I started playing the piano when I was around four years old—that was 15 years ago!—and since then, the longest I haven’t touched piano keys was probably two months. This was an enormous amount of devotion to something that I wasn’t even planning to make money off of—so there must have been something worth holding on to, right?
The easy guess is that I was always so purely in love with music and piano that I couldn’t bear to let them go. However, it’s a bit more complicated than that. I struggled a lot with piano. I felt pressure to improve, innovate, and be the best in order to prove something to others. The seed of my musical interest was grown with competition and doubt.
It’s difficult to learn to love something that you didn’t choose in the first place. But somehow, sometime, love grew. And by high school, it was strong enough that I found the strength to hold on tighter, dig further, and find something of my own to grow. In a way, I had to start over.
And so, I took a pause. I switched teachers, and got incredibly lucky with one who encouraged me and helped me tunnel into what I loved, not what I was told I should learn. Anything I had was good enough to be loved.
This summer, I started learning the guitar. I deliberately wanted to learn on my own—this was just for me, to form a new relationship to music. Even though my guitar skills are miles lower than my piano skills, I feel I can express myself even more wholly through strings than keys. There’s just something about doing it all for myself that has helped me heal the damages to my relationship to music.
The love and hate I’ve had for the piano were both planted and grown. If you too have learned to hate something you once loved—or something you never chose—remember that with dedication, it can be uprooted, and love can make a home in its place. There is always time. There is always room.
1. What can we learn about the author’s experience from Paragraph 1?| A．He probably spent two months in playing the piano. |
| B．He began to play the piano when he was 15 years old. |
| C．He thought it necessary to start playing the piano early. |
| D．He committed himself to the piano not for financial factors. |
| A．Bittersweet. | B．Harmonious. | C．Painful. | D．Passive. |
| A．His teacher’s constant encouragement. | B．His desire for a new relationship with music. |
| C．His interest in strings rather than keys. | D．His talent for playing musical instruments. |
| A．Practice makes perfect | B．Love cannot be forced |
| C．Love is a thing that grows | D．There is no end to learning |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】Our bachelor uncle lived with us, who loved hunting and fishing; and it was one of the pleasures of our young life to go fishing with him.
I remember my first fishing experience as if it happened yesterday. I was very excited when I received that first fishing pole from my uncle's hand, and went fishing with him. It was a still, sweet day of early summer; the leaves seemed greener, the flowers brighter, the birds merrier, than ever before.
My uncle considerately placed me at the most favorable point. I threw out my line as I had so often seen others, and waited anxiously for a bite, moving the bait (鱼饵) in rapid movement on the surface of the water just like the jumps of a frog. Nothing came of it. "Try again," said my uncle. Suddenly the bait sank out of sight. "Now for it," thought I, "here is a fish at last."
I made a strong pull, and brought up a tangle of weeds. Again and again I cast out my line with aching arms, and drew it back empty. "Try once more," he said, "we fishermen must have patience to catch a fish." "But remember, boy," he said, with his big smile, "never say you've caught a fish until it is on dry ground. It's no use showing off anything until it's done."
How often since I have been reminded of the fish that I did not catch! When I hear people boasting of a work as yet undone, I will remember the wise caution of my uncle in that particular instance takes the form of a proverb of universal application: "NEVER BOAST (吹嘘) OF YOUR FISH BEFORE YOU CATCH HIM."
1. From the underlined sentence in Paragraph 2, we can infer that_____________.| A．the leaves and the flowers were not so beautiful before. |
| B．the birds ate lots of fish and felt far merrier than before. |
| C．that day the author was much happier than ever before. |
| D．that day the uncle was much happier than ever before. |
| A．Don't count your chickens before they're hatched. |
| B．Never put off till tomorrow what you can do today. |
| C．One false step will make a great difference. |
| D．True friends have hearts that beat as one. |
| A．Strong and brave. | B．Wise and patient. |
| C．Patient and strong. | D．Lazy and talkative. |
| A．A sweet day of summer | B．My first fishing pole |
| C．The way to catch a fish | D．The fish I didn’t catch |
【推荐2】Time was introduced to us when we were just kids and only knew the playing hours, but when we grew up, we got our own senses about how important “The Time” is. There is a story on time management which can give you some guidance.
A philosophy professor, once, decided to teach the students a valuable lesson about Time Management, so he stood before his class with some items on the table. When the class began, wordlessly he picked up a big and empty jar and proceeded to fill it with rocks, about 2 inches in size. He then looked towards the class and asked the students if the jar was full. They all agreed that it was full. Therefore, the professor then moved to pick up a box of pebbles (鹅卵石) and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar gently. The pebbles, of course, rolled through the gaps between the rocks.
