I called my mother-in-law this morning just to check up on her. While we were  (1)  on the telephone someone knocked on her  (2)  . She was obviously  (3)  and asked me what she should do. I told her not to  (4)  the door, and if it was someone who knew her  (5)  , he or she would knock the living room   (6)  . I rang back about 10 minutes later to check up on her. She was really  (7)  and told me a friend had visited her. I was pleased but thought this was a bit  (8)   as she did not  (9)   her“friend” at all. A short while later she called me back. She   (10)  so happy. Her friend had just   (11)   .

 It turned out that her friend was a   (12)  from the local police station. A few weeks ago, he called at her house when someone tried to  (13)  . Since then he returned with  (14)  for all her windows and doors. He came back when he was off-duty and   (15)  them for her. He also gave her his private mobile number and she is to phone him any time of day or night if she is  (16)  .

 Today’s   (17)  was to let her know that he patrols (巡逻）her street and checks up on her. He told her not to be concerned if she heard a motorcycle   (18)  in the early hours of the morning, it would   (19)  be him checking up on her.

What a  (20)  friend! At the end of the day, most of us are just people looking out for other people.

When I was a kid, my mom liked to make breakfast food for dinner every now and then. And I remember one night in particular  (1)  she had made breakfast after a long,  (2)  day at work.

On that  (3)  so long ago, my mom  (4)  a plate of eggs, sausage and extremely  (5)  biscuits in front of my dad. I remember  (6)  to see if anyone noticed! Yet all my dad did was  (7)  for his biscuit, smile at my mom and ask me how my day was at school. . . I don’t  (8)  what I told him that night, but I do remember watching him  (9)  biscuits happily!

When I got up from the table that evening, I remember hearing my mom  (10)  to my dad for burning the biscuits. And I’ll never  (11)  what he said: “Honey, I love burned biscuits. ”

Later that night, I went to kiss Daddy  (12)  night and I asked him if he  (13)  liked his biscuits burned. He wrapped me in his arms and said, “Your Momma put in a hard day at work today and she’s really  (14)  . And besides, a burned biscuit never  (15)  anyone! ”

Life is full of imperfect things and imperfect people. I’m not the  (16)  at hardly anything, but what I’ve  (17)  over the years is that learning to accept each other’s faults, which is one of the most important keys to  (18)  a healthy, growing, and lasting relationship.

We could extend this to any relationship. In fact, as  (19)  is the base of any relationship, be it a husband-wife or parent-child or friendship!

God Bless You. . . Now, and always. . .

So please  (20)  me a biscuit, and yes, a burned one will be fine!

 A Welcome Gift

Dario and his mother loved their new apartment. The living room was large enough for their piano. That night, the two of them  (1)  side by side at the piano. They played jazz music to celebrate their new home. The loud  (2)  filled the room and made them feel very happy.

The next morning,  (3)   , their happiness disappeared. Someone had left a  (4)   under their door during the night. One of their neighbor had written to complain(抱怨) about the sound of the piano. Dario’s mother asked the building superintendent(管理员) if he knew anything about it. But he said that they were all  (5)   people and he couldn’t imagine any of them had done that. Later that morning, Dario suggested that they write a letter to their   (6)  and apologize for their playing.

“Maybe we could go and  (7)   everyone in person.” his mother said.

“What if we invited them to come here for a  (8)  instead? Dario asked.

They both loved the  (9)  . Over the next few days, they sent out invitations and prepared desserts   (10)  their guests. They decorated the apartment with streamers(彩带) and party lights.

Finally, the day of the part  (11)   . Some guests brought presents. Others brought flowers. Some even brought desserts to  (12)  . One woman, Mrs. Gilbert,  (13)  Dario’s mother with a book of piano music by Chopin.

“I heard you playing the other night,” she said. “The sounds woke me out of bed. I  (14)  that you might play like this every night. So I wrote a short note. I hope you don’t think I disliked the playing.”

