I was on a bus one March evening. The driver didn’t   (1)    to start the bus soon because it was not yet   (2)   . A middle-aged woman got on. Tired and, she told her story    (3)   , not to anyone in particular. On her way to the station, half of her   (4)   was stolen. The other half was hidden under her blouse, so she   (5)    still had some left. A few minutes later, she stopped crying , but still looked   (6)   When all the seats were taken, the driver started the engine. The conductor began to collect fares (车费) When she came to an old man in worn-out clothes, he    (7)    that he had spent all his money when he had accidentally got on a wrong bus and now he was trying to go home . On hearing this, she ordered the old man to    (8)     the bus. The old man was almost in tears as he    (9)   her to let him take the bus home. The driver took the conductor’s side and repeated the conductor’s    (10)    . The woman was watching the incident.   (11)    the driver and the conductor raised their voices at the old man , she interfered (干预). “Stop   (12)   him ! Can’t you see he’s only trying to get home? ” “He doesn’t have any money!” the driver    (13)   . “Well, that’s no   (14)    to throw him off the bus,” she insisted. Then she reached inside her blouse, took out her     (15)    money, and handed it to the conductor. “Here’s his fare  and mine. Just stop giving him a    (16)    time.” All heads turned to the woman. “It’s only money, ” she shrugged (耸肩). She rode the way home    (17)    a happy smile, with the money she’d lost earlier   (18)   . On the road of life, the help of strangers can    (19)    our loads and lift our spirits. How much sweeter the    (20)   will be when we make it a little smoother for others!

I was at the grocery store one evening. I had finished shopping and was looking for a line to   (1)  . I chose a line where there was one woman ready to   (2)  , and another woman behind her who didn't have very much.

   As I was standing there waiting for my   (3)  , I looked at the woman carefully in front of me. She looked   (4)   she had just had some kind of medical treatment. Her   (5)   looked as if she had known a lot of pain and was   (6)   of everything. She had a backpack to carry her   (7)   in and she had bought everything that one would need to   (8)   oneself at home. She kept glancing at her groceries and kept   (9)   the money in her hand. I kept thinking to myself, "I wish I had   (10)   to pay for her groceries. What can I do to help her out?"

   To my   (11)  , as these thoughts were going enough, the woman ahead of her softly   (12)   to the woman who didn't look well, "Put your money   (13)  . This one is on me."

    The woman   (14)   her head a few times and the front woman kept   (15)   until it happened.

    I walked outside with the woman who didn't feel well. After   (16)   her groceries in her backpack, I introduced myself, told her the   (17)   I was heading in and asked if she would like a ride. She introduced herself and   (18)  . As she got out of my car she said to me, "God bless you." I just kept   (19)  , maybe I put it out there and I couldn't do the thing but someone else did,   (20)  , I was presented with some other ways to help her out—and that I could do!

Erik, an athletic child, lost his vision in his early teens. At first he ___41__ to use a walking stick or learn Braille(盲文), ___42____ he could do as well as any teenager. He finally came to ____43___ his disability, though. He couldn’t play the same ___44___ as he used to .But then he discovered wrestling(摔跤), a sport ___45___ sight wasn’t as important as touch and ____46___. Then, at 16, he discovered rock climbing was like wrestling in some ways. A wrestler and a rock climber ____47___ information through touch. Rock climbing ___48___ mountain climbing, the greatest challenge of his life.

Erik’s teammates say he isn’t different from a ___49___ mountaineer. The major difference is that he isn’t as thin as most climber. _50____, his strong upper body, flexibility and mental toughness(坚韧) make him a(n) __51___ climber. The only help for Erik’s blindness is to place ___52___ on his teammate’s jackets so that he can follow them ___53___.

Climbing Mount Everest(珠穆朗玛峰) was __54____ for every climber on every team. The __55___ to the mountain air for Erik was the same as it was for his teammates: ___56___ of oxygen(氧气) causes the heart to beat slower, and the brain doesn’t ___57___ as clearly as normal. In some ways, Erik had an advantage ___58_ his teammates: as they got near the top, the vision of all climbers was ___59__. So at a certain altitude(海拔), all his teammates were like Erik—nearly __60____.

To climb Mount Everest is an achievement for any athlete. Erik showed his disability wasn’t as important as his ability.

Twenty years ago, I drove a taxi for a living. One time I arrived in the middle of the night for a pick up at a building that was   (1)   except for a single light in a ground floor window. I walked to the door and   (2)   .

A small woman in her 80’s opened the door. I took her suitcase to the cab then returned to   (3)   her into the cab. She thanked me for my kindness. When we got in the taxi, she gave me a(n)   (4)   , then asked, “Could you drive through   (5)   ?”

“It’s not the   (6)   way,” I answered.

“Oh, I don’t   (7)   ,” she said. “I’m in no hurry. I’m on my way to a hospice (临终关怀医院).”

