Washington is home to lots of trees, and lots of fireplaces and wood-burning stoves too. But what if you _______ there and couldn’t cut or buy wood? _______ Shane McDaniel and his twin sons, Harrison and Henry, are _______ to lend a hand. The three men cut truckloads of wood——then _______ it to those in need.

The idea _______ as a father-son bonding project. “I had to cut wood with my dad. He just _______ doing it,” says Shane. He wanted to pass along that feeling, _______ he and the twins spent the summer of 2018 like the _______.

The _______ was a great wall of wood piled up around their house. It was too ________ for the McDaniels to use themselves, and Shane started thinking of others. He ________ on Facebook: “If you are in need of firewood and cannot ________ it, please inform me and you will get it for ________!”

The response was ________. Some kind people raced at once to Norm’s, the convenience store Shane owns, with more ________ for the pile. Single mom Katelyn and her daughter ________ a wood-burning stove as their sole ________ of heat, so it was a ________ to receive a truckload of firewood from the McDaniels. “To get that much wood brought me to ________.” she said.

“Giving is getting,” Shane said. “It has nothing to do with whether it will be ________; it’s about how much it’s needed.”

My palms were sweating. I was sure that I could hear my heart beating fast. This was the worst. I _______ feeling this way, but I had to do what I was about to do. I drew on a small bit of my inner strength and opened my _________.

“Excuse me. I was just _________. Would it be possible to maybe get that table over there by the window _________?” I asked. My voice sounded _________ to me, as if a stranger from a _________ had asked the question instead of me. I _________.

“No, I’m sorry, but that table is _________,” the hostess replied kindly as she _________ me into the dining area. ____________ I followed her to my table, I realized that the earth had not opened up and ____________ me. I had not passed out or died of ____________. The entire population of the restaurant was not ____________ my bravery for asking for a table by the window. I had asked and been told “no.” That was all. Nothing more.

For someone like me, who is always ____________ and unconfident, asking for a different table was a huge ____________. But I’ve started doing it on a regular basis ____________ a simple piece of advice my mother told me: “The worst they can say is ‘no.’ ”

And so, I’ve learned to actually ____________ for what I want. I’ve learned to reach for my dreams and pursue my goals. I got a job that I wanted. I’ve even gotten prices ____________ on a huge variety of items. Because I asked. Because my mom was right.

Sure, I have been turned down. I can’t say I have never been ____________. I have been, but I keep__________. I will continue to ask for what I want out of life and from other people. What could happen? The worst they can say is “no.”

One rainy afternoon I was sitting at home feeling so bored _________ feeling sorry for myself, I wanted to meet people and have new_________ so I decided to start volunteering . I found a website where I could volunteer on a farm in France.

Volunteering _________ so many opportunities to have fun and share _________ stories. It was the first time for me to work on a farm . It was almost a ( n ) _________ holiday as food and accommodation were provided. It was not one_________ holiday , however , as I had to_________ fifteen horses and sheep ! I soon discovered that I was a ( n ) _________ farmer but it did not matter because I made some great friends and also improved my _________.

However , you do not______________ go abroad to volunteer . I have had plenty of adventures at home as volunteering can become a______________. For example , I love______________ so I had a good laugh waving my arms in order to ______________ my local choir (合唱团)。 At university , I organized a concert for charity with my friends . It was really ______________ to find bands and raise money for a cause .

It is true that you feel good volunteering but there are also other ______________. I once volunteered as a steward (干事) at a charity sporting event where the organizers ______________ gave me cupcakes from an expensive London bakery to thank me for my ______________. I also volunteered in a charity shop so I found loads of nice cheap clothes to ______________ my wardrobe.

While this is all fun , my favourite aspect of volunteering is ______________ and sharing stories .My terrible ______________ at farming has given me funny stories to tell !