Dario’s mother smiled at Mrs. Gilbert. “I think maybe we owe you an   (15)   .” she said. “I didn’t   (16)  how late it was when we were playing. Maybe we should play some quieter music at night.

“You play, you play!” Mrs. Gilbert said. “I like what you play! Just not so loud at night.” She pointed to the book she had given them. “These songs are not such  (17)  music.”

“These songs are beautiful music.” Dario’s mother said. “We will be   (18)  to play them in the evening.”

“And we won’t play so loud or late!” Dario said. He was already looking forward to   (19)  the new music. More than that, however, he was happy to see the big smile on his mother’s face. It gave him a feeling of   (20)   and made him feel that they were home at last.

My grandfather was probably the toughest man I've ever known.   31  , as a child I didn't realize it. To me, he was just a(n)   32   grandfather. But his   33   changed the way I thought about him and it is the event that has had the most   34   effect on me in my life.

He died on Thanksgiving Day. At his funeral, his brothers began to   35   stories about their lives. They recalled their childhood, when they were poor and   36   in the countryside, their hunting adventures in the woods and their happy family get-togethers   37   festivals. In their eyes, my grandfather was understanding and kind-hearted. He was always there,   38     happiness to the family. They drank and continued telling stories, and then I noticed the   39  ; not polite smiles, but loud laughter.

  40   laughed. The louder their laughter was, the more   41   I felt. I pulled my mother aside.

“Grandfather is dead. How can they laugh?” I said in   42  . 

“What is the most important thing you   43   about your grandfather?” my mother asked. “ He wouldn't want us to be   44  . That's not how he would want to be remembered. He would have wanted   45   this kind of party.”

I   46  . Out of all the things I remember about him, the most   47   thing is his laughter. He   48   all the ups and downs in his life. No matter how hard something was in his life, he always   49   it with laughter.

I don’t know what   50   looks like, but I believe it is filled with his laughter.

Last weekend I went snowshoeing with a group of teachers from my school.   (1)  , it felt a little strange --- a bit like ,wearing flippers（脚蹼）  (2)   you swim! I felt quite clumsy to start with, and it was   (3)   to climb over the fallen trees with the snowshoes   (4)   to my feet. However, I love   (5)   and am used to walking in mountainous areas   (6)   I soon got used to it. I loved walking through the forest and seeing all the trees covered in   (7)  ! At times, walking uphill in the snow was hard,   (8)   when there were rocks underneath the snow. Once we reached the   (9)   it was worth it! The mountain we   (10)   was called "Le Tanet" and it was l,292 mhigh --- thatˈs higher than Snowdon, the tallest mountain in Wales! The sky was a bit gray, but the views were   (11)  . I managed to get some great   (12)   --- and remembered to use my new camera! After taking lots of photos, we started going down. In some ways, going down the mountain was harder than   (13)  . It was very steep(陡峭), and it was easy to     (14)   inthe snow.

    At the bottom, we had a hot drink in a cabin --- it was clearly   (14)   after a few hours of walking in the cold! Before we went   (15)   I attempted sledging(雪橇) which Iˈd never   (16)  before! It was great fun!

    To be honest, Iˈd really   (17)   snowshoes as an alternative to the more well-known   (18)   sports. Besides being a lot cheaper than skiing, itˈs easier to do and is considered to be a lot   (19)  !

       A blind boy sat at a street corner with a hat by his feet. He held up a sign which said, "I am blind. Please    (1)    ."

      There were only a few coins in the  (2)    . A man was walking by. He dropped a few coins into the hat. Then he took the sign and wrote some words on it. He put the sign back   (3)      .everyone who walked by would see the new words.

         Soon the hat began to fill up. A lot more people were giving  (4)  to the blind boy. That afternoon the man came to see how things were. The boy recognized his   (5)     and asked, "Were you the one who   (6)   my sign this morning? What did you write?"

