Denia Escutia, born in Pajaro, dreamed of moving to Southern California to learn how to care for sick kids in University of California at Los Angeles(UCLA). But when a river swallowed her town and destroyed her home, she delayed those dreams to take care of her family instead.
Escutia, who is 18, is a recent high school graduate. In the predawn hours of March 11, Escutia woke up to find flood water in her room, which was ankle-deep in just a few minutes.
Ecutia’s family, scared and panicked, unplugged appliances and threw anything they could onto tables, counters and beds. But Escutia’s family didn’t feel like they needed to leave.
Her mom was shocked by electrical currents in the water. That’s when her family decided to flee, escaping in waist-deep water to an apartment building across the street. A few hours later, they caught a ride out of the town in military rescue vehicles. On the way to her grandmother’s, Escutia wondered if she would ever call Pajaro home again.
When she returned to Pajaro in late March, she found her house was filled with mud. A photo of her in a blue and black dress still hung on the living room wall. But the house was not fit to live in.
Leaving the house she grew up in, Escutia locked the door. Officials hung a yellow and black sign from the house that read: “Lawful only to enter for permitted cleanup purposes. ”
Escutia had just been admitted to UCLA. She had not yet shared the good news with her family. After the flood, her happy secret quickly transformed into a burden. She couldn’t decide between pursuing her dream in Southern California and staying to help her family.
“I haven’t told my parents yet, but I was planning on telling them,” she said to her teacher. “All I can think about is how I’ m going to be able to help my parents through this, especially financially.”
Escutia’s mother searched all over the area to find a new home to rent but she didn’t find any in her price range. The family were in a seemingly endless search for affordable housing.
注意:1. 续写词数应为150个左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应作答。
At last, one of Escutia’s teachers invited her family to live in her house.
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Escutia finally told her parents that she had been admitted to UCLA.
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I was home with my two young kids, when my mind started to wander. I was reflecting on my past and couldn’t help but think: Whatever happened to Kathy?
Kathy lived in a tiny Canadian town and she became my pen pal when I was 13. As a girl growing up in New Zealand, I was curious to learn more about the world and Kathy’s letters certainly showed me how different life could be in another country.
When I was 18, the letters had petered out(逐渐减少) and we lost contact. I’d gone on to marry my husband, Paul, and start a family, but the more I thought about it, the more I missed news of Kathy’s adventures. I decided to write to Kathy and knowing that her parents lived in such a small town, I addressed the letter to them and hoped for the best.
Three weeks later, my heart leapt when I got an envelope postmarked from Canada. “I recognized your handwriting straightaway,” Kathy wrote to me. It turned out that, like me, she’d also married but due to health problems, she was unable to have children. Her job as a nurse kept her busy and she enjoyed helping others.
Realizing how quickly life could change. I promised to keep writing to her no matter what. Her letters soon became a highlight for me, giving me the same excitement I’d felt as a 13-year-old.
One day, when Paul was using the saw(锯子) to cut some wood, a splinter(尖细条) flew into the center of my right eye and I lost my sight permanently. Paul felt terrible and while it was a huge blow(打击) for me, I tried to carry on as best I could. Soon, I needed an artificial eye(义眼, 假眼) and received financial compensation(赔偿) as a result of the accident in our yard.
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。
One day, Paul advised, “Gayel, you should use the money to do something for yourself.”
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So I left Paul and the kids to travel 30 hours to reach Kathy.
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注意：1. 写作词数应为80词左右;2. 请增加合理细节，以使行文连贯。
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I was looking forward to our morning trip with my son Scott to the Collingswood Flea Market (跳蚤市场). It was a typical November day, freezing in the shade and warm in the sun. A perfect day for outdoor shopping.
Scott and I walked up and down looking at the many tables covered with Christmas decorations along with the usual clothes and jewelry, but we simply bought a few small items. After an hour of walking with the cold wind blowing, we decided to go home for lunch. On our way, we made a quick stop at Wawa for those delicious soft, salted pretzels (椒盐卷). Scott ran into the store while I waited in the car. Sitting alone, I was rubbing my cold hands together when I noticed that my engagement ring (订婚戒指) was missing. I knew I’d been wearing it when we’d visited a jewelry stand earlier, and I hadn’t taken it off. My heart was racing now.
When I informed Scott of the missing ring he couldn’t believe it either. “Mom, if you had worn gloves, it wouldn’t have fallen off your finger. Look in your pockets and handbag!” We searched the car and searched my clothes, too. No ring! It must have fallen off my finger in the cold.
We headed back to the flea market and parked in the same spot as before. We checked that area, and then began walking up and down the maze (迷宫) of tables while looking at the ground. Leaves blew in the wind and people were everywhere. Hundreds of feet passed by and I began getting lightheaded as I attentively looked at the ground. It was an expensive engagement ring my husband had given me years earlier. I had never lost or misplaced it in all that time... until now.
