It was a familiar sight that the family gathered around the table telling stories during and after the meal. As part of our daily ___________, these conversations would become the most precious moments for my family.

The love of storytelling ___________ from our dad, whose life was exciting and unforgettable. He told us about his childhood, travels and reflections, all of which had become part of our ___________. Even though few of dad’s stories actually ___________ me, I felt as much part of them as I did. They brought me closer to my family in a way I couldn’t be more ___________ for. Even when I had to live away, sharing tales with my dad on the phone kept me ___________ during the breakdown in my life. He showed us the ___________ of quality time and of family which never ___________ to benefit us.

Telling stories has been irreplaceable. When ___________ a risk about potential failure, I just remember even a moment of ____________ could also be transformed into a funny story. When travelling with friends, I can turn my days into a fascinating ____________. I realize each moment in life can be a story worth ____________. It’s about experiences, memories and cultures that keep ____________ strong and life alive.

____________, the best stories never stop being told. As years pass, we’ll ____________ our families to the greatest hits.

The measure of a man's real character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.

——Macaulay

About thirty years ago, I was studying in a public school in New York. One day, Mrs. Nanette O'Neill gave a math_________to our class. When the papers were_________, she discovered that twelve boys had made exactly the _________mistakes throughout the test.

There is nothing really new about._________in exams. Perhaps that was_________Mrs. O’Neill didn't even say a word about it. She only asked the twelve boys to_________after class. I was one of he twelve.

Mrs. O'Neill asked_________questions, and she didn't_________us, either. Instead she wrote on the blackboard the _________, words by Thomas Macaulay. She then ordered us to copy these words into our exercise-books one hundred times.

I don't know about the other eleven boys. Speaking for__________, I can say: it was the most important single   __________of my life. Thirty years after being introduced to Macaulays words, they__________seem to me the best yardstick(准绳 )now because they give us a way to__________ourselves rather than others.

________of us are asked to make__________ decisions about nations going to war or armies going to battle. But all of us are called__________daily to make a great many personal decisions. Should the wallet,__________ in the street, be put into a pocket or __________ to the policeman? Should the__________change received at the store be forgotten or__________. Nobody will know except you. but you have to live with yourself, and it is always better to live with someone you respect.

A group of graduates, successful in their careers, got together to visit their old university professor. Conversation soon turned into complaints about stress in work and life.

Before offering his guests coffee, the professor went to the kitchen and returned with a large pot of coffee and a variety of ______ porcelain(陶瓷), plastic, glass, crystal(水晶), some plain-looking and ______, some delicate(精致的) and expensive—telling them to ______ themselves to the coffee.

When all the students had a cup of coffee in hand, the professor said: “If you have ______, all the nice-looking and expensive cups have been ______, leaving behind the plain and cheap ones. While it is ______ for you to want only the best for yourselves, that is the ______ of your problems and stress. It is definite that the cup itself adds no quality to the coffee. ______, all of you really wanted was coffee, not the cup, but you all went for the ______ cups. And then you began ______ each other's cups.”

Now consider his: Life is the coffee; the jobs, money and ______ in society are the cups. They are just tools to hold and ______ life, and the type of cup we have does not change the ______ of life we live. Sometimes, by ______ only on the cup, we fail to ______ the coffee.