I stood in the restaurant kitchen, my eyes wide, arms hanging awkwardly, ready to work but unsure of what to do. “You will be trained first,” my manager Aaron said, “and do remember to check every detail!” With these words, he walked away.
A workmate threw me a dish brush and said, “Let’s get started.” He introduced me to the basics of washing dishes and demonstrated the process. This was the beginning of my part-time job, a new stage where I was both eager to learn and anxious about the challenges ahead.
On a Friday night, Aaron swiftly entered the kitchen. “Who has just bused (收拾) the back right table?” he shouted, his voice sharp with urgency. My hands, slippery with bubbles from the bowl I was washing, nearly let it slip through my fingers. I wanted to say I was guilty, but Aaron’s cold stare didn’t promise a happy reward for the guy who admitted. Finally, a mix of fear and my own conscience pushed the response out of my mouth.
“I did, Aaron.”
“What were you thinking? Get back out here and look at what you missed!” His words forced me forward. I grabbed a rag (抹布) and followed him out to table twenty-two. As we made our way through the restaurant, he said something about rags, but I didn’t hear clearly with other conversations going on around us.
I quickly realized the true issue was the mess beneath the table. A nearly full cup of beer had tipped over, creating a small lake on the floor. It was a significant mistake on my part. “Take care of it!” Aaron tuned and stormed off to the front of the restaurant.
I dropped down to clean up the beer. That was when another problem occurred. I had brought only one rag. One already wet rag. It did nothing but increase the size of the lake. “More rags,” I thought. Immediately, I rushed into the kitchen and hurriedly grabbed five dry rags, hoping Aaron wouldn’t notice my brief absence.
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。
I had just rushed out when I found Aaron standing in my way.
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After cleaning up the mess, I reflected on Aaron’s words.
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Green Thumb
All I did was show my little sister how to grow plants. Dig a hole. Put in a seed. Cover it with dirt. Water it. Wait. “See, Laynie,” I explained, “a whole plant will grow from this tiny seed. All we have to do is water it.”
Laynie had her own watering can so she could “help” me in the garden. One day, after everything was watered, she ran to the fence and started sprinkling water on another spot. I walked over and saw a fresh patch of dirt near the fence.
“Did you plant something there?” I asked.
“Yes,” she said. “I’m growing a pencil. My purple pencil got too small, so I planted it.”
“What? But, Laynie—”
I should have explained things right then, but I just muttered, “Uh…I never grew one before.”
Later I got what seemed like a great idea. I dug up Laynie’s pencil and “planted” a brand-new purple pencil. Laynie was really excited when she saw it. “My pencil grew!” she shouted.
A few days later, Laynie was watering on the same spot. Two days later, new crayons sticking their pointy little heads out, thanks to me. Laynie jumped up and down and yelled, “They look like flowers!” She “picked” them and ran into the house.
Next, Laynie grew an adult bear doll from a tiny one, a soup spoon from a teaspoon, and a hand mirror from a piece of glass. When she claimed that she had grown these things, I just kept my mouth shut! Actually, it was fun trying to think of what should grow from Laynie’s seeds. And it was cool to see her get excited.
One day I saw her patting down some dirt near the fence again, so I knew she’d just planted something. My heart dropped to my feet when she asked, “How long does it take to grow a goldfish, Brad?” I couldn’t speak.
“Not long, I bet!” said Laynie. She knelt down to whisper “Grow, Molly. Grow!” before she skipped back to the house.
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 sat down with my back to the fence and thought for a long time.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Later I found Laynie sitting by the spot where Molly was buried.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Sunlight flooded through the window when Tomas was sitting at the kitchen table, struggling with a literary classic. Streamers of clouds drifted by high above in the sky. Not far away, the huge new tower blocks lined the road. The faint sound of cars was dimly heard.
His mother was chopping tomatoes for their dinner as usual. Suddenly she said, ”You know, the thing I miss most is cooking a really hot salsa (辣番茄酱), with fresh peppers straight from the garden.” She sighed. “That’s what I miss most about Merida.”
Tomas looked up from his book in surprise. His mother had never talked like this about their old life before. He studied her now. She looked a little sad, but then she smiled at him and swept the pile of chopped tomatoes into the cooking pot.
