Most people think that procrastination (拖延症) is a negative habit. But people like me who routinely put off doing assignments, are likely to defend our “slower” approach to getting tasks done.
I'm the only procrastination in my family. My parents and sister were all born with the “do it right now” gift. They are always in a rush, as if closely rushed by an invisible deadline. Personally, I prefer a more relaxed pace. When my parents voiced their concern about my tendencies, saying “Don’t put off until tomorrow what you can do today,” “No way!” I responded, confidently presenting my research as a defense. It said people procrastinated when they need to solve a problem or commit to a topic or project. In these cases, delaying a decision can be beneficial. This was because our minds continue to reflect on problems even when we were not actively thinking about them, which could lead to more creative solutions. My findings filled me with satisfaction and pride. My method of getting things done was just as good as my sister’s…or so I thought.
At school we’d been talking about architecture and design. As part of the final assessment my teacher Mr. Smith announced an exciting project that each student would have a month to complete. We were expected to choose our materials, construct a small building and make use of things we had learned in class. Not only would the winners receive extra credit, but the winning constructions would be proudly displayed in the cafeteria. “I have no clue how I could get it done,” my friend Nate sighed in despair. I didn’t say anything. Not because I shared his anxiety-but because I was not nervous at all. I loved hands-on projects! Picturing my brilliant work exhibited in the cafeteria, I was fully convinced that I would definitely produce something that could impress everyone. So relaxed was I that I didn’t give it a second thought for weeks.
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。
Before I knew it, I had only one day left for the project.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________That taught me a great lesson.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Jack was new to Woodberry Forest School this year. He carried a secret burden: a stutter (口吃) that often brought about laughter from his classmates. This made him very upset. Shy and reserved. Jack chose to fade into the background rather than draw attention to himself. He felt like an outsider, never quite fitting in.
Jack was eager to exchange ideas with his classmates, but afraid of getting into trouble. Jack's science teacher, Katherine, a warm and caring woman often wearing a smile, noticed Jack's stutter and shyness. She observed how Jack struggled to express himself in class and how he would shy away when called upon to speak.
Determined to lend a hand, Katherine took Jack under her wing, encouraging him to embrace bravery and believe in his own abilities. Subsequently, Katherine adopted a set of systematic methods to help him. She was glad to find the potential in him, the intelligence and creativity that lay hidden beneath his stutter. Whenever possible, Katherine was always ready to praise his efforts, always declaring, "You are so great!” Whenever Jack stumbled over his words, Katherine always smiled at him encouragingly, providing him with the strength to continue. Day by day, Jack found himself speaking with greater confidence and fluency.
One day, Katherine announced that each student should give a presentation of a science project in front of the class. Jack's heart sank, the familiar fear and anxiety wrapping around him. How could he possibly stand before his classmates to give his ideas clearly, knowing that they would laugh at him? As the presentation drew near, Jack's anxiety mounted. Then came the big day. He watched his classmates take turns to walk up to the front. They gave their presentation with confidence and backed to their seats with satisfaction. However, while Jack was waiting for his turn, his heart beat so violently that he felt as if he were sitting on pins and needles.
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。
Paragraph 1:
It was finally his turn.
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When Jack finished his presentation, the room erupted into applause.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Due to my unhealthy eating habits, I became fatter and fatter after college. My good friend Anoush was a running enthusiast. So he advised me to lose weight by running. I didn’t agree at first until he promised to accompany me to run although he was busy with his work.
Seven years later, I got more serious about running. And I dreamed to participate in Boston Marathon. Anoush encouraged me to realize my dream. He also said he enjoyed running too and wanted to attend the same marathon with me. Every day we spared our time to practise hard and did about 2 marathons a year, during which time Anoush gave me much professional guidance and encouragement. And then one day, both of us qualified for the 2017 Boston Marathon. We were excited but unfortunately, several weeks before the marathon, we had a serious quarrel. Even I swore never to talk with him in the future.
The day came. Anoush and I stood at the starting line. He said, “Good luck! You will certainly finish the marathon.” Hearing his words, I looked at him, saying, “It’s none of your business.”
