1 . 假定你是高中生李华，在美国朋友James的帮助下，获得了学校上周英文演讲比赛第一名。请给James写封邮件，内容包括：

1.表示感谢；

2.比赛情况；

3.你的感想。

注意：1.词数100左右；

2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。

Dear James,

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Yours,

Li Hua

We often hear about the negative aspects of anxiety, but could there be any advantages or benefits that come from living with anxiety? Anxiety is a feeling that is often characterized by intense fear and worry.

Many individuals with anxiety describe it as a feeling of nervousness and fear that can be distracting and all-consuming. It is typically experienced on many levels, affecting one’s emotions and leading to uncomfortable physical sensations, and negative thoughts. However, have you ever considered some of the possible positive effects that may come with having anxiety? Scientists have learned that some degree of stress or anxiety isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Good stress, something now referred to as eustress, keeps us motivated and excited about life. It appears that some degree of anxiety may have similar “silver linings”.

Anxiety may be just the warning sign you need to bring awareness to your current situation and make some necessary changes in your life. For example, you may find that you have a friendship that is no longer working, or perhaps your job is causing a great deal of stress. Your anxiety can be difficult to manage, but exploring and coping with your anxiety can be a real opportunity for self-growth.

Anxiety may help you feel more motivated and prepared when faced with challenges. Research has shown that students and athletes who experienced some anxiety actually performed better on tests or in competitive sports. For instance, perhaps your anxiety assists you in putting extra effort into work or personal tasks, making a good impression, or moving towards your goals.

People who have dealt with anxiety may be more sympathetic and understanding to the problems that others face. Having gone through personal struggles yourself, you may be more sensitive, loving, and accepting when friends and family members are dealing with personal challenges.

Even though there can be some potential benefits to experiencing anxiety, it is worthwhile to point that it can also become a real hindrance to many aspects of your life. If anxiety is preventing you from living the life you desire, then it may be time to get professional help.

To me, a hero is someone who goes out of his way to make others happy. My hero is Mr. Wright, my chorus teacher.

When I was 12 years old, my dear grandparents passed away. Losing them was the hardest thing I had to go through. It was as if my whole world had fallen down from under me, and I _______ into this huge hole of depression.

_______ I was battling depression, I was determined to make my high school years the best of my life. So I joined Women’s Choir. Mr. Wright was the choral director and he was so funny that the first day I knew I had made the best _______ of my life. As the year progressed, I began to smile again.

Then one day that all changed. My friends started talking about me behind my back. I was _______, and I sat by myself. Mr. Wright came over and asked what was wrong. The look in his eyes told me that I could trust him. Trying hard to _______ back tears, I told him the whole story.

When I finished, he told me, “If you never learn anything from me, learn this: No one is worth _______ your joy.” What Mr. Wright said really struck me. He _______ cared about me and what was going on. I’ll never be able to thank him enough, because he not only saved me but has _______ every day of it since. Any time I feel like giving up, I remember Mr. Wright’s words and _______.

I’m glad I had the opportunity to meet you, Mr. Wright. You are an __________ teacher, and I hope you realize that. You’re my hero.

6 . Our Fears Can Change the Reality of the Situation

At times, our worries and anxieties can defeat us. In addition, our worries can change our understanding of what is reality and what is not. Here is a brief list of techniques that you can use to help gain a better viewpoint on things during your anxious moments.

    1     A person should take a deep breath and try to find something to do for a few minutes to get their mind off the problem. A person could get some fresh air, listen to some music, or do an activity that will give them a fresh perspective on things.

Remember that our fearful thoughts are made to seem worse and can make the problem worse.     2     When unexpectedly having thoughts that make you fearful or anxious, challenge those thoughts by asking yourself questions that will maintain objectivity and common sense.

Be smart in how you deal with your fears and anxieties. Do not try to deal with everything all at once. When facing a current or upcoming task that makes your anxious, break the task into a series of smaller steps.     3    

Remember that all the worrying in the world will not change anything. Most of what we worry about never comes true.     4    

It is not easy to deal with all of our fears and worries. When your fears and anxieties have the best of you, try to calm down and then get the facts of the situation. The key is to take it slow. All you can do is do your best each day, hope for the best, and when something does happen, take it easy.     5    

7 . Is Positive Thinking Powerful?

