1 . This is my son Matthew's last night at home before college. I know that this is good news. I feel proud that Matthew will go to a great school. I know that this is the finest hour. But looking at the suitcases on his bed sends me out of the room to a hidden corner where I can't stop crying.
Through the sorrow, I feel a rising embarrassment. “Pull yourself together!” I tell myself. There are parents sending their kids off to battle zones. How dare I feel so shocked and upset?
One of the great gifts of my life has been having my boys, Matthew and John. Through them, I have explored the mysterious, complicated bond between fathers and sons. As My wife and I raised them, I have discovered the love and loss between my father and me. After my parents' divorce，I spent weekends with my dad in Ohio. By the time Sunday came around, I was unable to enjoy the day's activities because I was already afraid of the goodbye of the evening.
Now, standing among Matthew’s accumulation of possessions, I realize it's me who has become a boy again. All my sadness and longing to hold on to things are back, sweeping over me as they did when I was a child.
His bed is tidy and spare. It already has the feel of a guest bed. In my mind I replay wrapping him in his favorite blanket. That was our nightly routine until one evening he said,” Daddy，I don't think I need a blanket tonight.” I think of all the times we lay among the covers reading. I look at the bed and think of all the recent times I was annoyed at how late he was sleeping. I’ll never have to worry about that again, I realize.
For his part, Matthew has been a rock. He is treating his leaving as just another day at the office. And I'm glad. After all, someone’s got to be strong. I’m proud that he is charging into the first chapter of his adult life with such confidence.
1. What does the writer mean by “Pull yourself together!”?| A．Cheer up. | B．Get up. |
| C．Pull up. | D．Wake up. |
| A．the writer is used to sleeping early |
| B．Matthew is ready for his new life |
| C．Matthew doesn't get on well with his father |
| D．the writer wasn't brave enough to face his parents' divorce |
| A．Bittersweet. | B．Grateful. |
| C．Pleasant. | D．Worried. |
2 . When I was a boy, our extended, immigrant family would sometimes gather at my aunt’s tiny house over the summer. Relatives from all over the country would come in to visit. The adults would crowd together in the living room to talk and catch up on each other' s lives. And the kids would be sent out into the front yard to play when dinner was slowly cooked for all of us.
Those were the days before video games, smart phones, and motorized toys, so we often ended up playing an old game. I remember one of those moments especially. As I was the youngest and smallest of all the kids there, I got caught first and couldn't catch anyone else. My brothers and cousins were all too fast for me, and I grew more and more frustrated. I finally fell my face first into the dirt. I got up with tears forming in my eyes. Then I saw one of my female cousins Susan standing there. She started to run but was going much slower than before. I easily caught up and seized her. Then she turned to me, smiled, and said, "I'm it! You'd better run!" I ran off laughing with glee while she turned and started to chase others.
Now I see how her act of kindness that day saved me from sadness and returned me to joy. It didn't matter that we hardly ever saw each other. I know we are family and she loves me.
In her wonderful book: Box of Butterflies, Roma Downey writes, "We are all one, we all belong to each other, and we are one big. beautiful family." Perhaps it is time that we all started to treat each other that way. Perhaps it is time that we shared our love, our kindness, our laughter, and our joy with everyone without fear. Perhaps it is time to finally and forever bring this world together in one big family reunion.
1. When the adults were chatting, the kids would__________.| A．play video games | B．sit in the front yard |
| C．learn to cook dinner | D．play traditional games |
| A．the others ran too fast | B．the author was good at running |
| C．Susan gave her a chance | D．Susan wanted to chase others |
| A．The author is grateful for hat Susan did to her. |
| B．The author cant meet Susan any more. |
| C．The author urges others to love their family. |
| D．The author believes the world will become a big family |
| A．A memory of my childhood. | B．Sharing of goodness unites us. |
| C．Kindness brightens our life. | D．A good deed is invaluable. |
3 . Last year I went on holiday to Spain. But
No sooner had I arrived than I was
He then asked me in Spanish if I was embarrassed. “Si, unpoco (Yes, a little)”, I replied with my face turning red. You see, not only did I feel embarrassed at
I was beginning to
No sooner had she told me this than I realized the
| A．unbearably | B．unfortunately | C．unwillingly | D．unusually |
| A．back | B．arm | C．muscle | D．stomach |
| A．appointment | B．examination | C．operation | D．instruction |
| A．invited | B．carried | C．shown | D．welcomed |
| A．until | B．since | C．after | D．before |
| A．urged | B．said | C．gestured | D．inquired |
| A．cover | B．hold | C．find | D．expose |
| A．tearing down | B．putting on | C．taking off | D．throwing away |
| A．unique | B．particular | C．awkward | D．perfect |
| A．mind | B．idea | C．heart | D．sight |
| A．waved | B．slid | C．screamed | D．disappeared |
| A．find | B．know | C．see | D．wonder |
| A．medical | B．physical | C．experienced | D．amateur |
| A．better | B．strange | C．upset | D．dull |
| A．hide | B．run | C．cry | D．mind |
| A．stated | B．whispered | C．shouted | D．prayed |
| A．colleague | B．staff | C．patient | D．student |
| A．delivering | B．adopting | C．tending | D．expecting |
| A．result | B．cause | C．problem | D．effect |
| A．cold | B．meeting | C．laugh | D．job |
4 . I’m a happy mother of two wonderful kids. My daughter is Blanca Ramirez. She’s 14 years old right now, but at the age of 11, she began to do long-distance running, she knew she could do more than just run, so she decided to run for a charity.
