A GIFT FOR GRANDPA
Summer vacation was coming. Jack and his brother Berlin were filled with excitement as they thought of visiting their grandparents again.
The big day came at last. After the happy family got ready, they set out for the grandparents’ eagerly. On the way, the brothers were excitedly talking about the fun they had with grandparents.
A little blue house with a tall white chimney finally appeared. Behind the property was the forest carrying their good memories with Grandpa. They arrived at the driveway, at the end of which Grandma was waiting for them joyfully.
Jack and Berlin each gave Grandma a big hug and then swept to the living room, shouting excitedly “Grandpa, we are back!”
Seeing his grandsons, Grandpa was wild with joy and tried to get up with all his strength from the chair but in vain. A helpless expression flashed on his face. Grandma explained that his health was declining rapidly and maybe couldn’t stand up on his own forever. But Grandpa declared stubbornly (倔强地), “I can!” Certainly, he was stuck in his boyish way. Mum and grandparents were happy to meet again after a long time. They sat together and chatted about what happened recently.
The brothers were soon bored with adult conversation, went out and wandered into the forest. Tall trees stretched up to the heavens with large branches crossing each other, while young ones rose straight like soldiers. Grandpa was once a great explorer full of wisdom. He could tell where the birds came from only by their calls and songs. The trees, birds, lizards, lots of bugs...How many merry moments they spent with Grandpa in the kingdom!
But now Grandpa couldn't get up. This made them worried. “We’d think out a way to cheer him up.” Jack said. “Grandpa is a bird lover, and we can catch him a bird.” Berlin suggested. “But he hates birds being caged!” Jack shook his head.
Then a bright idea came to Jack’s mind. “Why not make a cane (拐杖) out of a young tree!”
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。
Berlin thought it was a good idea.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Jack and Berlin handed the cane to Grandpa.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________A few years ago, my mom went to the doctor to ask him about her neck, which had been a little bigger than usual. It turned out there was something wrong with her lymph glands, and soon they scheduled Mom to have a biopsy on the seventh of September.
As soon as I found out, I was very angry, as September 7 is my birthday. They had promised to take me to see a spider-man movie and had a picnic in the yard. I shouted at her and everyone else, too. I even shouted at the dog. I started begging her to reschedule the biopsy. She gave me this look like she was about to cry and said, “I've done everything I can. I've got a disease. Could you forgive me?” Finally, I just shouted, “I hate you!” and ran into my room, crying. I sat on my bed thinking—Why do things always have to happen to me? Everyone gets diseases Why couldn't mum just go to hospital another day?
For the next couple of weeks I remained silently angry. Deep down I knew I shouldn't act that way, but I did anyway. Anyone could see how sad I was making my mom. I knew it wasn't her fault, but I had to have someone to blame.
Finally, my birthday came. My parents left early in the morning for the hospital, and I was sent to our neighbor's house. No spider-man movie, no birthday present, and no picnic. Though I was taken good care of, I was not having a good time. “This isn't fair,” I thought. “This was supposed to be my day.”
My parents came home late that night. Mom walked in with a bandage on her neck She sat down and rested her head on my dad's shoulder. It hurt so badly that it was difficult for her to talk.
Later that night, Mom asked me to get into her room and she pulled out a box.
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Being sent to New York to help develop a new project, my parents would be too busy to look after me. So they decided to drive me to the village where my grandpa lived. He had been a teacher in a high school before he retired 3 years ago. I haven’t seen my grandfather for a long time. I could only remember he was a serious, well-dressed and handsome man.
When Mum pulled in the driveway, Grandpa Michael was weeding his garden. He stood up and greeted us with wide-open arms. In his muddy gloves and jeans, he looked nothing like the grandfather I remembered. I wasn’t expecting him to look so different.
