Her pale face stood out against the blackness of her hair. She looked much younger than her fifteen years, a worn coat hanging loose above her. We weren’t supposed to take a child, but an emergency call came through that morning. A home was needed for a young girl immediately.
I, together with four children, hurried to get her room ready. The kids were great. Joanne, our second-eldest daughter, did the cleaning and Margaret, Rob and Jeff helped make the bed. I felt my heart pounding in my chest. I was excited, but scared at the same time because I was told an adopted child might give us a lot of trouble.
That afternoon, Trudy arrived with the social worker Mrs. Kline. She stepped into the front hall and stood against the wall. I will never forget the look in her eyes. The first thing that came to my mind was that she looked like a hunted animal. The children moved towards her, and Jeff grabbed her hand and said proudly, “Come and see your room. I helped make your bed.” Trudy pulled back, speechless.
At this point, I stepped towards her and said, "Welcome to our home, Trudy. “She looked at me with such blank eyes. But with her head bowed, she simply said, eyes moving back and forth like a creature looking for a way out, “No, thank you.”
For the first two weeks, Trudy was very quiet. She would come into the kitchen while I was working, and we would discuss school and what she would like to do in the future. Mrs. Kline had given us all the information about her history, but I never mentioned the terrible things that had happened to her.
As the days went by, Trudy became a delight to have around. Very quickly, it seemed like she had always been with us. The girls would sit in each other’s rooms and giggle(咯咯笑) like typical teenagers. It was a sound that warmed my soul. However, when they talked about new clothes, Trudy fell silent again.
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。
I took Joanne shopping for a winter coat, and Trudy came too.
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As a mother, I had two little kids. I had no family to help me where I lived, so I did what any mother would do. Sometimes, I worked over sixty hours a week. I had as many as three jobs at a time. I had no time to take care of myself or accompany (陪伴) my kids and even sometimes had no time to have meals. It wasn’t easy, but I never missed a bill or never had a late payment. The only problem was that I was working myself to death.
One Easter weekend, I worked thirty hours from Friday to Sunday, with little sleep. On Sunday night, I fell into bed tired. My next memory was waking up in an ambulance (救护车) with two nurses beside me. I had no memory of how I got there, and I had a serious headache. They kept asking me what kind of things had happened. There was nothing in my mind. All I remember was being angry and helpless.
They took me to the hospital, and during the days there, they thought that I had been ill because of being too tired. Yet, I kept telling the nurses to call another worker who worked with me in the same place to open the business because I couldn’t get there. When I left the hospital, I began to rethink everything. I had to go on supporting my family, but I was going to find a better way to do it. I needed to be home more for my kids, work fewer hours, and still make ends meet. The only way was to find a better-paying job. Luckily, I did find a better job.
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。
After that, I began to plan my daily life in a new way.
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Every two weeks, my two kids and I would go out to dinner.
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Christmas Eve, my husband and our three children gathered in the living room. The presents were wrapped under the tree. Everything was perfect except one thing was missing the star on the top of the Christmas tree.
Lilly and Brandon were born first, and decorating the tree soon became the focus of our Christmas traditions. We would lift one of the kids up high to put the star on top. “The star that shone with promise,” I told the kids. The two kids took turns to do this important job.
Then Finn was born. He was a happy baby, until Matt and I noticed something odd when he was 14 months old. He didn’t interact with us anymore. Then, his autism (自闭症) diagnosis came out. How to be the family Finn needed us to be? In so many situations, I didn’t have an answer.
Finn turned three years old, and I hoped he was ready to take part in adding the final touch to our tree. It would be his first time, a chance to connect with us through this tradition. Matt took the older kids’ hands and stepped back to give us some room. I took the star from its box. “Here, Finn,” I said, putting the star in his little hand. “It’s your turn to put this on the top of the tree!” I went to pick him up. Finn didn’t seem to understand. He threw the star on the floor and twisted in my arms.
“Finn,” I said, “It’s okay, honey.” Still, he fought me. Finally, I put him down. I wanted to try again, but he ran away. “Finn!” I called after him, but he ignored me.
“Give him time,” Matt said. It didn’t feel right to let Lilly or Brandon place the star instead. It was Finn’s turn, and I didn’t want to leave him out. So, the tree remained starless that Christmas. The next Christmas too. And the one after that. waiting for Finn. This Christmas, however, I simply gave up trying and left the star in the box somewhere in the basement.
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。
Matt brought some presents to the living room for the kids besides the starless tree.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________“You want to put the star on the top?” I asked, looking where his finger was pointing.
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Being the mother of three active children, I enjoyed volunteering at their school and attending their music concerts. One morning, my youngest son asked, “Mom, are you coming to the concert at my school next month?”
“You know I am, so why are you asking?”
“Well, umm, please don’t wear your clown blouse,” he said.
“So what blouse are you talking about?”
Looking at the floor, he softly replied, “The bright blue one with the yellow flowers and it ties in a big bow at the neck.”
He had just described my favorite blouse. Suddenly I started laughing and couldn’t stop because I had to admit it did look a bit clownish. With tears running down my face and a big smile I promised him: “I will never wear that blouse again.”
The look of relief on his face was unforgettable as he grabbed his books and ran out the front door to school. Reluctantly I went upstairs to get dressed for work. Since my favorite blouse was now definitely out, I had to choose another top to go with my navy blue skirt and heels. Stressed, I pulled on a red short-sleeve sweater that was too hot for the sunny September day, but there was nothing else that looked appropriate.
Off and on that day I couldn’t stop thinking about all my clothes. After the birth of my first child I had started purchasing my clothes from clearance racks(清仓货架) to save money. This plan had worked when I was a stay-at-home mother. Jeans, T-shirts were my main wardrobe.
