I couldn’t help staring at him. I wondered what kind of person he had been ten or twenty years before, and what he would be like if luck had gone his way. I had a hurt in my heart for this kind of human soul, all alone in the world. I told him that I was sorry, but store rules didn’t allow me to do so. I felt stupid and unkind saying this, but I valued my job.
Just then, another man, standing behind the first, spoke up. If anything, he looked more pitiable. “Change it to me, ” was all he said.
What I had been feeling was pity. Pity is soft and safe and easy. Compassion, on the other hand, is caring in action. I thanked the second man but told him that was not allowed either. Then I reached into my pocket and paid for the biscuits myself. I reached into my pocket because these two men had reached into my heart and taught me compassion.
1. The aged gentleman who wanted to buy the biscuits_________ .
| A．hoped to have the food first and pay later |
| B．promised to obey the store rules |
| C．forgot to take any money with him |
| D．could not afford anything more expensive |
| A．kind and lucky | B．friendly and helpful |
| C．poor and lonely | D．hurt and disappointed |
| A．he felt no pity for the old gentleman |
| B．he considered the old man dishonest |
| C．he expected someone else to pay for the old man |
| D．he wanted to keep his present job |
| A．Wealth is more important than anything else |
| B．Experience is better gained through practice |
| C．Obeying the rules means more than compassion. |
| D．Helping others is easier said than done |
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【推荐1】Jonas loved to play video games. He liked all kinds of games, but he especially enjoyed games that let him pretend he was a race car diver. He loved to watch all the scenery fly by while he turned the wheel to get by the other players.
More than anything, Jonas wanted the newest driving video game. It was called Race to the Top of Speed Mountain. It looked like so much fun in the commercials. But when Jonas asked for the game, his mother only sighed. “Your birthday isn’t until July,” she said. “If you want the game sooner than that, you will have to buy it yourself.”
Jonas thought hard. He was too young to drive to work like Dad, and he couldn’t turn his bedroom into an office to work at home like Mom. He went to his favorite thinking spot to look at the bird feeder in his back yard.
As Jonas was thinking about getting a job, it began to snow. At first there were only a few flakes, but soon the ground turned white.
“I know!” cried Jonas. “I’ll shovel (铲) the sidewalks on snow days. If I’m fast, I can do a lot of houses and make a lot of money.”
So Jonas put on his warmest sweater and bundled up in his winter coat. He added gloves and a hat. Then he went into the garage to grab a shovel.
Jonas started next door. He rang the bell and asked Mr. Travers if he would like his sidewalks shoveled. “Yes,” said Mr. Travers. “But you should wait until it stops snowing before you start or you will have to do it twice.”
“I’ll be back!” said Jonas. He went around the block to see who would like their walks shoveled after the storm. He had eight customers by the time he got back to his own house.
When it stopped snowing, Jonas grabbed his shovel and got to work. He started at Mr. Travers’ house and shoveled the sidewalks in the same order he talked to his neighbors. When he was finished, he was very, very tired. Jonas was also happy. He had earned forty dollars for his work, and now he would be able to buy his video game.
And he did — right after a warm cup of cocoa.
1. Jonas’s mother refused to buy him the video game because ________.| A．she couldn’t afford it | B．his birthday hadn’t come yet |
| C．she wanted him to be independent | D．he was too young to play the game |
| A．To earn money for a video game. | B．To get work experience. |
| C．To make his mother proud. | D．To perform an act of kindness. |
| A．Relaxed and Curious. | B．Pleased and energetic. |
| C．Regretful but relieved. | D．Exhausted but satisfied. |
| A．A Snowy Day | B．Help from neighbors |
| C．Jonas’ First Job | D．The Newest Video Game |
【推荐2】My brother Joe had a passion for driving cars. Fords in particular. He was especially fond of speed. It was enough to make my mother fear that he was crazy. But she had that fear about everyone, even herself.
When Joe was just a little boy, he would often say to me, “Sister, when I am old enough to get my license and drive my own car, I will fly so fast that angels will run scared.” With a big grin, he would imagine the scene. I could have told him it would never happen. No matter how old he got, he would never get a license, never drive a car. But I didn’t tell him that.
Joe was born blind. He couldn’t see his own face in a mirror. But he could dream like anyone. I didn’t want to be the one to dim Joe’s dreams. Life would do that for him, soon enough. Until then, didn’t he deserve his happiness?