I looked in the rear view mirror. Her eyes were glistening (闪烁).

“The doctor says I don’t have very long.”

I quietly reached over and   (8)   the meter. “What   (9)   would you like me to take?” I asked.

For the next two hours, we drove through the city. She showed me the building where she had once worked as an elevator operator. We drove through the   (10)   where she and her husband had lived. Sometimes she’d ask me to   (11)   in front of a particular building or corner and would sit staring into the darkness, saying nothing.

As the sun was   (12)   , she suddenly said: “I’m   (13)   . Let’s go now.”

We drove in   (14)   to the address she had given me. There were people waiting for her and they put her in a wheelchair.

“How much do I   (15)   you?” she asked, reaching into her purse.

“Nothing,” I said.

Almost without thinking, I bent and gave her a hug. She held onto me   (16)   .

“You gave an old woman a little moment of   (17)   ,” she said.

I squeezed her hand, then walked into the dim morning light. Behind me, a door shut.

I didn’t   (18)   any more passengers that shift. I drove aimlessly,   (19)   in thought. We’re conditioned to think that our lives revolve around great moments. But great moments often   (20)   us unaware.

In the north of Scotland there is a lake called Loch Ness. It is the biggest   (1)    in Britain. It is over thirty kilometers long and nearly 300 meters   (2)   It is cold and dark and not many people went there until after 1930. Then a road was made   (3)   the lake.

Holiday makers began to use the road, and this was when the  (4)  began. Someone said that he had seen a monster(妖怪) in the lake. He said it was twelve meters long. It had a long   (5)  and a small head. Then someone else said he heard  (6)  . Others said the same thing and in 1933 a London doctor took a   (7)  . It   (8)   like a monster with a long neck and a thick body but the photo was not too  (9)  . The newspaper printed the picture and   (10)   it the Loch Ness monster, or “Nessie”. Then the argument began.   (11)   people, however, were certain there was something living in the lake. Others said there was   (12)   there. In 1961, a lot of people joined together to make a real   (13)   to see and photograph the monster to find   (14)   there was one! Several times people thought they saw something but after ten years there was   (15)   no real proof（证据）.

Later underwater television cameras were used, but   (16)   found any real proof. However, they  (17)  find something interesting: a huge underwater cave. It was big enough to be   (18)   of a monster, but of course, this was not a proof. In 1975,however, some American scientists  (19)   a search group. They used an underwater camera. It took pictures every seventy seconds. Some of the pictures seemed to show a redbrown creature. Its body was about four meters long,  (20)  had a very ugly head on the end of a four-meter neck. Many people then began to believe in the monster. But even today we can’t be certain.

It was the end of my first day as a waitress in a New York restaurant. My cup had gone away, and my feet   (1)   . The   (2)  plates I carried seemed to be heavier and heavier.   (3)  and discouraged, I didn’t seem able to do anything right. As I made out a check for a family with several children who had changed their ice-cream  44   a dozen times, I was ready to stop. Then the father  45  at me as he handed me my tip. “Well done,” he said, “you have   (4)   us really well.”

Suddenly my tiredness   (5)  . I smiled back, and later, when the  48 _  asked me how I’d like my first day, I said, “Fine!” Those few words of praise had   (6)   everything. Praise is like  (7)   to the human spirit; we cannot flower and grow without it. And   (8)  , while most of us are only too  (9)   to apply to others the cold wind of criticism, we are   (10)  to give our fellows the warm sunshin e of praise. Why---when one word of praise can bring such   (11)   ?
     It’s strange how chary (吝啬)we are about praising. Perhaps it’s   (12)  few of us know how to accept it. It’s   (13)  rewarding to give praise in areas in which   (14)   generally goes unnoticed or unmentioned．An artist gets admired for a glorious picture，a cook for a    (15)   meal．But do you ever tell your laundry(干洗店) manager how pleased you are when the   (16)  are done just right? In fact，to give praise  (17)  the giver nothing but a moment’s thought and a moment’s effort．

Johnathan, a six-year-old from Milton Keynes, will share the stage with a host of famous people, after winning an award for bravely fighting against his illness.

He was   (1)   from hundreds of nominations (提名) across the UK to win the Inspirational Child in 2013 WellChild Awards, which celebrate the  (2)  of children facing serious illnesses and honour the effort of professionals who go the extra mile to  (3)  sick children and their families.

Johnathan was nominated by Helen Braggins — a nurse specialist who looks after children — for his   (4)   in the face of a very serious illness. The future remains uncertain   (5)   a high-risk operation offers him some hope.

Brave Johnathan has had long periods in   (6)  with serious infections (感染) and   (7)   has to deal with weak sight, but he has   (8)   people with his bravery. When an infection prevented him eating for five months, Johnathan decided to become a chef and learn to   (9)   . Helen said: “Johnathan has an amazing ability to turn a   (10)   situation into a new experience. He is a truly   (11)   young man.”