He then again looked up to the students and asked if the jar was full. They all again nodded their heads. For the last time, he turned towards the jar, this time, picked up a box of sand, poured it into the jar and shook it lightly. Of course, the sand moved into the gaps and filled up everything else. He then asked students for the last time if the jar was full or not. The students were surprised but responded with a unanimous “Yes”.
“Now,” said the professor, “I want you to realize that this jar actually is your life. The rocks are the important things— like your family, your children, your health, your partner. If nothing remained but only these, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter —like your job, your career, your house. The sand is everything else, the unimportant stuff.” “If you put the sand into the jar first,” he continued “there is no space for the pebbles or the rocks.”
“The same goes for your life. If you keep on filling the jar with the sand, it means that you keep on spending all your time and energy on the pity things and you will never have room for the things that are important for you. First and foremost, focus on the rocks — the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.”
1. What’s the main function of the first paragraph?| A．To make a prediction. | B．To offer a guidance |
| C．To provide some advice. | D．To attract readers’ interest. |
| A．The professor put the pebbles into the jar first. |
| B．The professor did four experiments altogether. |
| C．The result of the experiment was beyond students’ expectation. |
| D．It aimed to make students realize the importance of time for success. |
| A．It is important to make full use of time efficiently. |
| B．It is necessary to attach more importance to what truly matters in life. |
| C．It is crucial to strengthen the consciousness of managing time. |
| D．It is vital to arrange enough time for all aspects of life in advance. |
【推荐3】“You have to tell us where you are going and you lied,” my sons’ father said to him after telling him he wouldn’t be able to hang out with his friends for two weeks.
My youngest knows the rules: You have to tell us where you will be at all times, and if the plans change,you have to ask before you participate. I’ve drilled this into his head over and over because I’m that anxious mom, the one that worries, the one who is afraid her kids are going to get into a bad situation if she doesn’t repeatedly remind them to make the right choices and follow the rules.
Parents can constantly tell their kids to follow the rules, act politely and do things the “right” way. We can teach them the lessons and hope they follow our advice. But the truth is, even though your child can hear your voice in their ear while they are getting ready to stick their big toe into something that they know would make your head spin, it might not be enough to stop the them.
There are times when they need to experience feeling scared, uneasy or guilty in order to learn and keep them from repeating the same mistake over and over again. It’s one of the scariest realizations I’ve had as a parent, but after living with three teens for a few years it’s my truth-and it’s the truth of every other parent of a teenager.
Looking back upon my young life, I know nothing really sank in unless I experienced it for myself, like when I stopped eating chocolate late at night and found I was finally able to sleep at night. It took me long to stop damaging my own sleep even though not eating the chocolate was the simple solution. And I am not a stubborn teen.
I’ve realized the importance of stepping back (just a bit), and letting my teens navigate (寻找) their own way. It’s made all the difference.
1. What does the author expect her son to do?| A．Stop being so anxious. |
| B．Follow the family rules. |
| C．Learn to tell right from wrong. |
| D．Communicate more with parents. |
| A．Became fully understood. |
| B．Played an important role. |
| C．Sounded possible. |
| D．Made progress. |
| A．Let go of your children |
| B．Give your kids more love |
| C．Step back when necessary |
| D．Learn important life lessons |
The Sixty One
The Sixty One is devoted to showcasing obscure or unknown artists of all genres. There’s a range of musical styles from classical to rock and roll, folk to jazz, and everything in between. Don’t expect to find big name musicians on here; you’re more likely to find the musicians playing at local coffee shops than bands you hear on the radio. You can find fantastic music that you never would have heard of otherwise.
Pow Wow
Pow Wows are the Native American people’s way of meeting together, to join in dancing, singing, visiting, renewing old friendships, and making new ones. This is a time method to renew Native American culture and preserve the rich heritage of American Indians. PowWows.com has 2 online radio stations that play Native American Music 24/7 free! Here you can listen to your favorite artists and drum groups on your computer or mobile device and add your music to our station.
Playlist
Playlist has an enormous library, so you can create playlists with almost any musician you can think of. They have both some lesser known artists and big names, so you have a really good selection. The worst part: Due to licensing laws, many of the songs on Playlist are now restricted to certain countries. So unless you live inside the US, it is likely that you might not be able to find all of your favorite songs.
Pandora
Pandora is an intelligent Internet radio site. Basically, as you listen, you can give each song a thumbs up or thumbs down. You can create your own radio station that only plays music you like.The best part: It listens to your opinion, so that after a while it’s only playing music you like, but the list is always changing and expanding.
My Space
Combine a major social networking site with thousands of artists around the world. Each musician has their own page, which normally has a playlist of several of their songs. But it has a huge range of musicians ranging from huge stars to the up-and-coming, and you can listen to the music and interact with the rest of the page.
