When the news came that my mother was hospitalized for a heart attack, I was in Peru on a hiking trip. That evening, before I could board the plane to Italy, I was informed that she had passed away. Sadness and the feeling of not being there for my mother when she needed me most broke all excuses Id made up to stay away trying to make it as a “travel writer”. There wasn’t much I could do to stop that urge to denounce myself.
My mother Tundra stayed in her northern Italian world most of her life, where I always stood out as a freak and the one doing worthless silly things. But my stories from distant places aroused her curiosity and brought her comfort. To her, I was a courageous adventurer, and her words towards my achievements which are in sign if cant now pushed me forward on that unconventional path.
After handling my mother’s affairs in Italy, I decided to leave for Penang Island, one of the most visited places in Penang, Malaysia. With all the international travel I’d done, in truth I’d always treated it more like as top for necessary and urgent breaks, rather than a proper destination. Yet then, I missed its atmosphere that made me feel at home somehow.
Returning there, I reconnected with backwoods by going on hikes. It was hard to put my feelings into words, but the rainforest held something uniquely comforting. This experience was similar to stepping into an ancient, purer world that made one consider human nature and problems. Besides, the sound of strange insects was almost like a language, whispering to me that I should let go of the past, and only focus on current life. Like an oil leak, that suffering fell out of me and into every footprint left.18 months passing, I look back on the time spent in the natural world and timeless environment, knowing I’ve pulled through.
1. What does the underlined word “denounce” mean in the first paragraph?| A．Blame. | B．Support. | C．Doubt. | D．Encourage. |
| A．Worried. | B．Favorable. | C．Disapproving | D．Excited. |
| A．A special second home. | B．A hard-to-reach destination. |
| C．A distant tourist attraction. | D．A much-needed resting place. |
| A．Hiking builds up his confidence. | B．Penang is a good place to restart. |
| C．Nature helps him overcome sorrow. | D．It’s important to live in the moment. |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】Rick Guidotti put aside his career as a fashion photographer to turn his lens (镜头) to people living with genetic, physical and behavioural differences.
He says what changed his perception (看法) of beauty was a chance encounter with an albino (患白化病的) girl. “I was just tired of people telling me who was beautiful. Every season that face would change but I was always told who was beautiful. As an artist, I don’t see beauty just on covers of magazines. I see it everywhere. So that was my original intention — that opened my eyes a little wider and wider.”
Guidotti has created Positive Exposure, a not-for-profit organization that uses photography and video to transform public perceptions and promote a world where differences are celebrated. Guidotti and Positive Exposure are featured in a new documentary called On Beauty.
One of the women featured in the film is Jayne Waithera. “I never thought I was beautiful because nobody said that to me, but meeting him was my profound moment. I remember that particular day. He took my picture and I felt so good like I felt there’s somebody who, like, really loves me and sees me for who I am and who sees me more than my condition.”
Guidotti is travelling from city to city to promote On Beauty. He says his tour is not about money; it’s about the message. “As I travel from community to community, I’m taking photographs and I’m empowering (给某人……的权力) individuals with a positive sense of who they are. They’re seeing beauty in their reflection but I’m also empowering their families and they in turn are empowering their communities as well. All is based on the philosophy of change — how you see, how you change.”
1. Why did Guidotti change his career?| A．The beauty on covers of magazines is not beautiful. |
| B．He wanted to create his own company. |
| C．His comprehension of beauty changed owing to an albino girl. |
| D．He couldn’t earn enough money from his former career. |
| A．It welcomes differences in the world. | B．It brings a lot of money for Guidotti. |
| C．It makes photography more popular. | D．It makes the public more beautiful. |
| A．Jayne’s picture was more beautiful than herself. |
| B．Jayne was beautiful indeed. |
| C．Photographs gave Jayne a positive sense of who she was. |
| D．It was unfair that nobody discovered Jayne’s beauty. |
| A．Communities have a great influence on everyone. |
| B．We should travel frequently. |
| C．Your attitude to seeing the world decides your behaviour. |
| D．We should make contributions to our community. |
【推荐2】In school we learned about the Earth. We learned that rivers flow from higher ground to lower ground. They usually end at a bigger river or go into a lake or ocean. I can see that every day in Chicago.
