One afternoon，my son Adam asked me，“Are all people the same even if they are different in color？”

    I thought for a minute，and then I said，“I'll explain，1you can just wait until we make a quick 2 at the grocery store. I have something3 to show you.”

    At the grocery store， we 4 some apples—red，green and yellow ones. Back home. I told Adam，“It's time to 5 your question.” I put one apple of each 6on the table. Then I looked at Adam， who had a7 look on his face.

    “People are like apples. They come in all8colors，shapes and sizes. On the 9 ， some of the apples may not 10 look as delicious as the others.” As I was talking，Adam was 11 each one carefully.

    Then， I took each of the apples and peeled(削皮)them，12them back on the table，but13 a different place.

    “Okay， Adam， tell me which is which.”

    He said， “I 14 tell. They all look the same now.” “Take a bite of 15. See if that helps you 16which one is which.”

    He took17 ， and then a huge smile came across his face. “People are 18 like apples！ They are all different， but once you19 the outside， they're pretty much the same on the inside.”

    He totally 20it. I didn't need to say or do anything else.

    “It's never too late and you are never too old to start something new!” says Englishtown1Ellen Rema. Ellen began to learn English at the age of 50, and in just a few years, she had made2progress!

    Ellen chose to study at Englishtown because no evening classes were3n the German countryside where she lives. At Englishtown, she joins4classes online and speaks with live native English-speaking teachers.

    In 2001, Ellen began with the first level of Englishtown and quickly5. “I spent hours and hours studying.” she said. “Maybe I wanted too much in a short time. I finished all my6after 2 years and studying English isn't all about hard work. It should also be7! I really like the online conversation classrooms, in which I can learn so much about other cultures and traditions. I am open for all8.” Ellen has been able to9her English to use by visiting England five times! “I'm very thankful to Englishtown because most of the English I know was learned here,” Ellen says. “My life has10with Englishtown.”

    A big storm took us by surprise. We didn't 1 to be hit hard so we didn't leave our home. When we realized our yard was 2and more water was coming, it was too late to move.

    We had to climb on3of the roof (屋顶) to get away from the water after it started entering the house. The 4 went off, it was extremely dark and we were 5 We had to tie ourselves to each other, because the 6 was very strong. I had my laptop with me and kept posting cries for7 We stayed on the roof for eight hours 8 we were rescued.

    It was a 9 night. Some people lost their lives. Many houses were completely 10 Our neighbor's roof was blown away.11 although our house was also hit, it remained intact (完整的).

    At present, we keep going back, taking many photos—an requirement 12 the insurance company. We expect them to make an assessment of the damage, and then hopefully,13 our losses. And I'm particularly 14 that my university projects were lost. That means more work for me and I am due to graduate in December.

    We are now 15 at a friend's house in Brooklyn. We won't be able to return to our house in months. There's no information about the support for the 16 of this storm. All we hear is to go to the shelter.

    But now I'm 17 because my family and I are alive. And it's important to18 that there are still people 19 food, shelter, or gas in the cold weather. It's a truly terrible time for the city now but I believe everything will 20.

    Ever since an accident put him in a wheelchair, Dan has had one dream:1.

    That is why he was 2 to learn about a piece of research that could possibly lead to his 3. But there are two 4. First, the research may take years before it becomes a treatment. And the second is the most 5 of all considerations: money.6by love for Dan, friends worked hard through a series of 7 to raise 20,000 pounds for his future surgery. Dan felt he could really start looking forward to the day when he could turn his 8 into a reality.

Then he 9 Brecon, a 5-year-old who 10 from cerebral palsy (脑瘫). Dan read about a new surgical operation that could 11 the little boy to walk unaided. But the surgery would 12 more than 60,000 pounds — money Brecon's parents were having a 13 time raising.

    Dan said, “I'm in pretty much the 14 condition, but it appears that Brecon can 15 walk if he gets his surgery, and I can't right now. So I thought I might as well pass the money on to him. I'm 16 to everyone who has helped me out, but this boy needs it 17 I do at the moment.”

    And so he took this dream out of the bank and 18 it over to Brecon's parents, telling them, “It would make me very happy to see the 19 made to Brecon's life.”

    “I wanted to help someone whose life could get better,” he said. “If I can help someone to walk, I will. Even if it means 20 a dream to do it.”

Spanish class scared me in the freshman year.I knew little Spanish before starting the class，and I thought it would be1 for me.However，Mary，our honored Spanish teacher，who was full of creativity，made her class fun from the beginning.I knew what to expect with a schedule for each week，but there was always some slight 2 . 

Before the exam，Mary often asked us to 3 our lessons by ourselves.But I could remember one day she said， "This time，let's play a game before going over what you've learned." The game was so interesting that we all 4 ourselves.After the exam，Mary gave us opportunities to make up for our 5 .After each error correction，she would check again.She took things so 6 that she wouldn't overlook any detail.No wonder she was 7 by us. 

Mary was 8 and willing to help，within reason，on everything.We could ask her questions at any time.She encouraged everyone to speak Spanish in class.Because of that，I was 9 enough，and then I could communicate with Spanish speakers outside of class.When she knew our problems，she would give advice.When someone was struggling，she would 10 . 

Mary's 11 teaching eventually transformed my 12 into fascination.She infused （灌输） foreign culture into lessons，using music and dance to 13 our language skills.Her personalized attention to each student's needs fostered a（n）14 environment.At the end of the term，my Spanish improved，and my confidence soared.Mary left a lasting impact on my 15 for new challenges.

Careers in science are often considered as difficult for students lacking talent or intelligence, yet the experience of Scott Kelly, commander of the International Space Station, stands as an example to prove it's 1 .

As a child, he displayed little interest in science or any other 2 . He spent most of his school days daydreaming because he was unable to 3 the lessons. As a result, his grades were terrible and he barely graduated from high school, doubting whether he would ever 4 his dreams.

That all 5 when he picked up and read The Right Stuff, Tom Wolfe's book of the pioneering Americans who first explored space. 6 at last, he was determined to be an astronaut, which meant doing well in science classes. Therefore, he 7 his mind to perform well in his science classes. 

After years of daydreaming, it was not a(n)8 task. But he approached it like a game. The more he 9 his study skills, the more he gained knowledge and improved. 10 , it became a personal 11 to see how capable he could become. No one was more surprised than him when this 12 daydreamer began to get straight A's in his science exams, which is significant for him to become an astronaut. 

We'd better stop 13 the statement that science is just too hard. If you are a student who has been told "you're not a science person" or "your mind doesn't function that way", just 14 such comments! Anyone who desires to learn can master these subjects —they just need to be 15 to do the work.