A month before my first marathon(马拉松), one of my knees was hurt and this meant not running for two weeks, leaving me only two _______ to train. Yet, I decided to go ahead.

I remember back to my first P. E. class, the teacher asked us to run and then hit a softball. _______ didn’t do either well. “You are not athletic, young man,” he said to me, in front of all the others. That is to say, I was not good at sports.

The idea that I was “not athletic” with a great sense of _______ went with me for many years. Till I started to _______ in my 30s, I realized running was a fight against myself, not about competition or whether or not I was athletic. It was all about the fight against my own body and mind. A test of _______!

The night before my marathon, I dreamed that I couldn’t even find the finish line. I woke up sweating(流汗) all over, but ready to show _______ to myself.

Shortly after crossing the start line, my shoe laces(鞋带) went loose, _______ I had to stop to manage. Not the start I wanted but I would never _______ this chance.   

At mile 3, I passed a sign: “GO FOR IT, RUNNERS!”

By mile 17, I became out of breath and my knee hurt badly. _______ resting, I continued the race. I walked ________ a bit and then ran again.

By mile 21, I was so tired and ________ that I could even eat a horse!

As I was reaching mile 23, I could hear my wife cheering me on at the finish line. “I can do it!” I ________ myself.

I was one of the final runners, but I ________! And I got a medal. In fact, I got the same medal as the one that the man who came in first place had.

Decide to be myself, move forward, shake off shame and ________ others labeled me. I can now call myself a “marathon __________.”

We’ll finally grow up someday, leaving our parents and facing the challenge (挑战) in life. Parents may not be able to solve every problem for us. Instead, we should have enough life skills to deal with the problems that come our way.

This is what our country tries to do now. Helping more students gain working spirit. To stress the importance of hardworking spirit education (劳动教育) among students of different ages, the government released (发布) a guideline (纲要) recently.

The guideline calls for students to respect work. Students should learn basic life skill and for good working habits through such education.

The government has been trying to stress the importance of hardworking spirit education. But this has been overlooked in recent years. Many teens do not value the importance of working hard and are not interested in doing so.

According to a study of nearly 3, 000 students that was done by Evening News, only 22 percent of primary and middle school students help with everyday housework.

Schools and families play an important role in teaching students about the value of working hard, the guideline says. Primary and middle schools should provide students with hardworking spirit classes every week, according to the guideline. Schools can also hold activities to give students real-world work experience. For example, schools can teach children how to plant trees on Tree-Planting Day.

As children’s first teachers, parents should also encourage children to learn how to do housework. Students should master one or two life skills every year. These skills can include cooking, washing their own clothes and tidying their rooms.

It was a very important day for Ryan—he was about to make his first public speech. His teacher, Mr. Larson, as signed (给……分配任务) the class to choose a book, read it, and then make a speech about it. Ryan chose a book he liked. He read it carefully. Then, he wrote down what to say about the book and prepared a speech. He practiced his speech many times, but he was still nervous. Ryan didn’t know whether he would be successful. He didn’t want to embarrass (使尴尬) himself in front of the whole class.

Finally, Mr. Larson said the words Ryan had been worried: “OK, Ryan, let’s hear what you have to say. Come up and give us your presentation.” Ryan gulped (大口吸气) a few times. He couldn’t help still feeling a little nervous. Then, he gathered his notes and walked slowly to the front of the room. Mr. Larson sat down in one of the front-row seats and gave Ryan an encouraging smile as he nodded for him to begin. Ryan cleared his throat, glanced (一瞥) at his notes, and put his heart into his presentation.

For a moment or two, Ryan still felt very nervous. But as he went through his speech, he felt less and less like running away. He had practiced often enough so that nothing in his speech was new to him anymore. It wasn’t long before he relaxed a little and was able to almost enjoy what he was doing. By the time Ryan finished his presentation, he felt almost comfortable. When Ryan stopped speaking, everyone in the class applauded (鼓掌). Mr. Larson said, “That was a very well-prepared presentation, Ryan. You did an excellent job.” Ryan thought about how much he had practiced to get ready for his speech, and he felt proud. He still didn’t like making speeches, but now he knew he could do it.

We cannot live with good moods all the time. Everyone has bad feelings sometimes. When you feel bad, how can you deal with(处理) such feelings? Here is my advice.

    26     It is a mistake not to talk to anyone when you are feeling sad, worried or nervous.

If you keep bad feelings inside all the time, you may get sick easily. But if you talk with others about them, like your parents, your friends or teachers, you’ll begin to feel better than before.

Why?     27    . Though your problems or worries will not disappear(消失)at once, they won’t be bad for your health.     28     He or she may help you find ways to work out your problems.

You should always remember that your parents love you very much.     29     They have much experience and are always there to help you. But if you don’t want to talk with them, what should you do? Who can you turn to?

    30     Maybe they can help you solve your problems and make you feel better. Then you’ll feel as happy as before.