Joe had trouble not just with his eyes, but with his legs. He was born premature suffered from disabilities and could not walk until he was 5. That’s when he got his first “car”, a red Radio Flyer tricycle that he called his “49 Ford”. He couldn’t pedal it, so he would push it everywhere, sometimes even falling over.
Growing up is a tug of war between disappointment and surprise, between dreams and reality. By the time Joe was 12, I think he knew he would never get a license. As with the other hard facts of life, he seemed to accept it without question or bitterness, as if it were nothing more than a card drawn at random.
One hot summer day when he was 16, Joe went tapping out the driveway with his stick, finding his way to my stepfather’s 49 Ford. He ran his hand along the car, felt the heat of the metal, opened the door and climbed in.
He looked good.
Under the seat, he discovered a six-pack of Budweiser (百威啤酒). And he drank all six cans. He felt inside the car, found the keys, shouted, “Hooweece!” and fired it up.
I have heard various versions of this story. They all boil down to this: the Ford’s engine roared. My mother fainted. My stepfather rushed outside.
And my brother, after a moment of pure joy, threw up all over the car. Fortunately, for everyone, the Ford didn’t move an inch. But to this day, Joe still swears that when he found those keys and fired that old engine up, he heard the angels starting to flee.
1. What did the author do after finding out about Joe’s dream?| A．She made fun of him. |
| B．She told him to face reality. |
| C．She let him dream his dream. |
| D．She encouraged him to ride a tricycle. |
| A．Joe thought all this was fate. |
| B．Joe preferred to playing cards. |
| C．Joe accepted it with more questions or bitterness. |
| D．Joe do it on purpose as if he would draw this card. |
| A．He is not living in reality. |
| B．His family members are like angels to him. |
| C．He realizes he fell asleep inside the car. |
| D．He believes he realized his dream of driving fast. |
| A．Positive. | B．Generous | C．Emotional | D．Humorous. |
【推荐3】Amy, a day old, was abandoned at a police station in Seoul. Her birth parents couldn’t afford to give Amy the appropriate healthcare then. She spent her first three months in an orphanage before she was adopted. “I always thought, why should I be more thankful to my adoptive parents than the next person?” she says.
In 2011, Amy reconnected with her birth mother in South Korea, her adoptive mum by her side. “My Korean mother took my American mother’s hands in hers and said with tears, ‘Thank you.’ After that, my whole world changed,” Amy says. At the time, she was working in the e-commerce sector and struggling with anxiety, depression and an eating disorder. Reconnecting with her birth family, however made her feel like the luckiest person in the world and she wanted to actively share her good fortune. That year, she quit her job and co-founded the Global Gratitude Alliance, which partners with grassroots organizations to create community-led solutions or social and economic change.
Since then, a reflexive sense of thankfulness has become Amy’s frame of reference for work, relationships and daily life in general. She tried to rethink her world view, appreciate the little things and make connections with others. For Amy, the attitude shift helped her overcome health issues—she didn’t need the drugs any more after she returned from Korea.
Those positive effects inspired Amy to share the experience with others. Through a partnership with a home for orphaned children in Nepal, the Global Gratitude Alliance provided teachers with workshops that concluded with a ceremony of giving thanks. The participants used those techniques to help their students and community after the destructive earthquake of 2015. Children from the school recently visited a local seniors’ home to build relationships with the residents there. “Gratitude creates a cycle of giving and receiving,” Amy says.
1. What can we know from the passage?| A．Amy was raised by an American couple. |
| B．Amy received proper treatment as an infant. |
| C．Amy was more thankful to her birth mother. |
| D．Amy was orphaned three months after her birth. |
| A．Her job quitting | B．The reunion with her birth mother. |
| C．The struggle against her disease. | D．The connections with volunteers. |
| A．They hosted ceremonies in workshops. |
| B．They sought partners for orphaned children. |
| C．They built relations with adoptive parents. |
| D．They contributed to post-disaster service. |
| A．Good fortune inspires people a lot. | B．Reflection helps build frame of life. |
| C．Family reunion gets positive effects. | D．Gratitude needs to be widely spread. |
【推荐1】When I was young I wanted to be a model, so when a national contest was staged, I convinced my parents to take me for an audition (试演). I was selected and told I had potential. They said that for only $900 I could attend a weekend event which dozens of the most prestigious (有声望的) modeling agencies from around the world would attend. At 13, my hopes of fame and fortune clouded all judgment and I begged my parents to let me go. We have never been rich, but they saw my enthusiasm and agreed.
