Catherine had stayed at home all her life to look after her three children, but now, she, who lost her husband in a car accident, had to step out and earn money to make ends meet. With zero work experience and no professional degree, her chances of getting hired for a well-paid job were next to zero.
One day, after dropping her children at school, Catherine spotted a construction site. “I think I can work here,” she thought and approached the manager.
“Hi, are you hiring?” she asked. “Yes, we are,” the manager looked at Catherine from head to toe. “Are you sure you can work here? This job requires a lot of hard work.” “I’m ready for it,” she told the manager and signed a contract to work a 12-hour shift.
However, Catherine kept her new job a secret from her children. She thought they would feel embarrassed after learning their mother worked at a construction site.
Every morning, after dropping her children to school, she would go to the construction site and work until her shift ended. She would pick up heavy bricks on her shoulder to transport them from one part of the site to the other. One evening, Catherine’s son, Peter, told her about an upcoming contest in school that required mothers to participate. In the competition, students will wear blindfolds and have to recognize their mothers without looking at them. “That sounds like such a cool event, Peter!” Catherine said excitedly. “I can’t wait for it!” “I won’t go therewith you, mom,” Peter replied. “But why?” What her son said next was something Catherine wasn’t prepared to hear.
“Mom, I would have to touch your hands to recognize you, and everyone would look at them,” Peter explained. “Your hands are so ugly. They’re so hard and rough,” he added. “I will feel so embarrassed when my classmates look at your hands,” the boy said. “I won’t attend the event.” Catherine felt terrible but couldn’t say anything in her defense.
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。
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A few weeks later, Peter was walking home when something unexpected caught his attention.
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On his way back home, he kept thinking about how he would apologize to his mother:
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The Present
They say that blood is thicker than water, that our relatives are more important to us than others. Everyone was so kind to the old lady on her birthday. Surely her daughter would make an even bigger effort to please her?
It was the old lady’s birthday.
She got up early to be ready for the post. From the second floor flat she could see the postman when he came down the street, and the little boy from the ground floor brought up her letters or parcels on the rare occasions when anything came.
Today she was sure there would be something. Myra wouldn’t forget her mother’s birthday, even if she seldom wrote at other times. Of course Myra was busy. Her husband had been made Mayor, and Myra herself had got a medal for her work for the aged.
The old lady was eighty today. She had put on her best dress. Perhaps—perhaps Myra might come. After all, eighty was a special birthday, another decade lived or endured just as you chose to look at it. Even if Myra did not come, she would send a present. The old lady was sure of that. Two spots of color brightened her cheeks. She was excited like a child. She would enjoy her day.
Yesterday Mrs. Morrison, whom Myra had arranged for to light the fire and give the old lady her breakfast, had given the fist an extra clean, and today she had brought a card and a bunch of marigolds when she came to do the breakfast. Mrs. Grant downstairs had made a cake, and in the afternoon she was going down there to tea. The little boy, Johnnie, had been up with a packet of mints and said he wouldn’t go out to play until the post had come. “I guess you’ll get lots and lots of presents,” he said, “I did last week when I was six.”
What would she like? A pair of slippers perhaps. Or a new cardigan (羊毛衫). A cardigan would be lovely. Blue’s such a pretty color. Jim had always liked her in blue. Or a table lamp. Or a book, a travel book, with pictures, or a little clock, with clear black numbers .So many lovely things.
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She stood by the window, watching.
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Almost sadly she tore the envelope open.
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You would think that after hearing Mom and Dad talking about The Trip for a year, I would be eager to go. But I didn’t even want to think about it. “Aren’t you excited?” asked Dad, looking up from his laptop. “This is the trip of a lifetime. I’ll bet none of your friends will be driving across the United States this summer.”
Exactly, I thought. Nobody I knew was going to pile into an old van, and drive from California to New York and back in 58 days. Fifty — eight days! That was practically my whole summer! But I knew it was useless to protest.
