Jackson Merle was exhausted. He was in need of money because his wife was in hospital. He had been knocking on door after door, looking for work, but no one would even listen to what he had to say. No one wanted to talk to an old man. He stood in front of the biggest house on the block. This was his last chance for the day. Every homeowner on the street had run Jackson off, without even listening to his proposal, and maybe this one would be different? Jackson rang the doorbell. Within minutes a pretty young woman opened the door.
“Good morning,” she said cheerfully, “What can I do for you?” Jackson was heartened by her sunny smile and friendly attitude. “Good morning, miss,” he said, “I’m a handyman, and I’m here to offer you and your family my services.” “What kind of work do you do?” she asked.
“I do anything you might need, miss,” Jackson said, “I do some woodwork, painting, cabinet making; I fix small appliances, some gardening, anything you need and my rates are very reasonable.” “Come on in,” the woman smiled, “I have a table with a wobbly (摇摆的) leg that needs fixing, and maybe you can paint my guest room?” Jackson couldn’t believe his ears. He walked into the woman’s beautiful house, toolbox in hand.
First, he fixed the table, while the woman—who introduced herself as Ruth—sat watching him work and chatting to him. Then he looked at the guest room. Ruth gave him money to buy paint so he could fix it up the next day. She also paid him twice what he’d asked for the table. “But, miss,” Jackson protested, “You’ve given me too much money!” “No, I haven’t, Jackson.” Ruth told him firmly, “My daddy always told me to pay a fair price for a job well done, and that’s what I’m doing!”
Over the next few weeks, Ruth’s neighbor Jolene was surprised to see the elderly man coming in and out of Ruth’s house with his toolbox in hand. Everything in Ruth’s home looking perfect, Jolene didn’t see why she needed a handyman five days a week.
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。
Ruth smiled and explained she was actually helping Jackson.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Jolene was moved by Ruth’s kindness and thoughtfulness and spread her deeds.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Eric raised his daughter Riley alone. One day, Eric noticed a young teenage boy standing in front of a drugstore. He approached him, and found out that the boy, Jack, wanted to buy medicine for his sick mother, but had no money. Jack cried out, “If I don’t bring home medicine, my mom will die. But I won’t be able to handle it.”
Upon hearing this, Eric didn’t hesitate to pay for the medicine. “I’ll pay for the medicine on his behalf,” he said, handing the pharmacist (药剂师) a couple of bills from his pocket. The boy looked at Eric with grateful eyes, and cried, “Thank you so much. You are heaven-sent.”
“There will always be people willing to help you, son,” Eric told him before handing him two portions of food. “Here, take this to your mom and have a hot meal with her,” he said before letting the boy go.
His daughter Riley saw the whole scene and said, “Dad, we have barely enough money. Why did you pay for the medicine?” Riley, the good you put out into the world will eventually find its way back to you. Just keep doing good,” Eric told his daughter.
When Riley turned thirty, she needed an operation urgently after being told there was something wrong with her heart. With difficulty breathing, Eric rushed Riley to the hospital in an ambulance. “You’ll be alright, Riley.” he cried. “Don’t worry, Daddy is here. We’ll get through this together,” he promised her.
Eric did try his best to find the money for his daughter’s operation. He asked all of his friends, but it was still not enough. Therefore, Eric decided to sell their house. It was enough to pay for her operation, but they would be left with nothing, “It’s okay,” he told himself. I will be able to earn money again, but if I lose my daughter, nothing will ever bring her back.”
By the time Eric made it back to the hospital, Riley was in her hospital room, weak and pale. He sat beside her bed and held her hand. “You’ll be okay, my sweet daughter. We’ll soon have the money for the operation,” he promised her.
注意：续写词数应为150左右。
Eric suddenly noticed an envelope on the bed.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________In the nurse’s station, he was told doctor Jack had entered the hospital room just now.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________It was a warm Sunday. Stella just settled down with a book in the front yard, when her friend Bog came over with his 6-year-old sister.