“But I’ve already learned a lot about this new country, Tomas,“ she said. ”For a start, I’ve learned that there’s more than one way to make a salsa!" She waved a packet of chili spice powder at him, and they both laughed.
Watching his mother busy in the kitchen preparing dinner, Tomas thought about the insight his mother had given him into her feelings, and he realized that he felt the same way about leaving.
Sure, it had been great for his father to get this good job, but it had also been hard. Tomas missed his old home-especially the sun and the beach. And his mother missed Merida, too. She had loved working in her market garden, selling the fresh vegetables that she had grown herself and then coming home to cook up huge, tasty meals for her family. Tomas’s stomach rumbled at the memories.
He thought about how different things were for them now, living in this large, gray apartment block where there was no garden and no friends dropping by to share their delicious meals.
He sighed. At least they were still able to speak regularly every night after dinner with his grandmother back in Mexico over the computer-Grandmother! Abuela!
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。
Suddenly Tomas had an idea.
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A week later, a box arrived from Mexico.
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It was a cold yet sunny Saturday morning in February. Dad’s New Year’s resolution had been to get fit. Mum pushed him out of bed and told him to go jogging by the river. Later, after a nice lie-in, she went downstairs in her dressing gown and found the kids watching TV. She turned it off and said she was going to do something really special for Dad’s birthday. If they overheard anything, just promised to keep it secret.
Jenny looked at Mum with a puzzled expression on her forehead and promised they wouldn’t say anything whatever happened. But Jenny reminded Dad’s birthday was in June and it might be a little too early to get all steamed up about it.
Silent for a moment, Mum said she was not getting everything ready but just wanted to spare enough time for preparation as this year it’s a bigger deal than usual. Dad was going to be 50.
“50! Gosh, that’s half a century,” spluttered Gerry. “I knew he was old, but I didn’t realize he was ancient!”
Indeed, that was why Mum started planning a special party for him. Mum talked with grandma about the plan because her house was the only one in the family that is spacious enough for all friends and relatives. Grandma quite agreed and also started preparing.
“But you know how Dad feels guilty to bother others. You’ve got to admit,” reminded Jenny. Thinking over the special occasion, Mum was continuing with her secret when one evening, Dad was sitting at the dinner table and he suddenly slapped his forehead, “I just realized that I am going to be 50 in June. Let’s just quietly forget about it. I want to mourn (哀悼) the passing of my youth in private.”
“Oh, come on Dad, don’t be such a spoil-sport!” begged the kids, hoping to give mum a hand.
Realizing no more chance to hide the secret, Mum carefully worded her thought and shared her plan of having a little party at grandma’s house. Dad was stunned (震惊的) to no reply.
注意：1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2. 至少使用5个短文中标有下划线的关键词语；
3. 续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好；
4. 续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。
Paragraph 1:
Frustrated, Mum made a call to grandma.
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Paragraph 2:
They got everything ready as planned when June finally came.
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THE PET LAMB
Almost all the possessions had been sold to buy food and clothing for the family. At last, nothing was left but the pet lamb, Daisy. At the thought of parting with the little creature, Mrs. Grant’s felt sad because the children loved it very much. Having struggled hard, she had to make up her mind to sell the lamb. But she could not ask any child to go for the butcher. Finally, she went herself with a heavy heart, dragging her leaden feet, and bargained with the butcher for the sale of Daisy.
While the children were all playing with the lamb, the butcher and his boy came to the door. “You see I am here for the lamb,” said the butcher in a loud voice. Hearing this, one child ran to her mother's side, and asked what was happening in alarm. Mrs. Grant gently pushed the child aside, bent down and was about to tell the truth.
“That’s my lamb now, Charlie!” said the butcher’s boy in a playful tone, going up to Daisy with a rope in his hand.
“No, it is not your lamb. It is ours!” said Charlie, placing himself in front of it.
But the boy, pushing him aside, threw a rope round Daisy’s neck, and began to drag the little creature away. The poor lamb bleated very sadly. The cry of grief which fell upon the mother’s ears was too much for her, and her heart sank within her. In a moment, begging with tearful eyes, the children were all around their mother with voices choking with sobs for their little pet.
