In the classroom, Josh and his friends were _____ their lucky charms (护身符). Larry’s was a rabbit’s foot and Roger said he had a lucky penny (便士). When it was Josh’s turn, he said his blue ____ could bring him good luck. “Every time I wear them to school before a test, I get a good grade,” said Josh.

This morning, Josh was upset ____ he couldn’t find his blue socks. “Don’t be silly. Those socks need to be washed,” his mum said. “If you have studied ___ for your test, you will get a good grade. Have you studied for it?”

“Yes.”

“Then you have ____ to worry about. Just do your best.”

At school, Larry had his rabbit’s foot, and Roger had his lucky penny. They asked Josh whether he wore ___ lucky socks. Josh replied, “No.”

The boys felt sorry for Josh. They said, “Well, good ____ , then.”

During the test, Josh did all the questions ___ . Then he got 95 marks. When he told his mum about it, she said, “You see? The socks do not make you do well. Only you can make yourself do well.”

Roger’s and Larry’s marks weren’t as ____ as Josh’s. They said they would study harder and not ____ lucky charms to pass a test.

School didn’t ever come easy to me as it did to some others. At 17, I entered Dutchess Community College. I was studying performing arts there. Though there were things I loved about the performing arts world, the things I hated about it seemed to grow and carry more weight. So I decided to drop out of school completely, during which I accepted a job offer.

My starting salary (薪水) was pretty good for a young girl without a college degree. So I did what any money-hungry young man would do in that situation: I thought I was set for life and left alone all my dreams, hobbies and talents. Clearly, things aren’t so simple. The heavy work made me dry and left me feeling physically and mentally sick. Finally, I decided to walk away and never look back.

No matter how hard I tried to tell myself that I was free after leaving college, I felt unfulfilled (壮志未酬的) from time to time. So l turned my old excuses into challenges for myself. In the fall of 2019, I returned to study journalism (新闻业) and English at Mercy College. Because of an excellent teacher at Mercy, I ended up studying Italian in Middlebury College’s exchange program last summer, which is a life-changing experience. I’m certainly tired, but it’s been worth my work. As people say, nothing worth having comes easy.

I finally had my very last day of school this week, and I was well prepared to pass my exams and left school with honours. If someone had told me two years ago that this is where I’d be now, I wouldn’t believe it.

Of all the things I’ve learned on my journey so far, there are some that I feel I must share with all of you here: Take control of your life; don’t just let it happen to you.

Napping (午睡) is a great way to feel rested and alert (机警的) — and some research shows it can do good to our brain. Albert Einstein and Leonardo da Vinci were all famous nappers. However, you may want to consider how long you have to sleep before heading to bed for your middle napper.

If you need to be alert right after waking up, so-called “power naps” of 10-30 minutes are recommended. Longer naps may cause some sleepiness after you wake up and you need some time to feel better. But drinking coffee directly before a nap may help you wake up without feeling sleepy.

A recent study from China has even suggested that daily afternoon napping is connected with better cognitive function (认知功能) in older adults. The researchers asked 2,200 over-70s about their napping habits before testing their memory and language skills. They found that those who usually napped performed better than those who didn’t.

But nap length may make a difference here — a similar study showed that those who usually napped for 30-90 minutes had better overall cognition (认知) compared to those who napped for longer or shorter, or who didn’t nap at all. The reasons why short naps are so good for alertness are not well understood. It’s possible that napping helps the brain clean upsleep-inducing (助眠的) products that would otherwise inhibit brain activity.

Although napping has many advantages. It is not recommended for people who suffer from insomnia (失眠). That’s because naps may make those people harder to fall asleep when going to bed in the evening. Naps should also be avoided in situations where great performance is needed right after the nap, as it may take some time to fully wake up.