When I was a kid, I came across a basic series of questions every time I was introduced to a person. Most were easy: “How old are you?” “What grade are you in?” “What do you want to be when you grow up?” But there was one question that troubled me: “What do your parents do?”
Dad was a computer programmer, so that one was easy enough. “My dad works on computers,” I would say. But mom’s job was hard to explain. She called herself a “nurse practitioner”. Mom explained it easier to make me understand. “You can say I teach nursing,” she said. “My mom teaches nurses,” I would repeat what she had said to me.
When that answer led to even more questions, my response became simpler, “My mom is a nurse,” though I was finally left wondering what it was she actually did. It definitely demanded a lot of time and energy and was important to the injured. I got my first clue about what mom actually did when having a late-night trip with her to the hospital in Central Phoenix.
Mom was called in to make rounds unexpectedly that night. It was dark outside and almost time for me to go to bed, so I was shocked when she asked if I wanted to come along with her. I loved the way the light from the streetlamps passed through the car. Being amazed at the view from the front seat, I didn’t say much. Some soft music was played on the radio in the car, which made me feel relaxed. When we arrived at the hospital, mom guided me through the parking garage and led me to a small emergency waiting room. There was only a row of white chairs along each wall and a TV which weighed roughly three hundred pounds.
注意：续写词数应为75左右。My mom handed me a bag of chocolate and left the emergency room to make her rounds.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________On the drive home, I asked mom if she had seen a man whose arms were injured badly. She gave me a positive response and told me that the man would be fine after an operation. I felt proud of her when I realized that my mom or one of her students would be there when the man woke up. And I realized mom was a real-life superhero, who devoted all her energy to her work in the hospital. She was a nurse practitioner—an educator and a caretaker. And what she did made a difference, which even a kid could see.
It was a Saturday. Whether it was sunny or cloudy, hot or cold, I cannot remember, but I do remember it was a Saturday because the shopping mall was packed with people. I was with my mom. Mom is short and skinny. It is easy to overlook her in a crowd simply because she is nothing extraordinary to see.
On that day we walked down the road, taking quick looks at window boutiques (精品店) because we both knew we wouldn’t be buying much, like always. I remember I was looking up at the people we passed as we walked. Ladies wore five-inch heels (高跟鞋) that clicked importantly on the floor and bright, luxury clothing. An uneasy feeling started to settle in my chest. I tried to push it out, but once it took root it refused to go. It got more unbearable with every second until I could deny it no longer; I was ashamed of my mother.
We were in a high-class neighborhood, I knew that. We lived in a small, overpriced apartment building that hung on to the edge of our county that Mom chose to move to because she knew the schools were good. As I looked at the passers-by and then turned accusing eyes on Mom. I realized for the first time that we didn’t belong there. I could see the deep wrinkles around Mom’s eyes and mouth. She wore cheap, old clothes, and shoes with the soles (鞋底) worn down. Her eyes were tired from working long hours to make ends meet and her hair was too gray for her age. I looked at her, and I was ashamed.
My mom is nothing extraordinary, yet at that moment she stood out because she was just so plain. Saying I’d meet her at the clothes store around the corner, I hurried away to the bathroom. I didn’t want to be seen with her, although there was no one important around to see me anyway. When I finally made my way to the store with hesitant steps, I found that Mom wasn’t there.
注意：续写词数应为150左右。
With no other options, I had to search the other stores in the area for her.
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I felt ashamed of myself, facing Mom’s offer.
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3 . 读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。
Tiffany’s difficulties began last year when she had guests at her home for Thanksgiving and then again for Christmas. Her husband had been in medical school and was now in the second year of his medical residency. Because of the long work hours required of him, he was not able to help her as much as they both would have liked, and so most of that which needed to be accomplished during this holiday season, in addition to the care of their four young children, fell to Tiffany. She was becoming overwhelmed, and then she learned that one who was dear to her had been diagnosed with cancer. The stress and worry began to take a heavy burden on her, and she slipped into a period of discouragement and depression. She sought medical help, and yet nothing changed. Her appetite disappeared, and she began to lose weight. Her family and friends prayed for her and tried desperately to help. They delivered her favorite foods in an attempt to keep her physically healthy, but she could take only a few bites and then would be unable to finish.
On one particularly trying day, her husband attempted in vain to persuade her with foods she had always loved. When nothing worked, he said, “There must be something that sounds good to you.”
Tiffany thought for a moment and said, “The only thing I can think of that sounds good is homemade bread.”
But there was none on hand.
The following afternoon Tiffany’s doorbell rang. Her husband happened to be home and answered it. When he returned, he was carrying a loaf of homemade bread. Tiffany was astonished when he told her it had come from a woman named Sherrie, whom they barely knew. She was a friend of Tiffany’s sister Nicole and had been introduced to Tiffany and her husband briefly several months earlier when Nicole and her family were staying with Tiffany for Thanksgiving. Days later, Tiffany began to regain her appetite and feel hopeful about the future and she owed it to that loaf of bread from Sherrie.
Tiffany decided to visit Sherrie to express thanks.
