A few years ago, I walked into Panera and placed my order. After I paid and filled my plastic cup with water, I walked further into the cafe. As I sat down, I ________ an older man eating his soup alone. The chair in his front was ________: he wasn’t saving the seat. He was genuinely eating all alone. As this fact settled in, a feeling of sadness began to ________ me. Why was he eating alone? Was he lonely?
This wasn’t the first time I’d felt ________ when spotting someone eating alone. I ________ assume they’re lonely and need someone to be there for them. For some reason, eating with others is the ________. Modern society has evolved to the point ________ most people do almost every activity together. If we’re getting lunch after class, we’d rather ________ to see if someone will come with us. But is it possible we just don’t want to appear lonely?
Many people are always ________ someone else, and that may make people think we always need someone with us to feel ________ about ourselves. But that’s not true. We can enjoy being alone— not everyone needs to be ________ surrounded by friends to be happy. And we shouldn’t be ________ to eat alone if that’s what we want to do.
I don’t think I’ll ever not get sad if I see someone eating alone, but I’ll ________ in mind that maybe they just want a ________ from the world, or maybe they prefer it that way. It’s important to ________ seeing someone doing something alone doesn’t always mean they’re lonely.
1.A.recognized | B.noticed | C.examined | D.disturbed |
2.A.delicate | B.unique | C.valuable | D.empty |
3.A.respond to | B.belong to | C.reflect on | D.wash over |
4.A.sad | B.desperate | C.dizzy | D.exited |
5.A.precisely | B.automatically | C.cruelly | D.selfishly |
6.A.liberation | B.misery | C.norm | D.solution |
7.A.which | B.where | C.what | D.when |
8.A.break down | B.leave behind | C.get away | D.ask around |
9.A.against | B.beyond | C.around | D.within |
10.A.better | B.prouder | C.nobler | D.gentler |
11.A.constantly | B.dynamically | C.decently | D.fortunately |
12.A.blank | B.determined | C.delighted | D.afraid |
13.A.refresh | B.keep | C.absorb | D.decide |
14.A.guarantee | B.reputation | C.break | D.reward |
15.A.realize | B.promote | C.recall | D.convey |