       The man said, "I only said what you said but in a  (7)    way." What he had written was: "Today is a beautiful day and I cannot see it." Both signs told people the boy was  (8)   . But the first sign simply told people to help. The second sign told people that they were able to enjoy the  (9)   of the day, but the boy could not enjoy it because he was blind.

        There are at least two   (10)    we can learn from this story. First, be thankful for what you have. Someone else has less. Help when you can. Second, be creative. Think differently. There is always a better way!

A Very Special Special Olympian

The professor was searching for student volunteers in the lecture room for a Special Olympics event. As the sign-up sheet went up and down the rows, I started to come up with my  (1)  . Maybe it was the distance to the college where the event was to take place, or the early hour that   (2)   had to report for duty. Whatever the reasons that made me hesitate, I am thankful to this day that I   (3)   up volunteering. If I had missed the event, I would have missed one of the most unforgettable moments that I have ever   (4)  .

   I arrived at the volunteer tent bright and early. My task was   (5)  . I was to stand at the finish line only and wait until the event was over and then take the   (6)   to the announcing booth(公告处). Standing at the finish line, I was able to witness many amazing efforts and close races. I was most impressed by the effort each athlete put into his or her   (7)  . What also impressed me was the sincere   (8)   each athlete expressed while participating though sometimes the joy of participating in a sporting event can get   (9)  inthe fierce competition of winning and losing.

Then an amazing moment happened right before my eyes. A group of athletes were   (10)   up to run a short race. One of them was in a wheelchair, a little girl with a   (11)   smile, wearing bright bows in her hair. Her smile filled the stadium that day. I couldn’t help but smile back at her.

   The gun sounded. They were off. Runners sped upinthe   (12)   with all their might. My eye  (13)   for the little girl with the bright bows. There she was, pumping her arms with all the   (14)   she had. Her efforts were getting little result, but that did not stop her. I noticed as she got closer that she also had an injured arm. But that did not stop this bright star. The race was long over   (15)   the young athlete kept pumping her arms. As she finally   (16)   the finish line, the noise of the crowd was thunderous. There I stood  (17)  , with tears falling down my cheeks.

After all these years, I can still hear those cheers. I wish I could thank that remarkable athlete for what her efforts   (18)   this unmotivated college guy. I grew up a lot that day because of the   (19)   of that little girl in the wheelchair. I was   (20)   that day of a poem from a book that states, “Whatever you do, do it with all your might.”

Dad had a green comb. He bought it when he married Mum. Every night, he would hand me his   (1)   and say, “Good girl, help Daddy clean it, OK?”

I was   (2)   to do it. At age five, this dull task brought me such   (3)  I would excitedly turn the tap   (4)   and brush the comb carefully. Satisfied that I’d done a good job, I would happily return the comb to Dad. He would   (5)   lovingly at me and place the comb on his wallet.

Two years later, Dad started his own   (6)  , which wasn’t doing so well. That was when things started to   (7)  .  Dad didn’t come home as early and as much as he used to. Mum and I became   (8)   with him for placing our family in trouble. With   (9)  , an uncomfortable silence grew between us.

After my graduation, Dad’s business was getting back on track（回到正轨）. On my 28th birthday, Dad came home   (10)  .  As usual I helped him carry his bags into his study. When I turned to leave, he said, “Hey, would you help me   (11)   my comb?” I looked at him a while, then   (12)   the comb and headed to the sink（水池）.

It hit me then: why, as a child,   (13)   Dad clean his comb was such a pleasure？That routine(习惯) meant Dad was home early to   (14)   the evening with Mum and me. It   (15)   a happy and loving family.

I passed the clean comb back to Dad. He smiled at me and   (16)   placed his comb on his wallet. But this time, I noticed something   (17)  : Dad had aged. He had wrinkles（皱纹） next to his eyes when he smiled,   (18)   his smile was still as   (19)   as before, the smile of a father who just wanted a good   (20)   for his family.