The Daffodil Lesson
It was a bleak rainy day, and I had no desire to drive up the winding mountain road to my daughter Caronlyn’s house. But she had insisted that I come see something at the top of the mountain.
So here I was, reluctantly making the two-hour journey through fog that hung like veils. By the time I was, how thick it was near the summit. I’d gone too far to turn back. Nothing could be worth this, I thought as I inched along the dangerous highway.
“I’ll stay for lunch, but I’m heading back down as soon as the fog lifts,” I announced when I arrived.
“But I need you to drive me to the garage to pick up my car” Caronlyn said. “Could we at least do that?”
“How far is it”? I asked.
“About three minutes”, she said, “I’ll drive—I’m used to it.”
After ten minutes on the mountain road, I looked at her anxiously. “I thought you said three minutes.”
She grinned. “This is a detour (绕道).”
Turning down a narrow track, we parked the car and got out. We walked along a path that was thick with old pine needles. Hug e black-green evergreens towards over us. Gradually the peace and silence of the place began to fill my mind.
Then we turned a corner, and I gasped in amazement.
From the top of the mountain, sloping for several acres across folds and valleys, were rivers of daffodils in radiant bloom. A profusion (大量) of color — from the pales t ivory to the deepest lemon to the most vivid salmon — blazed like a carpet before us. It looked as though the sun had tipped over and spilled gold down the mountainside. At the center there was a waterfall of purple flowers. Here and there were coral-colored tulips. Western bluebirds frolicked (嬉戏) over the heads of the daffodils, their tawny breasts and sapphire wings like a flutter of jewels.
A riot of question filled my mind. Who created such beauty? Why? How?
As we approached the home that stood in the center of the property, we saw a sign that read: “Answers to the Question. I Know You Are Asking.”
The first answer was “One Woman-Two Hands, Two Feet, and Very Little Brain.” The second was: “One at a Time,” The third: “Started in 1958.”
As we drove home, I was so moved by what we had been, I could scarcely speak. “She changed the world,” I finally said, “one bulb at a time. She started almost 40 years ago, probably just the beginning of an idea, but she kept at it.”
The wonder of it would not let me go. “Imagine,” I said, “if I’d had a vision and worked at it, just a little bit every day, what might I have accomplished?”
Carolyn looked at me sideways, smiling. “Start tomorrow,” she said.
“Better yet, start today.”
36. The author gasped in amazement because ______.
A.the road twisted and turned along the mountain |
B.the vast stretch of daffodil field was so beautiful that it stunned her. |
C.the owner of the filed came to answer her questions |
D.the fog crowning the mountain lifted eventually |
37. What can be inferred from the story?
A.The beautiful daffodil field was all along the road. |
B.The author and her daughter planned the journey well. |
C.The author planned to work in the daffodil field the next day. |
D.The owner of the field spent a lot of time working in the field. |
38. What lesson did the author learn from this trip?
A.Rome is not built in a day. | B.It is never too old to learn. |
C.Birds of a feather flock together. | D.East or west, home is best. |
39. The passage is mainly about ______.
A.a successful gardener | B.a worthwhile gardening lesson |
C.an inspiring travelling experience | D.an unexpected countryside accident |