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Sherrie’s words revealed the reason why she delivered her bread and love to Tiffany.
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Sam Hensen was celebrating his ninth birthday at summer camp. The counselors and fellow campers came together to throw a party for him, complete with cake and gifts thoughtfully sent by his parents. But Sam was not a popular boy. He was mentally disabled and couldn’t move around like the other children, setting him apart from his peers and causing unease among parents. But things were about to change on his ninth birthday. At camp, he was about to discover that there were people who genuinely cared about him.
One boy reached out to Sam and extended a warm hand of friendship. His name was Bobby, an eleven-year-old, and he had a younger brother who was mentally challenged. Sam’s presence reminded Bobby of his beloved brother, and their bond was unique, unlike any other.
Bobby’s kindness didn’t stop at a friendly gesture; every morning, he went to Sam’s cabin to help him prepare for the day. Their friendship extended to sports, especially baseball, which Sam adored. Bobby, with strong determination, took on the incredible challenge of teaching Sam how to bat.
The hours and days they spent practicing seemed to point to an impossible task. The camp counselors had also tried their best to teach Sam, but progress had appeared to be hopeless. But Bobby was not ready to give up on his friend, but Sam began to feel anxious.
One restless night, Sam couldn’t sleep as he thought of Bobby’s kindness and the counselors’ tireless efforts to help him. He felt the burning desire to practice more, despite the late hour. He decided to take action. With determination, he made his way to Bobby’s cabin and woke him up, whispering, “Come on, Bobby! Wake up! I need you to pitch (投掷) the ball.” Bobby, rubbing his eyes, was initially puzzled by Sam’s late-night visit. But as Sam pulled him out of bed, he realized the importance of this moment. Sam assured him, “It will only take a moment, and we’ll be right back.”
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。
With their counselors sound asleep, the two friends sneaked out, making their way to a poorly lit parking lot.
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Sam fell asleep that night with a smile of accomplishment on his face.
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I sat in my parents’ car. Mom had insisted I go with her to pick up Dad from work. Across from Dad’s office is a bike store. That was the day my eleven-year-old eyes first saw the purple BMX Mongoose bike. From that day on, all I could think about was that bike. I even drew pictures of the bike in class. Every evening afterward, at five thirty, I eagerly went along with Mom to get Dad.
And every day I told my parents, “I want that bike!” But they disagreed and replied that I had already had a perfectly good bike at home. I’d argue it was old and ugly, thinking that my happiness depended on that purple bike. Days later, I found the store had sold that bike. I knew I’d never be happy again.
A week later, returning home from school, I tripped over something. Lying in the weeds near a river and some wooded lots, was a bike — the exact bike from the store. “Hey, whose bike is this?” I shouted, scanning the area. No one replied, and there was no one in sight. Maybe its owner didn’t want it any longer. I couldn’t leave it lying in the weeds. So I took it home and hid it behind the garage. Every day after school, I sat there, admiring it. But I didn’t feel like riding and didn’t feel as happy as I had thought. Thinking about the bike made my stomach tighten and uncomfortable.
A few days later, during lunch at school, my friend said, “Did you hear about Tyler, in the other fifth-grade class? He lost his new purple BMX Mongoose bike he had just gotten for his birthday. He left it by a river while playing in the woods. It got dark, and he couldn’t find it.”
“I’d never go off and leave a new bike like that. He doesn’t deserve to have that bike,” I replied. My friend added, “Kids say he’s nice. And they say Tyler is upset because his dad worked overtime to buy the bike for him.” For the rest of the day, I couldn’t stop thinking about Tyler.
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 school, I returned home and dragged to my room.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________“I know Tyler’s house,” Mom said. “I’ll drive you there.”
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________I was never a fast runner and thus I always didn’t like running. Throughout my childhood, whenever we competed in the 50-meter run, the 400-meter, or any other type of race, I would finish in the bottom half. In my late teens, as a member of a baseball team, I was the slowest runner on the team. In the preseason training, I was always the one running by myself at the end.
Therefore, twenty years later, when I entered my first official running race — a 3,000-meter challenge in my city — at age 38, I certainly didn’t expect to win or come close to winning.
I was there because my college friend Jim Hosek was the director of the race, and he asked me to run. The race was aimed at raising money for the unfortunate patients in a hospital and encouraging the patients and their fanilies to be brave, determined, and confident with sportsmanship.
It was a heartwarming program.I wanted to support it, so I showed up, paid the entrance fee, had a number pinned (把……别住) on my back, and moved over to the starting line. There, I waited with about 300 other runners for the race to begin. I was nervous. Would I be the last one to finish a race again? Could I even finish the race? I wondered.
Before long, someone spoke into a microphole, “Anyone weighing over 200 pounds comes down to the scale (秤), please.” Knowing I was over 200 pounds, I walked down to the scale. A man told me to stand on it. “Two hundred and three pounds,” he said. Then he wrote down the race number that was on my back. Out of curiosity, I asked him why he did so,and then I was told there would be an award ceremony (仪式) after the race. One award was for the first finisher in the over 200-pound group, and this special award would be announced at the end of the ceremony.
