Read the passage and fill in the blanks with proper words(在短文的空格内填入适当的词，使其内容通顺，每空格限填一词，首字母已给)：

22 July

　　Dear Penny,

　　I hope you're all well. We're all terribly busy, even Polly, who has finally managed to find some work. U 1 , it's not a very good job, but at least it's a job, and maybe she will find something better in the future. She has also found somewhere e 2 to live－a small flat about five miles away, so now there's only Joe and me left at home. After 24 years of having children to look after, it's very strange to have the house to ourselves, although I do enjoy coming home to a tidy house at the e 3 of a day. By the way, Polly has broken up with her boyfriend, Peter. We were very sorry, because we got on well with him, and they s 4 to be in love.

　　Alice has some interesting news, as well. She passed her final exams. We heard last week, so of course, we had a small family celebration. She doesn't know what she wants to do yet, but she has plenty of time to decide. She doesn't have a boyfriend at the moment, either. I don't know what's the matter with them! They're both pretty e 5 ! Joe's fine, but he hasn't been able to do m 6 in the garden because of the weather, which has been terrible. Actually it has rained every day for the p 7 few weeks. It's unbelievable, isn't it?

　　Anyway, that's all for my news. How are you all? What are you up to?

　　Do write soon and tell me everything!

　　Love

　　Jacky

阅读填词

　　Dear Penny,

　　I hope you're all well. We're all terribly busy, even Polly, who has finally m 1 to find some work. U 2 , it's not a very good job, but at least it's a job, and maybe she will find something better in the future. She has also found somewhere e 3 to live－a small flat about five miles away, so now there's only Joe and me left at home. After 24 years of having children to look after, it's very strange to have the house to ourselves, although I d 4 enjoy coming home to a tidy house at the e 5 of a day. By the way, Polly has broken up with her boyfriend, Peter. We were very sorry, because we got on well with him, and they s 6 to be in love.

　　Alice has some interesting news, as well. She p 7 her final exams. We heard last week, so of course, we had a small family celebration. She doesn't know what she wants to do yet, but she has plenty of time to decide. She doesn't have a boyfriend at the moment, either. I don't know what's the matter with them! They're both pretty e 8 ! Joe's fine, but he hasn't been able to do m 9 in the garden because of the weather, which has been terrible. Actually it has rained every day for the p 10 few weeks. It's unbelievable, isn't it? Anyway, that's all for my news. How are you all? What are you up to?

　　Do write soon and tell me everything!

　　Love,

　　Jacky

1．m　　　2．U　　　3．e　　　4．d　　　5．e　　

6．s　　　7．p　　　8．e　　　9．m　　　10．p　　

It was midday when I got the call that my grandfather was not well and he was quickly getting worse. My family did not know how long he would stay in the world. I knew I had to get to the hospital to tell him how much I loved him. As I drove to the hospital, I pictured him before I got to tell him how much he meant to me. Trying to fight back the tears, I wanted to stay calm when I saw him.
When I got to the hospital, I hurriedly looked for his hospital room. I found him in a semi-conscious state (半清醒状态). On my knees, I said softly, “Hello, Grandpa.”
Still feeling shy, I decided not to leave his bedside without letting him know. While I asked about how he was, he told me, “I’ll be fine, Henry.” although we both knew that wasn't true. Then he asked me with a smile how I was doing.
Hearing what my grandpa said, I was much moved. I made the decision that I had to show my gratitude for him. As I found all the courage (勇气) I had, I hold his hand tightly. I cried out, “Grandpa. I just want to let you know how much I love you. I hope you already know that yet I just want to make sure.” By this time, tears were rolling down my face. All those years of love that I had shut and not let him know, became free.
Smilingly, he said, “I know. Thank you for telling me that. All I have on this planet is my family and my love for them. If there is anything I could ask of you, I want you to be good to your family, your mother, your father, and your brother. That’s all I want of you.”
What I learned that day changed my whole life. From then on, I began telling people how much I love them, care for them, and respect them. I get in touch with, for example, my babysitter, my barber, to show my appreciation. I go down into the city once a week and serve pizza to the homeless. I wake up every morning and list everything I’m thankful to in my life.
【小题1】The author got the news of Grandpa’s illness________.