I imagined being signed by some famous model companies. For months, any boredom or disappointment I faced was pushed aside because I knew I would soon have the chance to be a real model. I thought I would grace the covers of famous magazines!
Of course, I wasn’t signed, but what hurt the most was being told that if I grew to 5’9” (about 1.75 metres) I could be a success. I prayed for a growth spurt (冲刺) because I could not imagine giving up my dream. I made an appointment with a local modeling agency and the agent demanded $500 for classes, $500 for a photo shoot, and $300 for other expenses. My parents only agreed after hours and hours of me begging.
The agency sent me out on a few auditions, but with every day I didn’t receive a call, I grew more depressed. The final straw came in July after I had decided to focus on commercial modeling. There was an open call in New York City. We spent hours driving and another few hours waiting, only to be told that I was too short. I was desperate.
Years later, however, I realized that the trip to New York was good as it made me notice I didn’t actually love modeling, just the idea of it. I wanted to be special and I was innocently determined to reach an impossible goal. The experience has made me stronger and that will help me in the future.
1. What’s the main reason why the author wanted to be a model?| A．She won a national contest. |
| B．She wanted to get reputation and wealth. |
| C．She was urged by some modeling agencies. |
| D．She had full potential to be a successful model. |
| A．Supportive. | B．Worried. | C．Doubtful. | D．Negative. |
| A．Her parents were strongly against it. |
| B．She realized that it was impossible for her. |
| C．Even a local modeling agency turned her down. |
| D．She realized that she didn’t actually love the idea of modeling. |
| A．the last in a series of bad things that happen to make someone very upset, angry, etc |
| B．the final result that she was admitted by the model company |
| C．the final audition given by the agency |
| D．the decision that she made at last not to be a model any more |
| A．Where there’s a will there’s a way. |
| B．Being a model is not that easy. |
| C．We should have our own judgment and should not just follow others. |
| D．We might set unpractical goals but the experiences can help us grow. |
【推荐2】When a special occasion arrives, a colorful gift bag or a box often finds its way to a doorstep (门口), an office desk or a mailbox. But once in a while, a present arrives at an unexpected moment to remind us that someone is thinking about us.
Wanda Anderson of Richland, US, remembers such a gift.
The rosebushes were finally in full bloom (盛开) on that day in spring. Seeing roses always brings to mind Wanda’s childhood memories. To this young girl, those flowers were extra special. “We never had money to buy extra things, so even a tired rose was something to cherish,” Wanda said.
Nowadays, to have a garden filled with many different roses is pure enjoyment. Wanda especially loves the very first blooms. Her husband, Dale, knows this little fact about his wife. So, on this special morning, he picked the very first flowers of spring, fresh from the garden. But as Dale came back into the house, he was met by a neighbor who had stopped in for a quick visit. As the woman turned to go, Dale handed the roses to her and repeatedly told her that the flowers were hers to keep.
“I told her I was happy for her to have the roses, but I really wasn’t,” Wanda said. Seeing her very precious first blooms go out of the door filled her with regret, and a bit of selfishness. Throughout the rest of the morning, Wanda argued with herself； knowing it was “better to give than to receive.” However, she wished she could have kept the roses for herself.
Later that day, the couple headed to the post office, where Wanda waited outside in the car. Then, without warning, an older woman suddenly appeared at the car’s open window, with a bunch of roses in her arms. “These are for you,” she said, giving the flowers to Wanda. “They’re my first blooms this spring.” Totally surprised, Wanda thanked the woman and took a moment to smell the roses’ rich fragrance (香气). When she looked up, the mysterious visitor was gone.
To this day, that “special delivery” changed Wanda. Now, her very first blooms always go to someone else.