After the hugs and kisses, Grandpa couldn’t wait to show off his garden, pointing out his almost-ripe tomatoes and complaining about the rabbits eating his lettuce. The man who had been devoted himself for ages to helping his students improve their grades, form good habits or change their bad behaviour now cared so much about gardening. He used to be a perfect teacher but now he was only a perfect gardener.
Mum returned, leaving only Grandpa and me. I was a little nervous as if we were strangers. My grandpa was a little, too. “Are you hungry? Let’s prepare for our dinner together, OK?” My grandpa turned to me and said proudly, “Now, Adam, you know I am very good at making pasta（意大利面）with delicious sauce. Would you like to try?” I eagerly nodded. “That’s good!” Grandpa said. “We’ll make some.”
We pulled up some vegetables from the garden, and then drove 15 miles to the nearest grocery, where Grandpa bought cheese and nuts. On the drive home Grandpa told me his students all liked the pasta he cooked especially the sauce.
Then Grandpa showed me how to mix eggs with flour to make pasta and then how to prepare the sauce. When everything was ready, he proudly served me a large plate of pasta. I put a forkful into my mouth and it was just terrible.
Paragraph 1:
“So,” Grandpa said, his eyes shining, “what do you think?”
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My grandpa hugged me warmly.
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My single mother used to take on several jobs just in order to make ends meet. When I was fifteen years old, she started her own business, and things began to get easier financially. There was no longer a question as to whether she would be able to afford groceries for the week.
The following spring, when I was sixteen years old, a new family moved into our neighborhood. The wife, Melissa, quickly made friends with my mother, and the children though younger than me, became my pals soon. They lived within walking distance from us, and once school let out for the summer, I would walk over to their house to watch Disney movies while my mother was at work.
One afternoon, I was at their house during lunchtime, and they were generous enough to include me in the meal. Their daughter, ten at the time, requested a glass of milk of with her food. Melissa stated, “We are out of milk, and we don't have any more money for groceries this week.” She suddenly realized that I was present and explained with a defeated look, “Money has been really tight.”
The family had recently moved to Central Pennsylvania from California because Melissa had been offered a good job. The position had not worked out, and her husband had to take the first job he could find. They had uprooted their children and moved across the country, leaving behind family and friends, only to end up in trouble. I thought about our own situation just a year earlier.
Later, I came home with a heavy heart as I think of their hardship. I told my mother about the rough time Melisa was experiencing. “Do you think we could help them?” I asked. In response, she immediately opened the cupboard doors and started pulling out food. We searched each cabinet(储藏柜), grabbing bag after bag, can after can---cereal, peanut butter, spaghetti sauce, and more. Then we handled the canning shelf where my mother's precious homemade goods were stored. We found a sizable(相当大的) box and packed it full.
注意：1. 续写词数应为 150 左右；
2. 开头已给出。
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Then we drove to our friends’ house, made our way to the door with our box and bags, and knocked eagerly.
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Looking at my mother, I felt proud to be the daughter of this great woman.
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Several years ago,I was living in New York and working for an airline,so I never got back home for Christmas. My Christmas was happy too with some other colleagues around. But in my heart,I was sad because I couldn't stay with my family. Sometimes my colleagues would say our Christmas was filled with tears. But this Christmas was different. I was lucky. I had the whole day off, which meant I could stay with my family on Christmas Eve.
When Christmas morning came, I awoke to a small hand feeling my face. "Dad, Merry Christmas!" was all my younger son had time to say. He seemed to be racing against time. I knew he was hunting for gifts with his brother eagerly. I got downstairs just to see the two little boys' faces as they looked at the pocket rockets Santa Claus had left them. I realized that the real Christmas was for the children who had deep belief in the amazing power of Santa Claus. At first, their fingers went almost shyly over their toys. When their inspection（检阅）had been completed, the two boys ensured that the gifts were really delivered by Santa Claus and they pulled everything into the center of the living room.
