Smiles and tears are part of life. But do you find enough time for ______? I’m not asking if you experience lots of good times. Of course, we should laugh during the happy times. But do you ______ laugh during the difficult times? Erma Bombeck is known for her funny books. But she wrote ______ about a more serious subject—cancer in children. The book is titled “I WANT TO GROW ______. I WANT TO GROW UP. ” Erma talks with many children who ______ cancer and learns important lessons from them.

She tells about the experience of ______ Jessica. Jessica’s leg was cut off at the knee because of cancer. She was learning to wear a prosthesis(假肢). Jessica told about playing soccer. She hit the ball hard ______ her foot. The ball flew off in one direction ______ her man-made leg flew another way. Then the brave girl lay on the floor, laughing happily.

As the saying goes, “There’s a time to cry and a time to laugh.” Do you find ______ time to laugh? You can, if you find reasons to laugh during the difficult times. Survivors (幸存者) know ______. If you can laugh even when you’re in trouble, you will make it. Remember, laugh and the whole world will laugh with you. Cry and you cry alone!

When Abraham Lincoln was just a boy, he had to help his father to look after their farm. It was hard work and there wasn’t anything interesting for him. Abraham wanted to go to school, but there was no school there. He was sad most of the time.

Mrs. Lincoln loved the boy very much. She tried her best to make Abraham happy. One morning she got up early and went to the town. It was a long way so it took her a long time to get there. She bought something there and went back. It was late in the evening when she got home.

The next morning Mrs. Lincoln said to Abraham,“Today is your birthday, so we’re going to have a party.”She put some food on the table, and then brought out a present.

“A book!”Abraham cried. It was an old book, but he liked it. A smile came on his face. He looked up at Mrs. Lincoln and said,“Thank you, Mom.”

Once there was a piano player in a bar. People came just to hear him play. But one night, a girl asked him to sing a song.

“I don’t sing,” said the man.

But the girl told the waiter, “I’m tired of listening to the piano. I want the player to sing!”

The waiter shouted across the room, “Hey, friend! If you want to get money, sing a song!”

So he did. He had never sung in public before. Now he was singing for the very first time! Nobody had ever heard the song Mona Lisa sung so great!

He had skills(技能) he was sitting on! He may have lived the rest of his life as a no-name piano player in a no-name bar. But once he caught the chance, and found, by accident, that he could sing well. He went on working hard and became one of the best- known singers in the US. His name was Nat King Cole.

You, too, have skills. You may not feel that your skills are great, but they may be better than you think. With hard work, most skills can be improved(提高). Besides, you may have no success at all if you just sit on your skills.