My family moved from Taiwan to a small town in central Georgia, where my dad got a visa for his family and a job. I had just learned English, and from what little I could gather from my friends, Santa Claus would come down one's chimney and put toys in one's stocking on Christmas Eve! What a great country, I thought. After I looked up "stocking" in my Chinese-English dictionary, I knew what I had to do and always expected that day.

    Finally, the big day came. On that wonderful night, after everyone went to bed, I sneaked out of bed, took my longest, cleanest knee sock and attached it to a nail already on the mantel (壁炉). Obviously, the previous owners of this house were no strangers to this Santa character. Gazing at the sock and imagining the delicately-packed gift in it, I couldn't help giggling (咯咯笑). For the first time, I found it hard to fall asleep.

    And for the first time, I woke up before everyone else in the early morning. Then I headed straight to the fireplace and was even ready for what to say after seeing the gift. However, what happened next was the least thing I wanted to mention. On the nail was the empty and lonely sock. I was hit with the reality of the empty sock and the biggest lie ever told. I tried my best to hold back my tears but failed. Bursting into tears, I quickly took down the sock and stuffed it in the back of a drawer.

    Every December since then, the topic of Christmas memories would unavoidably come up, and I would amuse my friends with my poor-little-me story. I had to make it as funny as possible, or else I would cry once again. I didn't know whether any of my audience ever noticed the sparkling tears hidden in my eyes.

    How could I know that Santa was just late? Nine years ago, on Christmas Eve, I heard a knock on the door when I was watching TV. Unwillingly, I dragged my feet and opened the door.

注意：

1）所续写短文词数为 150 左右；

2）应使用 5 个以上短文中标有下划线的关键词语；

3）续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好；

4）续写完成后，请用下划线标出你使用的关键词语。

Paragraph 1：

    Outside the door stood an old man with a white beard and a red cap, holding a well-packed box.

Paragraph 2：

    Through tear-blurred eyes, I recognized the handwriting on the card.

Misha had a two-year-old dog called Gandalf, a search and rescue dog. Misha had trained him for a year with South Carolina Search and Rescue Dog Association.

Misha would train Gandalf whenever she had time. She would give him something like a shoe to smell, then hide it and say to him, "Find, boy!" Hearing this, Gandalf would race off. Soon he would turn up with the very object in his mouth, looking up at her and wagging(摆动)his tail happily. Misha was sure that together, they two would make a brilliant team.

Last Sunday, a 12-year-old boy Michael disappeared from his group's campsite in Doughton Park, 7000 rough acres in the Blue Ridge Mountains in North Carolina. A massive search had been launched, but for 3 days there was barely a track of the boy. The rescue teams were about to lose hope when Misha and Gandalf stepped in.

But this was their first real job. Gandalf would have to pick up the missing boy's smell in the air after three days, a challenging task for even the sharpest animal.

Misha gathered her team of six other members, and they headed north. A sister team had been searching the woods through the night. Misha's team would take over later that rainy morning.

All the searchers found were some dropped potato chips west of Michael's campsite. They'd obtained an unwashed T-shirt from Michael's backpack that hadn't been touched by anyone else and handled it with gloves, carefully cutting it into smaller pieces and sealing(密封) them up in plastic bags.

At 8 a.m. Misha's team were briefed on every detail about Michael. Misha carefully studied his picture to lock his image in her mind. She pulled a bright yellow jacket over Gandalf's head. It had large letters on each side saying "RESCUE", which made Gandalf look like a solider.

Paragraph 1

Then Misha opened a bag containing the pieces of Michael's shirt.

Paragraph 2

The rescue team were about to stop when Gandalf suddenly slowed down nearby a ruined castle (城堡)

I wanted to go to a party. Especially it was a beach party. It had been almost the only thing my friends had been talking about for the last couple of weeks. But My mom had said no. The more desperately I pleaded her case, the more forcefully my mother said no. "I don't care who's going," said coldly my mother, "you are not going." I was heartbroken. This was my best friend's party.

Sunday dinner came around and my grandmother joined the family for the meal. Gran noticed my depression but didn't say a word. It was my turn to wash up and Gran said, "Let me help you." "What's up?" asked Gran as I dumped the dishes into the foaming water. Gran wiped a plate with a tea towel. "Mom won't let me go to my best friend's party." I said sadly. "Has mom explained why she doesn't want you to go?" asked Gran. "No." I replied. "Then for a moment, put yourself in her position." said Gran. "If you were mom, what would your objections be?"

I hadn't stopped to think about my mom's side. "Well," I answered, "it's a beach party. Maybe she doesn't trust us or thinks we'll get into trouble."

"Are there going to be any adults there?" asked Gran. "No," I said, "who wants their parents hanging around when you're trying to have fun?" "Might it just be," said Gran, "your mother doesn't want anything unfortunate to happen to you.""Nothing will happen." I objected. "Maybe you're right," said Gran, "but maybe mom's worried in case it could."

Gran looked at me gently, seeming to expect my agreement. For a minute or so, I kept silent, pondering for a while about my eagerness for the party. "Maybe, you are right, however, is there no hope?" I inquired. "Not necessarily." answered Gran, lost in thought. 

Paragraph 1: "Then maybe think of a compromise." suggested Gran.

Paragraph 2: The long-awaited beach party finally came.

It was late spring when my mum and I were driving through the countryside. Back then I was 13 years old and always felt unhappy with mum. However, little did I know that this trip was going to be a special one.

