I had ordered many gifts online for the upcoming Christmas. One day,when the doorbell rang, I was sure some of the packages arrived. I opened the door,but only to find a beautiful little dog sitting on the floor. It looked up at me with her big,cute eyes. I looked around, but there was no one in sight. It was obvious that someone had found the puppy somewhere and intentionally left her outside the door.
The lovely dog was a timely Christmas gift for me,indeed. The year marked a turning point in my life. In September,my husband was offered a new job in Africa. Feeling that I had hit a career bottleneck as a photographer journalist,I decided to relocate with him. While my husband was busy with his work,I didn’t know what to do anyway. I felt isolated,homesick and lacking purpose. We lived in a house near a river that cut across an expansive grassland. With few people around,I would take my camera and wander around,photographing aimlessly every day.
So we adopted the abandoned dog. My husband called her“our little angel”and I named it accordingly. Angel seemed to be very happy with us and she turned out to be a perfect companion for me. Always by my side,she enjoyed exploring the shady bushes and mysterious tunnels all over the grassland. Encouraged by her curiosity,I decided to explore,too.
There was a deep cave near our house and I had been eager to explore it. The only way in was narrow and slippery. I had promised my husband that I wouldn’t do it unless he was around. But he was always busy. With Angel as my companion,I figured that it was time to stretch the rule a little bit.
One day, I equipped myself with a good flashlight and carefully walked down the dark cave. Suddenly, Angel,who had been following me closely,rushed ahead and disappeared into the darkness.
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1. 续写词数应为150个左右;
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A few seconds later, it brought back a little bird.
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During the recovering process, I took many photographs of the little bird.
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It began as a typical January day. The grey skies were heavy with snow and wind in front of Valleyview School. I was in my first year of teaching and had no idea that this approaching snowstorm would be so severe.
By mid-day the principal called the school buses back so the three hundred kids could get home safely before it was too late. My students gathered their belongings, excited to go home early. The buses arrived but the storm suddenly worsened before the waiting kids could board and it was quickly clear no one was going anywhere soon. By now the bus drivers and a couple of snowplow (铲雪车) operators were discussing the situation. There were over three hundred children, staff, bus and snowplow drivers stuck inside the school.
Night approached and the storm showed no signs of stopping. We were facing some basic questions. What would we feed several hundred children for dinner? Where would they sleep?
Earl, our school gatekeeper, began working non-stop to keep the heater running. Concerned about the old pipes freezing, he wrapped them with whatever material he could find. With our electricity lines swaying under the increasing weight of ice and snow in heavy winds, what would we do if we lost power? A plan was definitely needed.
Every parent was called to reassure them that their children were safe, and then people who lived close enough to brave the storm were called and asked if they could help. Soon, a handful of people had managed to travel through the heavy and blinding snow bringing bags of sandwiches, tinned juices, blankets and a couple of board games. One woman, who lived right on the edge of the school, wrapped herself up and felt through the blinding snow with a huge kettle and enough ingredients to make tomato soup for at least half of the school. There wasn’t a lot of food, but everything was shared, no one went hungry , and no one complained.
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Before night fell, we worked out entertaining and sleeping arrangements for the kids.
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The next morning the snow stopped and people began to clear the snow.
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I was eight years old and wasn’t aware of all the arrangements being made for our journey as a family to London in 1950. My mother was in great pain and wished to visit specialists in London. My father reluctantly had to sell our property in Queensland. The day before we boarded the ship, Father unwillingly said goodbye to his five-year-old cattle dog, Spider, who was loved by us all. Father’s friend Sandy was to be his guardian while we were overseas, as he had been getting to know Spider for many weeks.
Six weeks later, an airletter arrived from Sandy, giving my father the news that Spider had run away just two weeks after we had sailed. Sandy had advertised constantly on ABC and other regional newspapers. Despite many “sightings”, the dog was never found. It seems Spider just kept running and searching for us. As he was cattle dog, my father thought he would shoe or dingo-trapped, because of his appearance. But our family thought that Father held a secrets hope that Spider was still alive.
We sailed back to Australia two years later and re-established our home. My father immediately began his own search for Spider. One cold winter’s Saturday morning eight months after our return, my father had a call from an elderly lady living on her own on the outskirts of the town. As she told my father on the telephone, it was “just glimpses of a dingo-type dog in the shadows” of her disused tennis court. That was enough for my father to interrupt my homework.
We set off in his blue and black Jensen car which he had brought back from England. It was hardly the right vehicle for the rough roads we travelled that day. Five and a half hours later, we found the run-down old property. Sadly, she told my father that the “dingo dog” hadn’t been around for a few days. My father had a strange look in his eye. He put two fingers to his lips and did his special whistle for Spider.
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2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Suddenly there was a sound in the bush.
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Once home we had the task of getting all the prickles (刺) off him.
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Are we greening our cities, or just greenwashing them?
Architecture and urban design is chasing a green fever dream. Everywhere you look, there are plans for “sustainable” buildings, futuristic eco-cities and aquaponic farms on the roof, each promising to add a green touch to the modern city.