When Dad was offered a summer off for the first time in his career, he said that he would always dreamed of driving across the country. So we were going. That was Dad’s chance.
I picked up my cat, Max, and buried my face in his fur. He pawed at my ears playfully. Goodbye, summer vacation. Goodbye, diving at the lake. Goodbye to hanging out and doing absolutely nothing. Good bye, Max. I was going to miss this ball of fur. I put him down and laughed as he batted a button across the floor like a soccer player. He was interested in all small objects.
The closer the trip got, the harder it was going to ignore. Thick envelopes arrived from places like Indiana, Tennessee and Arkansas. Night after night, Mom and Dad huddled around the computer, plotting every inch of our 8,000-mile journey.
Three days after school got out, The Trip finally came. Everything was packed and ready to go. Mom said that we are supposed to leave at 9 a. m. But when Dad noticed a wet spot under the van, I realized we wouldn’t be going anywhere for a while. Dad crawled under the van. Car parts sprang up around the van like mushrooms.
Minutes turned into hours. By the time Dad gave Mom the news, it was late afternoon. “I fixed the leak.” said Dad, “But now I couldn’t find one of the fan bolts (螺栓).” Mom organized a search, but in vain.
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。
Dad called the stores but none carried the bolt that fitted this old van.
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Then it hit me. “Max!” I shouted, “Find Max!”
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Last Thursday, my husband Robin and I invited some of our friends for dinner.
Just before I left work, Robin called me and said that he had to stay late at work, which meant that I had to prepare everything for the night on my own. Realizng that I didn’t have too much time, I could feel my anger rising as I drove to pick up Jason and Michael from school. After they got into the car, I informed them that we would stop on the halfway to buy something, and that they needed to help me tidy the house when we got home.
Both of the boys started complaining. I warned them that I was not in the mood to listen. They crossed their arms and became angry. For the next hour, I dragged them from one place to the next. The more I needed them to hurry, the more distracted (分心的) and silly they became. My patience was wearing thin.
Just as we finished our last task, the boys reminded me that we needed to stop at the pet store to pick up crickets (蟋蟀) for their pet lizards (蜥蜴).“You promised that you would buy crickets for us, and you shouldn’t break your promise,” Jason said. “Fine! But we need to be fast,”I replied impatiently, and then we raced to the pet shop.
Fifteen minutes later, we were back in the car with some new passengers: one hundred live crickets in a plastic bag. I pulled the car into the driveway and there was only forty-five minutes left to unpack the car, clean the house, and set the table before my guests arrived. How would I make it?
After returning home, I started barking out orders, but the boys were pouring the crickets from the plastic bag into the box that they prepared and they obviously ignored my orders.
My anger swept over me, and I shouted at them to hurry up, but they didn’t listen.
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。
The moment I turned round, I found crickets were jumping all over my kitchen.
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Finally, I jumped off the chair and started catching crickets with my boys.
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My mother had made the drive to visit my aunt, Mandi, for many times. Aunt Mandi was 34 years old, with two children, and had been diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer. It wasn’t fair.
Today we went to my aunt’s as usual. Along the road, I’d been sitting quietly in my car seat, enjoying the scenery along the way. At this point, I noticed that my mother made the drive on autopilot. Her face was pale, with her forehead knotted in a frown.’ What was she thinking?
Initially I didn’t want to disturb her. After a while, I tried asking her gently, “What’s the matter, Mom? Are you feeling unwell?" But my mother didn’t hear me, still lost in thought. I was really worried about her, so I asked her again.
Maybe my concerned words took her back from thinking. After a little while, she responded, “I’m fine, I’m just touched by the scenery. It reminds me of your aunt.” She continued, “The once colorful leaves had all fallen from the trees, leaving them black and bare. The thin trees were blowing wildly, and untidy gray clouds were sailing past a pale, sickly sun. The brown grass and dead trees made me depressed. It was a troubling reflection of what Mandi was going through. The joyful things in her life dropping away one by one, leaving something bitter “
I began to show great concern for Mom. Then I also looked out of the window. However, what came into my sight was completely different. So I couldn’t wait to share the splendid scenery with her.