A pot of flowers sat in the back seat, whose pleasant smell filled the car. Suddenly, in the middle of nowhere, my mum pulled over. "What are you doing?" I cried, fearing that the car had broken down and that we'd be stuck there, so far from home. Fortunately, that wasn't the case. My mum hopped out of the car, grabbing the flowers from the back seat. "It'll just be a minute," she called back through the open windows.

Impatiently, I cast my eyes towards the edge of the road before they settled on a little sign showing that it was a nursing home. I looked back to the building, somewhat annoyed, as my mum reappeared empty-handed.

Before she started the car, curiosity drove me to ask, "Do you know anyone there?" She shook her head. "Then what did you do with the flowers?" She smiled slightly, "I gave them to the receptionist(接待员)." "What?" She laughed at my confusion. "I told the receptionist to give the flowers to whoever needed them, especially those who haven't received any."

I kept silent for a moment. Not long after we went on with our driving, I spoke again, "Did you leave your name?" To this she answered instantly, "No. Leaving flowers there for someone who will appreciate them makes me feel good, which is enough for me."

Suddenly, still thinking about mum's deeds, I heard something burst loudly. It was our car that broke down! Nothing could be worse, because neither my mum nor I understood how to repair it, and we didn't know where the garage was. It also seemed impossible to wait for any passer-by, since we had seen so few along the way.

注意：

1)续写词数应为150左右;

2)请按如下格式作答。

I let out a sigh while my mum rooted herself against the car worrying about what could be done. 

As we drove along, a flower shop came into sight on the road. 

As Valentine's Day, a time for expressing affection through the exchange of presents, drew near, Kendra found herself seated at the kitchen table, carefully penning her name on Valentine's cards for her classmates. She recognized her own hesitation; words didn't come easily to her. While she envied the ease with which her peers talked and laughed, her shyness often kept her quiet.

Kendra grabbed another card. Her eyes lit up at the phrase "You're dynamite （引起轰动的人或物）!" — a term that would undoubtedly delight her Grammy, who frequently used the expression to praise their festive decorations. "Well, that looks dynamite!" Grammy would exclaim, her approval filling Kendra with warmth.

Just as Kendra was signing the cards, her mother came in, sharing the sad news of Elise, their neighbor, and her recent accident that led to a broken leg, restricting her to home schooling for the coming weeks. Kendra felt sorry for Elise, and quickly picked the most splendid valentine, hurrying to Elise's home.

Upon arrival, Kendra's look fell upon the life-sized deer statue decorating the front yard. She studied it, saying to herself, "Wouldn't this deer look cool with a big heart around his neck? Elise could look out of the window and see it decorated for Valentine's day."

With this idea, Kendra got the sizable red heart her Grammy had given her, tied it with string, and hung it around the statue's neck like a festive chain. The next day, she decorated the antlers （鹿角） with a variety of smaller hearts. It was during this act of kindness that Colin and Amy, Elise's fellow classmates, happened upon the scene. "Are you decorating Elise's deer for Valentine's Day?" they asked. Kendra confirmed with a nod, explaining her intention to cheer up Elise. Despite her uncertainty about what to add next, Colin proposed adding some color, while Amy suggested putting decorations on the deer's back and forehead. United by a shared purpose, they agreed to meet later.

Paragraph 1: That afternoon, they met to decorate the deer with the materials they had sourced.

Paragraph 2: Just then, Elise's front door opened, and Elise stuck her head out.

Calvin's day camp teacher, Autumn, passed out a sheet of paper with pictures and descriptions of different birds and a small pair of binoculars) (双筒望远镜) to each camper. He announced, "We're going to do a one-week challenge called ‘Big Week', where you try to identify birds and mark them on the paper. Whoever identifies the most birds wins."

Another challenge? Ever since camp started, Gladys had beaten Calvin at everything. If he won this one, maybe he'd finally show Gladys that she wasn't unbeatable. "How will you know if I really saw…" Calvin scanned the list. "… a glossy ibis?" "I won't," Autumn said. "A Big Week is based on honesty."

The next day at the preserve, when they hid behind some brush, Gladys spotted a great egret! "That was my gift to you," Gladys whisper-shouted with an I'm-going-to-win-this tone. "Like I would've missed that giant bird," Calvin protested. Suddenly, birds exploded above Calvin's head. Thunk! He fell down onto his back. Gladys rushed toward him, helped him up and advised, "Here's a tip: try being OUIET."

That evening, a large bird landed on Calvin's neighbor's tree. Calvin focused the binoculars. The bird had a bright red eye, a thick straight bill, a white throat and breast, and—oh, wow—long, thin, white feathers on the back of its head. "A black-crowned night heron!" he whispered excitedly. He was completely absorbed in his observation.

As the week went by, competition became fierce. Calvin had to win this contest. But chance seemed so slim! Then he remembered that he had found a feather that Autumn thought belonged to a Cooper's hawk close enough. He marked it, plus a few extra birds. What was the difference? He had seen them in the past, or he would see them eventually. He swallowed (吞咽) hard. No one will know the truth.

On the last day of Big Week, Autumn waved Gladys's checklist in the air. "Twenty-six is the number to beat. Anybody else?"

注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右；

2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。

Reviewing the 29 birds marked on his list, Calvin felt his face heated up.

……

Autumn awarded Gladys a Big Week T-shirt.

……