Some years ago, when a factory with 75,000 workers closed in our city, there was a feeling of sadness. Higher gas prices and disastrous floods added to such _______.

Our church youth group _______ to bring our city back to life by doing something nice. One of our _______ was to buy $25 gas cards and bouquets (花束) of roses, and randomly give them out to people who might need some _______.

One day, one of our members and I watched a young woman in her mid-twenties _______ to the gas pump. She didn’t get out of her car. _______, she looked through her purse and then began to _______. We approached politely to knock on the window and _______ a free gas card to her.

Upon hearing the knock, the young lady wiped away her tears, tried to _______ herself and then rolled down the window. We said to her. “Here is a free twenty-five dollar gas card for you, and we just want to be helpful.” ________, she slowly reached out to take the gas card and then told us her story.

She had been ________ for a long time and was ________ to support herself. She had trouble making ends meet but was ________ about a job interview she would have that day. In fact, she was singing on her way to it when her gas gauge (仪表) showed “________”. She’d ________ she had one last ten-dollar bill in her purse, but she couldn’t find it. Thinking she would ________ her interview, she broke down and cried.

She ________ us and said. “You have no idea what you’ve done for me. Thank you so much!” We watched tears of ________ stream down her face as she began pumping her gas.

We’ve continued the ________ of handing out roses and gas cards over the past years. It has made a ________ in those receivers’ lives as well as ours.

One fall in the mid-1950s, I took some time off and got a train ticket to visit relatives in Cleveland. I was _________ out of school and had begun working as an office clerk. On my return trip, I noticed a couple across the aisle (通道) — a(n) _________ and a young woman — having a conversation.

_________, I realized the two of them weren’t traveling together after all, but had just met on the train. The woman finally got off at Rochester, New York, leaving the soldier _________. I couldn’t help noticing his good looks out of the corner of my _________.

He asked _________ he could look at the train timetable I was holding, and then if he could _________ next to me so we could chat. He’s a fast mover, I thought. I’ll have to _________ for this one. I invited him to _________ the too-large lunch my aunt had __________ for my trip, and we __________ all the way to my stop in Oneida, and we __________ addresses and he said he would be in __________.

After a week, I still hadn’t heard from him and had begun to think he’d forgotten about me. Then, on Saturday, the phone rang and a __________ voice asked if I would like to see a movie with him that evening. He’d come to Oneida, and we __________ seeing On the Waterfront at the Kallet Theatre.

We had a few more __________ during his Army leave, and then he was __________ overseas. For the next few years, we __________ and he visited me on other holidays. Today we’ve been together more than 55 years, raising three daughters who now have daughters of their own.

Before taking my trip to Cleveland all those years ago, I was warned never to speak to __________ on a train. I’m certainly __________ I didn’t listen.

Two old beggars (乞丐) were sitting on a busy street corner of a big city. They watched _______ as a lot of people walked by without looking at them. Sometimes, a kind-hearted woman or a small child would _______ a few coins in the hats in front of them.

Today was not a _______ day for begging. The men were able to _______ enough for a big meal. As it was getting dark, they started to _______ their things.

Just as they were getting ready to leave, they _______ a man walking toward them. He was a _______ man. They could tell that from his fine clothes. The first beggar said to the second with _______, “He’s coming our way!” The man stopped, _______ into his pocket and took something out. What looked like a piece of hard ________, wrapped (包裹) in white paper, hit each of their waiting hats. The rich man turned and ________ his way.

“He could have easily left us a few ________ or a bill, but he laughed at us with a piece of rock candy,” said the first beggar. He looked at the offering ________. “There’s no way we can ________ this — we have no teeth.” With these words, he picked up the thing and threw it away. Then he collected his things and ________ .

The second beggar wanted to do the same, ________ a second thought made him change his ________.“I haven’t had anything like this for ages,” he thought. “How ________ of that man to offer me something so sweet!” With that, he opened the white paper. To his ________, there was no hard rock candy inside. ________, a shiny white pearl (珍珠) worth thousands of dollars fell into his hand.