One of my favorite gardening tasks actually happens long after it’s time to dig, sow, weed, and water. In late winter, I ________ getting out into my fruit trees for their big annual pruning (修剪树枝).

To me, this is the most ________ spring-cleaning task because it is a job that actually ________ a living thing to grow. It is a labor that helps ________ fruit. For seven years, my husband and I have ________ apple, sour cherry, peach, pear, sweet cherry, and orange trees in our tiny orchard (果园).

Before we planted, we ________ a 15-day training class at the University of Massachusetts. The instructor taught us how to shape the ________ and get rid of diseases and insects. He ________ taught us this guiding principle when it ________ pruning: Remove to renew. There is biology behind this philosophy (哲学). Cutting off tree ________ that are damaged, crowding out the sun, or growing at a(n) ________ angle allows for proper air and sunlight circulation. It also makes a tree's root system put out new growth in a way that ________ more and healthier fruit production. ________, removing some branches renews our trees’ growth and vigor (活力).

“Remove to renew” has a deeper ________ for me, though. Having a ________ outlook on life is fueled by my desire to feel renewed, refreshed and ready to ________. And I’ve learned I can’t do this ________ I have enough space to expand and be productive. Not every branch is fruit-bearing ________. Pruning some of them—disorder, stresses, unhealthy foods—from my life is vital to focusing my ________ on those things that bring purpose, uplift and ________ to my days.

I’ve been told I was born middle-aged. That sounds about right. I took on a lot of family _________ at an early age, which meant putting away childish things long before childhood was over. When you have sensible adult _________on your mind, it’s _________ to find time to play. A few months ago, I was listening to a sensible adult podcast (播客) about publishing. During the course of the _________, the host said to his guest, “Ever since I read your latest book, I’ve found myself looking for opportunities to play.” When I heard a sensible adult podcaster talk about taking time to play, I thought “Well, that’s just silly.” The idea of playing as an adult seemed _________ in a way I couldn’t express clearly.

However, I didn’t know why the idea stuck with me. I didn’t want it at the forefront of my mind, but it certainly stayed there in my consciousness because the desire to play still _________ my mind a few days later.

One night, it must have been 9: 00 pm. I was cutting across the local park, which would have been bustling (熙熙攘攘) with _________ if I’d been there during the day. Now they were home in bed with their parents, and it was just me in this well-loved playground.

It was the swing set that really _________ my attention. When I saw it, I suddenly remembered playing on the swings with my cousin at the park near her house. I recalled the _________ of that childhood experience.

During the day you’d probably get a lot of __________ from other sensible adults if you were waiting in line with their children. But at night, with no one else around?

I __________ a bit, but nobody would ever know. So I got on the swing and pushed off the ground, and my body remembered exactly how to get going. I pumped (上下快速摇动) my __________ to go higher, higher.

The best feelings of childhood bubbled up inside me as I flew through the air. It was fun, __________ and simple. Eventually, I came down from the swing, but I didn’t resist smiling. I couldn’t. That smile __________ itself on my face, and it wouldn’t go away.

My childhood may be over, but that doesn’t mean __________ is.

For years, our children often asked us if we could get a dog. When faced with it, my husband and I had some _______ responses, such as “Someday?" and “Maybe when you're old enough. " Then _______2020, the year of our pandemic dread. Sometime between my mother's livestreamed _______ this spring and back - to - school that never seemed to happen this fall, “maybe" _______ "yes" and “someday“ became “as soon as possible”.

We had lost so much during the pandemic - my mother, my grandmother... Hence, _______ a puppy became an attraction for all of us. PUPPY DAY!!! was soon written down and _______ on the calendar.

Our new puppy finally came _______ in mid-November and has brought a lot of joy to us. The kids picked a name “Peggy“ and refused to consider others. I tell Peggy several times a day what a _______ angel she is, using a _______ I wouldn't have dreamed of using even with my children. I've filled my Twitter and Instagram feeds with ________ of her. Every night, I spend a couple of quiet, peaceful hours enjoying cuddle time with her on the couch she wasn't supposed to be ________ on.

When I tell people that Peggy has ________ me this year - it's true. Peggy has given our weary, ________ family a new shared focus, an emotional center that isn't all about our ________ . She's given us all a new ________ to put our love in and brought us back to ourselves.