Our river goes into the lake. It’s a giant lake. We used to go fishing on the river every summer. Most days you would find me and my grandfather there, fishing. My father was busy working for the city. I did not know what his job was. He said it was in the Sanitary and Ship Canal.
My grandfather would take me to the river. “In the old days,” he said, “this was a clean stream. Now look at it. It is dirty.” Sometimes we even saw dead fish floating on it.
When we brought the fish home, my mother would throw them out. “We can’t eat this. This is dirty, bad fish.” She sounded angry. So my grandfather and I stopped bringing the fish home. Sometimes we would go to fish and throw them back. But mostly we just stayed at home. We were sad about it.
Then one day my father was so busy that he was not at home. That New Year’s Day he worked, too. My mother was worried, “It is too cold.” But he went anyway.
Then two days later the newspaper said, “It is a miracle!” That was the headline. I read the article. It told how the workers on the Sanitary and Ship Canal had done something impossible. They had changed the Chicago River completely. They dug such a great hole that the river rushed away from the lake. It now went to the west. I was excited. So was my grandfather. He said, “Now we can go fishing this summer.”
We both laughed. So did my mother. My father smiled a lot, all day long.
1. What is the purpose of the first paragraph?| A．To show the miracle of nature. |
| B．To explain the concept of the Earth. |
| C．To introduce the topic of the article. |
| D．To test readers’ knowledge about rivers. |
| A．The fish in the river were all dead. | B．His mother disliked eating fish. |
| C．He wanted to protect the river. | D．The fish were too dirty to eat. |
| A．They saved all the fish in the Chicago River. |
| B．They kept the Chicago River incredibly clean. |
| C．They changed the direction of the Chicago River. |
| D．They dug a huge hole to store the polluted water. |
| A．Serious. | B．Devoted. | C．Open-minded. | D．Out-going. |
【推荐3】Last weekend, my husband and I drove a dog to her new home. Typically, when we have a new dog in the backseat, it’s a young dog. But this passenger was a much different story. Magdalen is a 13-year old dog. Her owner gave her up temporarily when he was sick, but when he fully recovered several months later, he said he didn’t want her back. He had her since she was young but now had no place for her.
The family who had given her a temporary home had children and other dogs and was unable to give her a forever home. When Speak St, Louis, the rescue team I work with, was contacted about the dog, they offered to take her in. She went to a vet (兽医) for a basic health check. But the vet didn’t have great news. Her mouth was swollen (肿胀的) with all sorts of problems. Two teeth fell out during cleaning and eleven more had to be pulled out.
Luckily, a good friend of mine, a dog trainer with a soft heart for seniors, had agreed to adopt Magdalen. On the trip to the trainer’s home, the sweet senior looked so relaxed in our backseat. I felt a great sense of relief and pleasure.
Her owner needed some temporary help when he was sick. But I can’t imagine why he wouldn’t have wanted her back. I think of my own dog and dogs we lost to old age in the past. We’re family and we stay that way forever. She’d be able to live a good life. I hoped, in her new home!
1. What is paragraph 2 mainly about?| A．The former owners of the dog. |
| B．Where the dog was treated. |
| C．What the dog needed most. |
| D．The problems the dog met. |
| A．Training old dogs. |
| B．Treating sick dogs. |
| C．Looking for homes for dogs. |
| D．Looking for lost dogs’ owners. |
| A．Relieved and happy. | B．Nervous and grateful. |
| C．Surprised and curious. | D．Hopeful and proud. |
| A．She didn’t understand his behaviour. |
| B．She believed it was painful for him. |
| C．She was certain he would regret. |
| D．She thought he made a wise decision. |
As I looked closer at this girl, I saw that she was kind of perched(位于高处) on her chair. I then realized that she had no arms or legs, just a head, neck and upper body. She was wearing a little white dress with red dots.
As the couple wheeled her up to me I was looking down at the register. I turned my head toward the girl and gave her a wink(眨眼), As I took the money from her grandparents, I looked back at the girl, who was giving me a nicest, largest smile I had ever seen. All of a sudden her
That was 10 years ago. I’m a successful business person now and whenever I get down and think about the troubles of the world, I think about that little girl and the unforgettable lesson about life that she taught me.