“Stella, please! I need you to look after Hazel! I have a lecture to attend this morning.” Bog begged.
Stella was not happy to babysit a little girl. However, Bog didn’t give her any other choice. He dropped Hazel off and quickly ran away before she could say anything. Unwillingly, Stella turned to Hazel.
“Just stay there and don’t cause any trouble.” Stella said coldly.
To her surprise, the little girl smiled and started to draw beside her. For the next hour, Havel was absorbed in drawing without making a single noise. Gradually, Stella’s annoyance disappeared and got used to the company of the little girl. After a while, Hazel approached Stella and showed her a picture, in which two girls held hands and kept smiling at each other.
“Look, it’s you and me,” Hazel said in a sweet voice.
Stella’s heart softened as she looked at the drawing. She felt ashamed of treating Haze l so badly. Setting her book aside, Stella smiled and said, “I really love it. Thank you!”
Then Stella joined Hazel to color it together. Just as they were lost in the world of colors, a sudden phone ringing broke the silence. It was a phone call from one of Stella’s friends to remind her about the plan to go skating on the square. Stella’s heart sank because she had forgotten all about it. She was torn between the desire to go skating and her duty to look after Hazel. As Stella was wondering what she should do, Haze l looked up at her with hopeful eyes.
“Can I come with you?” she asked eagerly.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150个左右：2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
“Of course,” Stella said with a forced smile.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Stella and her friends helped Hazel put on the rented skating shoes.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________I never thought I had any natural talent when it came to music. Throughout my childhood, the fascinating world of music seemed like an impossible dream for me. I just showed no interest in singing songs or playing an instrument. However, my parents had a different plan for me. They insisted that I learn to play the piano when I was just six years old. Wanting to be a good daughter, I agreed to their wishes, even though deep down, I had no real interest in it. Never did I know that this decision would lead to an unexpected journey of self-discovery.
My piano teacher, Mrs. Johnson, was a kind and observant woman. She had a way of reading her students’ minds and understanding their true feelings. It didn’t take long for her to realize that my heart wasn’t fully absorbed in playing the piano. However, she continued to teach me patiently, hoping to stir a spark (火花) within me.
After about six months of lessons, Mrs. Johnson approached me with an unexpected request. She asked me to perform at the year-end concert she had organized for her students. I was surprised and terrified at the same time. The thought of playing in front of an audience was challenging, considering my lack of passion for the instrument. Nevertheless, I couldn’t refuse my teacher’s request, so I could only agree.
Given my limited experience, I decided to choose a fairly simple composition for the concert. In order to perform well, I practiced the same composition for an hour a day for the next two months, perfecting the notes (音符) and the rhythm. I wanted to ensure that, in spite of my doubts, I would at least be able to give a decent (体面的) performance.
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 day of the concert arrived, and I woke up with a mixture of excitement and nervousness.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________To my surprise, the music flowed smoothly from my fingertips.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________When I was a child, I was particular about food. It was Aunt Nelda that changed my habit of being a picky eater.
As far as I could remember, on a Friday night, when Dad and I arrived at Aunt Nelda’s house at dinner time, she prepared a big meal for us. Though the dishes smelled delicious, I didn’t feel like eating some of them. I took several bites of the sandwich and then laid it aside. Dad wanted to kick me under the table to remind me to finish all the food, but drawers (抽屉) between us protected me.
Looking at those drawers, I had a good idea. When Dad got up to refill his soup bowl, I pulled the bottom drawer open. It was full of cloth napkins (布餐巾). I put my sandwich under them and shut the drawer quickly. A plan for my rest food at Aunt Nelda’s emerged.
The next morning, I did the same to the food which I hated to eat. When Aunt Nelda saw my empty bowl, she gave me some sweets and said, “Good job, Jodi. You like my cooking just as much as your father.”
On Sunday, the food under the napkins continued growing, but somehow more slowly. Aunt Nelda was actually a pretty good cook. At noon, her children were coming for lunch. I offered to help set the table.
