In DeAnza Community College, 15 minutes’ drive from the university Trevor Wallace studied in, his beloved grandmother had worked there. When she was alive, she was a respected learning disabilities specialist and instructor. In recognition of her work, her co-workers dedicated a large, cement angel fountain with a plaque (匾) saying Heart’s Garden: In Memory of Marilyn Rosenthal. That was in 1999.
Trevor knew well that the fountain meant a lot to his mom, Sarene. She was only 36 when her mom died. At the sight of anything to do with her mother, she would tell stories or anecdotes related, especially the fountain. Though she cherished it, living six hours away, she didn’t have the opportunity to visit it regularly.
As time went on, the fountain was hidden under trees, falling into disrepair----the statue’s bowl at its base broken; cement benches nearby damaged; the water pump blocked with leaves and the surrounding area littered with dead leaves and trash, etc.
Finally, in 2013, it was once repaired by one of the school gatekeepers, who thought she was popular with colleagues and students when she was alive. After knowing the repair, Sarene and Trevor took the 300-mile trip to visit it. On a quiet afternoon, they posed for a photo together. Sarene recalled, “We sat watching the fountain for a while. The water welled over then it went into the bowls. It was so peaceful.”
Flash forward to 2015. When deciding what to give his mom for Mother’s Day, the fountain came to mind. Trevor called Sarene that Sunday to wish her a happy Mother’s Day and told her to expect a surprise. Then he drove to DeAnza with his camera, tripod, and two sponges.
When he arrived, the fountain was covered with leaves and piled with dirt, in worse shape than he had expected. Motivated by memories of his late grandmother, whom he called “Bubby”, he set up his camera on the tripod, checked the lighting and took a before shot. Then his hand-scrubbing (手工擦洗) work began.
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。
There was one problem—the fountain’s water was turned off.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________When she opened the photos attached in the three emails, she burst into tears.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________I wanted to go to a party. Especially it was a beach party. It had been almost the only thing my friends had been talking about for the last couple of weeks. But My mom had said no. The more desperately I pleaded her case, the more forcefully my mother said no. “I don’t care who’s going,” said coldly my mother, “you are not going.” I was heartbroken. This was my best friend’s party.
Sunday dinner came around and my grandmother joined the family for the meal. Gran noticed my depression but didn’t say a word. It was my turn to wash up and Gran said, “Let me help you.” “What’s up?” asked Gran as I dumped the dishes into the foaming water. Gran wiped a plate with a tea towel. “Mom won’t let me go to my best friend’s party.” I said sadly. “Has mom explained why she doesn’t want you to go?” asked Gran. “No.” I replied. “Then for a moment, put yourself in her position.” said Gran. “If you were mom, what would your objections be?”
I hadn’t stopped to think about my mom’s side. “Well,” I answered, “it’s a beach party. Maybe she doesn’t trust us or thinks we’ll get into trouble.”
“Are there going to be any adults there?” asked Gran. “No,” I said, “who wants their parents hanging around when you’re trying to have fun?” “Might it just be,” said Gran, “your mother doesn’t want anything unfortunate to happen to you.”“Nothing will happen.” I objected. “Maybe you’re right,” said Gran, “but maybe mom’s worried in case it could.”
Gran looked at me gently, seeming to expect my agreement. For a minute or so, I kept silent, pondering for a while about my eagerness for the party. “Maybe, you are right, however, is there no hope?” I inquired. “Not necessarily.” answered Gran, lost in thought.
Paragraph 1: “Then maybe think of a compromise.” suggested Gran.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Paragraph 2: The long-awaited beach party finally came.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________My family and I were taking a well-deserved vacation to Disneyland. I had never been there before and was eagerly anticipating experiencing the magic.
There was another reason that this trip was special. My father was a workaholic who worked long hours. I longed to spend time with him. I wanted to be able to sit down with my father, who I loved more than life, and just talk. It always seemed like there was never time.
The day finally arrived when I was allowed to pack my clothes. I chose only my favourite outfits. I threw in my autograph book and then muscled the suitcase zipper around the overflow of clothes. I set my suitcase on my comforter and smiled. I was ready.
I didn’t get any sleep that night. I lay in my bed and stared out the window. I knew that my father’s work was going to be left at home, finally.
