One early morning, I went into the living room to find my mother reading a thick book called Best Loved Poems to Read Again and Again. My interest was aroused only by the fact that the word “Poems” appeared in big, hot pink letters.
“Is it good?” I asked her. “Yeah,”she answered. “There’s one I really like and you’ll like it, too.” I leaned forward. “ ‘Patty Poem,’ “ she read the title. Who is Patty? I wondered. The poem began:
She never puts her toys away,
Just leaves them scattered (散乱的)where they lay,...
The poem was just three short sections. The final one came quickly:
When she grows and gathers(稳重的)poise,
I’ll miss her harum-scarum(莽撞的) noise,
And look in vain for scattered(徒劳地)toys.
And I’ll be sad.
A terrible sorrow washed over me. Whoever Patty was, she was a mean girl. Then, the shock.
“It’s you, honey,” My mother said sadly.
To my mother, the poem conveyed a parent’s affection when her child grows up and leaves. To me, the “she” in the poem was horror. It was my mama who would be sad. It was so terrible. I burst out crying.
“What’s wrong?” my mother asked.
“Oh Mama,” I cried. “I don’t want to grow up ever!”
She smiled. “Honey, it’s okay. You’re not growing up anytime soon. And when you do, I’ll still love you, okay?”
I calmed down.But I could not help thinking about that silly poem. After several years, I read the poem again and was confused. It all fit so well together, like a simple puzzle easy to understand, yet it was still beautiful. I was now attracted by the idea of poetry, words that had the power to make or break a person’s world.
I have since fallen in love with other poems, but “Patty Poem” remains my poem. After all, “Patty Poem” gave me my love for poetry.
1. Why was the writer attracted by the book Best Loved Poems to Read Again and Again?| A．It was a thick enough book. |
| B．It has a significant title. |
| C．I was attracted by something on its cover . |
| D．Her mother was reading it with interest. |
| A．depressed | B．thrilled | C．puzzled | D．terrified |
| A．suffer from great homesickness | B．find the power of poetry |
| C．discover her eagerness to grow up | D．realize her love for puzzles |
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【推荐1】About us
Fablesandfairytales.com is a non-profit site for visitors from all over the world to share and read fables and fairy tales.
Our main objective is to promote the importance of such stories in developing culture, imagination and creativity. We believe that reading the fables and fairy tales from different cultures allows us to build a greater understanding and appreciation of the diversity around the world.
We organise storytelling sessions around the world. Watch out for our monthly “Fable and Fairy Tale” writing competition for different age groups. We also run the permanent “Fable and Fairy Tales” museum in Hanau, Germany, at the home of the Brothers Grimm. Contact us at museum@fablesandfairytales.com to arrange your visit!
The museum is open to all individuals and school groups with a booking. A multilingual guide is available on request. No charges for guides and admissions but donations are much appreciated.
1. What is the main goal of fablesandfairytales.com?
| A．It provides visitors with teaching resources. |
| B．It promotes the reading of fables and fairy tales. |
| C．It holds various writing competitions around the world. |
| D．It conducts tours and lessons at the Fables and Fairy Tales Museum. |
| A．It charges for admissions and guides. |
| B．It makes profits from advertisements. |
| C．It receives money from the Brothers Grimm. |
| D．It relies on the donations from its visitors. |
| A．They get paid from the website. | B．They are experienced in storytelling. |
| C．They will receive professional training. | D．They are chosen by their uploaded works. |
【推荐2】I can remember when my daughter Maggie, who is now six, used to crawl into my lap and say, “Daddy, read me a story.” Last year she announced, “Daddy, I’m going to read you a story.”
Maggie was a television child. When she first became conscious of anything beyond eating and sleeping, the TV set was right there, and it soon commanded her attention.
A few years ago, we were worried not only that we’d never get the children away from the set long enough to learn to read, but that we’d forget how to read ourselves. But in 1955 there was not only more reading than before TV, but more reading than ever before in history.
Clearly, reading has survived television as it has survived a lot of other things. When I was six, a wail went up about menaces (威胁) to reading at home: motor cars and cinema. When Maggie came along, there was television. The motorcar, the radio, the cinema and television do take up a lot of time.
Well, we’ve got more time. When my mother was a girl, people worked about 60hours a week. Now it’s 44. When Maggie grows up, it’ll be 30. And there’ll be numerous gadgets to do her housework. She’ll have to read. You can’t watch TV all day. At present Maggie is reading about Johnny Woodchuck. Ahead of her—and I’m a little envious—are her first brush with Black Beauty, Alice stepping through the looking glass, Huck and Jim drifting down the Mississippi, the emotional storms of Shakespeare, the spiritual agonies of Tolstoy. For reading isn’t all joy. Like life itself, it’s mixed with many moods, from ecstasy (狂喜) to despair. Maggie will learn to take the rough with the smooth, gathering from the ancient wisdom of long-dead genius a little fire to enrich her spirit.
