About a week and a half ago, all of my students were cramming for semester final tests. In mid-January, the third years (seniors in American terms) will be taking the all-important (and that's an understatement....everything is leading up to this....everything is on the line) “Center Test” general college entrance exam (SAT/ACT on massive steroids—and then most universities have additional exams particular to each school).

Some of my classes are organized around preparing them for the English portion of this test. There are a variety of sections, from multiple choice to fill in the blank to read the story and answer the questions. And the answer isn't always as easy as you might think.

Anyway, the following is an excerpt from one of the short stories in the Practice Test booklet:

What I found out was very simple. It's that no one is ever really alone. There's someone who cares about what happens to you. You're never alone, no matter what you do. That's the secret of happiness, of doing things well, of everything.

Happy Holidays, from me and my young friend.