When I met Larry, my husband-to-be, he came with an eighteen-month-old daughter, Mckenna, and a four-year-old son, Lorin. I quickly {#blank#}1{#/blank#} (fall) in love with Lorin and Mckenna, {#blank#}2{#/blank#} the children's mother, Dia, was a different story.

    There was a feeling of hostility（敌意）between us. Sometimes I wished that she would simply disappear. Then the children could stay with us— {#blank#}3{#/blank#} (true) be mine—and we could be a “real” family.

    Years {#blank#}4{#/blank#} (pass) by, something changed. I began to enjoy talking to Dia about the Kids. And she realized that there were very few people in the world {#blank#}5{#/blank#} were as interested in her children {#blank#}6{#/blank#} I was. One year, Dia sent me a Mother's Day card thanking me for “co-mothering” her children.

    Thank you, Dia, for being kind enough {#blank#}7{#/blank#} (share) your children with me. Thank you for making Christmas morning {#blank#}8{#/blank#} exciting and warm time, so the children never had to feel sad on these important days. We all could sit around the tree. There {#blank#}9{#/blank#} were, you and your husband, Larry and me, the kids ... and {#blank#}10{#/blank#} (surprise), I felt at home.

    In much of Asia, especially the so-called “rice bowl” cultures of China, Japan, Korea, {#blank#}1{#/blank#}Vietnam, food is usually eaten with chopsticks.

    Chopsticks are usually two long, thin pieces of wood or bamboo. They can also be made of plastic, animal bone or metal. Sometimes chopsticks are quite artistic. Truly elegant chopsticks might {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(make) of gold and silver with Chinese characters. Skilled workers also combine (组合) various hardwoods and metal {#blank#}3{#/blank#}(create) special designs.

    The Chinese have used chopsticks for 5000 years. People probably cooked {#blank#}4{#/blank#}(they) food in large pots, using twigs (树枝) to remove it. Over time, as {#blank#}5{#/blank#}population grew, people began cutting food into small pieces so it would cook more quickly. Food in small pieces could be eaten easily with twigs which {#blank#}6{#/blank#}(gradual) turned into chopsticks.

    Some people think that the great Chinese scholar Confucius, {#blank#}7{#/blank#}lived from roughly 551-479 B.C., influenced the {#blank#}8{#/blank#}(develop) of chopsticks. Confucius believed knives would remind people of killings and {#blank#}9{#/blank#}(be) too violent for use at the table.

    Chopsticks are not used everywhere in Asia. In India, for example, most people traditionally eat {#blank#}10{#/blank#}their hands.

    We all make mistakes more than once. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}(hope), we learn from them finally. We all have wishes that we can't make {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(come) true. We all make a {#blank#}3{#/blank#} (judge) of other people and then find out they are really nice people. And we don't know what difficulty they have gone through in life {#blank#}4{#/blank#}has made them who they are. We all get jealous(嫉妒的) of others even if we shouldn't. We should be secure enough in ourselves and our partners and we should be happy for our friends when they {#blank#}5{#/blank#}(success) in something.

    We are all humans and have human{#blank#}6{#/blank#} (feel). That doesn't make us bad people {#blank#}7{#/blank#}that's part of {#blank#}8{#/blank#}makes us human .We just have to remember: when we have bad thoughts we have to turn {#blank#}9{#/blank#}into positive ones.

    We all have to be{#blank#}10{#/blank#}(thank) for what we have. Be kind to yourself and others and you will be happy.

    Lasa Bailey took her gloves off when {#blank#}1{#/blank#}(take)her dog for a long walk on a winter day and didn't notice anything until that evening. She was shocked when she realized her beautiful anniversary ring was missing. She {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(hurry)back to look for it but couldn't find anything. Her husband kept going on a website where people sell jewelry,{#blank#}3{#/blank#} never found it.

    All that changed, however, thanks to a recent Facebook post {#blank#}4{#/blank#}(write)on their local police department's page. A woman police officer posted, "If anybody knows of anybody losing a diamond ring, please contact us." One of her friends read it and wrote on it "Lisa Bailey".

    The police station happened to find some unidentified {#blank#}5{#/blank#}(jewel)in a local pawn shop (当铺) and took them away. When Bailey learned from her friend that her ring might {#blank#}6{#/blank#}(find), she couldn't believe it.

    The police called Bailey and asked her to describe it. She sent a picture of it to {#blank#}7{#/blank#} and then they asked if she could come to the police station. When the police officer in the station {#blank#}8{#/blank#} had written the Facebook post handed her the ring the next day  she was very thrilled and started to tear up. She could wear her anniversary ring home where it belongs {#blank#}9{#/blank#} (final) after three years' wait.

    Bailey's husband had offered to replace the ring after it went {#blank#}10{#/blank#} (miss), but she refused because she thought it wouldn't be the same.