And some day, if she’s lucky, she’ll get the biggest thrill of all, when a little girl climbs into her lap and announces, “Mummy, I’m going to read you a story.”
1. Which of the following things used to catch Maggie’s attention too much?| A．The motorcar. | B．The radio. | C．The cinema. | D．The television. |
| A．They face less working pressure. |
| B．There is more time available for reading. |
| C．Their parents encourage them more often. |
| D．They have a stronger desire for knowledge. |
| A．Her exposure to classic reading. | B．Her productive works in writing. |
| C．Her wild imagination in daily life. | D．Her spiritual reflection on the books. |
| A．Maggie has rich experiences. |
| B．Maggie has a good plan for reading. |
| C．Maggie will benefit a lot from reading. |
| D．Maggie is on the road to becoming a genius. |
| A．It is a blessing that reading can be passed down. |
| B．More girls like Maggie enjoy telling stories. |
| C．Maggie’s daughter brings her the biggest thrill. |
| D．Reading makes Maggie a fortunate girl. |
【推荐3】As an open-minded parent of a 7-year-old boy,I find out that “yes” is the word I say most frequently in life.I do this because “yes” is a sign of positive living.Saying “yes” means opening myself up to new experiences and inviting new or deeper relationships.However,too much “yes” may leave any one of us feeling powerless to set and keep boundaries(界限) in our lives.
This had been on my mind when The Book of No came across my desk.The book is rich,readable and useful to people who have difficulty in saying “no”.
Susan Newman,the writer of the book,calls people who keep saying “yes” through life “people-pleasers”.Those people often hold long-term expectations that they will care for others and feel sorry to even speak out their own needs when a request comes their way.For people-pleasers,saying “yes” is the way to avoid breaking their relationship with the asker.
So how can we say “no”?The Book of No offers short and simple dialogues for hundreds of situations in which “no” is the right answer.After reading the book,I realised the things that started helping me improve my “no” skills.
For one thing,the “no” dialogues seldom include “I’m sorry” language.Instead,they are simple and clear sentences like “No,I don’t want to go” or “Not without everyone’s help”.I also noticed the sentences generally don’t ask us to say “I can’t”.Instead,they say “I prefer not to...”,“I’m not in a position(职位) to...”,or “It won’t work for me to...”.These expressions pay more attention to the person’s needs,not to his ability to respond(回应) to a request.
Do you think this book might be helpful to you?It’s OK if the answer is “no”,but I do highly suggest it for your Positive Reading List shelf.
1. What does the author think of “yes”?| A．Speaking “yes” too much is unwise. |
| B．“Yes” means more possibility to others. |
| C．“Yes” gives us power to decide our own life. |
| D．People should speak “yes” as much as possible. |
| A．They put others ahead of themselves. |
| B．They are popular among people. |
| C．They often ask others for help. |
| D．They are positive in life. |
| A．I can’t. |
| B．I’m sorry. |
| C．I don’t want to go. |
| D．Not without everyone’s help. |
| A．“Yes” and “No” |
| B．Ways of Positive Living |
| C．Reasons Why We Should Say “No” |
| D．Positive Reading List:The Book of No |
【推荐1】Jennifer Rocha, who graduated from UC San Diego, said she wanted to thank her parents for their support by taking graduation photos in the fields where she worked alongside them since high school. “I wanted to take those pictures out there, specifically in the field, because that’s what made me go to college,” Rocha said. “That was my dad’s lesson of saying: if you don’t pursue a higher education, you’re going to be working here the rest of your life.” Rocha said her parents encouraged her and her siblings to pursue a higher education.
She started working in the fields with her parents when she was a junior in high school. Each day, she would leave cross country practice to go home and work planting strawberries overnight. “It was tough labor,” Rocha said as she remembered working late nights in the fields. “I was like, ‘You know what? I don’t want to be doing this my whole life.’”
Completing the past four years of college was not always an easy feat for Rocha. While being a full-time student, she also worked at the university’s police department to help pay for her tuition. She worked long hours to fund her education. At times, her work shifts wouldn’t end until 4 or 5 am, leaving only a few hours to spare before the next class. “I have class at like 8 am, and it’s not worth me driving and then coming back,” Rocha said. “So, I would just nap in my car and then go to class after that. It was tough times, but I mean,we got that diploma.”
Rocha hopes her photos and her story will be an inspiration to immigrant families. She said it was important to include her parents in her graduation photos. “I wanted to not just honor them but honor all the migrant skilled workers, because a lot of times they aren’t recognized and we forget about them. My parents being migrant workers were able to have three girls get their college education, and you can do it, too, and your kids can,” she said.
