4 . “Just sign here, sir,” the deliveryman said as he handed Oscar Reyna a package.

The package consisted of a long, narrow box ________ wrapped in brown paper. Opening the box, Oscar saw an umbrella inside ---- a very old one with a beautifully carved handle. ________ he had not seen it for more than 20 years, he ________ it immediately.

Oscar was 16 when he first saw the ________ umbrella. He had gone to a concert with his grandparents. As they were leaving, he noticed an umbrella on an empty seat. Impressed by its ________, Oscar felt a strong desire to find its owner.

Oscar ________ the manager to go through the record of advance ticket sales. Just as he thought, a name matched the seat where Oscar had ________ the umbrella. The name was Mrs. Katie O'Brien.

Oscar talked his grandparents into going by Mrs. O'Brien's house on their way home. An elderly woman opened the door. “May I help you?” she asked. “I'd like to return it if it's yours,” Oscar said, ________ the umbrella ________ presenting a gift that had long been wished for. “Why, yes, it's mine,” replied Mrs. O'Brien with a ________ smile and shining eyes. “It was given to me by my father years ago. Thank you so much for returning it. May I offer you a reward for your ________?” “No, ma'am.” he said, “my grandmother says that a good deed is its own reward.” “Well, that's ________ what my father used to say. What is your name, young man?”

Years later, Oscar was staring at the finely carved handle of the umbrella as he remembered Mrs. O'Brien. It was in perfect condition, considering how ________ it was. Why had it arrived here today? As if ________, a note fell from the paper. It read: Mrs. O'Brien wanted you to accept this umbrella as a present for a kind, ________ gesture long ago.

5 . I'm a Russian. In my native country, people believe that those who always keep big smiles on their faces, if they don't have a real reason to do so, are not genuine（真诚的）. For the last five years, I've lived in Kansas. What brought me to this country was my American husband, John. I work in a department store, where my coworkers show big smiles to me and pronounce my Russian name so sweetly. Every time I hear it, I feel as though my mom is embracing（拥抱）me.

Last year John encouraged me to go to see my mom back in Russia, and my manager even gave me a month of for the trip. When you live an ocean apart from your family, you need at least a month to visit them. I bought a plane ticket and packed my suitcase. Then came Covid-19. My mood became grey as I realized I couldn't go to see my mom.

A couple of weeks later, my sweet coworker Miss Donna asked me, “So what's happening with your trip to Russia?” I told her I had to cancel it and I wouldn't be able to see my mom this year.

Miss Dona didn't say anything at first. Then she put on a big smile and said, “Well, you can come to my home and see my mom!" “Oh my Lord!" I was at a loss for words. Imagine a mom for loan（借出）!I honestly don't know whether I would offer the same to someone in need of a mother's warmth, but my new people surely would do it for me.

I know that because of the virus, you shouldn't hug friends, but you can still embrace someone's heart. That's how my heart felt at that moment: hugged. So, yes, believe me, big smiles with no reason can be genuine.

7 . A loving person lives in a loving world. A hostile (敌意的) person lives in a hostile world. Everyone you meet is your mirror.

Mirrors have a very particular _______. They reflect the image in front of them. Just as a _______ mirror works as the vehicle to reflection _______ do all of the people in our lives.

When we see something beautiful such as a flower garden, that garden _______ a reflection. When we love someone, it’s a(n) _______ of loving ourselves. We have often heard things like “I love how I am when I’m with that person”. That simply _______ into “I’m able to love me when I love that other person.” _______ when we meet someone new, we feel as though we “click”. Sometimes it’s as if we’ve _______ each other for a long time. That feeling can come from _______ similarities.

Just as the “mirror” or other people can be a positive reflection, it is more likely that we’ll ________ it when it has a negative connotation (内涵). ________ it’s easy to remember the times when we have met someone we’re not particularly ________ about. We may have some criticism (批评) in our mind about the ________. This is especially true when we get to know someone with whom we would rather spend ________ time.

Often when we ________ qualities in other people, ironically (讽刺地), it’s usually the mirror that’s ________to us.