However, things had changed. I had a new full-time job. This first week had been really stressful, between trying to get dressed each morning and learning my new responsibilities.
Knowing I had to make some major changes, I got up early on Saturday to sort out my closet, which I hadn’t done in years. I put all the worn clothing and shoes into large trash bags. I kept only the clothes and shoes that fit perfectly and were a solid color. Looking at the few remaining dresses, skirts, and blouses I could see there wasn’t much left to wear to work or to attend the music concerts in my son’s school.
Unsure of what to buy next, the following week I signed up for an adult education class. It was for women like me who wanted to learn how to dress appropriately.
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。
When the big day arrived, there were thirty women in attendance, and the instructor started to instruct us to make a change.
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Finally, the concert in my son’s school came.
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The Wilsons family lived in a small community. As the economy was in decline, some people in the town had lost their jobs. Many of their families were struggling to make ends meet. People were trying to help each other meet the challenges.
Mrs. Wilson was a most kind and thoughtful woman. She spent a great deal of time visiting the poor. She knew they had problems, and they needed all kinds of help. When she had time, she would bring food and medicine to them.
One morning she told her children about a family she had visited the day before. There was a man sick in bed, his wife, who took care of him and could not go out to work, and their little boy. The little boy — his name was Bryan had interested her very much.
“I wish you could see him,” she said to her own children, Jack, Henry, and Mary. “He is such a help to his mother. He wants very much to earn some money, but I don’t see what he can do.”
After their mother left the room, the children sat thinking about Bryan. “I wish we could help him to earn money,” said Mary. “His family is suffering so much.”
“So do I,” said Henry. “We really should do something to assist them.”
For some moments, Jack said nothing, but, suddenly, he sprang to his feet and cried, “I have a great idea! I have a solution that we can all help accomplish (完成).”
The other children also jumped up all attention. When Jack had an idea, it was sure to be a good one. “I tell you what we can do,” said Jack. “You know that big box of corn Uncle Jack sent us? Well, we can make popcorn (爆米花), and put it into paper bags, and Bryan can take it around to the houses and sell it.”
Paragraph 1 : When Mrs. Wilson heard of Jack’s idea, she thought it was a good one, too.
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Paragraph 2 : With everything ready, Bryan started out on his new business.
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One day Officer Jackson and Steve were discussing a serious case when they were informed of a disturbance (骚乱) in the nearby subway. So, they walked out of the station and got into their car.
The two officers had expected they’d have to deal with an annoying beggar troubling the passers-by for money. But when they arrived at the crime scene, they were shocked at the beggar’s appearance. The man had tears in his eyes and was sitting on the subway stairs, looking untidy and tired.
“Excuse me, sir,” Officer Jackson said. “You can’t stay here, nor can you bother the people to give you money. You have to leave this place.”
“Look, officers,” the man sighed. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to cause any trouble, okay? I lost my cane (拐杖), and I can’t walk without it. I wanted a few cents so I could get myself something to eat.”
The two officers exchanged looks, knowing the man wasn’t a disturbance but someone who really needed their help. So they promised to get him food, buy him a cane, and drop him home.
After doing that, the officers drove to the beggar’s home, only to discover he had no home at all. He was just wandering in the streets and living off the leftovers he managed to find.
The poor man said his name was Eugene. When he was working at a skyscraper construction site, he was injured and became disabled, losing his ability to walk. Unfortunately, his disability forbade him from doing physical labor, and he wasn’t well-educated to find a desk job, so he remained jobless. Because he couldn’t provide for his family, his wife and children left him. “I don’t have any hopes of changing my destiny (命运), officers,” the man said.
But Officer Jackson wanted Eugene to change his life. “You’re still young,” he said.
“You can’t lose hope so soon. He brought him something warm to eat, helped him take a shower, and gave him his warm boots. After his work, Officer Jackson drove Eugene to a shelter for the homeless and left.
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。
Since that day, Eugene had never expected to meet the two officers again.
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A few months later, Eugene was a changed man.
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Mrs. Janson was 75 years old and lived alone in Keevy Street which was a little far from the downtown. Her children all lived in other cities with their family and only came once in a while. These years, maybe with the pressure of life or just being busy, they visited their mother less. The old lady lived in the house with Sunny her dog. She didn’t have the Internet and of course no computer or cell phone. Besides a few conversations in warm days with some same old neighbors, her only connection with the outside world was the old small screened television and the Post, a local newspaper, which was still sent to her mail box regularly.
Out of most people’s expectations, the mail carrier was a young lady. Her name was Morris. She came to the street every day, only with few exceptions. Different from other mail carriers, she didn’t just throw the paper on the yard and cycle away. Most of the time, if she was not too busy, she would stop and came into Mrs Janson’s house to have a chat with her, playing with Sunny, who would be happy, running to the girl and licking her cheeks. In fact, every time Morris was expected to come, the dog would sit in front of the door, looking at the end of the street, obviously waiting for her cycling up. Mrs. Janson would quickly take out the cookies prepared early and make a cup of tea for the kind lady. Every time she came in, the house would be filled with laughter and happiness.
Last Christmas, Mrs. Janson gave Morris some handmade cream to keep her hands from getting so chapped due to delivering mail. The delivering girl thanked Mrs. Janson and put the cream on her hands immediately with great delight, Mrs. Janson was so happy that she could also help someone.
注意：续写词数应为150左右。
Paragraph 1:
One Friday morning, Morris came to Mrs Janson’s house as usual.
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Paragraph 2:
She went out to ask the neighbors for help.
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