1. Why does Wanda cherish roses so much?| A．She thinks that they stand for pure love. |
| B．She often received them as a child. |
| C．Her husband always sends her roses. |
| D．She couldn’t afford them when she was young. |
| A．Worried. | B．Upset. |
| C．Satisfied. | D．Relieved. |
| A．The flowers her husband picked for her. |
| B．The gifts her neighbor gave back to her. |
| C．The roses she received from a stranger. |
| D．A mysterious delivery she got from the post office. |
| A．To express that she’s thinking of them. |
| B．To prove that she isn’t selfish. |
| C．To surprise people who she loves. |
| D．To show off her beautiful flowers. |
When I got there, it looked like she had been overcome by weep than that she had fallen; she was a young woman who looked exhausted with dark circles under her eyes. She dropped something as I helped her up, and I picked it up and gave it to her. It was a coin.
At that moment, everything came into focus for me: the crying woman, the ancient Suburban packed full of stuff and three kids in the back, and the gas pump(汽油泵) reading $4.95.
I asked her if she was okay and if she needed help, and she just kept saying “I don’t want my kids to see me crying,” so we stood at the other side of the pump from her car. She said she was driving to California for Christmas and that things were very hard for her right now.
I took out my credit card and swiped(刷磁卡) it through the card reader on the pump so that she could fill up her car completely, and I bought 2 big bags of food for her kids in the car who attacked it like wolves. While it was fueling, she asked, “So, are you an angel or something?” I said, “At this time of year, angels are really busy, so sometimes God uses common people.”
It was unbelievable to be part of someone else’s miracle. And of course, you guessed it, when I got in my car it started right away and got me home with no problem. Sometimes, angels fly close enough to you that you can hear the flutter(摆动) of their wings.
1. . Caught in traffic, the author still felt happy because .
| A．she could fill up her car to get home in time |
| B．the woman who needed help was waiting there |
| C．she could find a warm place to wait |
| D．she could do something for others in the gas station |
| A．her situation was very terrible | B．her kids wouldn’t listen to her |
| C．she was too tired | D．she fell down and got injured |
| A．the author was driving carelessly on the way home |
| B．the young woman was interested in long driving |
| C．the young woman didn’t want to see her kids crying |
| D．the kids were extremely hungry at that time |
| A．was a kind person | B．liked to deal with others’ business |
| C．had no thought for others | D．was a real angel |
【推荐1】LaPierre is no stranger to long, strange trips. As a young man, he worked as a baking chef, then as a real housing agent. But at age 30, he went to sleep under a Massachusetts bridge, a bridge happening to be on the route of the Boston Marathon. LaPierre would watch the runners speed past, longing to join them in running. Marathons became a symbol and an inspiration-surviving for the long journey.
About two decades ago, Lapierre started running in as many marathons as he could. To date, the 54-year-old man has crossed the finish line 32 times. Without a doubt, his most recent race was the most memorable.
LaPierre had flown from Boston to Chicago last fall, sleeping in O’Hare International Airport due to his poor finance support. Early on the morning of October 13, he boarded the train to the Chicago Marathon. The train was full of energetic marathoners. LaPierre noticed a man asking for spare change. At the Cumberland station, several stops before the one for the marathon, many passengers suddenly fled the train car. The panicked people shouted that the man asking for money was, in fact, an armed robber.
Just then, the robber himself escaped from the train car and hopped onto the next one.
LaPierre followed him quickly. “You don’t move!” LaPierre shouted, leaning into the armed man firmly with his left side and grabbing his gun firmly. “Let me go!” the man begged loudly. After a while, the police flooded to the train, and LaPierre returned the robber over to the police. The police expressed thanks to him. He fled quickly, for he had a marathon to run.
This was not the first time Lapierre had done good deeds. He had done a lot of good things. LaPierre knows there’s more to why he’s become a serial good guy than that. “I’ve lived a hard life,” he says. “But I believe change starts within yourself. For the last 25 years, I’ve tried to make myself into a good man.”
1. What happened to LaPierre when living under a bridge?| A．He had his job changed. | B．He baked cakes for marathon runners. |
| C．He was inspired by the Boston Marathon. | D．He was woken up by some marathon runners. |
| A．To cut down on living expenses. | B．To take care of other marathoners. |
| C．To help the police to catch a robber. | D．To catch the plane full of marathoners. |
①LaPierre delivered the robber to the police. ②LaPierre followed the robber and fought against him.
③LaPierre got on the train to the Chicago Marathon. ④The panicked passengers fled the train car.