Not expecting the award, I ran towards the starting line, never realizing there were only two runners weighing over 200 pounds.
Paragraph 1:Soon after, the race started.
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Paragraph 2:
Then came the last award, and to my surprise, my name was announced.
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As the first rays of the morning sun shone through the clouds, “Not again!” Julia sighed as she tried to reach her bedside clock. It rang repeatedly, reminding her she’d be late if she didn’t get up!
Julia threw away her blanket and sat on her bed, stretching herself. It was going to be another busy day. Julia worked as a nurse at the city hospital, often taking multiple shifts and working long hours to ensure her daughter never missed out on anything. Things had been hard for them after Julia’s husband died, and being a single parent wasn’t an easy thing.
“Get up, honey! You’re going to be late for school!” Julia opened the window in Ashley’s room and kissed her cheeks. “Wake up, princess!”
Later, Julia fed Ashley and dropped her off at the bus stop. “Be a good girl and have fun!” she told Ashley as she waved her goodbye. Watching the school bus disappear down the street, Julia returned home, took a quick shower and drove off to work, eating a breakfast bar in the car.
As she arrived at the hospital, Julia realized getting home in time to prepare lunch would be impossible because she had a long list of patients to attend to. Yet again, Julia was busy with work, which meant missing out on the time she spent with Ashley. But Julia didn’t have a choice. She was doing it all for Ashley and herself.
Sitting at her desk, Julia dialed her new neighbour, Marco, who’d always come through for her whenever she needed help, asking him if he could look after Ashley.
“No problem, I love hanging out with Ashley, and she’s a lot of joy to be around.”
“I’m sure she feels the same way about you,” Julia laughed. “Look, I’m sorry again for troubling you and thanks.”
Julia was on her way home after work when she was unexpectedly called back. It was an emergency case, and there was a shortage of nurses. Julia called Marco and informed him she’d be home later than usual, and he said it was fine.
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。
With her work finished, Julia called Marco twice, but no one answered and soon his phone was off.
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As Julia arrived home and stepped out of her car, she saw Ashley standing beside Marco outside and waiting for her.
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I must admit, I haven’t always liked animals. In fact, I distrusted them greatly while growing up, and I still fear the ones I don’t know personally. What set my beliefs in stone was being attacked—not once but many times, including the summer after second grade when I was bitten by a rabbit. Then, when I was nine and riding my dirt bike down the road, a large dog charged me and tried to bite my ankle. After all those negative experiences, there was one thing I knew for sure: All creatures, great and small, were no friends of mine.
After college in California, I returned to live the single life in Las Vega. Then I met Lisa. In no time at all, we fell in love, married and moved into a new house. Despite my avoidance of animals, Lisa had a dog called Bailey. Bailey didn’t like me, but he tolerated my existence once he realized I wasn’t going anywhere.
Things changed as spring came. We welcomed a new member of our family: our son Evan. One evening Evan grabbed hold of the dog’s tail. The irritated dog paused and turned to look at his stuck tail but waited patiently until being released. Still the stories I’d heard of animals attacking babies worries me.
Then my worst fear occurred. I sat on the couch (沙发) reading after a long day while my wife worked at the dining-room table paying the bills. I saw Evan crawl across the family-room carpet as he made his way behind the couch. One minute, all was quiet and then Bailey entered the room and headed to where Evan had crawled. I nearly jumped out of my skin when I heard the dog start a fearful barking behind me.
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。
Throwing the book away, I rushed around the couch with great fear.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Having witnessed our dog killing a scorpion (蝎子) and saving my son, I was speechless.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________1.送礼物的原因；
2.描述该礼物的寓意；
3.祝福 Mr. Green。
注意：1.词数100左右；
2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
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Are Oceans Silent?
Most sea creatures, from whales and dolphins to fish, sharks and shrimps, respond to sound, and many can produce it. They use it to hunt and to hide, find mates and food, send messages and give warnings, establish territories, warn off competitors, confuse their targets, deceive enemies, and sense changes in water and conditions. Marine animals click bones, grind teeth and belch gases (磨牙打嗝); use special organs to make various noises. Far from the ‘silent deep’, the oceans are so noisy.
Into this age-long confused noise, in the blink of an evolutionary eye, has entered a new thunder: the trembling sound of mighty engines as 46,220 large ships passed the world’s shipping courses. Scientists say that background noise in the ocean has increased roughly by 15 decibels (分贝) in the past 50 years. It may not sound like much in overall terms, but it is enough, according to many marine biologists, to mask the normal sounds of ocean life going about its business. At its most intense, some even say noise causes whales to become disoriented, dolphins to suffer from ‘the bends’, fish to go deaf, leave their breeding grounds or fail to form groups—enough to disorganize the basic biology of two thirds of the planet.
“Undersea noise pollution is like the death of a thousand cuts”, says Sylvia Earie, chief scientist of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. “Each sound in itself may not be a matter of critical concern, but taken all together, the noise from shipping, earthquake-related surveys, and military activity is creating a totally different environment than existed even 50 years ago. That high level of noise is bound to have a hard, sweeping impact on life in the sea.
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