Mary Allen was my best friend ---- like the sister I never had．We did every thing together, piano lessons，movies，swimming，horse riding．When 1 was 13，my family moved to another city．Mary and I often wrote to each other，and sometimes we saw each other ---- like my wedding and Mary’s．Soon we were busy with children and moving to new homes，and we wrote less often．One day a card that I sent to Mary came back with the words“Address Unknown”．I had no idea how to find Mary．

    Over the years，I thought of Mary often．1 wanted to share stories of my children and then grandchildren．And I needed to share my sorrow when my brother and then mother died．There was an empty place in my heart that on1y a friend like Mary could fill．

    One day 1 was reading the newspaper when I noticed a photo of a young woman．She looked like Mary and her last name was White ---- Mary’s married name．“There must be thousands of Whites，”I thought，but I wrote to her anyway．

    She called as soon as she got my letter．“Mrs．Green!”she said excitedly．“Mary Allen White is my mother．”Minutes later I heard a voice that I recognized at once，even after 40 years．We laughed and cried．

    Do you read advice columns in newspapers and magazines? Do you think they are helpful to everyone who reads them? Here are some：

Dear Sally，

    I’ve got a problem．My good friend Lana in my science class asked me to lend her my exercise book so she could copy my answers．Should I do it. Sally? I don’t want to，but I’m afraid that if I don’t give it to her she won’t be my friend any longer．             

                                                                                  Carmen

Dear Carmen，

    Of course you can’t give her your exercise book．That’s cheating，and you could get into big trouble if you do that．        

                                                                                   Sally

DearSally，

    1 was at friend’s house for dinner last Saturday．During dinner，I broke a beautiful plate．It was my friend’s favorite wedding gift．I wanted to pay for it，but she didn’t agree with me．I feel bad about it．              

                                                                                     Kay

Dear Kay，

    I think you did the right thing．It was important to offer to payfor it，but it’s not surprising that she said no．Perhaps you could give her a special gift instead．                    

                                                                                   Sally

Dear Sally，

    My son is 24 years old．He finished college last year，but he can’t seem to find a job that he likes．I’m worried that he’s not trying hard enough to get a job and live on his own．He sleeps till noon every day．Also I’ve been cooking his meals．             

                                                                                   Lisa

Dear Lisa,

    You’re making it too easy for him to stay where he is．Tell him he has two months to find a job (any job) and get his own place．He’s old enough to take care of himself．     

                                                                                   Sall

    It is reported that many middle school students are just not getting enough sleep，especially during the school week．The problem seems to get worse as they get older．Year 7 students sleep 8．4 hours in a school night，and Year 9 students only 6．9 hours．

    It’s also reported that not getting enough sleep can cause problems in a student’s life．

    Many students fall asleep in school or while doing their homework，so it is not surprising that they get lower grades than those who get enough sleep．Scientists suggest nine hours a night for middle school students.Of the students who feel unhappy and nervous，73％don’t get enough sleep at night．

    Why aren’t students getting enough sleep? Many students have one of the following things，like telephone，television，or computer，in their bedrooms．Using them on a school night not only takes their time away from homework，but also makes it difficult for them to fall asleep．As a result，many students can't fall asleep before 11 P．m..，yet they must get up early to go to school．

    Scientists also suggest students should not do exciting activities for an hour before bedtime．