I have completely forgotten the name of an old lady who was a customer on my paper route when I was a twelve-year-old boy in Marinette, Wisconsin back in 1954.
On a mindless Saturday afternoon, a friend and I were throwing rocks onto the roof of the old lady’s house in her backyard. The object of our play was to observe how the rocks changed to missiles as they rolled to the roofs’ edge and shot out into the yard like comets falling from the sky.
I found myself a perfectly smooth rock. The stone was too smooth, however, so it slipped from my hand as I let it go and headed straight for a small window on the old lady’s back porch. At the sound of fractured glass, we ran away very fast.
I was scared about getting caught that first night. However, a few days later, when I was sure that I hadn’t been discovered, I started to feel guilty for her misfortune.
I made up my mind that I would save my paper delivery money, and in three weeks I had the seven dollars that I calculated would cover the cost of her window. I put the money in an envelope with a note explaining that I was sorry for breaking her window.
I waited until it was dark, snuck up to the old lady’s house, and put the envelope through the letter slot in her door.
The next day, I handed the old lady her paper and was able to return the warm smile that I was receiving from her. She thanked me for the paper and said, “Here，I have something for you. ” It was a bag of cookies. I thanked her and began to eat the cookies as I continued my route.
After several cookies, I felt an envelope and pulled it out of the bag. When I opened the envelope, I was astonished. Inside was the seven dollars and a short note that said, “I'm proud of you. ”
1. The author and his friend threw stones onto the roof of the old lady’s house in order to_______.| A．amuse themselves | B．help her repair it |
| C．ask her for some help | D．wake her up |
| A．Making cookies. | B．Collecting stones. |
| C．Delivering newspapers. | D．Repairing windows. |
| A．went to see the old lady and admitted his mistake bravely |
| B．just wrote a letter to apologize to the old lady |
| C．turned to his friend for some advice |
| D．decided to rely on his own efforts to make up for his mistake |
| A．ran into | B．slipped into |
| C．broke into | D．rushed into |
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I walked to Mrs. Windsor’s house as I always did when I heard the piano. Before ringing the bell, I stood against the wall and sighed sadly. I daydreamed what I’d rather be doing. I had been tutored enough to read, understand, and even write some musical compositions, but I just didn’t have a gift for it. But Mrs. Windsor had offered to give me the lessons for free, so I felt it my duty to try.
The door opened. I walked in, sat down on the piano bench and began to sort through my sheet music. Today Mrs. Windsor introduced her niece Pasha to teach me. With a smile, Pasha sat beside me on the piano bench, opened my sheet music to the beginning page and asked me to play. I arranged my fingers on the keys. Then I frowned (皱眉) and concentrated to make the notes on the page match the finger movements. I had to admit I was a rather mechanical pianist.
After about a page or two, Pasha gently put her hand on top of mine as if to calm my fingers. There was a long pause. “Jennifer, what are you hearing in the music?” I looked at her rather strangely and admitted I didn’t know what she meant.
“Here, let me try and you listen,” Pasha advised.
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, letting her fingers dance lightly over the keys. Then, she began to play.
“See, it begins here beside some kind of river. Hear the water flowing beside you?”
Her fingers rose and fell gently on the keys. “Now the princess appears and she’s picking flowers from the water’s edge.” A happy piece of music filled the air in time to Pasha’s dancing fingers. “Oh, but she slips!” The music changed. “And our princess is being carried off by the fast-flowing stream. Quickly, the princess’ horse sees her plight (困境) and races to the river’s edge where he swims out to let her catch hold of him. Luckily, they make it to the bank and she hugs her faithful horse.” Pasha finished with a big smile and then looked at me.
I was delighted and advised to try another one. Pasha smiled and together we played many pieces of music that afternoon, finding the stories in the music and learning that sometimes it takes a friend to pull you out of the river onto dry land again.
