Linda and Laura were very excited because it would be their mother's birthday next Monday．Their mother loved {#blank#}1{#/blank#}and she knew a lot about them．On Thursday,the two girls pretended(假装)that they were going out to buy eggs and bread with their father．{#blank#}2{#/blank#}，they went to the plant store where their mother often went．With their father's help，they {#blank#}3{#/blank#}a plant with beautiful flowers．They were sure their mother would like {#blank#}4{#/blank#}．

    When they got home．their mother was busy in the kitchen，so they {#blank#}5{#/blank#}carried the plant to their room．They didn't know where they could put it because they wanted to give their mother a surprise on Monday．They looked around the room carefully．Finally,the two young girls had a(n){#blank#}6{#/blank#}．They put the plant in a big box and{#blank#}7{#/blank#}it to the top of the bookcase(书柜)．After it was done，they were very happy．

    However,no one{#blank#}8{#/blank#}watering the plant over the next few days．They just treated(对待)the plant{#blank#}9{#/blank#}any other gift．When their mother's birthday came，they opened the box and found a dead(枯萎的)plant with dry flowers，but it still{#blank#}10{#/blank#}their mother happy．

    As darkness fell, hundreds of people in the Swiss village left their houses. They were staring（凝视）1at the mountain top in the distance. It was covered with 2 beautiful and dangerous.

    The huge mountain is called Matterhorn. Mountain climbers had 3the top, using the southern route. But no one had ever dared（敢）to try a winter climbing up the 4 side. But now one man was daring to try the 5route. He was Walter Bonatti, a great mountain climber from Italy.

    For two days he had climbed. The village people had watched him anxiously(焦急地). Now they were waiting to see his signal（信号）. If he planned to 6 the next day, he would light a green signal. A red light would mean that he was turning back.

    A tiny green light7 high on the mountain side. Bonatti was not giving up! The people8.

    The next day he continued his way upward. He was so lonely and so 9! But he would not give up. Again that night he lit the10 light.

    In the morning, Bonatti 11. He couldn't see the top, but he knew he was 12 there. Though the climb was painful, he moved up.

    Bonatti had spent months13 for the climb. Was the training enough? Did he have the strength and skill to climb to the top?

     He was finally at the top! News about his 14 was radioed to the world.

    The trip down the southern route was easy. He was warmly welcomed in the village. He had done the"15", and would be well remembered as a climber of all time.

    There was once a young man in a town. He liked puppets (木偶) so much that he became an apprentice (学徒) to a great puppet-maker. Sadly, the young man was not so clever, and people around him always said he had no 1 for making puppets.

However, he enjoyed it so much that he worked day after day to 2his skills. Though he was hard-working, they would always find something wrong with his puppets. The young man was 3 but he wasn't going to give up. After thinking for a few days, he 4 to spend all his time making just one kind of puppet. As long as he found a fault (缺陷) in his puppet, he would throw it away and start again. Years passed, he was much 5 at making puppets than any other apprentice, but he kept making improvements. Living 6 that, the man wasn't making any money. Many people laughed at how poor he was.

    By the time he was an old man, his puppet was 7 wonderful. Finally, after so many years of work, he finished his puppet, and said, "8 wrong with it this time. It's perfect (完美的)". And for the first time in all those years, he didn't throw his puppet and felt so happy.

    The man's name was Geppetto. 9 he made the perfect puppet, he got more happiness than any other famous puppet-maker. His 10 tells us how important it is to keep on something.

    So never give up the things you really enjoy.

    Jimmy was five years old and lived with his parents, the Watsons, in Smithville, in the southern United States. He loved his big black1, Big Boy. Last week, in the early hours of the morning, a strong smell suddenly woke Big Boy up2 his sleep. The dog got up and walked into the kitchen. There the smell and the heat grew stronger. Big Boy could 3that something was wrong, very wrong. He barked(吠)and ran up to the second floor. He barked and barked at the door of Jimmy's room,4there was no answer. Then he ran to Mr and Mrs Watson's room. He barked again, more loudly, and tried to5 the door. Mr and Mrs Watson didn't wake up. Big Boy ran back to Jimmy's room. He made as much6as he could.

    Finally, Jimmy came to the door and opened it. "Big Boy, what's wrong?" Jimmy said. Big Boy took Jimmy's 7 in his mouth and tried to pull him down to the first floor. "Big Boy, Big Boy, stop! Stop! What are you 8? Mum, Dad, come quickly! Help! Help!" Jimmy shouted loudly.

    His parents ran out of their room. They understood that there was a fire. They 9picked Jimmy up and ran out of the house. Big Boy ran after them. Just then, the fire came all the way up to the top of the 10. Big Boy saved the family! He's a hero today in Smithville.