Clara Daly was seated on an Alaska Airlines flight route from Boston to Los Angeles when a flight attendant asked an urgent question over the loudspeaker: "Does anyone on board know American Sign Language?" Clara, 15 at the time, pressed the call button. The flight attendant came by and explained the situation. "We have a passenger on the plane who's blind and deaf," she said. The passenger seemed to want something, but he was traveling alone and the flight attendants couldn't understand what he needed.
Clara had been studying ASL for the past year to help with her dyslexia (读写困难)and knew she'd be able to finger spell into the man's palm. So she untied her seat belt, walked toward the front of the plane, and knelt by the aisle (过道)seat of Tim Cook, then 64. Gently taking his hand, she signed, "How are you? Are you OK?" Tim asked for some water. When it arrived, Clara returned to her seat.
She came by again a bit later because Tim wanted to know the time. On her third visit, she stopped and stayed a while. "He didn't need anything. He was lonely and wanted to talk," Clara says. So for the next hour, that's what they did. She talked about her family and her plans for the future (she wants to be a politician). Tim told Clara how he had gradually become blind over time and shared stories of his days as a traveling salesman.
"Even though Tim couldn't see her, she looked attentively at his face with such kindness," a passenger reported. "Clara was amazing," a flight attendant told Alaska Airlines in a blog interview. "You could tell Tim was very excited to have someone he could speak to, and she was such an angel. " Tim's reaction: "Best trip I've ever had."
4. Why was an urgent question asked over the loudspeaker?
A.The attendants wanted to learn American Sign Language. |
B.The attendants couldn't understand the passenger. |
C.The attendants wanted to use American Sign Language. |
D.A special passenger wanted to learn American Sign Language. |
5. What did Clara do on the second visit to Tim?
A.Clara asked for some water for Tim. |
B.Clara stayed with Tim for an hour. |
C.Clara shared her life story with Tim. |
D.Clara told Tim what time it was. |
6. Why did Tim Cook keep asking for help?
A.He needed someone to talk to. |
B.He was interested in Clara's future plans. |
C.He was afraid and lonely on the plane. |
D.He wanted to share his experience with Clara. |
7. Which of the following words can best describe Clara?
A.Polite. | B.Outgoing. |
C.Thoughtful. | D.Energetic. |