Then we started running. I had strong mental confidence by using positive self-talk when running distances, which has helped me finish 18 marathons. Soon, I passed Anoush.
But I struggled in the heat starting at mile 16. I felt most of my oxygen went to the muscle in my legs and less in my brain, which made me feel a bit lightheaded and fuzzy(迷迷糊糊的). I continually encouraged myself. “Just get to the finish, run bold, and you will win,” all phrases that I say to myself didn’t work any more.
Gradually I felt out of breath and had to slow down my pace. As I ran down the famous last stretch of the Boston Marathon on Boylston Street, I fell down on the ground with my legs moving like jello(果冻).
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, I felt that someone picked me up.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________When Anoush and I crossed the finish line, the audience at present applauded.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________I didn’t like Del so much. He always called me the nickname “Germy”, which meant “dirty”, instead of my real name “Jamie”. Besides, he was known as a trouble-maker in school. So when the head teacher Mr. Smith asked Del to come to his office, I naturally thought that Del had done something mean to someone. Through the window, I caught sight of a smaller boy crying. Del seemed unhappy, too.
He did not return to class that day. All of us were discussing what had happened to him. What else could such an annoying boy do? “He must have hit the boy and was sent home,” I whispered to my friends. Their eyes widened. It felt good to see them so interested in what I said.
The next morning, the whole school was talking about Del being expelled(开除) for beating up a kid. I was surprised that my assumptions were passed on so quickly. So when Del walked into the classroom, all the kids were shocked. The kids next to him shift ed their desks away. “What’s your problem?” Del asked. “I don’t want you to attack me,” one kid said. Some laughed. “Yeah, I might,” said Del. I could tell he was joking, but many kids thought he admitted he did beat up someone.
During recess(课间休息), Del tried to join the kickball game. “Neither team wants you,” one of the players said. “Why?” Del asked, looking confused. “I always play with you guys.” They ignored him and went on playing. Del sat by himself while the rest of the school enjoyed their recess away from him. Del looked lonely and sad, much different from before. I started to feel sorry for him.
Later that day, I learned what really happened. The kid was Del’s little brother and he was crying because their mother fell ill and was sent to hospital. I felt even sorrier for what I said before. I started a rumor(谣言).
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。
At recess the next day, I saw Del sitting alone watching the kickball game.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Now that Del had forgiven me, I decided to do more before the recess was over.
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I am not a gamer. I’ll be honest: video games and I don’t really see eye to eye, and I have no ambitions to become better. I never have the experience playing against my kids and winning. And that’s okay. Board games, on the other hand, are a different story. At least there, I stand a chance of victory.
One day, my 12-year-old son begged me to play a game with him. He held out a game controller and begged, “Just one game with me? You can use it to control the game through your movements.” His eyes were full of anticipation and I could see the excitement welling up within him. How could I possibly resist such a sincere and heartfelt request? “Just one game.” My son’s face lit up. In a matter of minutes, we were standing in our living room, virtually bowling away.
My son’s amusement at my lack of gaming skills was evident. I could see the struggle on his face as he fought to hold back his laughter. The game controller felt awkward and unfamiliar in my hand, but I did my best to copy my son’ movements and follow his lead. At one point, my son said, “No, Mom. You really have to put some force into it. Like this.” With that, he threw his arm back, stepped forward, and with plenty of force extended out his arm that was holding the controller. Instead of sending the virtual bowling ball flying, the controller went off his hand and broke the TV screen. The impact was immediate and destructive. The screen cracked, sending a crazy mosaic (马赛克) of colors dancing across its surface. It looked like something straight out of a dream.
The air stood still at that moment. The look on my son’s face was a funny mixture of horror, disbelief and guilt. He stayed absolutely frozen for a long moment. Then, slowly, he turned to me. “Mom...” with a weak smile, “Did I just... break the TV?”
注意：1. 续写的词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡上的相应位置作答。
Surprisingly, I wasn’t angry at all.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________But my son insisted on keeping the broken TV.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________When I started high school, I was fourteen years old and six foot tall. The scary thing about being so tall when you’re so young is that people automatically teat you as if you’re older. Yes, I was the size of an adult (actually, bigger than most! ) , but I was still just a kid. And acting more like an adult wouldn’t win me any fiends. As a card-carrying Good Boy, I wanted to meet adults’ expectations and get their praise, but as a Regular Kid, I wanted to be like my peers and get their friendship.
