I used to be a very self-centered person, but in the past two years I have really changed. I have started to think about other people 16 I think about myself. I am happy that I am becoming a 17 person.
I think my 18 started when I was at Palomar College. At first, I just wanted to get my 19 and be left alone. I thought I was smarter than everyone else, so I hardly ever 20 to anyone in my classes. By the end of my first semester, I was really 21 . It seemed as if everyone but me had made friends and was having fun. So tried a(n) 22 . I started asking people around me how they were doing, and if they were having trouble I 23 to help. That was really a big 24 for me. By the end of the year, I had several new friends, and two of 25 are still my best friends today.
A bigger cause of my new 26 , however, came when I took a part-time job at a Vista Nursing Home. One old lady there who had Alzheimer’s disease became my 27 . Every time I came into her room, she was so 28 because she thought I was her daughter. Her real daughter never 29 her, so I took her place. She let me 30 . that making others feel good make me feel good, too, when she died, I was 31 , but I was very grateful to her.
I think I am a much 32 person today than I used to be, and I hope I will not 33 these experiences. They have 34 me to care about other people more than about myself. I 35 who I am today, and I could not say that a few years ago.
16. A. since B. before C. or D. unless
17. A. famous B. simple C. different D. skilled
18. A. education B. career C. tour D. change
19. A. balance C. homework C. degree D. interest
20. A. talked B. wrote C. lied D. reported
21. A. careful B. lonely C. curious D. guilty
22. A. argument B. game C. experiment D. defence
23. A. dared B. offered C. hesitated D. happened
24. A. dream B. problem C. duty D. step
25. A. us B. which C. them D. whom
26. A. attitude B. hobby C. hope D. luck
27. A. friend B. partner C. guide D. guest
28. A. polite B. happy C. strange D. confident
29. A. bothered B. answered C. visited D. trusted
30. A. explain B. guess C. declare D. see
31. A. homeless B. heartbroken C. bad-tempered D. hopeless
32. A. quieter B. busier C. better D. richer
33. A. forget B. face C. improve D. analyze
34. A. forced B. preferred C. ordered D. taught
35. A. miss B. like C. wonder D. expect