Earlier this year Rodney Smith Jr. made headlines when he drove eight hours from his home in Huntsville. Alabama, to cut the lawn for an elderly soldier in North Carolina who couldn't find anyone to help him with his yard work.

That wasn't the first time the twenty-nine-year-old Bermuda native had gained such attention. To do his good deeds, Rodney often finds leads for those in need through social media.

Back to one August afternoon in 2015, Rodney Smith Jr. was driving home. That's when Rodney saw an elderly man struggling to mow his lawn. He would take a couple of shaky steps, using the handle to stabilize himself, pause, then slowly push the mower again. Rodney decided to help. Mr. Brown thanked him greatly, and Rodney went home feeling satisfied.

Sitting at his computer to do his homework, Rodney couldn't get Mr. Brown out of his mind. There must be many Mr. Browns out there. He went online and posted that he would mow lawns for free for senior citizens. Messages flooded in.

One day a cancer-battling woman said she wasn't having a good day. Rodney decided to do more than mowing lawns. After he finished mowing, he knocked on her door. "You're going to win this fight, Madam", he said. Then he asked folks to pray for her on social media.

Word of Rodney's mission spread. A grandmother in Ohio said he'd encouraged her 12-year-old grandson to mow lawns. He got a letter from a seven-year-old boy in Kansas. "Mr. Rodney, I would like to be a part of your program, and I'll make you proud," he wrote.

That gave Rodney an idea. In 2017, he decided to establish a programme Raising Men Lawn Care Service to make a national movement for young people. The kids learn the joy of giving back.

Yard work seems like a small, simple thing, but taking care of the lawn means a lot to the people they do it for. "When we mow their yards for free, they can use the money for healthcare and food etc. It means more than you would think," Rodney said.

One teacher had two students. One of them had a positive vision while the other had the 1 one.

One day, the teacher 2 for a park with both the students and while wandering in the garden, they 3 a mango tree from which some ripe and juicy mangoes were 4 . On seeing this, the teacher thought to 5 both of his students. Then, he asked the first one, "My dear child, what do you think of this mango tree?"

The student answered instantly, "Teacher, in spite of people 6 this tree with stones, it gives us sweet and juicy mangoes. It does 7 but still it gives us fruits. I wish all human beings learn this important 8 from the mango tree-to share their 9 even if they have to suffer for this."

After that, the teacher asked the other student the same question. The student 10 answered, "Teacher, this mango tree is no good and will not give mangoes by itself but only when we hit it with stones and 11 . Therefore, we should hit it hard to get sweet mangoes from it. That is the only way to 12 these mangoes. It is also clear from this tree that in order to get good 13 from others, we need to be violent and only when we become violent, then and only then will we get 14 ."

The teacher was delighted with the answer given by the first student because he had an admirable vision and 15 the tree with positive vision.

(2023陕西西安高一练习)

Donald opened the door of his pet parrot's cage and slid in his index finger(食指).Donald's parrot,Sunshine,jumped excitedly onto the finger."How are you doing today,Sunshine?" {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Sunshine munched(用力咀嚼)happily on the grass while Donald put the bird on his shoulder and walked across the room to his desk.

"I need to earn some money,Sunshine," Donald said to the bird,which was now placed atop Donald's head."But who will hire someone of my age,and what am I good at?"

{#blank#}2{#/blank#} "I'm responsible," he said to Sunshine as he wrote,"and I like people and animals,but,on the other hand,I'm too young to drive,and I don't have much experience in performing most jobs."

{#blank#}3{#/blank#} After a couple of rings,the phone quieted,so Donald knew his mother had answered the phone.He heard an unclear conversation from the room as he continued his job musings(沉思).

{#blank#}4{#/blank#} She laughed when she saw Sunshine stay happily on Donald's head."That was Mrs.Johannson on the telephone," she reported.She wants to know if you would be willing to take care of their two parrots while the Johannsons are out of town next week.{#blank#}5{#/blank#} Donald grinned(咧嘴笑) from ear to ear.

A.She's even willing to pay a little.

B.You might be too busy to take the job.

C.Donald was worried about his future job.

D.Donald asked as he held out a leaf of grass to the bird.

E.A few minutes later,Donald's mother walked into his room.

F.Donald was thinking about his options when he heard the telephone ring in another room.