1. Why did Rocha take graduation photos in the field?| A．To thank her parents for their hard work. | B．To memorize her help with parents in fields. |
| C．To show her preference for field work. | D．To show her success in ending field labor. |
| A．Get a higher agriculture education. | B．Stay away from working in fields. |
| C．Devote her whole life to fields. | D．Become a learned field worker. |
| A．Exciting. | B．Boring. | C．Carefree. | D．Difficult. |
| A．To stress the importance of education. | B．To remind others of labor’s value. |
| C．To inspire others to pursue education. | D．To win awards at graduation. |
【推荐2】Seasickness and sunburn. Taking care of old people in different situations. My medical friends did their best to persuade me. Everyone said that running away to sea would ruin my career. But after five sleep-deprived (睡眠不足的) years working as a junior doctor, I was willing to take the risk.
Hungry for adventure, I boarded a bright white ship in Singapore. With 2,000 passengers and crew, she was the size of a small town.
To my relief, the hospital was well equipped, with an X-ray machine and a blood analyzer.
That first cruise (航行) was a learning experience, a tight schedule full of safety drills (演习). There was so much new information to take in. Even remembering which of the uniforms to wear each day was a challenge. Most confusing, I often forgot to change my clock when the ship crossed time zones.
As a doctor, I was responsible for the 600 crew including waiters, engineers, cooks and navigators (领航员), and I was on call (随时待命的) for the entire ship.
Far from treating seasickness and sunburn, as I’d been warned, my patients were wide and varied. The ship’s medical center was essentially a floating emergency room, but we didn’t have a team of specialists on hand for a second opinion. With long and unpredictable hours, it required mental toughness.
As you can guess, many of the passengers were elderly. Heart attacks don’t care about geography and emergency evacuations (疏散) were difficult to arrange.
I recall one such patient, who was taken off the ship on a stretcher (担架) halfway through the Panama Canal. After a terrifying ride in the back of an old ambulance, I was relieved that the patient survived long enough to arrive at the hospital in Panama City.
Thankfully, there were several unexpected benefits to the job. I regularly enjoyed the passenger facilities, including the gym, spa and deck buffet (甲板自助餐). I even hosted my own table of passengers in the evenings. On rare days off, I volunteered as a tour guide on trips ashore (在陆地). I got to fly over Alaska in a seaplane and watched a ballet in St Petersburg.
I now understand that being a cruise ship doctor is not a job — it’s a way of life.
One year at sea became two. I lost my career ambitions, but I redefined happiness in my life.
1. What can we know about the author’s first cruise?| A．She missed her job as a doctor. | B．She enjoyed a relaxing lifestyle. |
| C．She had to learn a lot of things. | D．She often felt confused about her job duties. |
| A．To tell that it was difficult to look after old patients. |
| B．To prove that being a cruise ship doctor is more tiring. |
| C．To stress the importance of a well-equipped hospital on the ship. |
| D．To show it was challenging to handle emergency situations on the ship. |
| A．The author’s experience as a tour guide. |
| B．The advantages of being a cruise ship doctor. |
| C．The loneliness of being the ship’s only doctor. |
| D．Various facilities for passengers on the cruise ship. |
| A．It was too stressful to tolerate. |
| B．It helped her build a better career. |
| C．It changed her understanding of happiness. |
| D．It provided opportunities to make more friends. |
My job is slightly different compared to that of a typical pilot. Most pilots have their routes they fly. They then familiarize（使…熟悉）themselves with the routes. However, in my case，I participate in any job where a pilot is immediately required. It is true that some days I might have a workday from nine in the morning to five in the afternoon. In fact，some days，I might even begin my work at three in the morning when I am needed to fly. Sometimes, as for the typical day，I do not have one.
Having been on the job for over two decades，I have learned some important life lessons. As I greet passengers boarding the airplane，I realize I，along with other airline pilots, have enhanced(提高)the lives of those who we are serving. In fact, there is one particular experience that I will never forget. A family was walking in from the gate, explaining that their beloved one was ill and had to be taken to a big hospital in another city immediately. It was at this point that I realized just how important my job was.
Therefore, my life as an airline pilot is definitely not for everyone. However，my job is something I enjoy thoroughly and will continue to do till I am old enough. As a pilot, I have been able to experience so many different types of situations in different places throughout the world. For anyone interested in piloting, I would recommend going for it.
1. The author dreamed of being a pilot when _______.
| A．he was travelling in India |
| B．it was about 30 years ago. |
| C．he was flying to India as a kid |
| D．he was a kid living in India |
| A．The author’s working time is not regular. |
| B．The author has his regular route he flies. |
| C．The author has to get up very early every day. |
| D．The daily working time of the author is longer. |
| A．could serve everyone as he does his daily work |
| B．could make his guests’ life more convenient |
| C．could take the ill patient to hospital in short time |
| D．had been to many advanced countries in the world |
| A．My pleasure in serving people |
| B．Difference in my job as a pilot |
| C．My interest in being a pilot as a boy |
| D．My job as an American airline’s pilot |
