It's always been a dream for Alex to take a trip with her mother, but it was a death in the family that1made them both realize how precious life really is.

    “After losing my grandma, I2that neither I nor my mum will3be here, and that I can't4the right time to come,” the 27-year-old girl told The Huffington post.

    “After a week of5, my amazing mum and I are off to travel around the United States. We will be travelling from New York to Los Angeles interviewing6who are changing the world for the better and7the dream I had for a very long time: to travel together with my mother. I have taken a month off work and we are on our way.8are waiting!” Alex said.

    So in August，Alex and her 63-year-old retired mother，Halina, traveled to the United States for a three-week 9that took them from coast to coast.

    Alex is the10of Looking For Heroes, a social media project, in which she photographs many of the interesting people she meets with,11unique tidbits (花边新闻) of their life stories at the same time. The 12mother and daughter traveled across the nation, visiting cities13Knoxville, Tennessee, New York City, Los Angeles and Washington. Along the way they took photos 14 famous backdrops (背景) in each city, making some15memories.

    Meanwhile, Alex16much from her mother. Her mother often said “My  17to young people would be to learn new things, and what you have learned will be your biggest 18in life. With age you stop19about things that don't matter. With your priorities (优先) changing, 20and health become the most important.

To me, kindness is a chosen lifestyle. In my classroom, I tell my1that every day they are offered a choice. They can't choose what happens to them, but they can choose how they2to it. Kindness is a3. And it is a lifestyle. It isn't something that we just choose once in a while— it is a(n)4to live our lives.

    My father was hospitalized with leukemia(白血病) when I was in college. He didn't choose the cancer.5, he chose how to react to it. To this day, seventeen years later, the nurses6write my mother letters. The7? It was because of my father's kindness to others even when he was8against the disease. He made kindness a lifestyle.

    And I want to be 9him. Every day as a teacher, I try and teach my students the kindness lifestyle. Just recently, I turned 40 and a friend gave me 40 individual dollar bills. She challenged me to do something10with the money. I gladly accepted the challenge.

    I gave 40 of my students one dollar each and challenged them to make a(n)11. What happened? My Twitter and Instagram were 12with pictures of kids making the world a better place. One girl bought a dollar store stuffed animal(填充玩具). It was13that kids should have made a difference when they were given the 14.

    Living the kindness lifestyle 15 every day, every opportunity. As a high school teacher, I see16everywhere. In the hallways, in the lunchroom, in the locker room,17words and gossip fill the air. So I started a hashtag (标签) to18positive gossip called “third party compliments(称赞)”. The idea is that you talk about people behind their backs, but do it in a 19way. In that way, the gossip that gets back to students makes their day instead of getting them down.

    Our kindness lifestyle leaves a footprint on others, and let us be the movers and kindness-makers who20a better, more beautiful world.

    I was in the kitchen making lunch when I saw my six-year-old son, Billy, walking toward the woods. I could only see his back. He 1 to be walking with a great effort, trying to be as 2 as possible.

    A few minutes after he disappeared into the 3, he came running toward the house again. I went back to making sandwiches, 4 that whatever task he had been doing was completed. Moments later, 5, he was once again walking slowly toward the woods.

    6curiosity, I walked out and followed him on his journey. He was 7 both hands in front of him as he walked, being 8 not to spill the water he held in them. I secretly walked 9 behind him as he went into the woods and I saw the most amazing 10.

    Several large deer loomed in front of him. Billy walked right up to them. I almost 11 at him to get away. A huge male deer with elaborate（精美的）antlers was 12 close. But they didn't even move as Billy 13. And I saw a small deer lying on the ground, obviously suffering from 14and extreme heat, lift its head 15 to drink the water cupped in my beautiful boy's hands.

    It was on this day that I learned the true lesson of 16. You know, we hadn't had any rain for three months and our crops were 17. As the tears that rolled down my face began to hit the ground, they were suddenly 18 by other drops. I looked up at the sky. It was19 God was moved to weep. The rain came that day and saved our farm, just like the 20 of one little boy who saved another.

    While I was waiting to enter university, I saw in a newspaper a teaching job1at a school about ten miles from where I lived. Being very short of2and wanting to do something3I applied (申请), 4as I did so, that without a degree and with no5of teaching my chances of getting the job were6.

    However, three days later, a letter arrived, calling me to Croydon for a meeting with the headmaster. It proved to be a 7journey: a train to Croydon station, a ten-minute bus ride and then a walk of at8a quarter of a mile. As a result I arrived there, feeling too hot to be nervous. It was clearly the9 himself that10the door. He was short and round.

    "The school," he said, "is made up of one11of twenty-four boys between seven and thirteen." I should have to teach all the subjects except art, 12 he taught himself. I should have to divide the class into13groups and teach them in turn at three different14, and I was15at the thought of teaching maths—a subject at which I wasn't very16at school. Worse perhaps was the idea of17 to teach them on Saturday afternoon because most of my friends would be18 themselves at that time.

    Before I had time to ask about my salary, he got up to his19 . "Now" he said, you'd better meet my wife. She is the one who really20this school.

{#blank#}1{#/blank#}(随着…的临近) Qingming, we students became restless as {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(已被宣布) that we would have a two-day break. On Qingming, it is {#blank#}3{#/blank#}(一个古老的中国风俗) to pay a visit to the family graveyard in memory of ancestors. It is also a good opportunity for us students to escape from the boring life at school. We waited and waited until the bell rang, indicating the class was over. We rushed out of the classroom like caged birds, {#blank#}4{#/blank#}(渴望) get home earlier.

Since my parents had attended the family memorial service two days before the Qingming Festival, we decided to make a short road trip to Cherry Valley instead. The valley is just a stone's throw from where we live. When springs comes, {#blank#}5{#/blank#}(成群的人们) flock there, admiring cherry blossoms. My family is no exception. Every year, we drive there to {#blank#}6{#/blank#}(大饱眼福). After about half an hour, we made it to the entrance to the valley. Having arrived there, we found huge numbers of people had gathered. Wherever I went, I was drowned in {#blank#}7{#/blank#}(大量的) noise. No wonder tons of people rushed over to take a closer look at cherry blossoms, for the entry here is totally{#blank#}8{#/blank#}(免费的). But people had to wait for their turn. After what seemed like two hours, finally it was our turn. Once inside, we {#blank#}9{#/blank#}(受到问候) tweets of birds perching on cherry trees. It was like stepping into a fairyland with all those cherry blossoms{#blank#}10{#/blank#}(bloom) around us. At the sight of this, we couldn't wait to explore more together. The air was filled with sweet, intoxicating fragrance. Standing under the trees, I felt my skins {#blank#}11{#/blank#}(caress) gently by the falling pink petals. Birds were jumping here and there among cherry trees, {#blank#}12{#/blank#}(twitter) happily. Everyone was holding their phone, trying to capture the amazing view. Strolling with my family down the trails, I found myself in a totally different world. There was no worry, no trouble, and above all no pressure from study. It{#blank#}13{#/blank#}(一点也不令人吃惊) such a small place is packed with so many visitors every spring. The scenery is amazing and impressive. Cherry Valley is also a paradise for foodies in spring. Local restaurants have a lot {#blank#}14{#/blank#}(offer), which can suit different tastes. 

Places like Cherry Valley are ideal destinations for visitors in spring, for they make life truly special and relaxing. It {#blank#}15{#/blank#}(大自然很慷慨) to provide us with such magical and charming places in the world.

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.