1. If you enjoy listening to some new music, you can pay a visit to ______.
| A．The Sixty One | B．Playlist | C．Pow Wow | D．Pandora |
| A．you don’t have any playlist |
| B．you are not one of the members of the website |
| C．it is only open to those who are in the United States |
| D．the music is played only by the local people. |
| A．Create Your Own Playlist. |
| B．All Kinds of Music Online. |
| C．Best Free Music Websites. |
| D．Listen to Music for free. |
【推荐2】Current digital technology gives us music of flawless quality. It also makes it easier to copy, upload and stream music without having to download it.
Researchers found that streaming an album over the Internet will use 27 times more energy than it takes to produce a single CD or vinyl record. In any given second, the music platform is serving about 2.5 million streams at the same time.
The study was published before Record Store Day—— an event that encourages listeners to buy physical record.
| A．Since our digital music uses less plastic |
| B．If average albums contain twelve tracks |
| C．This happens every time we stream music |
| D．As a result, streaming music becomes popular |
| E．Although streaming music is a greener alternative |
| F．It wants to convey effects of streaming on economy |
| G．But the researchers aren’t advising playing music traditionally |
【推荐3】Do you like Chinese traditional painting and dance? They are two important parts of the traditional Chinese art. But what about when they meet each other?
This year, a dance drama titled Poetic Dance: The Journey of a Legendary Landscape Painting (《只此青绿》) was staged on CCTV’s Spring Festival Gala and became popular.
According to CCTV, this poetic dance program was inspired by the 900-year-old Chinese painting A Panorama of Rivers and Mountains (《千里江山图》). Created by Song Dynasty painter Wang Ximeng at about 18, the painting is amazing in its sweeping size, rich coloration and the expressive details, reported CCTV. It shows a Chinese blue-green landscape: “mountains and groupings of infinite (无限的) rise and fall between cloudless sky and rippling (涟漪的) water”.
When the dancers moved elegantly, audiences seemed to be looking at the moving mountains and rivers. “It brings me a pure experience of beauty. It is not only a drama but also an exhibition. Vast mountains and rivers are coming to life!” Internet user Mo Weisha wrote in a review. “More than a thousand years later, green mountains and rivers still impress people as they did long ago.” Some people even decided to watch the dance again when it was staged in the theaters later. In fact, in recent years, more and more modern shows feature Chinese traditional culture and have received warm welcome. As for the reason, it is due to people’s great love for traditional culture.
“The younger generations have grown up with a more open mind. They accept Chinese culture and are proud of it.” Yao Wei, director of Henan TV Station’s Innovation Center, told China Daily.
1. What’s the writing purpose of Paragraph 1?| A．To show a doubtful attitude. | B．To introduce the topic. |
| C．To describe the art world. | D．To raise a question. |
| A．CCTV’s Spring Festival Gala. |
| B．Song Dynasty painter Wang Ximeng. |
| C．A Chinese blue-green landscape. |
| D．An ancient Chinese traditional painting. |
| A．Traditional culture is accepted and loved by people. |
| B．Green mountains and rivers greatly impress people. |
| C．The poetic dance can be staged in the theaters later. |
| D．Increasing modern shows feature Chinese traditional culture. |
| A．It explains why Chinese art enjoys popularity. |
| B．It shows us art can come to life through dance. |
| C．It highlights the beauty of Chinese traditional art. |
| D．It tells us the passion for Chinese traditional painting. |
【推荐1】About six years ago I was eating lunch in a restaurant in New York City when a woman and a young boy sat down at the next table. I couldn’t help overhearing parts of their conversation. At one point the woman asked, “So, how have you been?” And the boy —who could not have been more than seven or eight years old — replied. “Frankly, I’ve been feeling a little depressed lately.”
This incident stuck in my mind because it confirmed my growing belief that children are changing. As far as I can remember, my friends and I didn’t find out we were “depressed”, that is, in low spirits, until we were in high school.
Undoubtedly a change in children has increased steadily in recent years. Children don’t seem childlike anymore. Children speak more like adults, dress more like adults and behave more like adults than they used to.
Whether this is good or bad is difficult to say, but it certainly is different. Childhood as it once was no longer exists. Why?
Human development is depended not only on born biological states, but also on patterns of gaming social knowledge. Movement from one social role to another usually involves learning the secrets of the new social positions. Children have always been taught adult secrets, but slowly and in stages; traditionally, we tell sixth graders things we keep hidden from fifth graders.
In the last 30 years, however, a secret-revelation machine has been equipped in 98 percent of American homes. It is called television. Television passes information to all viewers alike, whether they are children or adults. Therefore, many children turn their attention from printed texts to the less challenging, more attractive moving pictures.