With hundreds of nominations received from across the country, the job of choosing   (12)   in all WellChild Award categories (类别) is given to judges. The judges   (13)  leading health professionals and others with an interest in children’s   (14)   , as well as children and young people who face  (15)  illnesses.

Director of WellChild Awards, Linda Partridge, said: “It is a great  (16)  to choose winners from the many amazing nominations we  (17)  from all over the country. All the judges are   (18)   by the bravery of the children, the stories of selfless care and   (19)   of the doctors, nurses and teachers. They made a great   (20)  to the lives of sick children. Johnathan truly deserves to be the winner of the award.”

“Where would we be right now if I did not have the restaurant? How else would I be able to provide for our family? Who give me, a man without  (1)  ，a job?” My father  (2)  say these things on our car rides to the stores that supply our  (3)  

He would tell me stories of long, hard hours spent  (4)  in the hot kitchen and helping all the  (5)   Now I  (6)  late on weekends to welcome him when he comes home，  (7)  that he will tell me something  (8)  .He always knows how to inspire me. I could never understand  (9)  he grew to be so wise without even having the opportunity to complete high school.

“Make sure you get a job  (10)  you have to wear a tie!” he’d always say with a smile. What he said is like a paintbrush(画笔) that began  (11)  this beautiful picture in my head and I would achieve my  (12)  in life.

My father has worked  day in and day out，with few days off, for 20 years, never  (13)  .He would explain how this is  (14)  he had to do to make my  (15)  better. My father worked so I  (16)  go to the best schools. He worked to supply me with   (17)  that would provide a job where I had to wear a tie.

My father is a  (18)  in which I can only hope to catch a reflection(反省)of myself. He is the one I strive to model myself after.  (19)  , when I make a great name for myself as a doctor, someone will ask, “Where did you get such a great work ethic  (道德) ?”

“My father!” I’ ll say, adjusting(调整) my   (20)  and I’ ll smile. 

Last weekend, my kids along with a few other kids from the neighborhood volunteered to help me wash my car．My 10-year-old daughter came up with the idea of    (1)  other people’s cars as well．It was pretty   (2)  outside and I had no plans to   (3)  being in the bright sun．She   (4)   wanted to give lemonade（柠檬汽水）to passers-by for free．I had seen little kids   (5)  and sell fresh lemonade for a small cost but not free．Although I felt   (6)  , I decided to help her．

  (7)  she asked me, “What if we   (8)   this a smile car wash?” I couldn’t hold back my tears and   (9)  her and the other kids to go outside the house and come up with    (10)   ideas．While I kept myself busy in drying the car, the gang walked up to me with

a（n）  (11)  with beautiful images of smiles．They had “Free Car Wash” written on it and the    (12)  of their exercise was “smile”．It was pretty neat to see a team of kids ranging 5-11 years with the    (13)  to do something for others．

All that seemed   (14)   and came right from their heart．Nothing seemed to   (15)  to them: their playtime, the heat outside—they just wanted to  (16)  others and do something nice in the community!

I helped them make some fresh lemonade and brought out some additional   (17)  to help clean cars．Passers-by were   (18)   and one even shouted back to them saying “God Bless You, my kids…” One of them even tried giving them 5 dollars, which they refused．A pretty heartwarming  (19)  !

I feel blessed by being  (20)  by such wonderful and loving souls．

I arrived in the classroom, ready to share my knowledge and experience with 75 students who would be my English Literature class. Having taught in the US for 17 years, I had no   (1)   about my ability to hold their attention and to   (2)   on them my admiration for the literature（文学）of my mother tongue.

I was shocked when the monitor shouted, “  (3)  !” and the entire class rose as I entered the room, and I was somewhat   (4)   about how to get them to sit down again, but once that awkwardness（尴尬）was over, I quickly   (5)   my calmness and began what I thought was a fact – packed lecture, sure to gain their respect – perhaps   (6)   their admiration. I went back to my office with the rosy glow which comes from a (n)  (7)   of achievements.

My students   (8)   diaries. However, as I read them, the rosy glow was gradually   (9)   by a strong sense of sadness. The first diary said, “Our literature teacher didn’t teach us anything today.  (10)   her next lecture will be better.” Greatly surprised, I read diary after diary, each expressing a   (11)   subject. “Didn’t I teach them anything? I described the entire philosophical framework（哲学体系）of Western thought and laid the historical   (12)   for all the works we’ll study in class,” I complained. “How   (13)   they say I didn’t teach them anything?”

It was a long term, and it   (14)   became clear that my ideas about education were not the same as   (15)   of my students. I thought a teacher’s job was to raise   (16)   questions and provide enough background so that students could   (17)   their own conclusions. My students thought a teacher’s job was to provide   (18)   information as directly and clearly as possible. What a difference!

  (19)  , I also learned a lot, and my experience with my Chinese students has made me a   (20)   American teacher, knowing how to teach in a different culture.