Nearly 10 years after losing her right eye in a car accident, 28-year-old Xintong from Beijing transformed the hollow (凹陷) of her eye socket (眼眶)——a“_______”she used to hide into a fashion statement. She shared a short video online in which she _______ a glowing prosthetic eye (义眼).

The video soon went _______ on social media, with many comments _______ her for being “creative”, “beautiful” and “optimistic”. But that wasn’t the _______ 10 years ago.

“The prosthetic eye I wore at that time was _______ me,”Xintong said. “It hurt and gave me a red and swollen eye socket, and it looked so dull and _______ . I was young and I wanted to look _______ .”

She took them into her own hands and began researching prosthetic eyes. Beginning in2019, she dedicated about two years to _______ the production techniques and skills under the guidance of an ocularist (义眼师). This journey led her to establish her own prosthetic eye workshop, providing personalized ________ for those requiring them.

She produces prosthetic eyes as if she is creating pieces of ________ . “The position, direction, and even stroke thickness (笔触粗细) of the blood streaks (血丝) on the prosthetic eyeballs ________ ,” the ocularist said. Sometimes she also paints special patterns ________customers’ needs: twinkling stars, cartoon characters and effects like colored ________ lenses.

Now when Xintong hears her customers say words such as   “Finally, I can accept myself” or   “Now I feel free to take selfies”, she feels deeply ________.

Bai Peilan is the Chinese name of Mexican academic Flora Botton Beja, a professor at the Center for Asian and African Studies at El Colegio de Mexico. The Chinese _________ lan in her name stands for orchid (兰花) in English. In traditional Chinese culture, the orchid _________ elegance, nobility and friendship.

Now in her 90s, she was _________ with the outstanding achievement award at the Orchid Awards on Sept. 8, _________ decades of devotion to studying and introducing China to all Spanish-speaking countries.

Born in Greece, Botton moved to Mexico with her family at the age of 15, where she set out on a _________ journey that finally tied her destiny (命运) to that of China. She is now respected as one of the _________ in the field of Sinology in Mexico. For her, what started out as a suitable academic arrangement _________ developed into a deep love affair with China.

As one of the first academics in Mexico to focus on China in the 1960s, Botton _________ to dip into the rich tapestry (织锦) of traditional Chinese culture, reflecting her _________ that “knowing about the past is necessary to understand the present”.

Botton first traveled to China in 1975, and she later worked at the Mexican embassy (大使馆) in China, actively ________ cultural exchange efforts.

After her diplomatic tenure (外交任期), she continued __________ cultural exchanges between China and Mexico. She translated Chinese classic books into Spanish, enriching the understanding of Chinese culture among Spanish-speaking __________. And she also dealt with modern and contemporary China, __________ research on society, family and women.

As a promoter between two __________ cultures, Botton has concluded that Mexico and China share traditional values of family __________, as well as respect for the elderly and for regional cultures.

The scars of love

Some years ago on a hot summer day in south Florida a little boy decided to go for a swim in the old swimming hole behind his house. In a hurry to dive into the ____ water, he ran out of the back door, ____ behind shoes, socks, and shirt as he went.

He flew into the water, not realizing that as he ____ toward the middle of the lake, a crocodile was swimming toward him. His mother in the house was ___ the window and saw the two. In great ____, she ran toward the water, shouting to her son as ___ as she could. Hearing her loud voice, the little boy became ____ and made a U-turn to swim to his mother. It was too late. Just as he reached her, the crocodile reached him. From the ____, the mother grabbed her little boy by the arms just as the crocodile snatched his legs. That began an incredible tug-of-war between the two. The crocodile was much ____ than the mother, but the mother was much too passionate to let go. A farmer happened to drive by, heard their screams, raced from his truck, took aim and ____ the crocodile.

Remarkably, after weeks and weeks in the hospital, the little boy survived. His legs were extremely scarred by the ____ of the animal. And, on his arms, were deep scratches where his mother’s fingernails dug into his flesh in her effort to ____ to the son she loved.

The newspaper reporter, who interviewed the boy, asked if he would show him his scars. The boy lifted his legs. And then, with obvious pride, he said to the reporter, ‘But look at my arms. I have great scars on my arms, too. I have them ____ my Mom wouldn’t let go.’

You and I can identify with that little boy. We have scars, too. No, not from a crocodile, or anything quite so ____. But, the scars of a painful past. Some of those scars are unsightly and have caused us deep regret. But, some wounds, my friend, are because God has refused to ____. In the midst of your struggle, he’s been there holding on to you.