I walked into school that first day in my bluejacket and trousers, the school uniform. I noticed some of my old classmates from my junior high, the ones who had turned their backs on me, and we continued our policy of actively ignoring one another. I felt the pain of their betrayal (背叛) , but I forced my face to remain expressionless. I was here to study hard at academics and to work hard at basketball under my new coach, Jack Donahue. I was here to be excellent. Nothing else mattered.
Indeed I was excellent. I made the honor roll in the first semester, pleasing my parents and teachers. Leaming came naturally to me. I loved reading, especially about history and adventure stories like The Three Musketeers. Basketball, however, I had to work at to do well in.
As a freshman, my style of play reflected my personality: politely passive. I had some skills, but I didn’t have an aggressive nature: The good player around me knew how to play rough, use their bodies with authority, and power their way to a rebound (抢篮板球) . I knew I had to toughen up, and I was committed to getting better, but it wasn’t happening fast enough.
One morning, our school team was scheduled to play a game against Erasmus Hall High School in Brooklyn, and Coach Donahue surprised me by taking me into his office. I figured he was going to discuss his disappointment in my progress as a player, maybe even say something about it all being a big mistake.
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。
To my surprise, he handed me a team uniform.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________All day, I allowed myself to imagine the game.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Though traveling is not a big deal for me today, before my trip to the mountains, I used to be a homebody. I had friends to hang out with, several hobbies, and I felt completely comfortable spending weeks or even months in my hometown — or sometimes even on my block — without going anywhere. All my demands of novelty were satisfied by the Discovery and National Geographic channels, and I seriously thought there was no difference between seeing something on the TV and with one’s own eyes.
The situation changed when one day David, my best friend who always has a couple of colorful bugs in his head (or, in other words, was always carrying out several crazy plans at once), walked into my room and declared his disgust (厌恶) for civilization. I will not describe how he managed to persuade me to join him on his journey to the Rocky Mountains; all I will say is that we departed in five days. This was my first time in the mountains, so I was turning my head in all directions. Unfortunately, the weather was foggy most of the time, and the higher we got into the mountains, the worse the visibility was.
Even despite this fact, I still enjoyed the hike — I felt like I was Bear Grylls, whose show I used to watch with excitement: in the wild, with food and water in my backpack, carrying a flashlight and a knife. On the first day, we were making our way along the foothills; but the next day, we started to climb on one of the peaks. Though it was not that steep and high, I was still excited. I regularly hastened, and because of that, I ran out of energy long before we got to the top; David, on the other hand, was more well-paced.
When we finally got to the top, nothing had changed. The same fog was covering the surroundings, and even though I was filled with positive emotions, I felt disappointed, because I counted on seeing the view from above and perhaps being able to take some photos.
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。
We spent a couple of hours on the top, and decided to turn back.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Seeing all this scenery with my own eyes was truly an eye-opening experience for me.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Rich Danieu, a man awaiting a heart transplant (移植), had to stay in Strong Hospital in Rochester, New York, since January. His days were filled with uncertainty, medical procedures, and a longing to be with his family. The slim hope of getting cured had almost driven Danieu’s mood down to the ground. He was close to giving up. What’s worse, he was frustrated at the thought of missing a crucial event: his 5-year-old daughter Mara’s school’s father-daughter dance.
Shortly after Danieu’s arrival at the hospital, Mara had excitedly shared the news of her school’s upcoming father-daughter dance. She had been eagerly looking forward to her father’s participation. But Danieu’s illness had kept him away from his daughter’s joyous event. As the day of the dance drew near, Mara’s excitement began to be replaced by a deep sadness. “My daughter was a little upset, for I couldn’t go with her,” Danieu said to a nurse with a heavy heart.
Mara’s grandfather stepped in to take her to the dance, hoping to make the evening special for her. They both got dressed up, arrived at the school hall, and even had a beautiful photo taken. However, for Mara, something was wrong, because she noticed everybody else was with their dads. Excitement gave way to disappointment. On their way home, Mara was walking silently, without saying a word, when her grandfather received a call from the hospital.