All of these are surely good ideas at some level. They are trying to repair some of the damage our lifestyle has done to the planet. But, despite the rhetoric of reuniting the city with nature, today’s green urban dream is too often about bringing a technologically controlled version of nature into the city and declaring the problem solved, rather than looking at the deeper causes of our environmental and urban problems.
One of the most striking examples is Apple’s “spaceship” campus now under construction in Silicon Valley. Though it seems to be sustainable and energy efficient—80 percent of its 175-acre site is preserved for landscaping, it is by any measure a huge, expensive and massively resource-intensive project. As a suburban white-collar workplace, it must include vast garages for 13,000 Apple employees. Thus, it will leave no smaller environmental footprint than a traditional office park.
Designing a perfect green building or eco-city isn’t enough to save the world. Although our buildings, like our cars, have been inefficient environmentally, architecture isn’t directly responsible for humanity’s disastrous environmental impacts. An economic system based on the destruction of nature is the real problem. No green building can help us repair the ecological damage we have caused, nor can any number of aquaponic farms bring us back to the real nature.
Instead of adding “nature” to the urban lifestyle, architects may work to design better relationships between our cities and nature, and to promote just relationships between the people in them.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Last summer, I had a life-changing experience when I decided to join a group of volunteers in rescuing homeless dogs. It all started when I read a post on social media about a group of abandoned dogs in desperate need of help. Without hesitation, 1 reached out to the organization leading the rescue mission.
Early one Saturday morning, our team gathered at a local animal shelter, armed with determination and a strong sense of purpose. We loaded the necessary supplies into our van, including food, water, blankets and leashes. As we set off, a mix of excitement and nervousness filled the air.
Our destination was a run-down area on the outskirts of town. The deserted streets were home to numerous homeless dogs, which had become victims of neglect. These innocent creatures, once someone’s beloved pets, were now struggling to survive on their own. Upon arriving, our-hearts sank at the sight of many poor dogs searching for food among the piles of garbage. It was a heartbreaking scene. We immediately sprang into action, spreading out to cover every corner of the neighborhood.
Approaching the dogs cautiously, we soon discovered that gaining their trust was not an easy task. Many had learned to fear humans after lasting unthinkable hardships It took patience, gentle words and gestures to approach them without causing distress. With’ each successful rescue, our spirits were uplifted. Some dogs willingly followed us, desperate to escape their miserable lives. Others required a bit more comfort, but eventually, we managed to lead them to safety. They received medical attention and were provided with much-needed love.
As the days went by, our team experienced both moments of joy and heartache. Some dogs were fortunate enough to find loving homes, while others faced challenges due to their extremely unpleasant pasts. But through it all, we persisted, knowing that saving every life made a difference.
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2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Out efforts began to produce positive results.
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Looking back on the summer I am filled with a sense of pride and contentment.
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As I stepped out of the cat and onto the unfamiliar driveway of my father’s home in Ontario, Canada. I couldn’t help but feel upset. My mother had just passed away in a car accident and now I was being forced to live with a father I barely knew.
My father was a metal sculpture artist, and I was not sure if I would ever fit into his world. Soon, I found comfort in exploring the nearby wilderness. Yet I couldn’t ignore the sadness and anger that welled up inside me when I saw a construction crew destroying a small wilderness area nearby. That’s when I came across a nest of geese eggs, abandoned and fragile.
Without hesitation, I brought them home. When the first crack appeared and a tiny head poked through, my heart swelled with purpose and affection. As they grew, the baby geese followed me everywhere. Father smiled and remarked that they surely thought me their mother.
My geese grew steadily but time was not. Father realized without a real mother’s guidance, the geese would never learn how to migrate south for the winter and winter’s arrival could be tough. That’s when my father came up with a daring plan. He was an amateur pilot, and he would teach me how to fly an aircraft. Together, we would lead the geese on their migratory journey. It was a risky plan, but I was willing to do anything to help my feathered friends.
Each day of flight training with Father, I felt myself gaining confidence m the skies. Yet with the journey approaching, more and more fear filled me. Crossing the border into the US and flying hundreds of miles to the reservation in North Carolina seemed a mission impossible.
Father gave me a supportive smile, his face reflecting a mix of determination and concern. “We’ve trained for this, and we’re a team. Just like you and your geese,” he said, placing a hand on my shoulder.
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。
Flying south, we started the migration, followed by my geese.
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I said goodbye to Father in the hospital and continued the flight.
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My story started one autumn morning, at the bend on a path.
I was 13 years old, and was on the way to school. It was the first time I had caught sight of a fox. Fascinated to the point that I forgot all fear, I dared to go up to it. I had never come so close to a wild animal. There was nobody else around, only me and the fox.
“Hey, fox!” I tried to greet it, though my voice was so weak that it felt like I was saying hello to myself. It didn’t hear me. It stayed there and I watched it. My heart was beating flat out. It was so cute. For a moment, I thought I might be able to touch it.
Throughout the day at school, I could only think of the fox at the big beech (山毛榉) tree. At my return to the place where we met, I was sure I’d find it there.
