I used to play football when I was a little kid. Okay, let’s face it. I was never really a little kid. I was so big that I got to play football a whole year ahead of my friends. Our football league didn’t have an age limit, but it had a weight requirement. If you were heavy enough, you got to play. I was heavy enough at the age of eight.
The only problem was, by the time I turned ten I was too heavy. You had to weigh a certain amount to start playing, but if you weighed too much they made you stop. Not playing would be just fine with me. I would be happier sitting at home reading a book.
Dad was one of the team’s big sponsors and friends of the coach, so I figured I would let him down and that quitting wasn’t an option. I went, day after day, and week after week... until I was eleven and weighed more than two hundred pounds. I thought that would be the end of it, once and for all.
However, my coach came up with a bright idea to help me lose weight. The very next practice he presented me with a T-shirt made out of a black garbage bag. “Put it on,” he said, pointing out the holes for my head and arms. “Start running around the practice field.” “Koop going, Fireplug (消防栓),” other players would shout. “Fireplug” was the new name they gave me. Although no one ever explained it to me, I figured it had something to do with me being shaped like it.
Every day in practice, I had to run in that stupid garbage bag. My short fat legs weren’t exactly comfortable, and often I’d trip and fall. The other players would laugh. At that moment, I asked myself, “Why? Was I being punished for something? Wasn’t the running, sweating and pain enough?” I suddenly realized that I’d been knocking myself out for something I didn’t even want to do in the first place!
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式作答。
It was then that I decided I wouldn’t play football anymore.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Much to my surprise, my dad was on my side.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________When we were finally dismissed from the last class of the day, the students streamed out of the classrooms. It was another boring day after school. I dragged my feet home as I sighed. Yet another uneventful day, I thought. Little did I know that the day would take a turn for the worse.
The lift lobby (电梯间) of my flat was old and dirty. The walls, which were painted white, had been dirtied over many years. I reached my flat’s lobby, and pressed the lift button and went in. Just then, Mrs Lim, my elderly neighbour, hobbled (蹒跚) in. She looked ancient with tissue paper white hair, wearing a faded old-fashioned dress. I held the lift door open, flashing a friendly smile, and politely greeted her. I asked her how she felt that day and pressed the buttons. She thanked me for being so polite, then we were silent for the rest of the ride.
The lift fell down increasingly fast. There were loud clanking sounds here and there while the lift grew slower and slower. My heart beat hard and fast as my hands turned cold and wet with sweat. Unfortunately, the lift came to an abrupt stop at the fifth floor. I pressed the buttons hard several times, but it was of no help. The lights on the buttons had gone out. It soon dawned on me that we were trapped. An icy fear crept up my spine. Mrs Lim was hysterical (歇斯底里).
“We will never get out!” she cried with her face pale. It had become a colourless mask. I had no time to lose. I pressed the bell in the lift immediately. The sound was surely deafening, but what other choice did I have? Mrs Lim burst into tears. I tried my very best to comfort her, telling her that everything would be all right and that we needed to find out how to get out safely. Mrs Lim began having trouble breathing, and I immediately helped her sit down and loosened her collar.
Paragraph 1: Several minutes passed, but no help came.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Paragraph 2: Bang! My hopes were lifted when I heard the firefighters on the other side of the lift door.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Our three kids were all under age five. We’d recently moved to the suburbs, and I’d stopped working to be a stay-at-home mom. Most of our friends lived outside our immediate community and didn’t have children. This all added up to a nonexistent social life for my husband and me.
I needed to fix this, so I became a room parent in my son’s kindergarten class, partly to spend time with him, but also to make more friends within the school community. I also signed my son up for weekend soccer. While those activities gave me the opportunity to socialize with other moms, it was challenging to cultivate friendships. I only saw my fellow room parents a few times a -year, usually during class parties. On the soccer sidelines, I found it impossible to watch the game, keep track of my young children, and maintain conversations with other parents at the same time.
I desired deeper interactions with the smart, interesting moms I saw around school. But we all led busy lives. How could I make this happen?
“You should throw a party,” suggested a friend who happened to be a professional event planner. “I can’t do that. I don’t really know these women,” I replied quickly. I hardly even had my closest friends over to my house. The thought of hosting an adult party terrified me.