At times we meet someone ________ and feel distant disconnected or disgusted. ________we don’t want to believe it and it’s not easy or ________ to look further, it can be a great learning lesson to ________what part of the person is being reflected in you. It’s simply just another way to create more self-awareness.

8 . On a recent afternoon, some 60 years after they graduated from grammar school, Kathleen Rys, 72, and her sister Lorraine O’Kelly, 70, sat down and had a meal with a classmate, Bruce Smit, 71 for the first time.

In the 1950s, Lorraine and Kathleen Rys’ family moved from Chicago to Monee. As new kids at Monee Elementary School, they soon found themselves on the outs with other students.

“I would be with the other guys and see Kathleen walking down the hallway, her head down, holding her books, walking slowly. And all of us guys would be flat against the wall until she passed. Then we’d burst into laughter. How rude is that? It’s just crazy.” said Smit, a doctor whose wife, Tammy, organized the meeting.

The women said none of the teachers cared about it. “We just kept it to ourselves.” Lorraine said.

Over the years, Tammy Smit said, “Bruce would just start to cry at times. He’d wonder what happened to the sisters, if they landed OK.” One day a few weeks ago, Tammy took to the internet and found Mary O’Kelly, Lorraine’s daughter, and offered to set up a meeting. The idea of revisiting the pain was not well- received by Kathleen, who had never married, let alone gone on a date. It took some convincing, but Lorraine finally got Kathleen to agree to meet with Bruce.

Bruce broke into tears. “I’m so ashamed, so embarrassed,” he said. “But I’m so happy you’re still here and that I can finally apologize.” He said he hopes his apology will encourage others to seek forgiveness for the pain they make on others. Lorraine said, “This is a beautiful thing. It’s just wonderful that a person from 60 years ago can ask for forgiveness. It’s like a miracle to us. It’s a healing to us.”

My deskmate     1     (admire) my fluent English very much and I usually feel encouraged by his compliments.

One day,     2     we learned the new word “eccentric” in class, we     3     (ask) to make a sentence with it. I volunteered to do it by saying “My deskmate is an eccentric boy     4     clothe never fit him.” Hearing this, the whole class burst into     5     (laugh) and my deskmate’s face turned red.     6     class, I learned from the teacher that my deskmate would have dropped out of school if he hadn’t been helped by others. My mindless words must have hurt him deeply.

    7     then did 1 realize words could be powerful in     8     positive and negative ways. We should avoid     9     (hurt) others if we can’t always be     10     (encourage) them when we speak.

10 . I don’t remember the exact date I met Marty for the first time. Like a lot of people who   want to get through a checkout line, I found my thoughts on speed, nothing more. The line I was standing in wasn’t moving as quickly as I wanted, and I glanced toward the cashier, who was receiving money from customers.

He was an old man in his sixties. I thought, well, it probably took him a little longer to get   the jobs done. For the next few minutes I watched him. He greeted every customer before he       began scanning the goods they were purchasing. Sure, his words were the usual, “How’s it going?” But he did something different—he actually listened to people. Then he would respond to what     they had said and talk with them briefly.

I thought it was strange, but I guessed I had grown accustomed to people asking me how I was doing simply out of a conversation without thinking. Usually, after a while, you don’t give   any thought to the question and just say something back quietly.

This old cashier seemed sincere about wanting to know how people were feeling. Meanwhile,     the high-tech cash register rang up their purchases and he announced what they owed. When   customers handed money to him, he pushed the appropriate keys, the cash drawer popped open, and he counted out their change.

Then magic happened.

He placed the change in his left hand, walked around the counter to the customers, and extended his right hand in an act of friendship. As their hands met, the old cashier looked the customers in the eyes. “I want to thank you for shopping here today,” he told them. “You have a great day. Bye-bye.” The looks on the faces of the customers were priceless.

Now it was my turn. I glanced down at the name tag on his red waistcoat, the kind experienced Wal-Mart cashier wore. It read, “Marty.”

Marty told me how much I owed and I handed him some money. The next thing I knew he was standing beside me, offering his right hand and holding my change in his left hand. His kind eyes locked onto mine. Smiling, and with a firm handshake…