And I did. This time I gathered a little bit more courage and called out to it, “Fox!” Of course it escaped. But that only made me long to meet it again. I decided that if I could find its kennel (洞) and catch it, I would try and tame (驯服) it, making it my friend.
Thus, I spent most of my free time in the forests trying to find the fox during the following months. But I never saw it again before winter came. During the winter, I followed its footprints far across the fields. Suddenly I was alarmed by the howling of wolves near me. I ran away frightened, stumbled and hurt my ankle. It healed very slowly, so that I had to stay at home during the winter, reading a book about animals of the forest and foxes.
When spring arrived, I was free again. I looked for fox kennels and waited for my fox. To my amazement, it had got young ones but kept moving because of my observations; therefore I decided to observe the fox from a longer distance.
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。
Paragraph 1:
Finally, it would let me get close.
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To my surprise, the day after I took it home, it fled.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Being the youngest in my family has had its advantages, of course. But being the youngest also came with its fair share of troubles. I was often told what I couldn’t do and why. I knew that my family loved me. They always tried to protect me, help me and take care of me, but I couldn’t wait to show them I could do things by myself.
It was a hot day in Florida. The school year had just ended and it was time for summer vacation. We had just gotten a little black dog who we named One-Eyed.
Everybody wanted to do something for the dog: feed him, teach him tricks and take long walks with him. Everybody was so happy to have this little active, playful new addition to our family. I was so desperate to pet One-Eyed myself, too. Every time I asked my brother or my sister if I could do that, they would shout, “No!” or tell me that I had germs (细菌). Once, they even convinced me that I had so many germs and that if I touched One-Eyed he would die! I really believed them and was scared that something terrible would happen to the dog. Once I even confessed to my mom that I touched the dog when no one noticed. At first, my mom seemed very confused about what I was telling her, but then she realized that they were playing a joke on me to keep me away from the dog. My mom scolded my brother and sister, “You better stop teasing your little brother!” Little brother! That’s exactly what I was. That really got my blood boiling. The frustration built up inside me as I watched them enjoy their time with One-Eyed, excluding me from the joyous moments. I knew I was capable of taking care of myself and forming my own connection with our new furry friend. Determination filled my heart, fueling a newfound sense of independence.
I took one look at the dog and decided, I was going to prove to everyone that I could pet and play with One-Eyed.
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Seeing this, my brother and sister couldn’t believe their eyes.
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One of my favourite things about spring is the arrival of different species of birds. My grandfather was a bird lover, and I picked up the birdwatching hobby at a young age, thanks to his influence. My husband John and I found it a relaxing way to enjoy nature; we like birdwatching when we go camping or hiking. Plus, I have a great love of nature photography, so when we sit out in the backyard of our home, I always have my digital camera with me. John is an artist, and he often paints the birds I photograph.
Usually when the yellow warblers (莺) come back from the south in springtime, they pass us by; we don’t typically see them hanging around our home. But not on this particular sunny day in spring. As soon as I finished my workday, I put on a light jacket and went out to the backyard to relax in my favourite way: by watching the birds.
While taking some pictures of cardinals (红衣凤头鸟) and chickadees (北美山雀) at one of our feeders, I looked up and noticed this yellow warbler in our maple tree. The tree had recently begun to bud, and the bird’s yellow feathers looked striking against the yellow blooms, so I took this photo. Our backyard has a variety of trees and between my husband and me, we’ve documented almost 40 different species of birds. I’ve photographed most of them, but some can be a bit camera shy so I also keep a written list of what we see. Our more common visitors are cardinals, chickadees, hummingbirds and various sparrows.
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One day, I was watching the yellow warbler jumping among trees when a snake crawled towards it.
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At this time, I saw many small stones in the backyard.
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We moved to a small seaside community in New Zealand 10 years ago, because my husband Phil worked as a biologist and he had to do research near the sea. I had seen seals (海豚) around Pilot Bay, which is near here. Sometimes you see them out on the rocks, sunning themselves or playing-but usually in their own territory. They never thought about disturbing their neighbors.
It was a dark winter morning in August this year when a seal came. At 5:50 a.m., I left the house to go fitness training. I went down to the car parked in the driveway and heard a growl (咆哮). I thought our cat, Coco, must have chased a dog under the car. I jumped into the car to avoid getting my ankles bitten, and moved slowly, but then I felt the car hit something. When I got out to have a look, I couldn’t see anything and thought it must have moved on. Then when I got back into my seat, I saw a baby seal in the headlights.
I thought, Oh, my God, “but didn’t panic—the ocean is just down the driveway and I thought it would find its way back. Off I went to the training center and gave everyone there a laugh when I said, “Sorry I’m late; there was a seal under the car.” I didn’t think about it again until I got home. As I walked through the garage (车库), I noticed our baskets had been moved. I wondered if it was the seal, but then I guessed it could not be the seal because I didn’t think it could fit through the cat door, which was the only way into the garage. But I was wrong. As I opened the door to the house, I brushed something and heard this flip-flip-flip-flip sound, and thought, “My God, that is the seal.”
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It was so cute like a lovely soft toy.
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We called Animal Protection Station, and a worker came over.
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