After a brief breakfast we hit the open road. It was all smooth sailing for the first couple of hours until I unexpectedly felt a sharp stop. We coasted to the side of the road, and my dad said something was wrong with the engine. We were in the middle of four lanes of traffic, so he decided the easiest thing to do would be to signal someone to stop and get a ride into town.
An hour later, my dad was still waving his hands at each and every passing car but it wasn’t doing any good. Not a single person would stop to assist my helpless family. Finally, Father gave up and decided to walk into town. I was certain it was a very long distance. I pleaded with him to stay and try again, but he was deaf to my pleading. He just said that he wouldn’t let anything ruin this trip for me. My heart ached as he put on his coat and began to walk away from our car. My dad has a back problem, and he was too stubborn to admit that he wasn’t in any condition to even walk a couple of miles.
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。
Then I saw a man out of the window, who was a truck driver.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________After reaching the town, we expressed our thanks again.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________September was the peak season for tourism. Edward had a restaurant in a tourist attraction. He was hoping to welcome more and more tourists every day. Joyfully, he ran into his truck and drove at ease to his restaurant. Before turning into the main road, he had to drive through an fifteen-kilometer tunnel (隧道) which was the only access to his restaurant.
Three years earlier, a truck was burning in the tunnel, causing severe damage to the inner part. Then, the traffic flow came to a stop and it was a huge blow (打击) to Edward’s business. With the road to his restaurant blocked, the tourists stopped unwillingly. Difficult as it was, he managed to keep his staff on.
“How wonderful this year will be!” Edward said from the bottom of his heart. Eventually, the tunnel returned to normal and the traffic flow went smooth. But when he was near the end, Edward saw an unusual light 30 meters ahead, and then he saw something catching fire.
Edward stopped his truck and found a tour bus burning. At the same time, many tourists were running off the bus and towards him.
“No, they are running the wrong way,” Edward thought, knowing the tunnel exit was 400 meters ahead. Then he realized there was no possibility for them to get around the tour bus burning so violently.
Having been a volunteer firefighter previously, Edward had to raise the alarm (警报) first. “A bus on fire! Stop driving!” he texted the fire station. While driven by the strong wind, heavy smoke was blowing in his direction, Instantly, it would black out (遮挡) the tunnel, choking anyone inside it to death. Chances were that the poor tourists wouldn’t survive. Every second counted.
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。
Having been a volunteer firefighter previously, Edward knew what needed to be done.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________After Edward had driven his truck for 3 minutes, they finally arrived at the tunnel exit!
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________My middle child, Jake, was smart and good-looking, but he always sees the cup of life as half empty. Every day when he came home from school, Jake would list everything bad that happened that day!
On his ninth birthday, we saved enough money to take the family to Disneyland for two days. His dad and I didn’t make much then, so it cost a considerable amount, but we felt Jake’s birthday was worth it. After doing Disneyland to death (玩够了), we returned to our hotel room, all exhausted. And I asked the birthday boy, “Did you have fun today, Jake?”
All my fault-finding son could say to me was “Pirates (海盗) of the Caribbean was closed!” “Jake Marshall,” I was clearly unable to contain my anger, “we stood in line for an hour and a half to see The Haunted Mansion. We rode Space Mountain three times. We spent two days playing in the park, and all you can say is, Pirates of the Caribbean was closed?” Clearly, something had to be done about his negative attitude and I was going to be the one to do it!
I was determined to help him. I read every article and bought every book. With the help of great resources, I found my son had the tendency to see the worst in every situation. My research told me that people with negativity have an emotional need for order and sensitivity. That meant I needed to listen to my son’s daily pessimistic reports. My usual reaction was to try to talk Jake out of his negativity, but that wouldn’t satisfy his need for sensitivity, so I had to let him finish his complaints and ask what good things happened. Then I needed to wait until he could tell me. This would help Jake realize that good things really were happening to 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，每段的开头语已为你写好；
One day Jake came home from school and complained as usual.
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From then on, Jake came to understand the power of seeing good points.
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“Will you do me a favor, Achenyo?” Mama called as she looked up from her weaving. Beside her was a pile of wild-grass stalks (秆). Mama took a stalk, laid it along the length of the half-finished bag, and began to weave (编织). In the corner were pots of dyes (染料) she’d use to paint the finished bags. “Will you get me some water for the dyes?” “Of course, Mama!” Achenyo picked up a pot as she ran outside. She didn’t like weaving, although it was a tradition for a mother to pass on the trade to her daughter. Outside, Achenyo called to her neighbor Ajuma. Both girls, with pots balanced on their heads, made their way to the river.
