When Dave was eighteen, he bought a second-hand car for ￡200 so that he could travel to and from work more 1 than by bus. It worked quite well for a few years, but then it got so old, and it was costing him2 much in repairs that he decided that he had better3 it.

    He asked among his friends to see if anyone was particularly4 to buy a cheap car, but they all knew that it was falling to pieces, so 5_of them had any desire to buy it.

    Dave's friend Sam saw that he was 6 when they met one evening, and said, “What's 7, Dave?” Dave told him and Sam answered, “Well, what about advertising it in the paper? You may8 more for it that way than the cost of the advertisement!” Thinking that Sam's 9was sensible, he put an advertisement in an evening paper, which read: “For sale: small car,10very little petrol, only two owners. Bargain at ￡50.”

    For two days after the advertisement first appeared, there was no 11. But then on Saturday evening a man rang up and said he would like to 12 him about the car. “All right,” Dave said, feeling happy. He asked the man whether ten o'clock the next morning would be 13or not. “Fine,” the man said. “And I'll 14 my wife. We intend to go for a ride in it to 15 it.”

    The next morning, at ten quarter, Dave parked the car in the square outside his front door,16 to wait there for the person who had 17 his advertisement. Even Dave had to 18 that the car really looked like a wreck (残骸). Then soon after he had got the car as 19 as it could be, a police car stopped just behind him and a policeman got out. He looked at Dave's car and then said, “Have you reported this 20 to us yet, sir?”

    On a road trip to California's breathtaking North Coast region, my husband Ken and I, my teenage daughter Lahre, and my nine-year-old son Shawn, stopped to have lunch and stretch our legs a bit.

    As we walked toward the 1 entrance, a man with an untidy beard and dirty hair jumped up from a nearby bench and opened the door for us. An old bike 2 with a sleeping bag and the rest of his 3rested against the bench, it was obvious that he was 4. But regardless of his 5, he greeted us as if we were his best friends, “Today's soup and sandwich special's a great deal.”

    Once inside, my teenager whispered to me, “Mom, he 6.” And Shawn asked questions about him, not quite understanding the 7 of a homeless person. Ken and I explained the best we could, telling the kids to look to the person underneath and within 8 the dirt and smell.

    With the windiest part of our trip just 9 us, the kids needed to take car-sick pills so I went back to the car to fetch them. As I 10 the front door, the “doorman” was opening it for an older couple, who rushed past him and didn't even acknowledge his 11. I let the couple12 first and then said a loud and gracious “thank you” to the doorman.

After going back inside, I asked our waitress, who was bringing the kids their dessert, to 13 one soup and sandwich special to our bill. Both the kids looked at me 14 —as we had already eaten but Ken knew exactly what I was doing.

    By this time, we had to get back on the road to stay on schedule. As we rounded the comer of the very full restaurant, the “doorman” was sitting at a table enjoying his 15. When seeing me, he jumped up and 16 his hand for a handshake. It was then that I17 he had tears in his eyes—tears of gratitude.

    18 we can't choose many things in life, we can choose when to show gratitude, and I was doing just that. Hopefully, when someone opens a door for Lahre and Shawn during their 19 through life, they will remember to say “20“ and have a great soup and sandwich special on the menu, too.

    One night, when I was eight, my mother gently asked me a question I would never forget. “Sweetie, my company wants to 1 me but needs me to work in Brazil. This is like your teacher telling you that you've done 2 and allowing you to skip a grade(跳级), but you'll have to 3your friends. Would you say yes to your teacher？”She gave me a hug and asked me to think about it. I was puzzled. The question kept me 4 for the rest of the night. I had said “yes” but for the first time, I realized the5 decisions adults had to make.

    For almost four years, my mother would call us from Brazil every day. Every evening I'd 6 wait for the phone to ring and then tell her every detail of my day. A phone call, however, could never replace her 7 and it was difficult not to feel lonely at times.

    During my fourth grade Christmas break, we flew to Rio to visit her. Looking at her large 8 apartment, I became 9 how lonely my mother must have been in Brazil herself. It was then 10 I started to appreciate the tough choices she had to make on 11 family and work. 12 difficult decisions, she used to tell me, you wouldn't know whether you made the right choice, but you could always make the best out of the situation, with passion(热情) and a 13 attitude.

    Back home, I 14 myself that what my mother could do, I could, too. If she 15 to live in Rio all by herself, I, too, could learn to be 16. I learnt how to take care of myself and set high but achievable17.

    My mother is now back with us. But I will never forget what the 18 has really taught me. Sacrifices(牺牲) 19 in the end. The separation(分离) between us has proved to be a 20 for me.

    It happened when our grandchild, Anne, was three years old. My husband, Paul, asked her if there was anything she wanted to plant in our garden. She had an answer—Fritos (油炸玉米饼).

    "Anne, Fritos might not 1 in this soil," he said. But Anne looked at her grandfather and said that if the other 2 could grow, so would Fritos. Paul 3 this in the simplest way possible. He sent Anne running to the house for Fritos.

    That evening, I asked Paul, "Are you 4?"

    "She will forget it," he 5. The next day, Anne asked again. To gain time, Paul said it would 6 two weeks for Fritos to come out. That should be plenty of time for her to forget, he thought.

    For the next two weeks, she arrived every evening to 7 her "Frito land". Anne grew more 8. But with each passing day, Paul became more and more 9. By the 13th day, he had 10 a plan, and the next morning we began to work.

    We planted two plants where the Fritos were 11. Then we began the difficult task of tying Fritos around the leaves of the plants. At last, that was quite a 12 off our mind. Anne ran straight to the garden as 13. We were shocked when she shouted, "Grandpa! They're up! The Fritos came up!"

    The story was repeated several times. When Anne was in second grade, it was finally 14 until the day her teacher talked about the topic of 15. As part of the lesson, the teacher asked each child to 16 something that grows in a garden. You can 17 what Anne said!

    Anne's parents 18 it was time to tell the truth. Their daughter sat very still while they talked, and when they finished, she remained 19. Suddenly, Anne burst out 20 and said, "That's the best joke Grandpa ever played on me."

Jenna, a popular girl from Westwood Middle School, had graduated first in her class and was ready for new1 in high school.

However, high school was different. In the first week, Jenna went to tryouts{#blank#}1{#/blank#}(选拔赛) for cheerleaders{#blank#}2{#/blank#}(啦啦队队员). She was competing against very talented girls, and she knew it would be2 for her to be selected. Two hours later, the3 read a list of the girls for a second tryout. Her heart was down as the list ended without her name. Feeling4 , she walked home carrying her schoolbag full of homework.

Arriving home, she started with maths. She had always been a5 maths student, but now she was struggling. She moved on to English and history, and was happy to find that she didn't have any trouble with those subjects. Feeling better, she decided not to6 maths for the time being.

The next day Jenna went to see Mrs Biden about being on the school7 . Mrs Biden wasn't as8 as Jenna. "I'm sorry, but we have enough9 for the newspaper already. Come back next year and we'll talk then." Jenna smiled10 and left. "Why is high school so11 ?" she sighed.

Later in maths class, Jenna devoted herself to figuring out the problems that had given her so much12 . By the end of class, she understood how to get them right. As she gathered her books, Jenna decided she'd continue to try to fit in at her new school. She wasn't sure if she'd13 , but she knew she had to try. High school was just as her mum had said, "You will feel like a small fish in a big pond14 a big fish in a small pond. The challenge is to become the15 fish you can be."