreled.

My experience taught me a valuable lesson about how to fix friendships: Don’t be afraid to reach out first.

A

Friendship clubs provide a platform for people to take part in     1     social activities, such as group outings, shared hobbies, and interactive events. They help to bring together like-minded individuals who are seeking to make new friends.     2    , joining a friendship club is also beneficial for people to     3     through face-to-face interaction.

B

Nature is our home. Humans and other living things on the planet couldn’t survive without the resources that come from nature. We should take care of our “home” before it’s too late. If we keep overusing and destroying nature, it will finally    4     on us. We should try our best to     5     with nature.

6 . As I waited for my university lecture to start, I felt a tap on my shoulder. Looking up, I found a young woman smiling at me, ________ a notebook. I knew immediately who she was. The week before we had ________ emails, and I’d told her I would be sitting in the front ________. I always sat at the front and the reason was that I’m deaf and needed to lip-read the ________. “I’m Rosie,” the young woman said. She was the first person I’d ever met who was my ________ and wore hearing aids. At my school, I was the only person who wore hearing aids. So I was ________ and fascinated to see Rosie wearing them. She tied her hair back, and didn’t try to ________ them like I did.

After the lecture, Rosie and I carried on talking. She always remembered to look at me when we talked. I didn’t have to worry that she’d ________, and I’d miss a joke or remark. There was an instinctive awareness between us about making communication clear and ________. I’d grown up thinking that deafness was some kind of ________, but here was Rosie, who was clever, wise, full of fun and deaf. What was the big deal?

I felt like a window had opened on my own experience as a deaf person. Partly it was the joy of being able to talk ________. We discussed noisy social events, or group conversations, where we felt on the fringes. The ________ that I wasn’t the only deaf student at the university made the experience feel less lonely.

We continued to share notes on being deaf. Learning to advocate for myself as a deaf person in the professional world was ________. But Rosie was more enlightened, and she was a fierce advocate. She held up a ________ to my own experience, but also set an example for me, offering an alternative ________. Our friendship has become an essential part of who I am as well.

7 . We never know when our paths with long-lost friends come together. It can happen anywhere and usually when most ________.

Last month, a friend’s mother ________, and I attended the memorial service. While consoling (安慰) her, I suddenly ________ my two friends with whom I was no longer in contact. They were ________ with one another on the other side. It didn’t take me more than an instant to know the ________ thing to do. So I walked to them and said hello.

I knew it could go either way. They might not be ________ talking. Or maybe one would and not the other. As it turned out, all three of us chatted for over a (n) ________. We shared news about the latest things that were happening in our lives. There was so much to let each other ________ wonderful things, ________ things, losses, lost loves, and even health issues.

We each showed an interest in the ________ of one another, asking questions and ________ full of attention. We were catching up, and most of all, we were _______ again.

Our mutual friend, whose mother died, overheard us stating our intentions to make an effort to rekindle (使恢复) the ________. Despite being in a state of grief, she was ________ to hear our discussion. She was the only one who had kept in contact with all of us lost souls.

I was glad to ________ have the opportunity to mend broken friendships. But I never imagined it would happen at a funeral.

9 . I’m sitting impatiently in our dusty car looking out. My travel buddy, Lucas, having taken in enough of the ________ , has gone to speak with someone from one of the nearby tourist souvenir huts. After ages, he walks towards me, ________some sausages, hot water, a new cowboy hat, and a big grin on his face. “We’re giving a man a ________ ,” he tells me.

The idea seems ________but somehow safe, given that there are two of us and Lucas is a ________   to the country. How exciting to create an opportunity to meet people that you wouldn’t have met ________ .

Now,as I look at Lucas’ new friend, I see a different kettle of fish. Michael is big. I mean really BIG. I watch in the side mirror as Michael ________towards the car. In his right boot is a big knife, pushed far enough in that only the handle and the base of the blade poke out. A knife!

I would normally be alert to this ________ stranger now sitting in the back of my vehicle. However, with Lucas now eagerly ________ with him in a language I barely understand, I’m trying to let myself ________ . Then Lucas loosely translates the conversation they’re having as Michael proudly ________ his knife, explaining that he uses it for everything: opening bottles, picking his teeth, castrating his cows.

Gradually, my___ towards our new stranger grows as he persistently tries to communicate with me, ________the mood of the car. Twenty minutes down winding mountain roads and we reach Michael’s house, where we are invited to have a meal with his ________ . Later that day, we leave the house without taking any contact details from Michael. There is an unspoken understanding that this________friendship is enough.

10 . My parents and teachers-even some of my friends—think I’m quiet and shy, really smart but not very cool. In fact, that’s who I am when I am with them, but not who I really am. The real me comes out when I’m around guys who are more like me-like Tom Henderson and Graham Barry. I met Tom and Graham at a Young Scientist contest last y car. The three of us were among the five finalists. As soon as we met, we really hit it off.

As we talked about the conference, we discovered that all three of us were interested in space debris mitigation, which is the study of the prevention of space garbage damaging satellites and the new space station. It was great to meet other people my age who actually knew what I was talking about. When I talk about “space garbage,” most of the kids at my school just say, “Oh, you mean like asteroid-type (小行星之类的) things? I played a videogame about that once.”

Luckily, we met each other on the first day of the conference, so we were able to spend a lot of time together for the entire three days. We talked about everything from the best schools to go to, what degrees to get, and even the names of the best people in each field. We want to study with the pioneers. Both Tom and I want to study with Dr. Claude Phipps, the inventor of a project that developed a laser (光) that knocks down space garbage before it does any damage to expensive space vehicles. Graham wants to study under Didier Patrick Queloz, the physics Nobel winner from the University of Cambridge.

Even though the three of us don’t get a chance to see each other very often, we’re still the best of friends. We call each other a couple of times a month. I always feel happy when I talk with Tom and Graham. It’s like the other person in me wakes up. With them, I’m my “real shade.”