Joy was working in a factory far away from his home. One day he wanted to send a(n) 1 to his wife. But he could not read or 2, and in the daytime he had to work. So he could only 3 somebody to write his letter late at night. A letter-writer called Johnson lived near here. But it was 4 when he found Johnson's house.

    Johnson was already in 5. He said," It is late. What do you want?" Joy answered," I want you to write a letter to my 6." When Johnson heard that, he was not 7. He thought for a while and then said," Does the letter have to go 8?"

    "What does that matter?" answered Joy.

    " Well, my writing is very strange, 9 can read it except(除了) me. And it will cost you a lot of money 10 I have to go a long way to read the letter to you wife." Hearing these words, Joy went away.

    With a hat by his feet, a blind boy sat on the steps of a building. He held up a sign which said," I'm blind, please help."

    Only a few people put1in the hat. A man was walking by. He dropped some coins into the hat, then turned the sign2wrote some words, put the sign back and left.

    Soon the hat began to fill up. A lot more people began to give money to the blind boy. That afternoon the man came to see3things were going. The boy recognized his footsteps and asked, " Were you the one who 4 my sign this morning? What did you write?"

    The man said, I only wrote the truth. I said what you said but in a(n)5way." What he wrote was. "Today is a beautiful day, but I cannot see it."

    Both the6told people that the boy was blind. But the first sign simply told people to help by throwing some money into the7. The second one, 8, told people that they were able to enjoy the beauty of the day. But the boy couldn't.

    There are at least two lessons we can learn9this story. First, be thankful for what you have. Someone else has less Help them if you can. 10, be creative. Think differently. There is always a better way.

The Tradition

    Luis's whole family meet every June to celebrate Grandpa's birthday. Before everyone sits down to eat, each person has to tell a personal story they have about1. Some family members tell the same story year after year. Luis, for example, had his usual story about the time Grandpa taught him how to take care of a vegetable garden.

    The stories are a tradition. And now that most of the grandchildren are old enough to 2, the tradition could go on for quite a while. Last year, it took three hours. Luis tried hard not to yawn (打哈欠) as he listened to all the same old stories.

    This year, Uncle Frank and Aunt Teresa have dinner ready early and call everyone to eat.

    "What about the 3? Luis asks.

    "There's just not enough time this year, with so many people," Uncle Frank says.

    After hearing this, Luis feels relieved (如释重负). But he also feels a little4as he sits down at the long dining table. Without the tradition, Grandpa's birthday feels like any other holiday the family share.

    Luis looks at the plate of vegetable salad. "You know, I wouldn't know how to pick a tomato right if it wasn't for Grandpa," he says softly.

    "I wouldn't know how to drive a car," says Aunt Teresa.

    "I wouldn't know how to turn a paperclip into a safety pin," adds Uncle Felix. "That sure saved the day at Edna's wedding (婚礼)!" Everyone laughs and smiles at each other at the reminder of that well—known family story.

    It was a 5birthday. Conversations run like water, and the food is wonderful. But something tells Luis that next year, the tradition of telling stories will6.

Susan is my cousin. She is my1 daughter. 

Susan's father and mother 2 doctors in a hospital. Her father is tall3 handsome. He works hard. He likes reading and he usually 4 different books at night before bed. Susan's mother spends much time 5 . She is kind to the patients(病人) in the hospital and they all like 6 . 

Susan's family has a big house. 7 a garden and six rooms. My grandparents live 8 them. They are old and they 9 work. They like gardening. On weekends, I often visit my grandparents and play 10 soccer with Susan. We have a great time.