A couple of weeks ago, I made a trip to Toronto with my granddaughter who just turned three years old. The two of us were on our way to  1   her parents, and my wife—her  2    who had been gone for over a week. We were all anxious to  3    again and as I pulled out of Mamere and Papere's driveway in Chelmsford, Hailee and I were both  4    about the trip and couldn't wait to arrive at our   5.

When we completed the “SEVEN”-hour trip to Toronto later that day, the reunion was absolutely  6 and I can sincerely say I enjoyed every single minute of that   7     journey.

      Hailee is at that “I want to  8  it myself” stage of her life. And if you can just get over the “hurry-up syndrome” we acquire as  9, it is wonderful to witness. Who knew that putting a straw into the  10  in a juice box for the very first time could be such an earth-shattering (惊天动地的) event? Or being  11  enough to actually open the fridge door for the first time? Or putting on your own  12  on the right feet would be so  13?

      I'll never forget the look on her face the day she was able to  14 into my truck by herself. She finally  15 on my seat, holding onto the steering wheel (方向盘) and declared 16, “I did it!” And when she could actually put her own seat belt on—what a(n)  17!

    Have you ever watched a three-year-old 18 to sip a McDonald's milkshake through a straw? It is hard enough for an adult, too. And 19 every time the icy solution (溶液) touched her lips, you could see the 20 in her eyes. I learned that you can't hurry a child through a milkshake.

    Until a few years ago, I had what most people would call a good life. I had a 1job that paid the bills; I had a good family that I was close to, and I had a place to live and money in the bank for trips and 2, and there was nothing much wrong in my life.3, I was bored.

    I wanted 4. I wanted to live brightly and loudly and make sharp memories instead of the 5 ones of everyday life. But I was 6. I've never had any7in myself. As a child, even buying something in a shop caused me a great deal of 8, and even though I did get better as I got older, I never really9 that childhood shyness.

    And I tried everything, like reading books about confidence. I took tiny steps leading to my goals. But none of them really10.

    So I 11 that the small steps weren't enough. I signed up for an internship（实习期）teaching English in Vietnam, an12 huge step, one that13 me as much as it excited me. And then the day came and I left my home and my loved one. I was alone in a country where the food was14 and the streets were dirty. I had no idea whether I would be able to 15everything this very strange environment would16 at me.

    I spent five months in Vietnam, teaching and exploring and laughing. I'd learned to 17 myself, my skills, my abilities and my decisions. I returned home 18, even to myself, let alone to others. The19 that had controlled my life and the self-doubt completely20.

    That one big chance changed everything for me, and in me.

    Ten years ago I was visiting Costa Rica when I found I was in a bad situation. I only knew basic Spanish, and the only 1 I had was some coins and a return ticket to Guatemala in two weeks.

    With the coins, I managed to arrive at Santa Rosa by bus. It was 2 in the middle of the night, but I could see some 3 in the distance, so I 4  toward them.

    I went 5 door to door, explaining my situation. “I can 6 and clean and look after your kids, I can do anything, can you give me a 7 ?”Everybody replied saying “Oh my gosh, but we are so 8.We have no extra food. Maybe you can try the next 9.”

    Finally, I arrived at a Chinese restaurant, the owner of which was incredibly 10 .She told me that her son had a(n) 11 experience. At that time, some other people were very kind to him, and she remembered how 12 that made her feel. She called the Red Cross to 13me. With their help, I spent my 14 days in Costa Rica.

    I've 15 all over the world. But this was one of the best trips, the best two 16 I ever had in my traveling life.

    At first, I felt 17 and stupid for not traveling with a clear plan. But then I realized that when you're in a position to be able to 18, it actually makes people feel happier. Being able to receive kindness is a 19 for other people as well. And kindness 20 more kindness in small ripples(涟漪).

    Several years ago I started riding a bike. At first, I thought it was only a 1 ride. But as I built up strength, my friends encouraged me to try some longer 2. The first one to come along was a 150-mile journey, an event held every year that 3 money to fight cancer.

