I was a lazy boy, but once there was an embarrassing thing changed me and gave me the{#blank#}1{#/blank#}(勇气) to face my troubles.

Last summer {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(假期), I went to visit the Yellow Crane Tower(黄鹤楼) in my hometown Wuhan, Although I have lived here all my life, I had never been to the tower before. Lost in the beautiful views, I suddenly heard a {#blank#}3{#/blank#}(嗓音), "Excuse me?" I turned around and saw a foreigner. He {#blank#}4{#/blank#} (继续), saying, "Are you a local person? Can you show me around? I'm a stranger here."

I didn't know what to say. If I said yes. I knew little about the tower. If I said no, it was also a lie. My face turned red.

"Well, as far as I know, the Yellow Crane Tower is an {#blank#}5{#/blank#}(古老的) building." That's all I knew and my voice was so low that I couldn't even hear {#blank#}6{#/blank#}(我自己). Just at this time, a man's voice {#blank#}7{#/blank#}(打破) the silence, "Pardon me, but I can show you around." Then the gray-haired old man began to {#blank#}8{#/blank#}(解释) the history and customs of Wuhan and the history of the Yellow Crane Tower in fluent English, and I listened carefully. My embarrassment was gone, but the admiration(敬仰) for the old man still {#blank#}9{#/blank#}(停留).

The embarrassment at that moment has become a motivation(动力) for my study and  {#blank#}10{#/blank#}(进步), which helps me understand that there is no end to learning.

The editor of the school newspaper was leaving so the paper would need a new editor. Hearing the news, Tara knew it was her 1 .

Tara had always wanted to improve the paper. Unluckily, most students cared little about 2 . There were not any nice pictures, but the real 3 was that the stories couldn't attract the kids. 

After class, Tara talked to Mr. Alvarez, the headmaster, about her wish to be the editor. "We've 4 had a sixth grader in charge. Editing the paper is a big job, even for an eighth grader." he said, "And we may not have a paper much longer because of budget cut."

Tara stepped forward and said 5 , "I can make students like the paper and do my best to make it pay for itself." Mr. Alvarez 6 Tara's offer and agreed, "You only have three weeks before the budget meeting."

Tara didn't lose any time. During lunch, she 7 the newspaper group and told them about her conversation with Mr. Alvarez. 

"We should do something 8 the newspaper and make it different. Now we need 9 teams." Tara said to the group. "The sales team will work on getting advertisers to help us 10 the paper. And the editorial team need to discover stories students like."

The group nodded 11 they felt a bit unsure about the new leader. They started to discuss how to improve the paper. 

The editorial team created a questionnaire to know what students were 12 . The sales team visited many local businesses. By the end of the week, things were going well. The group gathered again for further improvement. 

They came up with a 13 idea—create an online paper with more cool pictures and even videos. Everyone couldn't wait to have a try. 

The big day finally came. The group presented the paper at the meeting. When it was time to vote, every hand in the room went up for 14 their ideas. 

"Well done, students." Mr. Alvarez said to Tara's group. "Your 15 really works."