6 . I looked at the result of the pregnancy test and found I was pregnant. My heart almost stopped. I was married, but my _________ had just lost his job. I was working in a _________ position, struggling to find permanent, full-time employment. Having a _________ was a “future plan”—and it was supposed to be carried out many years later.

Weeks later, I had a _________ day at work. My bus ran late, my report didn’t save, and I _________ my lunch at home. I started to cry at my desk and _________ into the women’s restroom. I hid in the stall (小隔间), but it was _________ to cover the sound.

Several people entered the room, heard me crying, and left without _________ anything. Then, one older woman to whom I’d _________ spoken several times knocked on the door of the stall and handed me a __________. I told her everything that had __________ to me. I expected her to imply that I was careless and irresponsible for getting myself into such a dilemma.__________ she gave me a hug and told me everything would __________. She told me I’d be a wonderful mother, and that my baby would be the __________ of my life.

Later that day, I saw a(n) __________ on my desk. She’d written a note wishing me well and enclosed(随涵附上) what I __________ was all the cash from her purse. I cried again when I __________ it. This time it was because I was in relief that someone __________ that I’d find a way to make things okay. One of the things I bought with that money was a small Teddy Bear. My son’s a teenager now, but that Teddy Bear is one of my most prized __________. Whenever I look at it, I’m __________ that hope is the most precious gift of all.

7 . Gaining more independence and increasingly doing more things without parents is an important and natural part of growing up. There are lots of steps to promote self-reliance.

•Doing household chores

Kids should be able to handle age-appropriate household chores.     1    . Chores give kids a sense of responsibility and can help increase their self-confidence as they see their work makes a valuable contribution to their family.

•    2    

As kids get older, they naturally spend more time away from home doing things on their own. They’ll go to friends’ houses to play by themselves and work through any conflicts themselves. If your child is ready, arrange for play dates at your house and let them choose what activities they might want to suggest to their friends.

•Volunteering

For very young children, everything is naturally about their own needs and wants. When kids help others, they learn to think outside themselves.     3    . Another benefit of having kids volunteer is that your kid will be less likely to be spoiled and be more likely to be kind people as they grow.

•Organizing their own schedule

Give your child a calendar and get them into the habit of writing down important dates and appointments. As they get older, they’ll need to keep track of things like doctors’ appointments, play dates, friends’ birthday parties, games and more.     4    .

•Learning to be independent thinkers

Talk about news events over dinner or while in the car.     5    . When you really listen to them, you’re showing them their opinions matter to you and that their ideas and thoughts are valuable and worthwhile. When you disagree about an issue, it’s a great opportunity for kids to learn how to debate and speak their opinions respectfully.

8 . Many longtime gardeners will tell you that the garden is their happy place. In a new study, University of Florida scientists found that gardening activities lowered stress, anxiety and depression in healthy women who attended twice-a-week gardening classes. None of the study participants had gardened before.

“Previous studies have shown that gardening can help improve the mental health of people who have existing medical conditions or challenges. Our study shows that healthy people can also experience a rise in mental well-being through gardening,” said professor Charles Guy.

Thirty-two women between the ages of 26 and 49 completed the study. All were in good health. Half of the participants were assigned(指派)to gardening sessions, while the other half were assigned to art-making sessions. Both groups met twice a week for a total of eight times.

In the gardening sessions, participants learned how to compare and sow seeds, transplant different kinds of plants, and harvest and taste eatable plants. Those in the art-making sessions learned techniques such as papermaking, printmaking and drawing.

Participants completed a series of assessments measuring anxiety, depression, stress and mood.

The researchers found that the gardening and art-making groups experienced similar improvements in mental health over time, with gardeners reporting slightly less anxiety than art makers.

But why does being around plants make us feel good? The answer might be found in the important role of plants in human evolution and the rise of civilization. As a species, we may be innately attracted to plants because we depend on them for food, shelter and other means of our survival. “We believe this research shows promise for mental well-being, plants in health care and in public health. It would be great to see other researchers use our work as a basis for those kinds of studies,”Guy said. “At the end of the experiment, the majority of the participants were saying not just how much they enjoyed the sessions but also how they planned to keep gardening. ”

10 . Merle Liivand was born in Estonia. As a child, she had health problems, and began swimming to help her lungs get stronger. She was soon taking part in open water swimming contests, sometimes even in icy water. In 2017 and 2019, she represented Estonia at the World Aquatics Championships.

Eleven years ago, Ms. Merle moved to Miami, Florida. In one training session, she nearly wound up swallowing some plastic floating in the sea. That experience made her think of all the sea animals who faced similar pollution every day. She began swimming with a special single swimming fin(鳍状物) attached to both of her feet. This rubbery “monofin” allows her to swim by kicking both of her legs together. “Swimming with the monofin without using my arms is similar to how dolphins and sea animals swim,” says Ms. Merle. She believes that swimming with a monofin “sends a bigger message”.

Ms. Merle first set the world record for swimming with a monofin in 2019, when she swam 10 kilometers off the coast of California. In 2020, she broke the record again by swimming 20. 6 kilometers, this time in Miami, Florida.

Last year, she set a new Guinness World Record by swimming 30 kilometers, again in Florida. Even though it took her 9 hours and 19 minutes to set that record, Ms. Merle says she knew she could go farther. So for the last year, Ms. Merle has been getting up at 4 every morning, putting on her monofin and going swimming.

On May 7, Ms. Merle broke the record once more, this time swimming the length of a full marathon. It took her 11 hours and 54 seconds to swim 42.2 kilometers.

To keep her energy up, a friend followed her in a kayak and gave her food and water from time to time. Along the way, Ms. Merle picked up all the trash she found and put it in the kayak. By the end of her marathon, the kayak held three bags full of trash.