1. Why did the author sigh sadly? (no more than 15 words)2. How did Pasha inspire the author to play the piano? (no more than 8 words)
3. What made the music change in Pasha’s playing? (no more than 10 words)
4. Please explain the meaning of the underlined sentence. (no more than 15 words)
5. What do you think of Pasha? Why? (no more than 25 words)
【推荐2】Mozart was a genius, but he struggled like an average person during early twenties. He had to work to make ends meet. Underpaid and unsatisfied by his average performances, he felt a burning desire to devote more time and energy to his art. So after a period of doubt and thinking, that's exactly what he did. He quit his job and began what turned out to be the most creative period of his life.
Even if you never hope to reach Mozart’s level of mastery, you may relate to his need to break free from convention (传统). Maybe you’ve done everything right — stood out at school, and got a high-paying job — but you’re tired of being just like everyone else. Maybe you long to achieve something that is unmistakably you.
What, then, is holding you back? Rich Karlgaard, the publisher of Forbes magazine and author of Late Bloomers, argues that our culture’s obsession (痴迷) with early achievement discourages us from going after what we love. Instead of having varied interests, studying widely, and taking our time — essentials (要素) for self-discovery — we’re encouraged to pass tests, become specialists right away, and pursue safe and secure careers. As a result, most of us end up choosing professional excellence over personal achievement, and often we lose ourselves in the process.
As you move forward, there are a few things to keep in mind. First, it’s never too late to “become” yourself. Aristotle, for example, didn’t fully devote himself to writing and philosophy until he was nearly 50. There are also benefits to taking a long, winding path to achievement. Remember that age usually brings wisdom, self-knowledge, and creativity. This is one reason the average age of founders of high-growth start-ups is 45.
If you ever get stuck, think of Joanne, a talented and creative woman who bounced from job to job throughout her twenties. She felt like a total failure. But she took that feeling of hopelessness and chose to do what she’d always wanted to do: write fantasy novels for children. As she would later recount, “I stopped pretending to myself that I was anything other than what I was.”
You’ve probably heard of her. Her pen name is J.K. Rowling.
Now get to work.
1. What does the example of Mozart (in the first paragraph) show?| A．Genius is nothing but labor. |
| B．Suffering makes a man wise. |
| C．You should stick to what inspires you. |
| D．You need to be different from others. |
| A．Desire for early achievement. |
| B．Too wide a range of interests. |
| C．A waste of time on self-discovery. |
| D．A wrong choice in professions. |
| A．Age can be an advantage in one's life. |
| B．Failure is of great value to success. |
| C．45 is the right age for one to start business. |
| D．The path to achievement is full of difficulties. |
| A．To share success stories of some famous people. |
| B．To stress the importance of professional excellence. |
| C．To analyze the reasons for failure to make early achievements. |
| D．To encourage people to become themselves whatever the age. |
【推荐3】Once there was a piano player in a bar. People came just to hear him play. But one night, a lady asked him to sing a song.
I don’t sing, “said the man.
But the lady told the waiter, “ I’m tired of listening to the piano. I want the player to sing! “
The waiter shouted across the room,” Hey,friend! If you want to get paid,sing a song!” So he did. He had never sung in public before. Now he was singing for the very first time! Nobody had ever heard the song Mona Lisa sung so beautifully!
He had talent he was sitting on! He may have lived the rest of his life as a no - name piano player in a no - name bar. But once he found, by accident，that he could sing well,he. went on working hard and became one of the best - known singers in the US. His name was Nat King Cole.
You,too,have skills and abilities. You may not feel that your talent is great,but it may be better than you think. With hard work, most skills can be improved. Besides, you may have no success at all if you just sit on your talent.
1. Nat King Cole succeeded because .| A．the lady helped him a lot | B．he caught the chance |
| C．he continued to play in the bar | D．he played the piano well |
| A．fail to realize | B．forget to use |
| C．try to develop | D．manage to show |
| A．hide it and wait | B．ask others for help |
| C．pay no attention to it | D．work hard to improve yourself |
| A．Sing in the Bar | B．Achieve Success in Life |
| C．Never Lose Heart | D．Find Your Hidden Talent. |