“The ground is gently covered with gold, red, and yellow leaves. What beautiful colors! The wind catches hold of the colorful leaves and makes them dance about.” Expecting to lift her spirit, I added, “I also see a beautiful blue sky, a shining sun, and…chocolate trees!” “Chocolate trees?”
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
Mom laughed a little at that and gave me a confused look.
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“I love that!” Aunt Mandi said, a glimmer of light in her eyes.
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Surprises are beautiful because they come without waiting. It was not so true for Nancy though. She was sure her younger sister, Kate, was planning a surprise for her birthday. Opening the curtains of her bedroom window, she hungrily drank in the fresh morning air. Nancy was turning 30 today. “Keep calm. It’s only your 30th birthday.” she thought to herself, quickly glancing at the mirror and looking away. She never liked looking at the mirror. It always reminded her of what she had suffered. She didn’t want to think of the past and all that it had done to her.
Over these years she had worked at different factories and cleaned the floors at big hotels where perfumed men and women floated easily. Ever since their parents died, her only goal was to educate Kate. Nancy didn’t go to her dreamy university. Her emotions came running back to the present. Quickly, she wiped her tears and rushed to the door.
“A sister is a little bit of childhood that can never be lost.” Kate was her dream, her hope, her happiness and her precious possession. She meant everything to her. Kate was so outstanding that she was admitted to Harvard University. And today, Nancy was sure Kate would surprise her with a gift like she did every year. Nancy imagined the freshly baked chocolate cake that would welcome her. Her tongue was eager to lick up the soft, brown cream and her teeth were ready to bite it. She heard the sound of Kate’s footsteps coming towards her. She waited smiling.
It seemed like an endless wait. Finally, she heard her younger sister approaching her room. Her eyes lit up, steps turned into a spring and her heart was pounding. She sniffed the air to catch a breath of the chocolate cake but she couldn’t. “Maybe it is not chocolate flavor this time.” she imagined with pride. Her sister was a grown-up now. She could surprise her with something else.
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:
Kate walked into her room empty-handed.
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Kate handed her a brown envelope.
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A funny thing happened to Arthur when he was on the way to work one day. As he walked along Park Avenue near the First National Bank, he heard the sound of someone trying to start a car. He tried again and again but couldn’t get the car moving. Arthur turned and looked inside at the face of a young man who looked worried.
Arthur stopped and said, “It looks like you’ve got a problem.”
“I’m afraid so. I’m in a big hurry but I can’t start my car.”
“Is there something I can do to help?” Arthur asked. The young man looked at the two suitcases in the back seat and then said, “Thanks. If you’re sure it wouldn’t be too much trouble, you could help me get these suitcases into a taxi.”
“No trouble at all. I’d be glad to help.”
The young man got out and took one of the suitcases from the back seat. After placing it on the ground, he turned to get the other one. Just as Arthur picked up the first suitcase and started walking, he heard the long loud noise of an alarm.
It was from the bank. There had been a robbery (抢劫)!
Park Avenue had been quiet a moment before. Now the air was filled with the sound of the alarm and the shouts of people running from all directions. Cars stopped and the passengers joined the crowd in front of the bank. People asked each other, “What happened?” But everyone had a different answer.
Arthur still carrying the suitcase, turned to look at the bank and walked right into a young woman in front of him.
She looked at the suitcase and then at him. Arthur was surprised. “Why is she looking at me like that?” he thought. “The suitcase! She thinks I’m the bank thief!”
Arthur looked around at the crowd of people. He became frightened, and without another thought, he started to run.
注意：续写的词数应为150左右。
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As he was running, Arthur heard the young man shouting behind, “Stop! Stop!” _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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The taxi stopped in front of the police station. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
