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.
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。
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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The day I started working out with my personal trainer, Teresa, I told her that overall, I wanted to get in shape and get stronger. More specifically, I wanted to lose 10 pounds by swimsuit season.
“Good, you have both long-term and short-term goals,” Teresa said. “That will help keep you motivated.” Then she warned, “I’m going to push you pretty hard, Sue. And you’re going to have to push yourself, too.”
She had. And so had I. Yet here I was at the gym, months later, the same old Sue with the same weight. I looked in the mirror and said, “I’m still so fat. It’s too hard for me to lose 10 pounds.” 1 wasn’t feeling very motivated. “Let’s start with something different today,” Teresa said.
I thought she was going to show me a new exercise. Instead, she took something small and green out of her pocket. A rubber band（橡皮筋）. Teresa took my right arm and placed the band onto my wrist, a determined look on her face. “This will solve your problem,” she assured me. I didn’t mean to be rude, but I had to ask, “How is this rubber band going to help me get in shape?”
“Your weight is not your biggest problem,” Teresa said. “What’s really holding you back is that you’re always putting yourself down.” I knew that better.1 had grown up constantly comparing myself to others, and I fell short every time.
Teresa said she was tired of hearing all the negative words I directed at myself. “Your negative thinking is a bad habit, and it’s time to break it,” she declared. The plan was simple. Every time I thought or said something that put myself down, I was supposed to pull the rubber band—hard—and break free from that negative mindset.
I agreed to try the rubber band. Then I left the gym and drove home. A pile of mail was waiting. I looked through it. There was an official-looking letter from my bank, 1 tore open the envelope. It was an overdraft（透支的） notice. One of my checks had bounced because I’d been late putting money into the account. My cheeks burned when I saw it was the birthday check I had sent to my niece. I really messed up now! How could I be so stupid?
注意: 1. 续写词数应力150个左右;
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
That was when I remembered what Teresa said I needed to do.
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Seven days after trying the rubber band, I got ready for my appointment with my trainer.
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There’s a lot that goes into moving to a new city. You’re house hunting in areas you aren’t familiar with, dragging all of your belongings around, trying to figure out which grocery store keeps your favourite noodles in stock, and wondering when you’ll ever find a new dentist. This was exactly what I went through when I settled in Chicago.
Every day, I was fully occupied, exhausted. I found my new city so big and unfriendly.
After graduating from college in May, I moved from the town of Oxford, Mississippi, to Chicago to start my full-time job. Typically, when I went through lots of change in my life, I had consistent faces around me: my family or my friends. This time, however, it was just me. And for someone who’s an introvert (内向的人), this was anything but easy.
Besides, the job itself was also something beyond my expectation. What I learnt in college was totally different from what I needed to do in the company. I worked longer hours to sort things out and couldn’t sleep well at night. It was a lot of change at once. It was too much. I was helpless.
What’s worse, my poor health added to the helplessness. Due to days of pressure, I had a physical problem. It seemed that I had to go to hospital for a thorough examination. It seemed a small challenge compared to the one I was about to face, but things started to go wrong right from the beginning.
Not having a car or knowing the city, I was depending on a couple of buses to get around. Although I’d left myself plenty of time, soon it was obvious that I was going to be late, as I had mistakenly got on a bus that was taking me in the opposite direction.
注意：1.所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Paragraph 1:
I had no choice but to get off the bus.
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Paragraph 2:
Suddenly, a car stopped in front of me and it was the same woman.
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After retiring from a long career teaching English at Huntington East High School, my brother, Bob, planned to travel the world. Instead, I was visiting him in the hospital where he had undergone a heart operation. He had a long road to recovery ahead.
Bob didn’t have much experience with being a patient. Certainly not as much as I did. He had always been healthy and kept in good shape, working part-time as a volunteer since retirement. I had grown up with chronic (慢性的) illness, had dozens of surgeries. Even now I was facing a puzzling condition my doctors hadn’t yet identified. A condition that gave me symptoms similar to the ones Bob’s heart illness gave him. I didn’t want to burden him with my own fears right now. I touched his arm, wondering if I would soon face the same questions. “I sure wasn’t expecting anything like this,” Bob said. “A failing heart. I can’t believe it.”
“I know it’s a shock. But we’re all here for you. You’re so blessed and loved. Your wonderful wife. Kids. Grandkids. More friends than you can count. I never go anywhere that someone isn’t saying something wonderful about your teaching days.”
“Thanks. You always say the sweetest things.” But I heard an “If you say so” in his voice. I tried to reassure Bob about how valuable his life was, but I was trying to convince myself about my own life as well. I’d spent so much of my time trying to help others, both before my retirement as a nurse and now as a storyteller. But the world was full of those. Would anything I’d done really last after I was gone?
One day, a housekeeper entered the room with her mop and nodded to Bob in his bed. “Hey, Coach!” she said. “Huh?” Bob said. I could tell he didn’t know who she was. The housekeeper smiled. “I knew it was you. My daughter played on your soccer team. I still remember her reciting all those lines of poetry. She loves poems to this day. What a great effect you have had on her! I should thank you very much.” I was very surprised when hearing these.
