I sat down at my desk and started writing a letter of thankfulness, but when it came to actually putting the letter into the mailbox... I ______ ...   I couldn’t do it. I suddenly felt a sense of ______ and insecurity (不安).

The letter was to an old teacher with whom I kept in ______ on Facebook. For months, I read about what she ______ on her Facebook page, which helped me to live my life differently. Her volunteer (志愿者) work wasn’t huge. ______, she was doing small, local good deeds. ______, she changed my views on the world and for some reason, I felt I should let her know how her example ______ influenced me.

I could have easily sent her an email, but that seemed not enough for such an important thank-you. That’s why I ended up ______ the letter. But now here I was, standing before the mailbox, unable to put the envelope inside. What was stopping me? It suddenly hit me that I was ______ of being too nice. I guess I felt strange ______ it wasn’t like she was my best friend or a relative. Maybe my ______ was too heartfelt. Thinking this over, I put the envelope in the mailbox ______.

Weeks later I received a message from her. It turned out she was ______ a hard time and my note ______ a lot to her. She said she had no idea she was playing such a big ______ in others’ life.

Not only did this letter make her happier, but her response to it brightened my world and ______ my level of happiness as well. I was so ______ that it had such a great influence on her that I decided to write a(n) ____     letter to someone each month. Now it’s easier for me to ______ the goodness in others and be more ______ for this beautiful life I’m living.

I work for a non-profit organization that serves children with disabilities. I love every minute of it and a particular ___made me appreciate it even more.

Last Friday we brought them to an amusement park. I was ___with three girls who all had Down’s syndrome(唐氏综合征). I should note that they are the most ___girls in the entire world. We were ___around from game to game, and the girls were having a great time, regardless of the ___and looks from people around us.

We were on a(n) ___roller coaster ride when the moment I would remember for the rest of my life happened.

The girls were ___and screaming in excitement on the ride, when a young woman ___me on the shoulder. I turned around. She politely told me that she ___the girls had Down’s syndrome. I told her yes, and that we were with an organization on an outing.

I couldn’t ____what she next said to me. She informed me that she had just had a baby who was ____with Down’s syndrome, and she had been most worried if the baby would be able to experience joy and live a life full of ____. She then went on to say that watching these girls gave her the biggest sigh of ____, because she saw how full of life and happy they were. Then, she ____me for talking to her and giving her the best gift she could have asked for: ____.

I am so ____that these three amazing girls were able to bring this mother a huge sigh of relief — that they gave her the hope and ____that her baby will experience a happy life. Every time I think about this — or ____as I write this — I can’t help but ____. These kids that I am so ____to work with every day and their smiling faces are a major reason why I smile each day.

One early Saturday morning, I was enjoying my coffee and reading the newspaper alone when I heard an old voice from the radio.

“Well, Tom, sounds you’re busy with your job. But it’s a _________ that you have to be away from home and your family so much. Too bad you _________ your daughter’s dance performance. Let me tell you something that has helped me _________ my most important things.”

“You see, I did a little _________ one day. Folks live about seventy-five years _________ and have 3,900 Saturdays. I felt _________ that I did not think about all this in detail until I was fifty-five years old,” he went on, “if I lived to be seventy-five, I _________ had about a thousand of them left to enjoy.”

“So I visited three toy stores, _________ 1,000 marbles (玻璃弹珠) and put them inside a large, clear plastic container. Every Saturday since then, I have taken one out and _________ it away.”

“By watching the marbles decrease, I __________ more on the really important things in my life. Watching your time here __________ truly helps get your priorities (优先的事物) __________.”

……

He gave us all a lot to think about. However busy we were, we should spare time to stay with our family. I had __________ to do some unfinished office work and then meet several radio-lovers. __________, I woke my wife up. “Honey, I’m taking you and the kids out to breakfast. Besides, I need to buy some __________ in a toy store.”