She ran for Operation Smile. It is a non-profit organization that helps children worldwide suffering from cleft lip or cleft palate (唇腭裂) at no charge. At Operation Smile they believe every such child deserves exceptional surgical (外科的) care.
My daughter believes that no child should be without a smile, so to help even more, she took her running even further. She went on a journey on becoming the youngest female in the world to run 7 marathons on 7 continents in the name of Operation Smile. She did so in order to raise money and awareness to this organization. And she completed her journey by age 12 on February 19, 2015.
But she’s not done. She now continues to help inspire others by running. One person she has inspired so much is her little brother Jordan. He is 7 years old and has run to this day, 105×5k’s, 11×10k’s & 4×half marathons. He will be running all 7 continents too along with Blanca, starting in November 2017 in Australia.
What makes me proud is that they both plan to continue to help others in this way, and maybe one day they’ll get an Olympic medal.
1. Why did Blanca run for Operation Smile?| A．Because her mother asked her to do so. |
| B．Because the organization required her to do so. |
| C．Because her brother invited her to do it together. |
| D．Because she could make contributions to the world. |
| A．It educates them for free. |
| B．It offers them food and clothes. |
| C．It looks after them at no charge. |
| D．It operates on them free of charge. |
| A．Warm-hearted and inspirational. |
| B．Humorous and clever. |
| C．Outgoing and helpful. |
| D．Gentle and kind. |
| A．Because they exercise regularly to keep fit. |
| B．Because they try to help others by running. |
| C．Because they’ve completed four full marathons. |
| D．Because they’ll continue running to win an Olympic medal. |
At each stage of our life，we meet different kinds of people. Some are funny；some teach us lessons in life while others occupy a special space in our heart. The people
In our childhood，“best friends”might have meant the persons who are always by our side，
True friends are those who will never leave you when you need them most. They are always there
6 . Dear Seth,
You are only three years old, and at this point in your life you are not able to understand this letter. But some day when you
Life can be
Be open to life anyway. You’ll find cruelty(残忍) and
You will meet many people who will try to do
Finally, know that I love you and always will. You are
Love,
Dad
1.| A．cheer up | B．show up | C．bring up | D．grow up |
| A．valuable | B．familiar | C．normal | D．novel |
| A．peaceful | B．gentle | C．equal | D．unkind |
| A．run after | B．look at | C．look after | D．laugh at |
| A．or | B．so | C．if | D．but |
| A．impressed | B．hurt | C．found | D．accepted |
| A．happen | B．work | C．matter | D．disappear |
| A．pain | B．difference | C．hope | D．luck |
| A．prevent | B．encourage | C．protect | D．choose |
| A．forgive | B．compete | C．struggle | D．hide |
| A．escape | B．prepare | C．seek | D．fail |
| A．take | B．enjoy | C．miss | D．meet |
| A．sorrow | B．action | C．success | D．curiosity |
| A．faster | B．earlier | C．less | D．better |
| A．him | B．me | C．you | D．them |
| A．dream | B．bet | C．journey | D．challenge |
| A．change | B．pardon | C．beat | D．follow |
| A．somewhere | B．instead | C．though | D．afterwards |
| A．patience | B．cruelty | C．happiness | D．quietness |
| A．spotting | B．starting | C．permitting | D．destroying |
Then one day, some visitors from the city arrived. They told the villagers there were some people elsewhere who liked to eat frog’s legs. However, they did not have enough frogs of their own, and so they wanted to buy frogs from other place.