⑤He went on to compete in the marathon.
| A．⑤④②③① | B．③①②④⑤ | C．③④②①⑤ | D．⑤④③①② |
| A．Good deeds have their rewards. | B．Kindness makes a real difference. |
| C．Happiness lies in the pursuit of dreams. | D．Outer changes always begin with inner changes. |
【推荐2】Jim Glaub and Dylan Parker had just been handed the keys to their new Manhattan apartment on 22nd Street when the outgoing tenant (房客) said something curious, “Just so you know, there’s this thing where letters addressed to Santa come to the apartment. The previous tenants received the mail too. It has been coming for years and no one knows why.”
Glaub and Parker settled in to their new home, and for the first two years only a few letters from kids or parents asked “Santa” for gifts they could not otherwise afford. Then in the months leading to Christmas 2010, their mailbox was filled with letters to Santa every day. They responded to as many as they could, writing notes, even buying gifts. Glaub, of course, is not Santa. They could do only so much.
But one night, when he and Parker threw a 1960s — themed Christmas party, a solution appeared. Guests noticed the hundreds of letters they’d yet to act upon and asked about them. Glaub told them the story and his guests were intrigued. “A lot of people were like, ‘I’ll take a letter. I’ll satisfy it.’” And so was born Miracle on 22nd Street.
To spread the word, they started a website, miracleon22ndstreel.com, and a Facebook page. Working with other nonprofits that help those in need, they invited families from around the county to go online and request gifts for their children. Likewise, donors, also known as “elves,” can sign up to buy gifts for a child or family, accompanied by a signed note with Elf before their name, such as Elf Jim or Elf Jody.
Last year, Glaub and Miracle on 22nd Street helped more than 800 families. Glaub no longer wonders why the letters come to the apartment. Putting in the long hours to help the families is what it’s all about for him. “It’s part of Christmas for me,” he says, “It wouldn’t be Christmas without it.”
1. What did the tenant think of receiving the letters in the apartment?| A．Odd. | B．Exciting. | C．Frightening | D．Disturbing. |
| A．They got really bothered. | B．They had tried their best. |
| C．They overcame the challenge. | D．They were content with their new life. |
| A．Puzzled. | B．Relieved. | C．Interested. | D．Surprised. |
| A．How a volunteer organization is formed. |
| B．How Miracle on 22nd Street is operated. |
| C．How a kind couple deal with letters to Santa. |
| D．How donors purchase gifts for families in need. |
【推荐3】Every week, two converted blue buses packed with children’s books carefully drive along the streets of Kabul, avoiding areas where deadly explosions are common. These travelling libraries stop off at schools in different parts of the city, delivering a wealth of reading material directly to youngsters who have limited access to books.
“A lot of schools in our city don’t have access to something as basic as a library,” says Freshta Karim, a 27-year-old Oxford University graduate who was inspired to start Charmaghz, a non-profit organization, in her home city having grown up without many books herself. “We were trying to understand what we could do to promote critical thinking in our country.”
While for many people a bus or train journey presents a rare opportunity to get stuck into a book, in some cities public transport is being used as means of getting books to communities that need them most. Afghanistan, for example, has one of the world’s lowest literacy rates, with only three in 10 adults able to read, according to UNESCO. The majority of public schools in Kabul do not have libraries and the city’s libraries do not offer many children’s books. For Karim, buses were a cost-effective, efficient way to get books to children.
Charmarghz rents them from a state-owned bus company. “We go to nearby schools,” she says. “We try to stop inside communities rather than on the main streets where explosions often happen.”
The organization is funded by donations from local business and communities, and also rents a third bus that acts as a mobile cinema. Over 600 children visit the buses each day to read, socialise and play games. “They are often very excited,” she says. “Our biggest challenge is that so many children want to come inside the bus, but we can’t have all of them in one day.”
1. Why does Freshta Karim set up the organization?| A．To raise money for the poor. | B．To recycle abandoned buses. |
| C．To build libraries for the local schools. | D．To offer the children more reading opportunities. |
| A．It’s funded by UNESCO. | B．It’s a state-owned organization. |
| C．It buys buses from a company. | D．It aims to inspire critical thinking. |
| A．Deadly explosions. | B．Poor public transport system. |
| C．Shortage of travelling libraries. | D．Lack of support from the government. |
| A．Caring and courageous. | B．Humorous and ambitious. |
| C．Demanding and enthusiastic. | D．Honest and hardworking. |