“Just invite a few people that you’ve talked to and ask them to bring along a friend. You’ll meet even more people that way. It will be fun,” my event-planner friend said. I ran this idea by my husband, and I was certain he’d agree it wouldn’t work. “Great idea,” he said. “I’ll stay upstairs with the kids, and the party can take place on the main floor.”
I picked a date and set up an electronic invitation, making a guest list of moms from my son’s soccer team, my fellow room moms, and a few other moms I’d started saying “hi” to at school pick-up. But I didn’t hit Send. I started to talk myself out of it. There were so many reasons this wouldn’t work.
注意：1. 续写词数为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
With four mess makers in my household, I imagined many “what ifs”.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________But you know what? Everyone showed up.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________When my sister, Dona, and I were little kids, my parents both joined the army. They stayed far away from our town and hardly returned home. My grandpa took on the big responsibility of taking care of us. Still, without our parents by our side, Dona and I sometimes felt lonely and sad, especially one winter.
One morning in that winter when Dona and I were sitting in our bedroom, dull and quiet, Grandpa said, “My dear, how about trying skating for fun?” Our faces immediately lit up and we answered together, “Great, we surely like it, Grandpa!”
He smiled and quickly set about building us a skating rink (溜冰场) in our yard. The process of building a skating rink was not easy. First, Grandpa laid out long wooden boards around the yard. Next, he made the base of the rink flat. Grandpa then began spraying the water, lightly at first, until the first layer of ice was established. He would then put some water onto the ice each night. And thus, the ice became thicker and thicker.
In the darkness of the night, from the kitchen window Dona and I watched Grandpa with great expectations. His back and shoulders rounded to protect him from the freezing wind. He stood alone, busying himself creating a perfect skating rink for us. The only light was from the moon and stars.
One night, Grandpa suddenly pressed his waist and the look on his face showed he was painful. Quite concerned, Dona and I rushed out and asked, “Grandpa! What’s wrong?” “My waist is painful. Don’t worry! I’ll be fine just after a little rest,” he smiled. Dona and I offered to help create the rink. But he said it was too cold outside at night and that building the rink needs much experience and lots of skills. Then, we gave up the idea of offering him a hand, but demanded he build the rink a few days later. Seeing we were determined, he walked into the room with us and had warm tea. Before long, Dona and I were tired and went to bed.
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。
When we fell asleep, Grandpa quietly walked out into the yard.
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Amazed, we hurriedly put on the skating equipment and rushed out._
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“I look like a clown (小丑)!” Winston thought sadly. He pulled his cap down, thankful for the cover it provided. He wanted to escape the attention of the people outside the barbershop (理发店). He looked around before hurrying away into the darkness to put some distance between himself and the curious eyes of others.
As he moved quickly down the street,Winston wondered why he hadn’t spoken up to prevent the terrible haircut. He felt sad and questioned why this had happened to him. Did the barber give him this messed-up haircut on purpose? Winston didn’t believe it because the barber looked very friendly. But it seemed so crazy! Could he have unknowingly offended the barber,and this disastrous hairstyle was the barber’s way of getting back at him?
Winston was also worried that Jack would laugh at him. Jack was his cousin and liked playing jokes. But maybe he wouldn’t; he was understanding too. Winston kept thinking about it.Upon entering his new home, ,Winston’s mom greeted him from the kitchen. She called out to him,asking to see his new hairstyle. Winston walked into the kitchen, his cap still on, and slowly took it off.
His mother looked very surprised. She couldn’t help but burst into laughter. “Oh déar,” she shouted. “What happened?” Winston stood silently for a moment before letting out his anger. He blamed his mom for bringing him to this place, torcing him to attend a new school where he believed everyone would make fun of him. He also said he hated this terrible hairstyle, and his hair was beyond fixing.
Just as his anger was about to grow, the doorbell-rang. Winston’s mom calmly told him to answer it. As he opened the door, he forgot to cover his terrible haircut, and there stood his cousin Jack. Since it was Saturday today, they had planned to go skating together. Winston felt extremely embarrassed.