“Jodi, get the cloth napkins out of the bottom drawer,” she said. My heart began to beat fast. It was not because of the bottom drawer or the cloth napkins, but because of the left food.
“No, let’s use these!” I said, grabbing a handful of paper napkins. Aunt Nelda reached for the drawer. “My children prefer cloth napkins!” she said. I held my breath, waiting for the horrible scene. However, I couldn’t believe that she handed me some neat napkins.
“I’ve already cleaned them up,” she said. “It was so strange that there was much food under the napkins. I hadn’t seen mice for years! Guess what? They were back again. A long time ago, they made a nest and carried the food all over the house.”
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。
Aunt Nelda’s words made me feel relieved but ashamed.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Hearing what I said, Aunt Nelda opened her mouth wide.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________One afternoon after school, Mary and his brother, Keith, were eating at a cafe near their home. That afternoon, they had to share their table with another person. That person was a young lady in her twenties. After eating, she went to the restroom. Without realizing, she had left her handphone on the table. Five minutes later, she came out and walked out of the cafe without looking back.
Mary saw the handphone on the table. She quickly told Keith, “Keith, the girl left behind her handphone.” Keith looked at the handphone. It was one of the latest models on the market. Looking very sleek, it was red in color with a black cover. The handphone must be expensive.
Keith had always wanted a handphone, But his parents refused. He stared at it for some minutes. Then he said slowly, pausing on every word, “I want to take the handphone,” Mary could not believe her eyes. She merely stared at her brother, “you can’t! What if the owner comes to look for it?”
Having made the decision, Keith quickly grabbed the handphone and put it in his schoolbag. Then, he took Mary’s hand and led her out of the cafe quickly. Outside the café, he ran to his bicycle. Mary had to run after him.
Once back home, Keith locked his house door with trembling hands. Looking at the handphone, he liked it so much. Now he had his own handphone. But Mary told him, “Keith, you cannot keep the handphone. What will you tell father about this handphone?”
Keith said quickly, “I will say a friend lent it to me.”
Mary said, “Now you are lying, too.” Oh dear! When had Keith turned so dishonest?
Then Mary saw a house phone number on the plastic cover of the handphone, “This phone number is the girl’s phone number. Why don’t we just call this number? We will talk to her and ask her to come and take back her handphone.” She was trying her best to talk some sense into him.
注意： 1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右2. 续写部分分为两段，开头已给出。
Paragraph 1: That night, Keith couldn’t go to sleep, reflecting in bed.
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Paragraph 2: Mary was very happy to hear that.
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An odd thing happened to Arthur when he was on the way to work one day. As he walked along 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. Authur stopped and asked “It looks like you’ve got a problem,” Arthur said.
“I’m afraid so. I’m in a big hurry and I can’t start my car.”
“Is there something I can do to help?” Arthu 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 putting 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 (警报).
It was from the bank. There had been a robbery (抢劫)!
Now the air around the bank was filled with the sound of an 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 saw a young woman walking towards 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 robber!” He became frightened, and without another thought, he started to run.
As he was running with the suitcase, Arthur heard the young man shouting behind, “Stop, stop! My money”,
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Arthur seized (抓住) this opportunity to catch the young man and took him to the nearby police station by car.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________The Making of a Believer
It was Christmas Eve morning, and I awoke with a mission: to find my lost cat, Baby-Girl, who is chubby and cute, fond of sitting in her one-and-only spot near the nearth (壁炉). AS I got ready, I could hear icy rain pouring down. I said a quick prayer for Baby-Girl. She was out there somewhere in the storm, I could just feel it. Sure, it had been six months since she’d gone missing, but I still had faith. It was the season for miracles, after all.
That summer, my sweet cat had disappeared from my parents’ house in Indiana. Baby-Girl had been staying with them. At the time, I lived and worked in Washington, D.C. Baby-Girl had gotten out of my parents’ house three days before I was set to fly back home to pick her up.
My dad and I spent that entire visit searching for her. Dad was the family’s resident “realistic”, which mean the spent a whole lot of time trying to prepare me for the worst. She’s either been hit by a car or been taken in by someone who found her” he said. I rolled my eyes. Dad always supported me, but he was so skepticat. He could do with a little more faith!