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。
I shouted excitedly, “You once coached soccer? How great you are!”
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Both Bob and I got good news from doctors.
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It was a jam-packed day for 24-year-old Justin. While his hot dog stand at the local park in his hometown did well every day, that day was different. The stall was full of customers, and he was struggling to keep up.
“3 hot dogs, please!” someone ordered as Justin handed the recent orders, and he quickly got about his work.
“Coming right up!” he replied with a smile.
“Thank you! Have a nice day!” the customer replied upon receiving the orders, and Justin quickly got busy with the next one. Then he noticed an old woman pushing her way through the crowd to get to his counter (柜台).
“Excuse me, son. How much would a hot dog be?” she asked, looking at him.
“Depends on what you want, ma’ am. They range from $3 to $7. You can check out the menu and let me know what you want,” he replied.
“But that’s expensive for me,” she mumbled (咕哝), looking at the prices. “It’s alright. I was just curious how much they cost. I don’t want any,” she added before walking away.
Justin noticed she went away and sat alone on a bench across from his stand. She kept looking in his direction, meanwhile touching her stomach occasionally. Justin couldn’t help watching her because of strong curiosity. She was fully dressed with an information card worn around her neck. She might get lost because of something unexpected. Her face wasn’t as rosy as others and her lips were dry. Justin wondered whether she would need any help. However, once they made eye contact, she always looked away quickly.
Eventually, Justin realized she wanted a hot dog but couldn’t afford one, so he stopped what he was doing and walked over to her with food and drink. “I apologize, ma’am. I was in such a rush that I forgot to tell you you’re our 50th customer of the day, so you get a free hot dog,” he said upon approaching her. “Let me know how you like it!”
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。
Justin gave her the food, noticing some nervousness on her face.
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Before Justine waited long, her family arrived in a hurry.
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Ari was a lonely young man who lived on a large island called Iceland. Most of the villagers were fishermen. Ari often wondered what lay beyond the island. The days were long and cold, and he spent many hours in his small house thinking about what life would be like in a warm, sunny place.
“I shall find a true friend far away from here,” Ari thought, and he began writing a letter. He described himself as a loner who had few visitors, yet he had a warm heart. It was his hope to find true friendship with someone who understood his sadness.
Ari described the volcanos on his snowy island and the impressive glaciers (冰川). He wrote about the sky turning green, blue, yellow, and pink at night when the Northern Lights shined in the heavens like silk. For days, Ari poured his soul and innermost thoughts into the letter. Then he placed it into a bottle, and sealed (密封) it tightly.
Ari threw the bottle into the sea and wished upon the brightest star that a true friend would find the letter.
A year later, Ari received a letter. He had no idea who would be writing him, but with joy, he opened the envelope.
Dear Ari,
I found your simple but lovely letter. Imagine my surprise when your little bottle from so far away washed up on my shore. I; too, live on an island. It is called Sardinia. My island is warm and filled with mountains, beaches and waters. Most of the people I know are my family, and I, too, long for a true friend. Now that you have found a friend far away, I do hope that you will write and tell me more about your life and people.
Your new friend,
Renata
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。
For three years, Ari and Renata exchanged letters.
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Without telling Renata, Ari started a long journey.
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Amy was very excited. She was going to a big birthday party on Saturday night. There would be music, dancing, food and lots of new people to meet. Amy knew she would have a great time, but what was she going to wear? All her friends at school were talking about it. Imogen and Chloe had new dresses. Sally had expensive new jeans...
Amy requested her mother to buy her something new but was refused. Amy felt frustrated, so she turned to her granny. Then, on Saturday, her granny took her to the shopping mall.
They went into the first store and began to look at the clothes. Granny pulled out dresses, tops and jeans. Amy chose six things and went to the fitting room to try them on. When she came out, Granny was waiting. She asked, “Anything nice?”
Amy shook her head. “No. The dress was quite nice, but it wasn’t really special. I want something special, Granny.”
“I know you do, my love. It’s a special party! Don’t worry — this is just the first shop. There are plenty of others. Come on!”
Amy found nothing on Floor 1. So they took the elevator up to Floor 2 and began again. In every shop, Amy tried on clothes while Granny was very patient and she never got cross.
“Take your time, love,” she said. “I want you to be happy.”
They took the elevator to Floor 3 and granny squeezed Amy’s hand. “You will find something,” she said. “There are five floors in this mall. We will keep going until we find your special thing.” Saying nothing, Amy hung her head, exhausted. But Granny kept looking and never stopped smiling.
They searched all the shops on Floor 3 then went up to Floor 4. But there, her heart suddenly felt very heavy. Tears welled up in her eyes, and she began to cry. “I’m never going to find it, Granny,” said Amy. “I want so much to find something special, but nothing is right and I’m so tired. I just want to go home, but I can’t go home with nothing.”
