Psychologists say that people who can name their feelings handle them far better. A child who says only that the day was bad may in fact feel (11) before a test, or deep (12) after losing a match. Teachers therefore ask students to keep a short evening diary. Writing one honest line each night can (13) a worried mind more than an hour of advice. Over time young writers are often (14) by how many different feelings appear on a single page. This habit solves no problems by itself, yet most students end the term calmer and far more (15) with the person they are becoming.
Every Tuesday evening Mei-ling works as a (16) on a telephone help line. Callers are strangers, yet within minutes they tell her things they hide from every close (17) in their lives. Some are simply lonely; others still (18) for a parent who died last spring. Mei-ling rarely gives advice, because she has learned that a caller in the dark needs a steady voice far more than a (19) plan. When the line finally goes quiet, she often hears a small laugh instead of tears, and for her that sound is a real (20) at the end of a tiring day.