1. In the writer’s opinion, the little girl_________.
| A．had no influence on his life |
| B．sponsored him to do his business |
| C．had a cheerful spirit |
| D．told everyone how to live a good life |
| A．He ran a gift shop in the university |
| B．He looked down upon the girl because she had no arms and legs |
| C．He just graduated from university |
| D．He is successful in his business |
| A．disappointment | B．appearance |
| C．disability | D．impression |
When Poppy Johnson, a 23-year-old London-based college student, was only five, she accidentally saw Michael Jackson’s Thriller music video. Ever since then, she has been suffering from a fear of pop legend Michael Jackson.
Every time she sees or hears anything about Michael Jackson — a song, an interview or even a poster, she will experience a moment of fear. Her fear even grows stronger at home, as Poppy’s parents are big fans of Michael Jackson and have a collection of souvenirs around their house. But she never tells them this would add to her fear at home. Poppy explained, “I never really spoke about it or told it to other people, as I worried they’d think I was silly.”
Managing her fear of Michael Jackson hasn’t been easy for Poppy, who would often excuse herself whenever she was out with her friends and a Michael Jackson song started playing. She would then spend a few minutes somewhere else trying to take her mind off it.
Earlier this year, when the documentary Finding Neverland came out, news and photos of Michael Jackson were everywhere online. At that time, Poppy’s life was quite tough and she always felt that her heart was in her mouth.
Poppy recently started opening up about her unusual fear and even started taking steps to handle it. She started seeing a hypnotherapist (催眠师). After four weeks, she now says things are getting better. In addition, she told her parents that the things related to Michael Jackson at home made her feel fearful and finally her parents understood her and completely removed all the things about Michael Jackson.
Now Poppy’s situation is getting better and better. She reminds anyone else who experiences similar things that it is important to seek help as early as possible.
1. What made Poppy feel fearful at home? (no more than 10 words)2. How did Poppy usually avoid things related to Michael Jackson in public?(no more than 10 words)
3. What does the underlined part in Paragraph 4 mean? (no more than 5 words)
4. What did Poppy do to deal with her fear? (no more than 15 words)
5. What do you think of Poppy’s situation and what is your suggestion? (no more than 20 words)
【推荐3】Mary has struggled to find the right words to convey her thoughts and feelings ever since she was a child. She was often told that she was “too quiet” or “too shy”, and as she grew older, she became increasingly aware of her inability to articulate herself. It wasn’t that she didn’t have anything to say — far from it. Mary’s mind was constantly racing with ideas and observations, but no matter how hard she tried, she just couldn’t seem to get the words out.
“Mary, I need to talk to you,” Mr. Thompson, the boss of Mary’s new company, said one day, his voice serious. Mary’s heart sank. “Don’t worry,” Mr. Thompson said, noticing Mary’s nervousness. “It’s not that kind of conversation. I just wanted to talk to you about something that’s been on my mind lately.”
He paused for a moment, collecting his thoughts. “I’ve noticed that you’ve been struggling a bit lately. It seems like you’re having a tough time communicating with customers. I hear that you’re good at writing. So why not join our Advertising Department? Besides, I have another suggestion…”
Mary kept nodding, unable to find the words to express her gratitude.
Following Mr. Thompson’s suggestion, Mary joined in a writing competition. She had always been a talented writer, and she knew that she had the potential to create something truly special. So she set to work, pouring her heart and soul into her essay. The words started flowing, and Mary found herself writing with a newfound sense of purpose and achievement.
The judges of the competition were amazed by Mary’s essay, and they selected it as the winner. Mary was excited, and she was grateful to have finally found the right way to do a good job.
1. What does the underlined word “articulate” probably mean in Paragraph 1?| A．Encourage. | B．Teach. | C．Behave. | D．Express. |
| A．To offer her some help. | B．To give her a promotion. |
| C．To advise her to quit the job. | D．To tell her to mind her manners. |
| A．Embarrassed. | B．Confused. | C．Confident. | D．Nervous. |
| A．Actions speak louder than words. |
| B．Lose at sunrise and gain at sunset. |
| C．All things are easy that are done willingly. |
| D．Efforts can make up for lack of intelligence. |
