I was sitting in my grandpa’s oak chair having coffee when a text message from a former colleague woke me from my daydreams.

“Do you want to pick up your rocking chair?”

For 17 years, I taught grade one and two, and my dreams as a teacher were tied to that rocking chair. It was a magical idea to have it in my class. Every day after breaks, the class would gather around and listen to the story I was reading. When the kids were close, they found the courage to share their stories, dreams and fears. The chair was part of my job, part of me.

Unfortunately, I became unwell and couldn’t keep teaching. I experienced severe depression and anxiety and was forced to leave the job. With my life as a teacher over, I needed a new path. And I didn’t have to look far.

My husband and I adopted one of my former students in 2017. The complexity of parenting a child who came to us at 9 years old changed our lives in unexpected ways. It called on the part of me that learns to be a good mother. We spent countless hours snuggling up (依偎)with books — healing, bonding and solidifying our family. This gave me a new purpose.

I joined a support group of local moms. For about a year, I met with them weekly for walks or coffee. We came together to share. Then I started giving and receiving help. I gave driving practice to a single mom with her learner’s license and received emotional support in return. I also took her son on hikes around the city. Another woman encouraged me to buy a stand-up board and gave me lessons on surfing.

My family, my books, finding a new purpose and belonging in a community — these are fulfilling the sense of self I used to prize as a teacher. I learned my identity doesn’t need to change. I’m still honoring those core values whether or not I’m working as a teacher.

The Importance of Positive AttitudeA positive attitude is very important as it will make our life easier. 【小题1】 . There will be times when we will face problems and obstacles. The most challenging part is not when our life goes smoothly but how we react when we experience problems and difficulties.

Those who have a positive attitude will treat any problem as a challenge. Instead of being discouraged, they will treat each failure as a lesson. 【小题2】 . As for those who do not have the positive attitude, they will see problems and difficulties in a different way.

The situation can be the same for both the Guy A and Guy B. 【小题3】 . Every one of us has the same amount of time. Since having a negative attitude will eat up our time, why don’t we just make good use of the same amount of time to have a positive attitude? Life itself is already hard. It will be much better if we have a positive attitude which will make our life happier and easier.

【小题4】 . People will generally prefer to stay with people who have positive attitudes as being happy is very infectious (富有感染力的) . Everyone will be affected by the energy of positive attitudes and they too will have a positive attitude.

If you learn to see the bright side of life when you’re surrounded by difficulties, you’ll be building your positive attitude fast. 【小题5】 .

I've often wondered if I might do more good as a travel agent rather than as a psychologist.It seems that I have been more dramatically affected by certain kinds of travel experiences than I ever have.

My trip to Iceland is a fine example of that.The plan was to spend two days in a remote mountain hut in Iceland.I was working on a photograhic book about winter in Iceland and needed to capture images of this amazing region of high mountain peaks，smoky volcanoes，and lakes with floating icebergs.

The moment after we arrived，the weather turned extreme making visibility impossible.It snowed so much and the wind blew so hard that we couldn't leave the tiny hut.We tried to call for help but the radio did not work.Day after day，we watched our supplies of food and fuel grow dangerously short.We got acute cabin fever(幽居病)and started going for walks and ski expeditions outside.Even when the weather finally broke，nobody came to get us even though it was three days beyond our scheduled pickup.By the time the rescue team came to pull us out，we had all given up hope.

From then on，the world looks different to me，as does my life.It would have taken me years of psychotherapy to get to the same point.

Almost everyone has a story to tell，and interestingly，most of these experiences were not altogether pleasant at the time.In fact，it appears that the most constructive life­changing journeys were those that involved some sorts of awful and uncomfortable events that forced the person to develop new resources，increase confidence，and solve problems in new ways.