Achenyo and Ajuma soon arrived at the water’s edge, and they found a huge surprise. The river was gone! In its place was a blanket of dark green leaves and lavender-colored (淡紫色的) flowers. “Oh no!” Achenyo cried. “Mama won’t have water to mix the dyes for her bags.” When the adults arrived at the riverbank, they shook their heads, saying “They’ve struck again!”
Last year, the rainy season had brought an invasion (入侵) of water hyacinths. The plants had covered the river and left no room to dip a pot to get water. And now they were back. The adults walked into the water. They began pulling up water hyacinths and throwing them onto the riverbank. When they’d cleared enough plants, the girls filled their pots with water. A pile of water hyacinths lay on the riverbank. What a shame to waste such pretty flowers, Achenyo thought. She picked some for Mama, and then the girls headed home. Each day, they found the river covered by water hyacinths as if no one had cleared the waterfront (水边地) the day before. To fill their pots, they again had to pull up and throw water hyacinths onto the riverbank. The pile on the sand grew taller.
One day, as Achenyo moved an armful of dried water hyacinths out of her way, she had an idea. Carrying the plants under her arm, she ran home.
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。
3. 参考词汇：weave vt. & vi. (wove, woven) 编织
“Mama, will you teach me to weave?” asked Achenyo eagerly.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________One afternoon, Achenyo held up her finished work made from water hyacinths.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________When I started karate (空手道) class a few years ago, I didn’t know a single person. I felt ashamed of having no idea how to do any of the moves. Even though I liked the learning part, I did not like the feeling-worse-than-everyone part!
But one day after class while I was putting my shoes on, a girl named Abigail said, “That last kick we practiced is so hard for me, and you’re so good at it.”
“You must have confused me with someone else,” I replied. “I’m not good at any of it.”
“In that case, I’m in trouble,” she joked, “because you’re the one I stand behind and copy in class.”
I laughed, “Seriously?”
“Seriously!” she laughed, too. After that, we became great friends. However, a few months later when Abigail’s mom got a job in a different state and she had to move away, I was rather sad. I had a tough time dragging myself to karate for a while after that I missed Abigail so much.
Then, a girl named Ava joined my class. She was always quiet. Until one day we finally had a conversation.
“It must be weird (怪异的) being the new one in class.” I said.
“So weird!” said Ava. “You do things really differently than we did at my old dojo (柔道馆).”
I suddenly realized she’d been silent only because she was new. We started talking more, and we got along so well that we started hanging out after class. Then, almost a year later, guess who showed up at karate.
“This is so cool.” I said, giving Abigail a huge hug. “What are you doing here?”
“My mom’s job in New York didn’t work out,” she explained. “So we got to move back.”
“That’s the best news ever!” I said. “You have to meet my dear friend Ava. And Ava, meet my dear friend Abigail.”
I put my arms around their shoulders. Feeling very excited, I told them I hoped we could get along well and be close friends, while Abigail and Ava stared at each other with some hesitation and an uncertain smile.
注意：
1. 续写词数应为150词左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Things seemed all right at first.
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One day, I simply could not take it anymore.
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A small boy was packing his school bag in his room, a room filled with books. Many were novels and some were short stories; many were new and some were yellowed with age; many were detective stories and some were fairy tales. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. The small boy called Frank turned his wheelchair (轮椅) to his right and slowly opened the door. As usual it was his mom, who wanted Frank to get ready for school. Frank had his breakfast, said goodbye to his mom and started his travel to the school in his wheelchair. Frank had lost his leg when he was eight in an accident. He had to spend the rest of the life in the wheelchair. But the accident did not take away his trust in life, and he wanted to be a writer. His mother also supported his dream. Frank had not wanted to go to the school for the handicapped (残疾人). So he had joined an ordinary school.
On the way to school, he met his loving and kind-hearted friend, Lawrence. Lawrence wheeled his friend quickly and talked with him happily. He told Lawrence that there would be a story competition next week. Lawrence encouraged him to take part in it. Lawrence said, “Trust yourself. You can make it!” They reached the school in thirty minutes. Lawrence said bye to Frank and they both went to their classes.