Delight flooded the room. As their mother began giving out gifts,I smiled to myself,wondering how my unexpected gifts this year would be received. With so many Christmas spent outside, I had prepared so many gifts for my children and together with my wife I hid them in several secret places. But the children were excellent detectives（侦探）and they found all of them. They were happily opening packages,thanking considerate Santa Claus for his kindness and ability to know their desires. But I had not received a single one. I knew they had forgotten my existence（存在），for I hadn't been with them during Christmas these years.
注意：
1.所续写短文的词数应为 150 左右；
2.续写部分分为两段，可适当补充细节，使情节完整；
3.每段的开头语已为你写好，不计入总词数。
Paragraph 1：
I had to say that my disappointment was growing little by little.
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Paragraph 2：
Suddenly my wife walked up to me.
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There is no school equal to a decent (体面的) home and no teacher equal to a virtuous parent.
There are two typical examples: Edison’s mother and our mother. As you all know, Thomas Edison is one of the most outstanding scientists and inventors in the world. Unbelievably, young Tom was in school for only three months. It is said that he liked to ask strange questions, many of which have nothing to do with learning. His teacher didn’t understand why he had so many strange questions. He didn’t want to teach Tom any more. He asked Tom’s mother to take the boy home. Tom’s mother taught him to read and write, and she found him to be a very good pupil. He learned very fast and became very interested in science. It was she who played an important role in Edison’s growth. Although we can’t compare with Edison, our mother played a more important role in our growth than his mother. Our dad was an English teacher who taught high school students. For many years, he had been cautious and conscientious (认真的) towards work. Mom stayed home and homeschooled their four children. Three of us had no trouble in learning but my sister Catherine still could not read by fifth grade, and worse still, did not even know the alphabet (字母表).
My mother did some research and found that Catherine had some sort of learning disability. She sent Catherine to a public school to get some help. Catherine made many friends at school and amazed everyone with her gift for telling creative stories in class, but she still couldn’t master reading skills. After all the testing was done, the school had my parents come in. They were told that based on the test results, they should just take Catherine home, which was very similar to Edison’s experience. However, the biggest difference is that Edison was not stupid, and my sister really had learning disabilities.
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。
Tears of sadness ran down my dad’s cheeks.
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In time, Catherine got it.
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Pumpkin(南瓜)carving at Halloween is a family tradition. We visit a local farm every October. In the pumpkin field, I compete with my three brothers and sister to seek out the biggest pumpkin. My dad has a rule that we have to carry our pumpkins back home, and as the eldest child I have an advantage — I carried an 85-pounder back last year.
This year, it was hard to tell whether my prize or the one chosen by my 14-year-old brother, Jason, was the winner. Unfortunately we forgot to weigh them before taking out their insides, but I was determined to prove my point. All of us were hard at work at the kitchen table, with my mom filming the annual event. I’m unsure now why I thought forcing my head inside the pumpkin would settle the matter, but it seemed to make perfect sense at the time.
With the pumpkin resting on the table, hole uppermost, I bent over and pressed my head against the opening. At first I got jammed just above my eyes and then, as I went on with my task, unwilling to quit, my nose briefly prevented entry. Finally I managed to put my whole head into it, like a cork(软木塞)forced into a bottle. I was able to straighten up with the huge pumpkin resting on my shoulders.
My excitement was short-lived. The pumpkin was heavy. “I’m going to set it down, now,” I said, and with Jason helping to support its weight, I bent back over the table to give it somewhere to rest. It was only when I tried to remove my head that I realized getting out was going to be less straightforward than getting in. When I pulled hard, my nose got in the way. I got into a panic as I pressed firmly against the table and moved my head around trying to find the right angle, but it was no use. “I can’t get it out!” I shouted, my voice sounding unnaturally loud in the enclosed space.
注意：1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2. 续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好；
Paragraph 1：
I was stuck for five to six minutes though it felt much longer.