    When I signed my name, the 4 seemed great — to support a worthy cause while going for the 5 — and I trained with great excitement. But as the time for the ride approached, my 6 gained ground over my endurance(耐力). I didn't really want to 7 all those miles for two days straight.

    The ride began on a Sunday morning in the Georgia countryside, 8 for the first few hours I felt wonderful. This was just the 9 I had imagined, and my spirits were 10 . But by the end of the day, I felt tired. I was sure I'd have to 11 .

    As I topped the hill, the nice sunset 12 me going for a few minutes more. Then in the distance, I 13 a lone rider riding very slowly. I 14 that the person looked different in some way, but I couldn't tell why. I managed to 15 . There she was, riding slowly but steadily, with a 16 smile on her face — and she had only one leg.

    My focus 17 at that moment. I'd been doubting my body for a whole day. But now I knew — it wasn't the body, but the 18 that would help me reach my goal.

    It rained all the second day. I 19 saw the one-legged biker again, but I pushed on without complaining. And at the end of the day, still feeling 20 , I completed the 150th mile.

    The dream of many people is to leave their mark on the world however they can. This could be in countless different 1, from coming up with a new invention to 2 starting a family. No matter what it is, 3 the world in some way is the purpose of many lives.

    That's 4 makes the Renaissance – an art period which centered in Italy between the 14th and 17th centuries — the era of 5.

    When we hear the word "art", it's very likely that we'll imagine a work from the Renaissance period. This w as a time when many believe art made a revival(复兴)— "renaissance", 6, means to bring new life to something.

    Take the works of Italian artist and inventor Leonardo da Vinci for example. His painting Mona Lisa became one of the best-known 7 on Earth. While many artists left their marks by bringing 8 to the world, Da Vinci did much more than that. The artist was fascinated with the study of human anatomy(解剖学)and even 9 time dissecting human bodies to help with his studies. Da Vinci also proved his 10 in many other areas, and he created sketches of ideas for many inventions, from bridges and machinery to even a helicopter and a robot.

    The Renaissance also played host to many other great names in the world of art. Italian painter Raphael, for example, was another leader of this era. But his most famous work isn't 11 on a w all today. 12, his masterpiece — the Raphael Rooms of Italy's Palace of the Vatican — IS the w all. The walls and ceilings of the palace are filled with beautifully 13paintings of Bib le scenes, which he started as a young artist in 1508.

    Religious works such as Raphael's w ere the 14 style of the Renaissance period. We only have to look at the most iconic (标志性的)sculpture of that period — and perhaps 15— to realize that.

    Italian artist Michelangelo's sculpture David, 16 a Biblical character, was firstly shown in the 1500s. The sculpture has 17 years of exposure to the rain, having rocks throw n at it by protesters(抗议者), and even someone 18 it with a hammer in the 1990s. 19 all these, David is still standing strong and 20 today — a true symbol of the Renaissance.

From the age of eight or so, I had to contribute my share of labour along with my father and two elder brothers. Kneeling in a rice field, I was up to my thighs in the1 . It splashed all over me, wet, sticky and 2 . When mud splashed into my eyes and onto my lip, I'd stand up, find the kettle of fresh water and try to 3 it away; but it was always a long 4 .

In midsummer, the sun beat upon my back, making me feel like hot bread 5 the side of a pan.6 ran down my mud-covered arms and legs. It felt as if ants were 7 all over me. To prevent the sweat from running into my eyes, I kept my face as8 as possible.

I told myself, be9 ! If my parents and brothers could10 taking it, so could I. A kind of 11 took place of the hurt in me. So thinking, I slowly pulled myself together and I crawled on.

I 12 hard in the countryside, and I am proud of this. Crawling in the mud had taught me to take sweating as part of my life and not to be afraid in the face of 13 . More importantly, I had learnt the 14 of "you reap what you sow". Plant your feet15 on the ground, work hard and you will be rewarded.