Besides, though I couldn’t explain it, I knew I’d see her Baby-Girl again. If any cat could do the impossible, it was my Baby-Girl. Even after T returned to D.C. without her and the weeks stretched into months, deep down I had this feeling that we’d be reunited.
How, home again for the holidays, I was de tem mined to pick up my search. I grabbed Baby-Girl’s cat carrier and loaded it into the car, then persuaded Dad to drive me to the shelter, hoping she’d been found.
“Sharon, you have to be realistic,” my dad said as we headed to the garage. “She’s been gone too long. You’re not going to find her.”
“Well, I just have a feeling,” I said
Dad raised an eyebrow a she climbed into the driver’s seat to take me to the shelter.
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。
We were led to the room where the abandoned cats lived.
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Shortly after, my shocked Dad drove us back home.
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On market days when the farmers brought their goods to the little town to sell, I used to walk by them to chat. One of the farmers was telling me about a little stray (流浪) dog hiding among the market stalls (货摊). The thing that made us notice the dog was that he was sitting up, paws (爪) dangling (悬垂), staring at the passers-by hopelessly, begging for something that can remove his hunger.
“Look at that little fellow(家伙),” the farmer said, “I wonder where he’s from and how he can end up like this.” As he spoke, the stallholder (货摊主) threw the dog some bread, but when the man approached, the little poor thing ran away. I was standing there, trying to see where he had gone, when a young policeman came up to me. “I’ve been watching that dog begging all morning,” he said, “but I haven’t been able to get close to him.” “Yes, it’s strange. You can see he’s cute and friendly, but he’s also afraid. I wonder who owns him.” “I don’t think he has an owner, Mr. Harriot. I know just about all the dogs around here. But this one is a stranger to me.” I nodded. “I’m sure you’re right. He could have been treated badly by somebody and run away, or he could have been abandoned.” “Yes,” the policeman replied, “I don’t know how anybody can leave a helpless animal to watch over itself like that. I’ve had a few attempts (尝试) to catch him but it’s no good.”
Days later I met the policeman again and he told me that the dog had been caught, because it was against the law for a dog to go begging in the market. I couldn’t believe such a ridiculous (荒唐的) thing and asked him to take me to see the dog.
Paragraph 1:We walked a short way to a dog cottage(笼舍).
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Paragraph 2:
Days later, I revisited the cottage and felt a wave of relief (放心).
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Jack was a reserved (内向的) child who was often isolated at school. He used to suffer a lot. Seldom did he discuss anything in and after class, nor did he consult with his teacher. It seemed that he was more fond of immersing himself in his own world, However, his classmates didn’t understand his quietness and interests and often deliberately didn’t invite him to take part in activities. But in reality, Jack felt very lonely and longed to interact with others but didn’t know how to break down the barriers. He was eager to turn to someone for help.
Sadly, Jack’s parents were too occupied with daily chores to notice the change in him as he became quieter and more distant. Even when Jack picked up his courage to share his feelings, he was simply comforted by words like, “Go and get it. We know you can do it.”
However, Jack was at a total loss to pull himself out. At home, he had no alternative but to play his favorite jigsaw (拼图) puzzle in silence and avoided interacting with anyone. He began to wonder if he was doing something wrong and if he really wasn’t cut out to make friends and could never express himself properly. He felt sad and started not to associate with others.
Luckily, Jack’s class teacher noticed his predicament (窘境) and decided to step in to help. The teacher organized a class project after a math test, which seemed quite demanding for most students but not for Jack. The teacher required the students to work together in groups to solve the problems of their own and then he would invite someone to present his or her critical ideas on behalf of the group. The teacher then purposely placed Jack in a disadvantaged group and encouraged him to show his strengths. To the teacher’s credit, Jack didn’t let him down.
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。
During the project, Jack impressed all the group members.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Jack learned a lot from the project and decided to make a change.
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