Learn to rise again

    It is not always easy to discover yourself.From a(/an)1age, I had a strong sense of who I wouldbecome—but an accident changed everything.

    To me, skating was more2thananything else in the world. Nothing else filled my heart with so much3.I spent 24 hours a week developing my skills. I had no social life or interestsother than4.But I was rewarded (回报) with first place medals in nearly every competition.

   5,during one competition, I fell and was badly injured. The doctor told me that Icouldn't skate any more. The pain in my back was6tobear (忍受) and even basic daily tasks became difficult.

    My passion (激情) had been7.I lost heart and had no idea what I would become. After eight months of suffering,something had to8. Instead of sitting around and wasting mydays, I began to work with local community service projects. By volunteering asa swimming teacher and summer reading assistant (助教) for kids, I gotan idea of whom I wanted to become. After a few months, I9anew interest. Little by little, I stepped out of the shadow and rebuilt my confidence.

    Sometimes, challenges in life will get in theway. We can choose to stay behind or try to get past these challenges.  My10was a challenge that failedto stop me from reaching success. Today, I'm a very confident and optimistic (乐观的) person.

Anna's coat is too small. She goes shopping with her mother on Sunday. They go into a clothing shop first (首先). She wants to buy a new coat. Anna finds a green coat in the clothing shop. She likes it very much. She tries it on, but it's too small for her. She wants a big one, but the big one is not green. She isn't happy. Then she wants to go to another (另外的) shop to have a look. Then they find a new shop. The shop is big. There they see many kinds of coats in different colors and sizes (尺码). Anna tries on a green one. It looks nice on her. Anna is very happy. She takes it for fifty yuan.

When I moved to America in the 7th grade, I did not speak any English. I had no choice but to keep working hard. Although I made 1 when I reached the 9th grade, people still found it difficult to understand me because of my accent (口音).

One day, at a party, I was invited to play a guessing game. When it was my turn, I tried to 2 the object that I had in mind. Suddenly someone said with a laugh, "What did she say?" I felt 3 . Out of kindness, a girl gently advised me to repeat it, but I got stuck on the word "purple"—I couldn't 4 it. This time, everyone laughed while I was trying hard to get the word out of me. This 5 had its own influence on me. When opportunities were opened up for the summer program I had been looking forward to, I 6 to attend (参加) the interview. Luckily, I got tons of encouragement from people around me. So I decided to 7 .

At the interview, the other students in my group spoke very 8 but I didn't speak that much. I knew that I could hardly be understood because of my accent. Besides when I was nervous, it would be even more 9 for me to pronounce words clearly. After the interview, I stayed, said "10 " and explained to the teachers. I didn't want them to think I wasn't interested or I was being unfriendly. But they appreciated (欣赏) that I expressed 11 . "It's OK. You don't have to say sorry. Your accent does not make you less than others," said one of the teachers.

Surprisingly, I was accepted into the 12 . Imagine how I felt!

Up to now, I still feel 13 that I took that step. It is a sign that I have changed. I did not let my accent 14 me. I'm sure I will continue to feel nervous about speaking English with strangers. 15 that's OK. It will not stop me from trying to be better.

Three fish lived in a pond. They were named Plan Ahead, Think Fast and Wait and See. One day they heard that a fisherman {#blank#}1{#/blank#} was well-known in the village for his excellent fishing skills was going to cast (抛)nets in the pond the next day. 

Plan Ahead decided to swim down the river that night. Think Fast was sure he would come up{#blank#}2{#/blank#} a plan. Wait and See just didn't want {#blank#}3{#/blank#} think about it at that time. 

When {#blank#}4{#/blank#} fisherman cast his nets, Plan Ahead had gone. But Think Fast and Wait and See {#blank#}5{#/blank#} caught. Think Fast quickly turned over and played dead. The fisherman thought he was bad and threw him back into the water. But Wait and See ended up in the fish market. 

Hi, my name is Robert. Last summer I had a great vacation. I went on a trip with my parents by1 for two weeks. During（在…期间）the first week, we drove for four to six hours a day,2 we never felt tired. At night we stayed in big hotels. Many hotels had swimming pools. I was very happy to3 there. There were many people in the hotels and the rooms there were4 , so we often had to sleep in one room to save some money. 

During the5 week, we went camping in the mountains. We6 our tent and lived in it. I loved it so much! The tent was not big, but it was clean and quiet. I always got up7 because I wanted to see the sunshine. There was a beautiful lake near our tent. We went8 there. It was difficult for9 to get them and usually in the end I could only get one fish. At night, we saw a big moon in the sky. We10 each other stories, then we went to sleep. I had a great time during the vacation. 

Betty is a biologist. She studies brain diseases that come along with aging. Her 1 is not an easy one. She is trying to understand what goes wrong with the brain over time, and how people can age in a healthy way. It is very important, especially when people are living a 2 life now.

Betty does not have a natural gift (天赋) for math. She never 3 that she could be a scientist one day when she was little. Now, she has got a doctor's degree in biology and become a famous 4 researcher. Betty has made it partly because she is curious about everything. This is a very 5 quality for a scientist. Another 6 is that she is a creative thinker. "After all, science is all about problem-solving," Betty said.

Betty thinks the best part of her research is trying out an idea to see if it will work. Her heart is filled with joy when her idea is proved right and 7 by other scientists. But when things don't go 8 as she plans, she feels no disappointment. She says mistakes may 9 a new idea.

Few are born to be a 10 . According to Betty, curiosity and creativity play the biggest role.