It is true that life is unpredictable. Disasters can _______ misfortune when faced with it is the true test of your character at any time. How you handle. A boy lost his arms in an accident. To take care of him, his younger brother became his _______, never leaving him alone for years. One late night, he suffered from diarrheal(腹泻). His younger brother _______ him into the toilet and then went back the dorm to wait. But being so _______, his younger brother fell asleep, leaving him on the toilet for two hours till the teacher on duty discovered him. Thus the two brothers grew up together. Then one day, his younger brother wanted to live his own _______. So the boy was heart-broken.

A similar misfortune befell a girl, too. One night alone at home, she tried to _______ meals for her parents, only to overturn the kerosene light(煤油灯) on the stove, resulting _______ a fire which took her hands away. Though her elder sister showed her willingness to _______ her, she was determined to be completely independent.

One day, the boy and the girl were both invited to appear on a television interview program. The boy expressed his fear for his uncertain future at being left on his own _______ the girl was full of enthusiasm for her life. They each were asked to write something on a piece of paper. The boy wrote: My younger brothers’ arms are my arms. The girl wrote: Broken wings, flying heart.

If you only complain about your suffering, it will always follow you wherever you go. But if you decide to be ________, the hardship will turn out to be a fortune on which new hopes will arise.

I came home from work one day and my son greeted (迎接) me at the door with a wide smile. “Dad, I am a _________ man!” Puzzled, I _________ my wife about this. She shared with me that our five-year-old son had emptied a 2-lilre jug (壶) of water from the _________ most of it on the floor. My wife's first _________ had been to shout and beat him. However, she did not. She _________ asked him, “Breton, what were you trying to do?"

“I was trying to help you _________ the dishes, Mum,” he replied loudly. Sure enough, she _________ a pile (摞) of dishes that had been washed on the kitchen table, “Well son, why did you use the water from the fridge? ” she further asked. Breton _________ that he couldn't reach the sink (洗涤槽). My wife began to _________ the situation better and her __________ disappeared. “What do you think you can do next time to make less of a mess?”

Breton's face __________ as he replied, “I could wash them in the bathroom.” My wife explained to him that the dishes might break in the bathroom and he should instead __________ her help. She then went on to clean up the __________ he had created.

As she finished describing the __________ to me, I realised how __________ it is to make a correct choice. If she had __________ her first reaction, she would not have been able to understand what he was trying to do and would have __________ a great teachable moment. In __________ situations, she would have had to clean up the mess, but with this __________ she was able to connect with him more effectively. More importantly, if she had shouted and beaten him, he would have greeted me at the door with a __________ look and said. “Dad, I am a bad boy! ”

That morning, I got the train as always. I was a publishing director and was looking forward to embracing a new day of work, as usual. I would always turn to the crossword (纵横填字游戏), but that day it didn’t make sense. I’d been doing it for 30-old years, but trying to read this one was like walking through syrup (糖浆)：________ slow and hard. I thought I must be tired.

I said to my assistant. The ________ colleague contacted my wife, Beth, and she drove me straight to hospital. There, confirmation came that I’d had a stroke in the part of my brain that ________ with communication. I was now in a condition that means it’s difficult or________ to receive and produce language. It was the only time I cried.

I was back at home a week later, and my goal was to get better and return to work in a couple of months. The way to ________ my language ability was rough. I’d look at simple pictures and try to describe them as my mind ________ round and round in the darkness, looking for words.

As the months passed, it became self-evident that I wasn’t going to be able to go back to my old job. For 25 years, I had ________ myself as a publisher. I was used to a busy day of meetings. I didn’t feel ready to say goodbye to my old self. There were times when I felt incredibly ________.

In the darkest months, I devoted myself to________. I couldn’t manage novels or newspapers, ________ I tried reading poetry, and found the shorter lines less overwhelming. My speech came back, and I learned how to read again, though much more slowly. I also learned the ________ to keep up. I allowed myself to slow down, and started to enjoy it.

________, I get rid of my old skin. I grieved the past, its passing and its absence, and started to come to terms ________ it. Now, 10 years later, I look after my grandson a day a week, and my relationship with my family is deeper than ever. If you’d asked me 15 years ago to ________ the importance of the things in my life I might have said work, but now I’m no longer a high-achieving publisher or someone who reads 10 books a week. I’m a ________ man, and if I read 10 books a year, that’s pretty good.