This seemed like money for nothing. There were millions of frogs in the fields around, and they were no use to the villagers. All they had to do was catch them. Agreement was reached, and the children were sent into the fields to catch frogs. Every week a truck arrived to collect the catch and hand over the money. For the first time, the people were able to dream of a better future.
But the dream didn’t last long. The change was hardly noticed at first, but it seemed as if the crops were not doing so well. More worrying was that the children fell ill more often, and, there seemed to be more insects around lately.
The villagers decided that they couldn’t just wait to see the crops failing and the children getting weak. They would have to use the money earned to buy pesticides(杀虫剂) and medicines. Soon there was no money left.
Then the people realized what was happening. It was the frog. They hadn’t been useless. They had been doing an important job—eating insects. Now with so many frogs killed, the insects were increasing more rapidly. They were damaging the crops and spreading diseases.
Now, the people are still poor. But in the evenings they sit in the village square and listen to sounds of insects and frogs. These sounds of the night now have a much deeper meaning.
1. Why did the villagers agree to sell frogs?
| A．The frogs made too much noise. |
| B．They need money to buy medicine. |
| C．They wanted to please the visitors. |
| D．The frogs were easy money. |
| A．The crops didn’t do well. |
| B．There were too many insects. |
| C．The visitors brought in diseases. |
| D．The pesticides were overused. |
| A．Happiness comes from peaceful life in the country. |
| B．Health is more important than money. |
| C．The harmony between humans and nature is important. |
| D．Good old days will never be forgotten. |
My wife and I were walking through the parking lot at the supermarket the other day. We noticed a huge truck ________ about a foot into the next parking space. There was plenty of room in its own space, ________ the driver had chosen to park very poorly and made sure that ________ could use the space next to his.
My first ________ was “Why do people act like such idiots (白痴)?”
“What a ________ that people have to do things like that.” My wife said.
I stopped and looked around at the rest of the parking lot. There were a good five hundred ________ and 99% of them were parked well. Their drivers had shown the ________ necessary to park in a way that still ________ other people to park.
“Think about it,” I said. “Only one ________ parks poorly and we start using ‘people’ to describe the driver.” The ________ of the matter is that we forget about the thousands of people who behave themselves when we see one person doing something ________.
I’ve been ________ for many years, and the percentage of good drivers is always ________ than the percentage of poor drivers. “People” don’t necessarily drive poorly, but individuals do.
My wife and I almost didn’t ________ the many cars that were parked well because the car that was parked poorly caught our ________. It is true that we’re far less ________ to see the positive side of things if we keep ________ on the negative. Once we fall into this trap, how many of the wonderful things in the world will we ________?
Our lives are ours to live, and the ________ we see our world is up to us. Remember: the rude person truly is a(n) ________, and not really worth the time or effort we spend thinking about him or her.1.
| A．hung | B．repaired | C．parked | D．prevented |
| A．when | B．but | C．because | D．so |
| A．somebody | B．anybody | C．all | D．nobody |
| A．conclusion | B．request | C．response | D．sight |
| A．shame | B．mistake | C．wonder | D．fool |
| A．drivers | B．rooms | C．people | D．cars |
| A．politeness | B．satisfaction | C．cleverness | D．respect |
| A．refused | B．warned | C．asked | D．allowed |
| A．group | B．person | C．part | D．kind |
| A．result | B．truth | C．cause | D．purpose |
| A．rude | B．polite | C．nice | D．serious |
| A．driving | B．traveling | C．teaching | D．thinking |
| A．fewer | B．larger | C．more | D．smaller |
| A．notice | B．ignore | C．recognize | D．admire |
| A．care | B．worry | C．breath | D．attention |
| A．willing | B．likely | C．content | D．eager |
| A．focusing | B．relying | C．putting | D．carrying |
| A．destroy | B．value | C．miss | D．desire |
| A．attitude | B．way | C．model | D．method |
| A．problem | B．question | C．exception | D．example |
| A．Think about the problem from your parents’ point of view． |
| B．Never listen to your parents |
| C．Think before you speak． |
| D．It is quite common to disagree with one’s parents． |
| E．Hear them out and then decide how to deal with the problem． |
| F．If you can, try to discuss the problem with your parents at another time． |
| G．Be clear about what you need，rather than focus on why you disagree． |