Communication through print, as a matter of fact, allows for a great deal of control over the social information which children will gain. Children must read simple books before they can read complex materials.
1. Why does the author mention the incident in the restaurant?| A．Because he feels as depressed as the boy. | B．Because it reminds him of his childhood. |
| C．Because he is curious about other people’s talk. | D．Because it proves his view on today’s children. |
| A．the widespread influence of television | B．the fast arrangement of teaching content |
| C．the development of social knowledge | D．the rising standard of living |
| A．It enables children to gain more social information. |
| B．It develops children’s interest in reading and writing. |
| C．It is simple for children read and write. |
| D．It is controllable to what children are to learn. |
| A．He seems to be upset about it. | B．He considers it a rapid development |
| C．He thinks the change worthy of concern. | D．He feels their adult like behavior is so funny. |
【推荐2】I believe in the power of the unknown. I believe that a sense of the unknown pushes us forward in all of our creative activities, from science to art.
When I was a child, after bedtime I would often go to the window and stare at the stars. I had so many questions. How far away were those tiny points of light? Did space go on forever and ever, or was there some edge? And if so, what lay beyond the edge?
Another of my childhood questions: Did time go on forever? I looked at pictures of my parents and tried to imagine their parents, and so on, back through the generations. Does time go on forever? Or is there some beginning of time?
When I grew up, I became a professional astrophysicist. Although I never answered any of these questions, they continued to challenge me, to haunt me, to drive me in my scientific research, and to cause me to live on tuna fish and no sleep for days at a time while I was crazy about a science problem. These same questions, and questions like them, challenge and haunt the leading scientists of today.
Einstein once wrote that “the most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious. It is the fundamental emotion which stands at the beginning of true art and true science.” What did Einstein mean by “the mysterious?” I don’t think he meant that science is full of unpredictable or unknowable or supernatural forces. I think that he meant a sense of awe, a sense that there are things larger than us, that we do not have all the answers at this moment, and that we can stand right at the boundary between known and unknown.
Scientists are happy, of course, when they find answers to questions. But scientists are also happy when they become stuck, when they discover interesting questions that they cannot answer. That is when their imaginations and creativity are set on fire. That is when the greatest progress occurs.
1. As a child, the author was___________.| A．cautious | B．generous |
| C．curious | D．doubtful |
| A．Make someone to feel annoyed. | B．Make someone to feel excited. |
| C．Cause great trouble to someone. | D．Keep coming to someone’s mind. |
| A．Exact prediction. | B．Creativity in experiments. |
| C．Rich imagination. | D．Exploration of the unknown. |
| A．The Power of Mysteries | B．The Characters of Mysteries |
| C．The Significance of Science | D．The Beauty of Art |
【推荐3】Last week, my younger brother visited me for five days. To ensure I could spend as much time with him as possible, I worked extra hard during the weekend before he arrived.
It amazed me how much I could accomplish when I had a strong motivation to be efficient.
During the week, I put in a couple of hours in the mornings to handle pressing issues and then spent the afternoons and evenings going out with him. Once again, I was surprised to realize just how much free time was available to me if I consciously chose to be more effective while working.
This made me think of Parkinson's Law: Work expands to fill the time available for its completion.
I realized then that I'd given myself more time than necessary for work, and as a result, I ended up spending a lot of time delaying needlessly and entertaining myself online.
How might things change for me, I wondered, if I chose to commit to more social and recreational activities, made them priorities and was motivated to finish work quicker?
I realize not everyone has flexible work schedules, but I believe we could all create more time for ourselves if we were motivated to cut out the choices that don't match our strongest desires and intentions. Maybe it's being absent-minded in front of the TV or searching the web.
I believe what English musician John Lennon said is true: Time that you enjoyed wasting was not wasted.1 don't think there's anything wrong with using technology if we've consciously chosen to do it.
However, we owe it to ourselves to get out in the world and explore different possibilities — to be playful, curious, engaged and just to be.
Perhaps it would be easier to do that if we asked ourselves: How can I be more effective? Can I minimize what I am currently doing? How can I start using the time I've created in a way that will excite and inspire me?
1. How did the author feel when she finished her work in advance?| A．Guilty. | B．Amazed. | C．Stressed. | D．Exhausted. |
| A．Her working habit | B．Her workload during that time |
| C．The change in her work efficiency | D．The time spent with her younger brother |
| A．Commit to more social activities. |
| B．Create a tight work schedule for ourselves. |
| C．Don't waste time on technology for any reason. |
| D．Focus on the most important tasks, and ignore anything unimportant. |
| A．To explain what Parkinson's Law is. |
| B．To introduce how to balance work and life. |
| C．To reflect on better time management. |
| D．To show the importance of accompanying family members. |