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。
Jack looked at Winston in disbelief.
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That afternoon, Winston returned to the barbershop, hoping to find out the truth.
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It was a typical Monday morning for Jenny, a diligent high school senior. The sound of her alarm clock woke her up, a rude awakening from her sweet dreams. She unwillingly opened her eyes, knowing what waited for her-another 5 long days at school.
Dragging herself out of bed, Jenny went through her usual morning routine. She hurriedly got dressed, grabbed her backpack, and rushed to the kitchen for breakfast. Her mother had prepared a nutritious meal, but Jenny had no appetite. She was too occupied with thoughts of an upcoming exam in her most challenging subject, mathematics.
As Jenny walked to school, her mind wandered back to the countless hours she had spent studying and practicing equations (方程式). She had put in lots of effort, hoping to improve her grades. However, despite her dedication, she was struggling to achieve the desired results. Doubts started crawling in, and anxiety stayed in her mind like dark clouds.
As students settled into their seats, Mr. Johnson, their math teacher, announced that the exam would take place that afternoon. Jenny started to feel afraid. She suddenly realized that she had forgotten her calculator at home, an essential tool for the exam. Panic turned into hopelessness, as she knew that borrowing one during the test would be strictly prohibited.
Jenny’s friends, Emma and David, noticed her worry and approached her after class. They offered their help. Emma suggested that Jenny be honest to Mr. Johnson and explain her situation. David, however, had a different plan. He proposed sneaking (偷偷给) his calculator to her during the exam, risking punishment for cheating.
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。
Jenny’s heart sank.
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The exam started.
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It was my very first trip to Africa. We were driving along a track that skirted the southern bank of the Chobe River, when my friend suddenly noticed something up ahead — a large shape jammed in-between a couple of big trees, right beside the road. We edged the car closer and, to our surprise, found ourselves looking at a young calf snuggled (偎依) up against a sizeable elephant (most probably its mother).
Our dilemma now was this: Was it OK to just drive slowly past the pair of elephants on that narrow track? Or would that cause the mother to become upset and charge, in which case we should either wait for them to move on or turn the car around? A bit unnerved by the close encounter, we chose to head back the way we’d come.
In the following days, I had a number of conversations with national park staff and fellow travelers about what to do when you suddenly come across an elephant while driving in the African wilds.
Sometimes people told me it would be OK to slowly drive past the mother and calf, because the wild animals of Chobe have become pretty used to humans in cars. Elephants seldom pose a threat to us. So there’s no need to adopt an attitude of permanent near-panic calm decisiveness is your true ally (助手) in such situations.
But then sometimes I was told to switch off the car and wait until the elephant had departed the scene. The idea was that the rumble (隆隆声) of an automotive engine could be interpreted by the animal as a kind of challenge. Keeping silent would reassure the elephant that you weren’t going to cause any trouble, and eventually it would go on its merry way. OK, that also sounded reasonable enough.
A week later, my friend and I were driving by a river, watching elephants meet on the water for a drink, and were driving back to our lodge (度假小屋) when we found our route blocked by a young male elephant. As surprised as we were, the elephant planted his feet in the dirt and seemingly prepared to fight against our car.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在相应位置作答。
The track was narrow and bordered by thick bush, so we couldn’t go around him.
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The elephant walked right up to the car.
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Every morning before going to school, Galen would stand in front of their bookshelf in the living room, focusing his sights on one book titled “The Greatest Explorer That Never Was”. It was kept on the top shelf. His mom would always read it to him when he was feeling sad. And lately, he’d always been feeling sad. His mom died.
He would try to think of a way to get the book. He’d thought about asking his dad for help but his dad had been spending more time in his office. Galen was on his own for this one and he saw it as a challenge he needed to overcome. This was his test.
At school, he would draw up plans on how he would do it. First, he planned on using the ladder they kept in the shed (小屋). So when he got home, he threw his bag on the couch and carried out the plan. But when he had his hands on and tried to carry it, immediately he realized that the plan was a failure-the ladder was too heavy for him to carry to the living room. He left the shed, defeated. He took out the notebook that he’d written his plans on. He crossed out using a ladder. He went to bed that night determined to come up with a new plan that would work.
