It was a cold December, at the tail end of the Great Depression, and things were tough. Mum had a hard time raising us kids on her own in our small community. My father had died five years earlier, leaving us worse off; we relied on social assistance to keep us clothed, and although our clothes were secondhand, we thought they were beautiful.
Looking back, I realized what Mum went through sending us kids to school. Every morning she would tuck a new piece of cardboard in our shoes because our soles were worn out. When we got home, Mum would have French toast ready for us. Our rent was $25 a month, but Mum couldn’t pay it, and we knew we would move out right after Christmas on the first of January.
The holidays were fast approaching, and we were entitled to $25 for Christmas from social services. It was four days before Christmas. Mum said that instead of buying food, she was going to use the money to pay our back rent. That way we’d have a roof over our heads for a little while longer.
Then she told us that there would be no Christmas gifts.
What Mom didn’t know was that I had been selling Christmas trees, sweeping snow and doing part-time jobs to earn enough money to buy a new pair of boots —boots that weren’t patched; boots with no cardboard in it. I knew exactly which boots I wanted. They were ten-inch, Top-Genuine, Pierre Paris boots, and they cost $23.
The big day for getting my boots came on Christmas Eve afternoon. I was very excited as I hurried up the shopping center for it. On the way, I noticed a grocery store.
注意：
1.所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2.续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好。
Paragraph 1
The Christmas lights and decorations held me, and I slowed my pace.
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Paragraph 2
Once home, I piled the groceries on the porch (门廊) and knocked on the door.
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相似题推荐
As a little kid, I was such a geek that I actually enjoyed math, and since my parents were often doing math with my older sister, I picked up some things by listening in on them. One of those things I learned ahead of my class was the impressive feat of adding a whole three numbers at once!
But when it came time for the class to learn the same thing, they didn’t add the numbers right — at least that’s what young me thought. Our teacher taught us to add all numbers in the ones column, then the tens, etc. By contrast, I’d always added the numbers by adding the first two and then writing the third number under the sum of the first two and adding those. The way I had learned seemed less error-prone(容易出错的). I mean, adding three whole numbers in your head at once — who could possibly manage such a feat? So, I chose to ignore the way our teacher was teaching it and keep doing things the way my father had taught me.
Then, one day, the teacher had multiple problems written on the board and she called four or five students to solve their problems at the same time in front of the class. I was on the far end, away from the teacher, but I was worried that she would catch me doing things the “wrong” way，so I did things my way, put the answer, and then quickly erased my work so she wouldn’t see how I did things.
She wasn’t having any of that. When she got to me, she agreed that the answer was right but insisted that I needed to show my work. So now, I got extra attention as she made me redo my work in front of the class with her watching me as I did my math in a “wrong” way.
Para1: I was honestly expecting a scolding for not doing things the way she had taught us.
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Para2: The next day our next math test came, and I was shocked by but proud of the requirements on the test.
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Kindness is everywhere in our life. Some of us are just thankful and some help a lot.
When browsing WeChat or other apps, there must be a few people asking for help like “Oh, I forgot to bring my book back. Can you take a picture of the text?” It’s nothing at all for us to do more than lifting a finger, but most times, many people choose to turn off their phones or pretend that they didn't see the note. There will be somebody who answers him somehow, but he doesn’t need to be me. Thinking of that, we won't be sorry for him.
But when we’re really in need, it’s such a kindness of him to reply quickly.
It was a beautiful sunny spring day. I had just finished driving my daughter to the airport to catch an early morning flight. My sons and I then went to a fast food restaurant for breakfast before heading back home. After eating we all got into the car and pulled out of the parking lot.
The restaurant was at the very top of a hill. At the bottom of the hill was a stop sign so we found ourselves at the end of a long line of waiting traffic while the cars at the bottom turned onto the main road one at a time.
As I looked down to the bottom of the hill my eyes saw an elderly man standing by the stop sign. His clothes were old and worn. He held a cardboard sign with the words “Need Help Please!” written on it.
My heart went out to him and I imagined myself in his situation.
As car after car turned onto the road without stopping for him, I reached for my wallet to look for whatever cash that was left in it.
注意：
1. 续写词数应为 150 左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
As I was pulling it out of my pocket, though, I saw a young woman walk up to him along the side of the road.
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By the time I reached the bottom of the hill, both the elderly man and the lady who had helped him were gone.
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John reached into his backpack, searching for his cell phone. He was scared of having to spend the spring break at Aunt Letty’s farm. Although he had protested, his parents decided that spending time on the farm would be a great experience for him. They grew up on a farm and believed that responsibility, hard work, and respect for the land were valuable lessons.
“So, have you ever ridden a horse?” Aunt Letty asked, trying to turn his attention away from his phone. “Hmmm, no.” he answered. “Well, we’ve got a nice calm horse I think you’ll like. Hercules — sounds like a beast, but he’s basically a gentle giant — big, but kindhearted!” she said, smiling. John glanced at his aunt, annoyed that he was expected to work. He tried to text a friend but there was no cell reception.
The next few days were busy. The crow of the roosters woke them up, and they had breakfast before dawn. Then they went out to the barn to get the feed while the animals waited to be fed. The afternoons were filled with transporting hay, cleanup, and caring for the animals. At dusk, when the farm was finally quiet, Aunt Letty stretched her arms out and inhaled (吸气), “Just take a deep breath of that sweet country air!” John, exhausted from his chores, was unable to appreciate his work.
On the third day, without warning, Aunt Letty announced, “It’s time to meet Hercules.” She led John into the stables (马厩). Aunt Letty was right. Hercules was remarkable!
Aunt Letty held her hand open for John to take. Reluctantly, he let her guide his hand toward Hercules and allowed the magnificent creature to sniff his palm. Softly, Hercules rubbed its nose and mouth against him.
“It feels like velvet (天鹅绒) !” John beamed(眉开眼笑). An hour later, John was scratching Hercules on his neck and offering him carrots.
That night, as they headed toward the house, John was inspired. His arms spreading wide, he inhaled and said, “Take a breath of that sweet country air!”
注意：
1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2. 续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好。
The next morning, John found Aunt Letty waiting outside with Hercules.
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Fascinated by the breathtaking scenery in the countryside, John obviously changed a lot after the ride.
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