Slowly days passed, and the Formative Exams started. They ended within a week. “Frank, the score is 100,”said the class teacher cheerfully. Frank was very happy because he had scored full marks. He wheeled his chair and again met Lawrence on the way. This time both stopped on the side and Lawrence said, “Try to take part in the story competition.” “OK, thank you, Lawrence,” said Frank excitedly. He rushed home, and wrote something on a piece of paper. His mom was very happy to see her son cheerful and excited. Actually he was going to write a short story to take part in the competition. But he didn’t know how to finish it.
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。
Just then, his mother entered and told him that Lawrence was coming.
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As all the judges (评判员) read Frank’s story, they were amazed by his brilliance (才华).
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I was walking on the shore when I suddenly heard someone crying. It just drew my attention and I began to look around. Suddenly I saw a little child sitting on a rock who was crying. It was around twelve at night. “Why is he here? Why is he crying?” I wondered. And above all I couldn’ t see anyone around him, for he was too small to be alone. I approached him, initially he was frightened but I calmed him down and gave him a chocolate to eat. From the way he ate the chocolate I could make this out that he was very hungry.
I felt pity on him, who was a little boy around seven years old. His clothes were all torn. Now he was quite comfortable with me and I asked why he was crying. He told me to look at those waves in the sea and asked how I felt about them. I said they were beautiful. But he made an angry face and said he hated them, because these waves took his parents away. He was just five and since then he started wandering in this unknown city. No one loved him. These words “No one loved him” just took me into a flashback.
I suddenly recollected the dark memories of my life. I recalled that I was an orphan (孤儿) and how a couple adopted me when I was four years old. They did a lot for me, because of them today I am the engineer of the biggest shipping company. They were in a sense my true parents but I was so unfortunate that I lost them in an accident nearly three years ago. I remembered how I always wanted to thank them for what all they did for me but I couldn’t. I felt like this lttle boy was at the same situation like mine when I was a four-year old little kid.
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。
Now it was my turn I told the little boy about my little old sad story and what I am today.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Now there was a different kind of peace that we both could feel on this shore.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________A Charitable Heart
Mom had a unique perspective on being charitable that I didn’t really understand until one cold winter day when she picked me up at school.
“Who is that child? “Mom peered through the windshield as a skinny, greasy-haired girl led a crew of ragged children across the street. “They don’t even have coats. It’s freezing! “
“That’s Becky Ingler. She always looks like that, “I replied. My mother watched them move along the sidewalk. “Where are we going? “I asked as she inched along the street, keeping pace about a half-block behind the Inglers.
They entered a half-ruined store. “They live here?” Mom mumbled, looking at me. “Tell me about them.” I told her what I knew; that the Inglers didn’t have a father, and sometimes they smelled funny and everybody laughed at them. My mother nodded thoughtfully. “I think I’ll visit them tomorrow.” She turned to me and added, “I want you to come with me.” “OK.” I replied.
The next day, I followed Mom to the Inglers’ front door. A tiny, exhausted-looking woman appeared, and Mom smiled and offered her hand. “Hello, Mrs. Ingler. I’m Mrs. Tovey. I’m just visiting some of our neighbors to get acquainted. “Once inside, my mother studied each of the children surrounding unhappy Becky, who was reading a worn-out book to them. She rudely ignored my nod. Mrs. Ingler smiled politely and thanked us for our visit. Before we left, Mom told Mrs. Ingler she sincerely hoped we would see her again soon. I could not understand what she meant by that, but I soon learned.
Mom worked her old sewing machine for two days and nights. She collected coats from the donation boxes, local secondhand stores and our own closets, patching, taking in and letting out seams (缝合线). “Wow!” I said. “They’re lucky to get these.”
“No,” said Mom as she faced me. “We’re the lucky ones to be able to help them. But we need to make sure the Inglers don’t have to pay a price for them. “She then explained, “I don’t want these coats to cost them their pride or their dignity.”
注意：
1. 续写词数应为150左右;
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡上的相应位置作答。
Paragraph 1:
Later that day, we went to the Inglers’ again.
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Paragraph 2:
Mrs. Ingler gazed at the coat, and then glanced at Becky, who was eyeing it with interest.
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