His next plan was to use his mom’s old trampoline (蹦床). Using it would allow him to jump high enough, reach the top of the shelf, grab the book, and land on the ground. He did this about four or five times before deciding that this plan, like the one before, wouldn’t work.
Galen started coming with other plans as the days went on. After the unsuccessful mop and broom plan, he stayed up late that night hatching a new plan, which had a higher success rate than the others. It was to climb to the top of the shelf until he could just take the book. He’d just have to hold on to the sides a little tighter so that he wouldn’t fall off.
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。
But it wasn’t the easy climb he expected.
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Down to the ground with the book, he turned around to see who the ally (同盟)was.
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In the spring sun, my aunt and I headed for her flower shop. Normally I would be delighted to help in her shop, but not recently because of Rosa. Rosa was my sister, just one month old, who was settled in my old bedroom. For ten years, the small room was full of my toys and books. But now it was transformed into her baby room, decorated like a garden with pinks and yellows. My space, my old life, was gone.
“Here we are!” We arrived at the shop, a wave of colour and sweet smell washing over me. My aunt said I could pick some flowers for Mum and Dad. I used to love this, but today I was so overcome with tiredness and envy. Why bother to bring them flowers when they were enjoying Rosa at home without me?
Silently I helped my aunt arrange flowers. “Your mum told me there hasn’t been much shut eye recently for any of you.” “Not much, since Rosa the alarm clock was installed (安装).” I complained with a huge yawn (哈欠).
“I remember having to creep (蹑手蹑脚地走) around like a worn-out mouse when your mum was a baby. I spent the first months hating her so much.” “But you and Mum seem so close,” I said, guiltily hiding away my envy of Rosa.
“Now we are. But it took me years to grow into the role of big sister. Few flowers blossom (绽放) overnight, you know.” She pulled me in for aside hug, glancing up at the clock, and suggested I take a walk outside.
Behind her shop was a field dotted with spring flowers. Stepping into the field, I began to pick little flowers. It was like gathering my childhood memories. I remembered how I’d sit with Dad, making flower chains, crowning (授予) each other with the silliest titles: Queen of Junk Food and King of Mess. My smile grew wider. The shining yellow flowers reminded me of the color in Rosa’s baby room. Was she awake? I wondered.
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卷的相应位置作答。
Suddenly I saw two familiar figures walking towards me.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Rosa was wide awake in her baby basket beside the picnic blanket.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________My dad believed in responsibility! Independence! New experiences! He often used his fascinating stories of his youth to urge us children to fresh achievements.
One day he came home from work early and saw me watching a local TV show-Talent Sprouts, a daily contest for kids fourteen and under. Four performances filled the half hour from 5:00 to 5:30.You might watch anything from a violin solo to a magic show. At the end the performers were spot lighted, and KMTV’s judges named a winner.
It didn’t take Daddy long to look me in the eye. “You should go on Talent Sprouts. You can play ‘Ave Maria.’ Think of it-an unforgettable experience to be on TV as an eleven-year-old!” Before I argued, he had been already off on his story of the hilarious(滑稽的) glory of his performance. Thus, though I didn’t want to, I agreed. Actually, I did know Schubert’s “Ave Maria” a very easy version that used two hands to simplify those famous arpeggios(琶音). I did have it memorized.
The next morning, I mailed my application with the required information. I had almost forgotten about it when the notice came for an audition time on a Saturday afternoon. Daddy said part of being independent and responsible was to go by myself. The bus went right by the KMTV studios.
So that Saturday I checked in at the desk and sat down to wait. I was soon called. The host of Talent Sprouts, Lew Jeffrey, and the musical director, Warren Rudd described the routine for the participants and told me I could begin to play my piano piece.
Into the eighth measure(小节) I noticed Warren Rudd nod to Lew Jeffrey. That gave me confidence, and I relaxed. Daddy was over the moon when I told him I had been assigned a day to perform less than two weeks away. Still, I had very little confidence in my talent. I knew I had an easy arrangement. I could never have played Schubert’s original.
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:
When my Monday came, I again took the bus to KMTV alone and waited.
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Somehow my brain went to work and I continued playing.
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