There was a woman in Detroit, who has two sons. She was worried 1 them, especially the younger one, Ben, 2 he was not doing well in school. Boys in his class 3 fun of him because he seemed so 4.

    The mother 5 that she would, herself, have to get her sons to do better in school. She 6 them to go to the Detroit Public Library to read a 7 a week and do a report about it for her.

    One day, in Ben's  8, the teacher held up a rock and asked if anyone knew it. Ben 9 up his hand and the teacher let him 10. “Why did Ben raise his hand?” They wondered. He 11 said anything; what could he possibly want to say?

    Well, Ben not only 12 the rock; he said a lot about it. He named other rocks in its group and even knew 13 the teacher had found it. The teacher and the students were 14. Ben had learned all this from doing one of his book 15.

    Ben later went on to the 16 of his class. When he finished high school, he went to Yale University 17 at last became one of the best doctors in the United States.

    After Ben had grown up, he 18 something about his mother that he did not know as a 19.

    She, herself, had never learned how to  20.

    Columbus returned home with the news of his discovery of “Indian” as Columbus called it. Then he was considered as the hero who had 1a new world to Spain. Never had such great 2 been shown to any common man. But there were some who were jealous（嫉妒）of the 3.“Who is this Columbus?” they asked, “and what has he done? Isn't he a poor  4  from Italy? And could not any other seaman sail across the ocean just as he has done?”

    One day Columbus was at5  and several of these fellows were6. They tried to make Columbus 7.“You have discovered strange lands beyond the sea,” they said, “But we don't see 8 there should be so much said about it. Anybody can coast along the9 on the other side, just as you have done. It is the 10 thing in the world.”

    Columbus made no11, but after a while he took an egg from a dish and said to the people at the table, “Who12 you, gentlemen, can make the egg stand on 13 ?”One by one they tried the14 .When the egg had gone entirely around and everyone had  15 , all said that it could not be done. Then Columbus took the egg and 16 the shell of the egg's small end a little upon the table. After that there was no 17  in making it stand upward. “Gentlemen,” said he, “what is18than to do this which you said was 19? It is the simplest thing in the world. Anybody can do it--AFTER HE HAS BEEN SHOWN 20 .”

    Even though I've lived most of my life in China, English has always been an important part of my life.

    When I was four years old, my family and I1 to the US, where we lived in Houston, Texas, for a year. I was too 2 then to fully understand what it was like to be in such a different environment, but 3 English started to make its way into my life.

    At first, I didn't really know how to 4 with my foreign classmates with proper English, but they were nice and 5 and very soon English became like a second language to me. I could 6myself in both Chinese and English. I had another useful 7.

    English is 8 a tool of communication for me; it has also brought a new world of 9 to me. When I was in fourth grade, my friends 10me a very popular book series called Percy Jackson & the Olympians, and I felt then that I had never read any story that 11 me as much. I began to 12 the world of English literature（文学）and found that all the 13 books and stories I came across opened my eyes to a different 14 from the one I had been familiar with. I loved the stories I would otherwise have 15 if I had not known English.

    All in all, English has given me another tool for communicating with others, 16to understand and accept things I would never have 17 and brought me much 18through reading. I think I am very 19 to have learned English because it has helped20 my view of the world, and it still does.

    When I came to my new school three years ago, I was surprised at how lonely I felt. Then one of my classmates invited me to her house for a dinner 1. I was a little anxious, but finally I gladly 2.

    Not really knowing how 3 the bus ride should be, I 4when I saw the landmarks5 on my friend's hand-drawn map. But when I got close enough to the 6, I found none of the streets were shown on the map. I was 7 on a busy road with cars driving past without a person in sight. I had no 8 when the next bus would come, 9 when a bus did come by, I 10 got on. I told the bus driver where I wanted to go and he said that I had caught the 11 bus, but he let me stay on. After he had finished his scheduled bus route, he 12 to help me out. I gratefully showed him my little hand-drawn map but 13 did not help much.

    He finally 14 me off at a main road to catch a different bus and was 15 that he could not help me more. After a few minutes of walking, I noticed a bus pull up beside me. It was the 16 bus driver. He explained that he didn't want to leave me there 17. He sent out a call and someone radioed back, saying that the bus I needed to catch was about ten minutes away. At last I made it to the dinner party 18 I was over an hour late.

    I am forever thankful for the 19 that this bus driver had for me. His act of kindness left a 20 on my heart.

Tell mommy I love her

    John had been on the road visiting customers for more than three weeks. It was coming up on Mother's Day. He said to himself, "I'll 1 Mom some roses."

    He went into the small shop and saw a boy 2 to the clerk. "How many roses can I get for six dollars, ma'am?" the boy asked. The clerk was trying to 3 that roses were expensive. 4 the young man would be happy with carnations (康乃馨).

    "No. I 5 have roses," he said, "My Mom was sick so much last year and I didn't get to spend much time with her. I want to get something 6. It has to red roses, because that's her favorite."

    The clerk 7 John and was just shaking her head. Something inside John was 8 by the boy's voice. He looked at the clerk and 9 mouthed that he would pay for the boy's roses.

    The clerk looked at the young man and said, "Okay, I will give you a dozen red roses 10 your six dollars." The young man 11 jumped into the air. He took the flowers and ran from the store.

    John 12 his own flowers and had the clerk be 13 that delivery would include a note telling his mother how much he loved her. 14 he drove away from the shop, he saw the young boy walking down the sidewalk. He 15 him cross the street and enter a cemetery (墓地). The young man stopped by a small monument and went on his knees. He 16 laid the roses on the grave and began to sob. John heard the young man speak, "Mommy, oh Mommy, 17 didn't I tell you how much I love you? Jesus, please, find my Mommy. 18 my Mommy I love her."

    John 19, tears in his eyes, and walked back to his car. He drove quickly to the florist and told her he would take the flowers 20.

Dino Impagliazzo cuts onions like a professional cook. The old man makes a great vegetable soup,

1 most of his customers can't even 2 a piece of bread.

Impagliazzo, the founder of the RomAmoR association (协会), began cooking for the homeless fifteen years ago. The 3 came to Impagliazzo when a homeless man asked him for 4. After knowing the gentleman, he discovered that many homeless people in Rome 5to find food on Sundays, when homeless associations were closed. "I realized that perhaps instead of giving him a bill to buy sandwiches, 6 some sandwiches would be better, and thus began our 7," Impagliazzo said.

He started out by making sandwiches from his home, and then moved on to hot meals. 8, his organization moved to a fully-equipped kitchen. Volunteers can now be found cooking up food on a(n) 9 basis. Three days a week, he works alongside 300 volunteers, and then the volunteers 10 the work throughout the week. The positive action never stops for a day.

Besides, recruiting (招募) volunteers is very 11. "We try to make more and more people join the activities so that Rome becomes a city of love where people can 12 each other," said Impagliazzo. Impagliazzo 13 food materials from local stores. The workers there greet him warmly and are always 14 to make a contribution.

Finally, Impagliazzo's 15 has earned him the title of Rome's "chef of the poor".