It was thesummer before my third grade. Our girls' softball team was facing real pitchers(投球手)1thefirst time. Before that, we could just hit the ball on the tee (球座). When the coach started pitching, hitting became2forme. I missed every single pitch. From the side, I heard my teammate Emilylaughing at3. My face got hot and my throat feltlike it had a softball stuck in. At that moment, I was starting to4playingsoftball.

    The nextafternoon, when Mum said it was time to play the game, I told her I was5.She allowed me to lie down for a while. So I went to my room and6myselfin bed. This was difficult for me because I was fine and just7toavoid softball.

    Soon Mumcame in and said, "Time to go!" She didn't even ask if I felt8.I imagined Emily laughing from the sideline, and9Ireally did feel sick to my stomach. I began crying loudly. Still, Mum pulled myteam T-shirt over my head. She said, "You have to10forthe rest of the season, and only after that we can talk about11you'llcontinue next year." She added that practice was what I needed, not12.She promised to practise with me.

    I got twohits that afternoon, and Emily didn't make a13.Every week after that, I practised at home14I got to be one of thebest hitters on the team.

    That15taughtme that being afraid is part of life, and I can do whatever is expected of meif I keep working and practising.

阅读下列短文, 从下面每个小题的A、B、C、D四个选项中选出最佳选项。

One day, Ben was playing basketball in the living room, breaking a vase. To cover his terrible action, the frightened boy glued the pieces together and put the vase back to its place.

That evening her mother noticed the cracks (裂纹). But to her surprise, the repair work was actually very good. At dinner time, she asked her boy if he broke the vase. Fearing punishment, the boy said that a neighbor's cat jumped in from the window and knocked the vase off. His mother was quite clear that her son was lying. However, she said nothing.

Before going to bed, the boy was asked to go to the study. In the study, his mother didn't look angry. On seeing her son carefully come in, she gave him one chocolate, saying "This chocolate is a reward (奖励) for your imagination: a window-opening cat!" At that moment, the boy felt the chocolate was a hot potato. “Did mom find holes in my excuse?” he thought. “You know, all the windows were closed.” Mother continued calmly and took out two chocolates into his hand, “An award for the perfect repair.”

Now with the chocolates in hand, the boy wished the ground to open up and bury him! He told the truth. “So I have to punish you for your lie.” The mother said with a serious voice and took back his chocolates. The boy bent down his head in shame. “But your honesty should have the award—a box of chocolates.” The mother suddenly bent to kiss his cheek, speaking gently to the crying boy, “My son, honesty values more than anything.”

A little girl heard her parents talking about her brother. He was very sick and they had no money. Only a very expensive operation (手术) could save him.

"Only a miracle(奇迹) can save him now," said her father. The little girl took out her money and counted (数) it carefully.

She hurried to a drugstore(药店) with the money.

"What do you want?" asked the salesman. "I want to buy a miracle." "Pardon?" said the salesman.

"My brother Andrew has something bad growing inside his head and my daddy says only a miracle can save him. So how much does a miracle cost?" "We don't sell a miracle here, Child. I'm sorry," the salesman said with a smile.

"Listen! If it isn't enough, I can try and get some more. Just tell me how much it costs."

A well-dressed man heard it and asked, "What kind of miracle does your brother need?"

"I don't know," she answered. "He's really sick and Mom says he needs an operation. But my daddy can't pay for it, so I have brought all my money."

"How much do you have?" asked the man. "$

1.11, but I can try and get some more," she answered.

"Well, what luck," smiled the man. He took up the girl's hand and said, "Take me to where you live. Let's see if I have the kind of miracle you need."

That well-dressed man was Dr. Carlton Armstrong, a famous doctor. The operation was successful and it wasn't long before Andrew was home again.

The Ear Care Day falls on March 3 each year. It reminds people to pay more attention to {#blank#}1{#/blank#} hearing. On March 2, 2021, the World Health Organization (WHO) released (发布) its {#blank#}2{#/blank#} World Report on Hearing, the BBC reported.

According to the report, one in five people worldwide has hearing {#blank#}3{#/blank#}. By 2050, nearly 2.5 billion people, or 1 in 4 people, will have some degree of hearing loss (听力受损).

One {#blank#}4{#/blank#} for this is that many people can't get the care. This is quite {#blank#}5{#/blank#} in low-income countries where there are few doctors.

The report also gives advice {#blank#}6{#/blank#} us protect our hearing. The suggestions are mainly about controlling the {#blank#}7{#/blank#} and listening to sound safely. It also says that regular (定期的) medical checks are {#blank#}8{#/blank#}. Medical treatment (治疗) can solve most ear problems.

Keep our ears {#blank#}9{#/blank#} and warm is also very important. Dry our ears with a towel {#blank#}10{#/blank#} swimming or taking a bath. If you feel water in your ear, shake your head. This can help you get the water out of your ear.

All in all, the ears are {#blank#}11{#/blank#} important organs (器官) with great uses. Everyone should make sure to protect their ears as well as they can.

I'll always remember the first time I tried ballet(芭蕾). My mother was a dancer and I wanted to be like her, but after making many mistakes during my first class, I felt like I wanted to give up right away. Because it was only my first day, I told my mom I couldn't wait to dance again.

Several weeks passed and my dancing didn't get any better. Then my dance teacher told us that we were going to perform in a show. I was afraid of falling on my face in front of hundreds of people and made my mom sad.

I practiced hard for the show, but I still didn't get the hang of it. Finally, I went to my mom to tell her how I felt. She just laughed and told me she would tea ch me all she knew about ballet. My mom quickly found out how bad at ballet I was, but she still taught me with the greatest patience, love and understanding. When I jumped and fell, she was there to catch me. When I lost my balance, she held me up. By the time the show arrived, I was as prepared as I could be.

The music began and my heart started to beat quickly. Breathing calmly, I began moving to the music without missing a step. When the music stopped, I ran off the stage and laughed with excitement.

My mom found me and gave me a huge hug, telling me how proud she was. I looked my mom in the eye and told her that there was no way this could have happened without her. Through this, I knew one important fact: My mom will always be there to catch me if I fall.

When I was a little boy, I lived next to David. He liked to plant trees in his large yard on weekends. But the way he planted trees was quite different. He never watered his new trees. I asked him why he did so, and he said that watering trees would spoil them. "If you water the trees, each baby tree will grow weaker and weaker." said David. He told me that watering these new trees would make roots (树根) shallow (浅), but deep roots were very important for trees. I didn't understand his words at that time.

Several years after I left home, I came back to visit my parents. When I walked by David's house, I saw the trees that he planted. They are strong now. I suddenly realize that planting a tree is like raising a child. As a father of two children, I shouldn't care for them too much. Instead, they should depend on themselves. In that case, whatever happens, they can make their own decisions.