4 . A few months ago, one of my fellow graduate students was offered an incredible career-building opportunity. His efforts on a student-led campaign to increase federal funding for basic research had________an invitation to speak on a panel (专家组) conference. It would look great on his CV (简历). I was happy for him, of course. But I was________ to him in efforts in campaign. I felt that I deserved the same opportunity. Yet I hadn’t been________and I wasn’t sure why.

However, I decided that I needed to________my life again—by becoming my own biggest advocate.

So, with my heart beating fast, I asked my classmate to ask the conference organizers to________me. My mind was filled with________. Maybe I didn’t deserve it. Maybe I was being too ambitious. But my classmates immediately contacted the organizers, who quickly agreed to________me in. Now I come to understand that I can’t be recognized if I’m invisible. This isn’t a revolutionary idea which many people are unfamiliar with. I know, but as an introvert (内向的人) this is my________Mount Qomolangma.

5 . How do parents teach children about money? How do you teach them to get rich? Likely, you do not have an answer because you would not call yourself rich.     1     Here is what self-made millionaires tell their kids about wealth.

You deserve to have wealth.

This statement could be read as arrogant (傲慢的), when in fact it comes from a place of humbleness. Self-made millionaires teach their children that they deserve to be rich not because they were born into the right family but because they work hard to solve other people’s problems.     2    

    3    

Having money gets rid of tons of the issues which people find themselves in when they do not have it. Not happy with your current living situation? You can pack up and leave. Do you hate your job? Why not start your own business? Upset about a global disaster? Donate what you can to the cause. Money allows you to enjoy life on your own terms.

Nothing is guaranteed.

    4     They must create their own lives and futures. It’s important to teach kids about self-reliance. Legally, kids have the right to have more and more things, but it’s important to teach against these values.

Solve problems to earn your wealth.

In a free market economy, everyone is looking for a way to make money. If you come up with an idea to solve the world’s problem, there will be a demand for it. The bigger the problem, the more difficulty you might have getting it off the ground.     5     Pairing your skills at problem solving could be the way towards wealth.

6 . My aunt came to my home with her six-year-old daughter Alice this morning. While my aunt was talking with my mom at home, my cousin felt a bit _______. So I suggested that I go out with her. My aunt happily agreed. So we went to the park near my home together. There we bought two _______ and started flying them. While we were doing that, Alice couldn’t help _______. She jumped up and down and I knew she was _______ having great fun. And I must _______ that I haven’t enjoyed myself like that for a long time.

Later, we sat down on a bench, looking at the gardens. As we were _______ there, Alice looked up at me and said, “What a _______ day today!” I smiled at her and agreed. I then started _______ what we had done that day. We did something quite _______, yet we were very happy.

Many people wait for their “best days”. But I think today is our ________ day. That’s a lesson I learned today. As adults, we often make plans carefully in order to have a great day. Some people think that they can have a nice day through spending a lot of ________. I think we should be more like ________. They don’t think about money or what will happen tomorrow. They really live in the moment and enjoy the moment!

We often hear the expression that we should live in the ________. How do we do that? We’re not doing such a good job. Remember today is important as we are exchanging (交换) a day of our ________ for it. Yesterday is a history. Tomorrow is a mystery. Today is a ________. That’s why it is called present. So seize (把握) the day!

8 . Two of the saddest words in the English language are “if only”. I live my life with the goal of never having to say those words, because they convey regret, lost opportunities, mistakes, and disappointment.

My father is famous in our family for saying, “Take the extra minute to do it right.” I always try to live by the “extra minute” rule. When my children were young and likely to cause accidents, I always thought about what I could do to avoid an “if only” moment, whether it was something minor like moving a cup full of hot coffee away from the edge of a counter, or something that required a little more work such as taping padding (衬垫) onto the sharp corners of a glass coffee table.

I don’t only avoid those “if only” moments when it comes to safety. It’s equally important to avoid “if only” in our personal relationships. We all know people who lost a loved one and regretted that they had foregone an opportunity to say “I love you” or “I forgive you”. When my father announced he was going to the eye doctor across from my office on Good Friday, I told him that it was a holiday for my company and I wouldn’t be here. But then I thought about the fact that he’s 84 years old and I realised that I shouldn’t give up an opportunity to see him. I called him and told him I had decided to go to work on my day off after all.

I know there will still be occasions when I have to say “if only” about something, but my life is definitely better because of my policy of doing everything possible to avoid that eventuality. And even though it takes an extra minute to do something right,or it occasionally takes an hour or two in my busy schedule to make a personal connection, I know that I’m doing the right thing. I’m buying myself peace of mind and that’s the best kind of insurance for my emotional well-being.

9 . When I was 12 years old, I already knew that my teen years were going to be the worst years of my life. I was a total outsider, bullied (欺凌) at school. I felt completely alone in my small town.

But by starting to do volunteer work when I was 14, I turned my problem into a passion for helping others. The opportunity to practice kindness made me feel like my life had a greater purpose. The more positive energy I shared, the more kindness and appreciation I received. I realized that my purpose in life would be to reach out to people, specifically teenagers, and help them feel less alone.

Books were my true friends back then. I was so thankful that the authors wrote those books. The kindness they offered me with their books saved my life. One of my biggest dreams was to become an author so I could write books that would help other teenagers the way those books helped me.

After surviving terrible experiences at school and at home, I made a choice to take the optimistic, positive road in the next steps of my journey. My dream career, one I thought was only possible for the authors I loved, is what I am doing now. I have been a full-time author of teen novels since 2007 and am grateful for this amazing opportunity to reach out to readers every single day.

Kindness saved me when I needed help the most. Even small acts of kindness can change someone’s life. You never know what someone else is going through. But by practicing daily kindness, you become an architect of positive change.

10 . When I tried out for the football team during the summer before 9th grade, I never imagined how important this sport would become in my life. Football is a _____ sport, at times almost painful, and practices really _____ a team’s physical and mental limits. Without trust in my own ability and a strong sense of commitment, I would never have managed to continue after years of hard work as a player, and with countless _____.

In the first year, I played on the defensive line. This was an amazing _____ that gave me a great sense of achievement. But in the last game of the season, I was seriously injured. I was prohibited from any physical activities for six months. After going _____ a series of physical treatments, I returned to the field as a team captain. I practiced harder than ever to make up for my _____ time.

In September, during my junior year, my name was mentioned in the local newspaper as the key defensive lineman on the team. After playing a fantastic season, I was given the _____ of the Most Valuable Player.

_____, my skills in football do not magically extend to other sports. During the winter break, I went on a snowboarding trip and seriously injured my right shoulder. I had to have four _____. Since I could not use my right arm for two months, I had to learn how to write and eat using my left hand.

______ life must go on. I knew that my own present efforts would decide my future, so I ______ the strict training program to build up strength and improve flexibility in my ______. After an eight-month recovery, I was back to the field playing football, the sport I ______.

In this sense, the world of football has taught me an important life lesson: ______ and commitment make what seems impossible ______. This lesson from football is the one that can be applied to every part of life.