1．　　In the past, I didn't get on with my parents. I hardly talked to them, because they liked to compare me (1)       my sister. And that made me unhappy and sad. I sometimes argued with them about this.
　　However, I wanted to show them that I could do things as well as my sister. Then I began to spend most of my free time (2)       in my bedroom. Luckily, my art teacher, Miss Green, offered me a lot of help. She taught me some drawing (3)       to help improve my paintings. At that time, she was (4)       only person I would like to talk to.
　　One day, I told Miss Green about my problem. She (5)       me into taking part in a painting competition. In her opinion, the best way to communicate with my parents was to prove (证明) (6)       to them.
　　After a few (7)       waiting, the result finally came out. I was very happy and excited, (8)       I got first prize! When I took the prize home, my parents were very (9)      ! They never thought I could do a good job. I could see that they were very happy. And they began to care (10)       about me. Now, relations between my parents and me are very good. So I think it's very important to have someone to talk to.

2．　　Long long ago, the Jade Emperor (玉皇大帝) organized an animal race. The first 12 animals to win could get a (1)       in the Chinese Zodiac (十二生肖), and have a year named after them.
　　The cat and the mouse both (2)       the ox (公牛) to wake them early on the day of the race. That day, the ox (3)       to wake them, but without success. So the kind ox carried them on (4)       back and started running when the race began. The mouse (5)       just when the ox was going cross the last river. He knew that he could (6)       beat the cat. So he pushed the (7)       off the ox's back. When the ox reached the other side of the river, the mouse jumped off and ran to the finishing line, just (8)       the ox. The tiger came third.
　　So the 12-year cycle (循环) begins with the mouse. The ox comes after him. The tiger (9)       the ox. The rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog and pig come after them. Although the cat was (10)       to finish the race, she was almost dying in the river. In the end she has no place in the zodiac. So that's why cats kill mice. They can never forget what happened in that race long long ago!

4．　　One day, 50 people were attending a speech. The speaker was making a speech about happiness. However, after a few hours, people gradually lost their attention. The speaker came up with an idea. He stopped his speech and asked all of the people to join in a group activity.
　　He gave a single balloon (气球) to each person in the room. Each person was asked to write his or her name on the balloon with a black marker (记号笔) pen. Then, all of the balloons were collected and moved to another room.
　　Then the speaker let the 50 people into the room and told them to find their own balloon. Everyone rushed around, frantically (疯狂地) searching for their balloon. But even after five minutes of searching, no one could find their own balloon.
　　After seeing this, the speaker asked each person to collect a balloon and try to find the balloon's owner. Everyone started talking to each other and asking each other for their name. Within minutes, everyone had his or her own balloon.
　　"Can you see what happened?" the speaker said. "The balloons are like the happiness we seek in our own lives. Everyone is busy looking for their own happiness, not caring what happens to others. But sometimes the best way to find happiness is to help others. Help them find happiness and you can find your own."

11．A Good Education, A Better Future
　　My parents used to tell me how important school was for me, but I didn't care. I didn't pay attention to them, but one thing made me finally realize (1)             my parents said.
　　One day, as I was walking past a mobile phone store, I saw an advertisement on its door. They wanted new (2)            !
　　"Sir, are you hiring (雇用) people?" I went into the shop and asked. "Yes, but are you the man we need?" the manager replied. He looked at me for a few seconds (3)             head to foot, "Do you have a high school diploma (文凭)?" He asked. "Or do you (4)             any work experience?"
　　I felt ashamed (羞愧的) (5)             I didn't have these things. I just turned around and left.
　　I couldn't fall asleep that night because I was thinking about my (6)            . "I must go back to school because I can't do anything (7)             a good education," I (8)             to myself silently.
　　I didn't look for a job (9)             I finished my studies and got my diploma. Finally, I got a good job opportunity and settled down (安定下来).
　　Education can give you a bright future. I'm not worried about my future (10)            . Now I'm still learning in my spare time.

12．　　It's been more than 8 years since I moved from the US to Beijing. At that time, my parents have grown older, just as I have. When I went off to college, we lived in different cities. We stayed in touch by phone and email. It was easy to contact my mom. But living in Beijing has made it a bit more difficult.
　　Because we're separated (分开) not only by distance, but also by time. My hometown is on the opposite (另一边 的) side of the planet from Beijing一it's a 12-hour difference. When it's morning in Beijing, it's night time in my hometown, and vice versa (反之亦然). It's difficult to find a proper time to contact my family.
　　We just try to choose times that are convenient for both of us. I usually call my mom late in the evening, when she's taking her lunch break. We talk about our work, the weather, and everything is happening in our lives.
　　And of course, I try to visit home from time to time. About once every other year, I'll fly back to the US to see my family for the holidays.
　　Like many other foreigners living in China, I do miss my family. We try to stay in touch as best as we can.
根据短文内容回答下列问题。

13．假设你是李华，你的英国笔友Frank来信告诉你，他因长时间打游戏与父母发生了争吵，很难过。请你根据以下要点提示用英语写封回信。
要点提示：
你对Frank和父母吵架的看法；
关于Frank与父母沟通交流方面的建议 (至少2点)；
对Frank自身的建议或希望。
要求：
语言通顺，要点齐全，意思连贯，条理清楚，书写规范；
词数：80个词左右，开头结尾已给出，不计入总词数。
Dear Frank,
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Yours,
Li Hua