The $11 billion self-help industry is built on the idea that you should turn negative thoughts like “I never do anything right” into positive ones like “I can succeed”. But was the positive thinking advocate Norman Vincent Peale right? Is there power in positive thinking?

Researchers in Canada just published a study in Psychological Science that says trying to get people to think more positively can actually have the opposite effect: it can simply stress how unhappy they are. The study’s authors, Joanne Wood and John Lee of the University of Waterloo and Elaine Perunovic of the University of New Brunswick, begin by using older research showing that when people get feedback (反馈) which they believe is overly positive, they actually feel worse, not better. If you tell your friend who is not very clever that he has the potential of an Einstein, you’re just underlining his faults. In the 1990s, a team including psychologist Joel Cooper of Princeton conducted an experiment. The participants were asked to write essays opposing financial support for the disabled, expressing little sympathy for them. When these participants were later praised for their sympathy, they felt even worse about what they had written.

In this experiment, Wood, Lee and Perunovic measured 68 students’ self-respect. The participants were then asked to write down their thoughts and feelings for four minutes. Every 15 seconds, one group of students heard a bell. When it rang, they were supposed to tell themselves, “I am lovable” Those with low self-respect didn’t feel better after the forced self-approval. In fact, their feelings turned significantly worse than those of members of the control group, who weren’t urged to think positive thoughts.

The study provides support for newer forms for psychotherapy (心理治疗) that urge people to accept their negative thoughts and feelings rather than fight them. In the fighting, we not only often fail but can make things worse. Meditation (静思) techniques, on the contrary, can teach people to realize their shortcomings from a larger, more realistic perspective. Call it the power of negative thinking.

8 . Confidence is at the heart of every successful person and it holds the key to success. Regardless of how knowledgeable you are in your professional field, your success will be limited if you lack confidence. Actually, confidence isn’t what you’re born with, but something learned over time.     1    

Know yourself. Take a long look in the mirror and make an honest and accurate judgement of your strengths and weaknesses. Continue to build upon your strengths, as this will increase your confidence.     2     We all have areas in our professional and personal lives that need to be improved.     3     Instead, it only holds back your success and keeps your confidence low.

    4     Whether you like it or not, people make judgments about you based upon how you dress. You only have one chance to make a good first impression. How you dress directly shows how you feel about yourself. Research shows that you will feel differently about yourself if you are wearing a business suit or sweat pants and a T-shirt. Therefore, be highly aware of your appearance. Dress in a manner that reflects who you are.

Go step by step. You can increase your confidence by seeking out one new challenge at a time.     5     Move on to the next one when one challenge is successfully achieved. Success builds upon itself, therefore success brings success—all fueled by increased confidence!

9 . What Is Emotional Eating?

Emotional eating is when people use food as a way to deal with feelings instead of satisfying hunger.     1     Have you ever finished a whole bag of chips out of boredom or downed cookie after cookie while preparing for a big test? But when done a lot—especially without realizing it—emotional eating can affect weight, health, and overall well-being.

Not many of us make the connection between eating and our feelings.

    2     One of the biggest myths about emotional eating is that it’s caused by negative feelings. Yes, people often turn to food when they’re stressed out, lonely, sad, anxious, or bored. But emotional eating can be linked to positive feelings too, like the romance of sharing dessert on Valentine’s Day or the celebration of a holiday feast. Sometimes emotional eating is tied to major life events, like a death or a divorce.     3    

Emotional eating patterns can be learned: A child who is given candy after a big achievement may grow up using candy as a reward for a job well done.     4     It’s not easy to “unlearn” patterns of emotional eating. But it is possible. And it starts with an awareness of what’s going on.

We’re all emotional eaters to a degree. But for some people emotional eating can be a real problem, causing serious weight gain or other problems. The trouble with emotional eating is that once the pleasure of eating is gone, the feelings that cause it remain. And you often may feel worse about eating the amount or type of food you like.     5    

Next time you reach for a snack, wait and think about which type of hunger is driving it.