I was annoyed with myself for having lost the ring. We drove home as I tried to hold back my tears.
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 lunch we decided to return to the flea market.
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I took the left side of the main road and Scott the right.
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Grace’s father, Mike, couldn’t get out of bed for weeks after her mother died and when he finally did, he had lost his job. As the money ran out, the debt couldn’t be paid. It seemed like some wild beast had jumped onto her dad’s back and was killing him. So Mike sold the house and the beast on his back seemed to go with it.
Luckily, Miss Fay, who was an rich artist, was happy to give her abandoned caravan(大篷车)to them. In return, Mike had to tidy up Fay’s garden and look after her house when she was away.
Mike had once been a famous violin player. He had won competitions and been on television shows. Grace loved to watch how her father played the violin, which made her heart sing. Since her mother had died, however, the violin had stayed still and silent in its case. But now, after moving to the caravan, her father played the violin every day. He even taught Grace to play.
One day, the teacher announced that a talent scout(星探)would come to the school to look for someone to play the violin in the musical Mr Spy. Grace kept quiet because she thought she was not good enough to play for an audience. However, her friend told the teacher she had a violin and could play it.
“Get prepared for it, the talent scout will come next month,” the teacher sad. “And oh, if you are selected, the pay is good!”
After school, Grace kicked at the pebbles angrily along the way. She hated being the centre of attention. There was no way she would play the violin. No amount of money would persuade her.
As soon as she arrived at Fay’s house, Grace saw police officers outside the house. Fay and her dad were talking in low voices and they didn’t look very happy.
“What happened?” asked Grace.
“Break-in,” said her dad, “all Fay’s paintings and her painting tools have been stolen.” She looked very sad. So was Grace’s father, he kept blaming himself for not being a very good guard.
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。
Paragraph 1:
Grace was afraid that the wild beast would be onto her dad’s back again.
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The big day eventually came，Grace played beyond everyone’s expectations.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________I was a single mother in my 30s who lived down and out with my daughter Peggy in a small apartment struggling hard to make our ends meet (维持生计) .
It was a really cold winter day. Without a coat that is too expensive for me to afford, I headed to the downtown for an interview. I sat down in the streetcar, and there against those scats was a beautiful silk umbrella with a silver handle decorated with gold scrolls, among which there was a name carved.
On impulse (冲动) I determined to find the owner myself. I got off the streetcar and searched a telephone book for the name. I found it immediately and called it. waiting patiently, and then a lady answered.
“Yes,” she said in surprise, with extreme excitement. “It was my umbrella which had been stolen a year ago.”
So appealing was her pleasure that I forgot I was looking for a job and went directly to her small house. She took the umbrella with teary eyes, explaining with choking voice that the umbrella was given by her parents, now dead. She would like to offer me some reward as an expression of her gratitude. But I refused and left.
The following days were hard. I could only obtain temporary employment, for a small salary. What was worse, I had just lost my last job before Christmas, with only fifteen dollars left. Unless a miracle happened, I would be homeless in January, foodless and jobless.
The air was full of Christmas merriment, with the bells ringing and children shouting in the bitter dusk of the evening. But there should be no Christmas for me.
Thinking of this, I couldn’t control my tears on my way home, but I managed a smile so I could greet my little daughter. She opened the door for me and threw herself in my arms, dreaming joyously and demanding desirably for her Christmas gift. There I stood, frozen overwhelmed by sadness.
注意：1.所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置答题。
Paragraph 1:
Suddenly, the doorbell rang and Peggy ran immediately to answer it, calling that it must be Santa Claus.
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Just when I was doubting whether the package had been addressed to the wrong place, a note attached to it caught my eyes.
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Abel and Bess had a happy family and two lovable children. One day, they needed an outing and would be gone for several days. They hired a woman to care for the children and finished the trip, returning home a little earlier than they had planned.
As they drove into their hometown, they noticed smoke, and they went off their usual route to see what it was. When Abel drove closer, he shouted, “That house in flames belongs to Fred Jones who works at the plant. He wouldn’t be off work yet, maybe there is something we could do.” “It’s too dangerous. Let’s go home. Our babies are waiting for us!” protested Bess.
However, Abel drove up and they were shocked to see the whole house in flames. A woman on the grass was crying wildly, “The children! Get the children!” Abel rushed forward and took hold of her by the shoulder, saying, “Calm yourself and tell us where the children are!” “In the basement,” cried the woman, “Down the hall and to the left.”
In spite of Bess’s protests, Abel rapidly wetted his clothes with the water hose, put his wet jacket on his head and rushed into the smoky and hot basement. He felt his way to the door and found two children, holding one under each arm, and stormed out. Abel succeeded in bringing the two badly frightened children into waiting arms. As he left, he seemed to hear some more cries from nearby.
注意：
1. 续写词数应为 100 左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
When Abel asked the children how many more were down there, he was told two more.
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