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。
Granny passed her a tissue and comforted her gently.
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“You already have it,” Granny whispered something in Amy’s ear.
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My husband and I enjoy seeing life through the eyes of our children. It’s amazing to watch as they discover their world.
While we were outdoors last summer enjoying the sunshine, our oldest daughter, Kaytlin, called me to the doorway. Beneath the steps was a baby red squirrel.
We watched it from a distance, not wanting to disturb it or scare off its mother. But after a long wait—and looking all around our house for signs of a nest or a mother—we realized the tiny squirrel was lost.
Shaking terribly, he was weak, thin, and hungry. We tried to find an expert to help, but the Inland Fisheries and Wildlife website showed that there were no wildlife experts in our area. After some quick research, we concluded that the best way to give the squirrel a fighting chance was to care for him ourselves. So a trip to the local store for milk and supplies was in order. More research taught us how much to feed him, how to estimate his age, how and when to wean (断奶) him, and that we should let him go as soon as he could survive on his own.
Our daughters and I took turns in feeding “Squirt.” Kaytlin took on the most responsibility. She taught him to eat from a bottle, and she woke in the night for his feeds.
To our relief, Squirt soon became healthy and strong. Within a few weeks he became more active. He would chatter (吱吱叫) for his next meal, playfully go around the girls, and lie down on them for sleep. It wasn’t long before he was weaned onto solid food and reintroduced to the wild.
His first few visits to the great outdoors were funny. Just like a child, he would play in the grass some and then run back to Kaytlin for safety. Soon she had him climbing trees and finding nest material.
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。
One day in the trees, Squirt met up with a family of gray squirrels.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________One night, Squirt didn’t come back to our house and it rained hard.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________I must admit, I haven’t always liked animals. In fact, I distrusted them greatly while growing up, and I still fear the ones I don’t know personally. What set my beliefs in stone was being attacked—not once but many times, including the summer after second grade when I was bitten by a rabbit. Then, when I was nine and riding my dirt bike down the road, a large dog charged me and tried to bite my ankle. After all those negative experiences, there was one thing I knew for sure: All creatures, great and small, were no friends of mine.
After college in California, I returned to live the single life in Las Vega. Then I met Lisa. In no time at all, we fell in love, married and moved into a new house. Despite my avoidance of animals, Lisa had a dog called Bailey. Bailey didn’t like me, but he tolerated my existence once he realized I wasn’t going anywhere.
Things changed as spring came. We welcomed a new member of our family: our son Evan. One evening Evan grabbed hold of the dog’s tail. The irritated dog paused and turned to look at his stuck tail but waited patiently until being released. Still the stories I’d heard of animals attacking babies worries me.
Then my worst fear occurred. I sat on the couch (沙发) reading after a long day while my wife worked at the dining-room table paying the bills. I saw Evan crawl across the family-room carpet as he made his way behind the couch. One minute, all was quiet and then Bailey entered the room and headed to where Evan had crawled. I nearly jumped out of my skin when I heard the dog start a fearful barking behind me.
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。
Throwing the book away, I rushed around the couch with great fear.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Having witnessed our dog killing a scorpion (蝎子) and saving my son, I was speechless.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Sam worked as a gardener and was trying to raise money for his sick mother. One day, his mother called him and he just assured her on the phone that he was going to get the money for her medicine, and that everything would be all right. Then as he returned his phone to his pocket, he discovered that Mr. Smith’s daughter, Jane, was standing right behind him. She was 12 years old and surprisingly kind.
“Hey, Sam, do you need money for something?” Jane asked him. Sam nodded.“Yes, my mom is sick. But this job in your garden is totally going to help us and your garden is going to be the prettiest in the neighborhood.” Jane nodded with pursed lips (噘嘴) and started to talk about gardening.
The following day, Sam arrived at the garden and was met by a red-faced Mr. Smith, whose expression was full of anger. “You! You tricked my daughter into asking me for money! How dare you, you worthless man!” he yelled at Sam.
Sam raised his hands to defend himself. “No, sir. I never did that. I swear! I would never do that!” But Mr. Smith didn’t want to hear it. He shook his head, pointed his finger at Sam, and said, “I want you to finish today’s work because you left a horrible messy patch (小块) of dirt on the side of the house. It is so dirty. But it’s your last day here! Do you understand?”
Sam could only nod in shock, and Mr. Smith walked away, still angry at him. Sam felt so sad that he had just lost one of the best-paying jobs he had ever got. He hadn’t completed half of the project, and now he wouldn’t get enough for his mother’s treatment.
He wished Jane had never said anything, but she was a sweet young girl who only wanted to help. It wasn’t her fault. He walked to the house and inspected that patch of dirt, which looked new as if someone had worked on it the night before.
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。
“Who put the dirt here? Is there anything special under the dirt?” he wondered.
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Jane said, “These things are worth a lot of money and they are all for you, Sam.”
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