In middle school, I was chosen to represent the school in a speaking contest. I’d never participated in that kind of contest before, but my English teacher encouraged me (1) (__________) my name forward. I worked on my speech night and day, and brainstormed a lot of different ideas that I could potentially talk about. Despite my enthusiasm for the contest, actually writing the speech (2) (__________) almost impossible and I only finished it the night before the contest. I couldn’t help (3) (__________) nervous when I stepped onto the stage, as other students seemed to be far more (4) (__________) than I was. Still, I got to the end without making any mistakes, and remembered (5) (__________) the judges for listening before I finished. The silver medal wasn’t quite what I had dreamed of, but I was satisfied with my first ever speaking contest.