I should have been starting the second year of my PhD._______, I was at my parents’ house, recently discharged from the hospital.

I had been ready for the failures of graduate school—experiments, funding proposals, even classes. But I was caught_______when midway through my first year I faced a different type of_______. I felt_______or worn out, every morning. My appetite decreased. The next few months, I visited the_______often. My doctors told me to focus completely on my_______for the next 6 months and to rest.

I had never taken a(n)_______before. I feared it would be seen as a sign of _______. Most of all, I feared I would simply be _______by the advisers I desperately wanted recognition from. However, I knew this leave of absence was________, for I wasn’t ready to________my school.

When I________to my PhD after 6 months, I had to relearn my project and how to be a graduate student. I still needed to meet doctors and changed medications countless times. My PhD journey will be a________one, with more time away from thesis (论文) work than most.

I’m________though. Over the past year, I________with others who also took time away during graduate school. Hearing their stories, I learned that a leave of absence is perfectly OK, no matter what the reason.

I can still remember standing at the edge of the diving board that time. Filled with _______, I looked down at the water below me. It beckoned(召唤)me to jump in; _______, I couldn’t move.

In my 7-year-old mind, I told my body to bend, rise up and then _______ the jumping board, yet it didn’t _______. I remained still on the edge. All the other _______ had jumped off the board; I just backed up and wanted to turn around and _______.

Just then, my dad shouted, “Jump! Just jump in like all the other kids in your class. Be _______, Mijita! You can do it!” His _______ was useless. I refused to look up, keeping looking at the water below. “Jump, Mijita. You can _______ it!” my dad called out again.

________, I moved my eyes away from the water. My dad was beside the pool, with a smile signaling I could do it. Not wanting to ________ him, I jumped. Before the feeling of ________ and hitting the water entered my brain, I was already floating up to the surface. My dad was so excited, and the ________ was clear — I did it.

In the following many years, anytime I ________ before challenges, he’d tell me, “Just jump in.” And no matter what, he was always there. How ________ I felt!

I once worked on a farm. One day, a powerful wind slammed (猛推) me against a post. My left arm got totally _________, and it was later cut off.

Back home after an operation, I found everything a(n) _________. My husband tried to help me, but I wanted to be _________. I called my left arm “Stumpy” and tried to _________. I learned to squeeze toothpaste; I developed a technique for pulling the toilet paper.

“Mom can do anything,” my daughter said _________. The one thing I really wanted to do, though, was get back into _________. First, I tried to swim. When I swam with Stumpy, there was no forward motion. _________, I kept going and finished the lane at last. Then I tried the triathlon (铁人三项). I _________ how to balance the bike with one arm and start running. Within a year, I became an _________ athlete, winning a silver medal at the Paratriathlon World Cup.

In 2020, I decided to do New Zealand’s __________ event. Competitors have to run for 36 km, cycle for 140 km, and kayak (皮划艇) for 70 km. I __________ hard over the next six months. Then the big day came. After kayaking for a long time, my legs felt like jelly. “Don’t __________,” I told myself. In the last few kilometers, I heard loud __________. Many people came to support me.

Life in __________ for me, but I choose to change it. “Just because you’ve got only half a wing doesn’t mean you can’t __________ to achieve your dreams,” I said to myself.