“Pray tell your boy to stop a moment,” she said in husky (沙哑的) tones to the butcher. The boy, at a word from the butcher, stopped dragging the lamb, and the little creature stopped its bleating.
The boy, at a word from the butcher, stopped dragging the lamb, and the little creature stopped its bleating.
In a trembling voice, Mrs. Grant explained to them how badly off they were after their father died. She also added that the kind butcher had given the money for Daisy. With this money, she could buy her children bread to eat.
注意：
1.所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2.至少使用5个短文中标有下划线的关键词语；
3.续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好；
4.续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。
Para 1: But the more she explained, the stronger her children begged for Daisy.
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Para 2: The butcher, who had been watching all, was touched in his heart.
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If you are a perfectionist, you are probably familiar with the feeling of wanting to get everything just right. According to researchers, perfectionists hold themselves to unrealistically high standards and become self-critical(自责的) if they believe they haven't met these standards. Amanda Ruggeri，writing about perfectionism for BBC Future, explains, "When perfectionists don't succeed, they don't just feel disappointment about how they did. They feel shame about who they are.”
Although many people think seeking excellence as a good thing, researchers have found that on the extreme end, perfectionism is actually linked to lower mental health. In an article published in 2016, researchers found that people higher in perfectionism tended to have increases in depression(抑郁) symptoms, which suggests that perfectionism may lead to depression. In other words, although people may think of their perfectionism as something that helps them succeed, it appears that their perfectionism may actually be harmful to their mental health.
Thus, what can someone with perfection tendencies do to change their behavior? One possible alternative to perfectionism is developing what psychologists call a growth mindset. Researchers at Stanford University have found that developing a growth mindset is a significant way to help you learn from your failures. Unlike those with fixed mindsets, those with growth mindsets believe they can improve their abilities by learning from their mistakes. Another potential alternative to perfectionism is to develop self-compassion(自我同情). The idea behind self-compassion is that you should treat yourself kindly when you make mistakes，remind yourself that mistakes are part of being human, and avoid being consumed by bad emotions.
In fact, psychologists point out that giving up on perfection doesn't mean being less successful. The key is to find ways to give an effort you can be proud of without demanding the impossible of yourself. Instead of struggling for “perfect", struggle for “good enough", which can actually help you develop a healthier way of setting goals for yourself in the long run.
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The excitement about Thanksgiving was really building. Grandma arrived with a homemade pecan pie. Dad was searching for his electric carving knife. Mama was in the kitchen humming a song. Little baby Lonnie bounced up and down. Dad smelled the air and sighed. My big brother, Slim, who was anything but slim, sneaked off to his room with a slice of the pecan pie. Even our dog Fido was wagging his tail.
Having set a pretty table, Mama looked up, smiling. “Help me carry in the food,” she said. Slim, who had come out of his room by this time, went racing into the kitchen. " I'll get it! I'll get it!” The rest of us piled in behind him, everyone grabbing a dish. Then we watched Dad carry in the biggest, brownest, best-smelling turkey we had ever seen with Mama's hand under the plate, just in case. Together they lowered the turkey to its place at the table.
It was the tradition in our family to think of something for which we were most thankful. We all ran to the table yelling something like “I'm thankful for school being out” or “I'm thankful for pecan pie!” All eyes were on that enormous turkey as we took our seats.
Yes, everything was perfect except for one thing. On that special day, it was Dad who sat at the head of the table and carved the turkey. It was an honor that he had eagerly expected for days. Mama always called Dad a clumsy ox. He frequently tripped (绊倒) over his own two feet, and he could drop just about anything.
We automatically eased back when Dad tested the electric carving knife in the air. Dad went to work on the white meat first with surprisingly few problems. Slice after slice landed neatly on the plate with thick gravy (肉汁)。Dad leaned forward and grabbed the end of the left turkey leg and cut it off, placing it whole on the plate. His oily fingers shone brightly in the light of the chandelier (大吊灯)，and Mama waved her napkin. “I'm all right, Mama,” he said. “I'm all right. ”
注意：1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2. 至少使用5个短文中标有下划线的关键词语；
3. 续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好；
4. 续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。
Paragraph 1:
But when Dad pulled back the right turkey leg, it slipped from his oily fingers.
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As Lonnie yelled, we found a turkey leg was missing.
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