The nurses at Strong Hospital had been closely following the family’s story. Having witnessed what Danieu was experiencing due to missing such a crucial moment in his daughter’s life, they decided to do something. They knew they couldn’t make a big change, but they could certainly create a moment of magic. On the night of the dance, with delicate care, they transformed an empty hospital room into a magical dance floor, complete with twinkling lights and soft music playing in the background.
At the same time, Danieu lay in his hospital bed, a sense of disappointment at his heart. When he was gazing out the window, a nurse came in with a warm smile.
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。
Led to the room, Danieu didn’t know what awaited him.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________That special dance brought great strength and hope to Danieu.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Karl was Fred’s son. When his son was little, Fred’s wife passed away, so a mountainous responsibility landed on Fred’s shoulders. Fred was fond of and cared about his son so much that he raised his son with all his heart and soul. He taught him to walk, talk, read and write. He also taught him how to be a true and moral man. When Karl came home with an injury due to falling off his bike or something else, it would hurt Fred’s heart more than it would hurt the boy. Whenever Karl went down with a fever, Fred would sit beside him day and night, barely sleeping a wink (合眼). He always supported Karl in every aspect. Gradually, Karl grew up to become an adult.
How deeply Fred loved his son! However, Fred was unprepared for the day when his beloved son Karl told him he would leave and start his own business in a new city.
“But, Karl, you are too young to start a business,” Fred warned his son. “You still have a long way to go. I think you can help me manage the cafe my grandma left to me first. This way, I’d be able to teach you more about business.” But Karl was stubborn and wouldn’t follow Fred’s advice. “Dad, I am not a kid anymore, so allow me to determine my life. OK?” said Karl. One week later, Karl packed his things and left for the new city, leaving the sad and worried father behind.
Three months passed. One night, Fred got a call from his son. It was strange because Karl seldom called him up after he left for the new city. “Dad, I should have followed your suggestions and stayed at home. I went bankrupt (破产的) and I am in debt now,” Karl said. “I knew this would happen someday,” Fred painfully thought. He planned to help his son and made one of his most difficult choices. “Don’t worry, my son. Luckily, you will succeed to (继承) a huge amount of money from your uncle, soon,” Fred told Karl.
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。
“Oh, I am so fortunate,” said Kurl.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________On his way back home, Kar l was wondering how his father was.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________When I was seven years old, my family moved from Mexico to America. In Mexico, I was a cheerful girl who loved making people laugh with my jokes and inventing fun games to play with my friends. However, when I arrived in America, I found it hard to fit in, and I became quieter.
We lived in a small house with a modest yard where we grew vegetables—my responsibility. While I took pride in watching them grow, there were times when I dreamed of having a beautiful garden like my schoolmate Luella’s, with its delicate tulips (郁金香). Although Luella lived in the same neighborhood as me, we barely knew each other.
It was after a tornado that Luella and I finally became close friends.
The tornado struck on a Sunday afternoon.The gentle breeze transformed into a strong wind, and thick gray clouds filled the sky. Gradually, the tornado took shape, starting as a thin rope and growing into a large black funnel (漏斗). My entire family gathered in the bathroom, seeking shelter from the storm. Terrified, I sat close to my mom, knees in my chest. After the storm had passed, our worries and fears were replaced by relief that we were unharmed and that our house had remained undamaged.
As I stepped outside, I witnessed the extent of the damage the tornado had caused to our neighborhood. Across the street, a tall tree had fallen, crushing Luella’s garden in front of her yellow house. We hurried over to check on it. Fortunately, her family seemed to be away at the time, and no one was injured. However, her once-beautiful garden was in ruins, with the fallen tree destroying the tulips and debris (碎片) spread everywhere. I could only imagine how heartbroken they must feel seeing this.
Then my mom’s usual words rang in my ear, “It is more blessed to give than to receive,” and my family started to think about how we could help.
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 at that moment, Luella’s family returned in their car.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Even after the debris was cleared, I could still sense Luella’s sorrow for her lost garden.
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