G.Donald tore a sheet of paper out of a notebook and began writing down the things he was good at.

Why We Should Record Travel Moments

On a rainy summer day, I took a train to Switzerland and trekked through the mud to a medieval fortress high atop a cliff. After twisting through its dimly lit corridors, I finally {#blank#}1{#/blank#} (arrive) at the main viewpoint of Cave of the Fairies: a plunging 77m waterfall that shoots from underground into a sparkling pool. As the waterfall wet my jacket, I closed my eyes and took out my phone {#blank#}2{#/blank#} (record) the rush of dreamy reality before me.

I had come in search of a sound, not a sight.

Throughout my travels, I've found myself {#blank#}3{#/blank#} (collect) sound recordings the way other people collect souvenirs. Just as some travellers take photos of landscapes or their food, I started doing this as an artistic way to help me remember some of the most interesting details of my trips.

Environmental scientist Lauren Kuehne said, "I think that once you start to listen, once you actually start to listen, you start to appreciate how much {#blank#}4{#/blank#} (big) the world is."

This attitude {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (echo) by Samara Kester, a retired emergency medicine physician who now serves on QPI's board. "A photograph is two dimensions. {#blank#}6{#/blank#} you are looking at something you're seeing, it's maybe 180 degrees, maybe 270 degrees. Sound is 360 degrees. You hear it all around you." Kester explained {#blank#}7{#/blank#} teaching herself to be a better listener has not only expanded her sense of travel, but helped her relive her travels once she's back home. "You immerse {#blank#}8{#/blank#} in that place again. You recreate those memories and therefore recreate the feelings you had, {#blank#}9{#/blank#} are very hard to express clearly. You can re-experience that and that will send you to where you were before."

Months later back in my L.A. home, I find myself popping on my headphones and listening back to the rush of falling water inside Cave of the Fairies. When I close my eyes, I {#blank#}10{#/blank#} feel the spray of water against my skin, the sense of letting my ears lead me on a faraway adventure. Mentally, I'm right back there — if only for a moment.

Some Ohio high school students have become winners in a national contest (竞赛) after inventing a mobile phone app that helps needy families find local food pantries (公益食品仓库).

And someday the teens, who are students at Ross High School in Ross Township, may be selling the app to food pantries and food banks across America.

The app was created as part of a computer science class — coordinated (协调) by Butler Tech career school system at the high school. Three students, Jacob Kahmann, Gunner Nonnamaker and Kyle Inderhees, recently were visited by Congressman Warren Davidson, who praised their work. Davidson lauded the teens for creating "this app to set the standard for efficient food collection and distribution (分发)".

Butler Tech IT Instructor Tom O'Neill said the students' app includes characteristics that help users locate the nearest food pantry and improve food collection processes, and that the national contest provides a real-life learning chance for his students.

The students are continuing to make additions to the app and are working on turning it into a product, said O'Neill, who in recent years has helped many Ross High School teens win national honors for their computer-science-based inventions.

"The teachers and students in the Ross School District continue to amaze me with their future-thinking and creation," said Superintendent Scott Gates. "Our students are not only thinking about careers, they are thinking about problems they want to change, solve or improve. The app that was created will make serving a population in need more efficient."

More than 50 years ago, my dad planted {#blank#}1{#/blank#} evergreen tree.He watered it and cared for it.A few {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(year) later, when it grew to about 3 feet tall, he placed its first set of Christmas lights on it.Thus our tradition began.Every Christmas ever since, this tree has lit up our neighborhood corner.

Dad passed away in November 1991.With all the emotions of his {#blank#}3{#/blank#}(pass),Thanksgiving came and went.When the topic of the tree {#blank#}4{#/blank#}(bring) up, Mom said,"Not this year."But my brother, sister and I said,"Dad would want it to be done,"so the following weekend,we {#blank#}5{#/blank#}(decorate) the tree together {#blank#}6{#/blank#} memory of him.

The tree now stands about 40 feet tall, and we have to use a beautiful cherry lift.{#blank#}7{#/blank#}(put) the top lights on.We turn the lights on the evening after Thanksgiving,{#blank#}8{#/blank#} send out light each night until New Year's Day.People drive by slowly, taking pictures or simply {#blank#}9{#/blank#} (enjoy) its beauty.Then in spring we pack the lights {#blank#}10{#/blank#}(safe) away for the next year.