My Ph.D. adviser called me into his office and started by saying, “Anurag, this conversation isn’t going to be easy.” My mind was instantly ________ into a burst of thoughts about what was to follow. He looked me in the eye and announced, “You are fired from the lab.” I stared back in ________, “Is he joking?”

I ________ my Ph.D. adviser, and my experiments progressed as planned. Though I made a few mistakes in the lab, I wasn’t ________ that my adviser noticed them, and he never spoke to me about any concerns. That’s why I was caught ________ in his office that day. I suspect he fired me because of those mistakes. He wasn’t ________ that I could complete my research.

I tried to change his mind with ________ results, but he remained unchanged. I was soon thrown into a state of ________, and I could not break the news to my family.

________ I collected myself. I thought of a movie, one line from which ________ to me: “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade (柠檬汁).” What kind of “lemonade” could I make out of my current ________?

My desire to complete a Ph.D. was never in doubt. After much ________, I reminded myself that one ________ attempt was not the end of the world, and that I needed to give it another try. I emailed potential advisers and ________ to other programs. Within 2 months, I received a(an) ________ from a Ph.D. program in Italy—my goal of completing a Ph.D. was ________ once again.

I’m ________ that I didn’t give up on my dream and that I found another ________ professor who accepted me. So, if you find yourself in ________ situations and life gives you lemons, ________ yourself: “How can I make lemonade?”

A daughter complained to her father about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did know she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was ________of fighting and struggling. It seems that as one problem was solved a new one arose.

Her father, a cook, took her to the kitchen. He filled three pots with water and placed each on a high________. Soon the pots came to a(n) ________. In one he placed carrots, in the second he placed eggs, and in the last he placed ground coffee beans. He let them sit and boil，without saying a word.

The daughter sucked her teeth and ________waited, wondering what he was doing. In about twenty minutes he turned off the burners. He ________the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. He pulled the eggs out and placed them in another bowl. Then he ladled (舀) the coffee out and placed it in a cup. Turning to her, he asked,“Darling, what do you see?”

“Carrots, eggs, and coffee,” she replied.

He brought her closer and asked her to ________ the carrots, she did and noted that they were ________. He then asked her to take an egg and ________it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard­boiled egg. Finally, he asked her to sip (啜饮) the coffee. She ________, as she tasted its rich aroma (香味).

“What does it mean, Father?” she ________ asked.

He explained that each of them had faced the same adversity (逆境), boiling water, but each reacted differently. The carrot went in, ________and hard. But after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior (内部), but after sitting ________ the boiling water, its inside became hardened. The ground coffee beans were________, however. After they were in the boiling water, they had ________ the water.

“ ________ are you?” he asked his daughter.

When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?

When my aunt’s children were small, she decided to get them a puppy. Her neighbor’s dog had given _______ to a couple of puppies a few weeks earlier and so my aunt arranged to _______ one of the puppies once they had been weaned(断奶).

The day came to bring home the little puppy and the children were_______; they named it Shorty happily and _______ welcomed it, preparing its food and a comfortable _______ in a basket. The next day the children gave it some milk before kissing it goodbye and_______ for school. When they returned, they were _______   to discover that Shorty was missing. They _______ the whole house inch by inch, _______ it was nowhere to be found. A few hours later, the ________ who sold them the puppy came over carrying Shorty,________. He explained that the mother dog had slid into my aunt’s house and carried the puppy back to his home.

For a number of days my aunt and her neighbour tried ________ to keep the puppy in his new home, because each day the mother dog would________ it from the tiny bed. Finally, my aunt’s neighbour gave up and offered her a refund.

I came to realize that mother’s love is flowing all over the places you can imagine, ________ in the kingdom of animals. By the way, if you would like to keep a puppy as a ________ you might as well keep the mother dog at a distance.