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That video was posted the day before Halloween.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________It took place in a teacher’s family. One day, Ben was playing basketball in the living room after school, when he accidentally threw the ball at a vase sitting on the shelf. The vase dropped to the floor and a large piece broke off. What made Ben more upset was that the vase was not a common decoration but an antique(古董), which was handed down through generations from the 18th century. It was also his mother’s favorite thing. To cover his terrible action, the terrified boy glued the pieces together quickly and put the vase back to its place.
As the mother herself dusted the vase every day, she naturally noticed the cracks(裂纹) that evening. To her surprise, the repair work was actually very good. At dinner time, she asked her boy if he broke the vase. Fearing punishment, the suddenly inspired boy said that a neighbor’s cat jumped in from the window and he couldn’t drive it away no matter how hard he tried. It raced around the living room and finally knocked the vase off its shelf. His mother was quite clear that her son was lying, for all the windows were closed before she left for work each morning and opened after she returned. However, in the face of her son’s nervous eyes and the suspicious(怀疑的) looks of the other family members. Ben’s mother remained calm. She realized she shouldn’t just simply blame and punish her son for lying. She came up with another idea.
Before going to bed, the boy found a note from his mother in his room, asking him to go to the study at once. The boy thought he would now be punished but, as he had already lied, he was determined to deny everything to the end, no matter how angry his mum became.
In the study, calmly bathed in the light, his mother’s face showed no sign of anger. On seeing her son push open the door and cautiously enter, she took a chocolate box out of a drawer and gave him one.
注意：
1.所续写的短文词数应为 150 左右；
2.应使用 5 个以上短文中标有下划线的关键词语；
3.续写部分分为二段，每段的开头语已经为你写好；
4.续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。
Paragraph 1：The mother said, “This chocolate is a reward for your imagination: a window-opening cat!”
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Paragraph 2: Now with some chocolates in hand, the boy’s bad attitude disappeared.
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I always dreamed of giving someone a surprise, one that will be remembered for a lifetime. You know, the kind you see on TV or read in stories. Well, thanks to a little determination, some luck, and a generous helping of Christmas Spirit, my dream became a reality.
My family is Canadian, although my sister moved down to Australia a few years ago to further her study. She was graduating just before Christmas. However, due to my own school schedule back home, I would not be able to make it in time for her graduation. She was understandably disappointed, and I felt guilty that I wasn’t able to be there for her on this most special occasion.
While I was talking to my school advisor about my term paper the week before my sister’s graduation, our conversation drifted toward Christmas plans. When I mentioned that I would be missing my sister’s graduation by less than 48 hours, she commented, “Well, if you want to go, I have no problem with it, so go ahead!”
On hearing the words, I couldn’t believe my luck! I nearly jumped for joy. “Just make sure you get permission from administration,” she added. What she said immediately made my heart sink. The administration at my school was well-known for denying any sort of time-off requests, let alone last-minute requests, which would undoubtedly draw nothing but anger. I almost didn’t bother asking, because I knew it would be a waste of time and I didn’t feel like a thorough punishment. Plus, I knew the answer already: no. But something in me decided to try, just in case. Maybe it was the hope that the Christmas Spirit would somehow affect the administrative office at this time of year.
When I returned home to find the reply from the administration in my email box, I prepared myself for disappointment.
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。
I took a deep breath, opened the e-mail, and started to read.
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With the ticket, I couldn’t wait to call my sister but suddenly an idea occurred to me.
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My best memory of Christmas is the time when I was a little kid. Mom would teach us her favorite children’s song Twelve Days of Christmas: “On the first day of Christmas my true love sent to me...”. We would usually add the gifts we received to the song, which we thought was a great way to appreciate the gifts and enjoy the holiday filled with love.
Now, it was again the holiday season but Mom could not sing the song together with us. It had become too difficult to take her from her Alzheimer’s(阿尔茨海默氏病)unit to Christmas dinner with us. Heart problems had set in, and she was growing weaker.
Whenever Christmas comes, my mind is filled with memories. Memories of faith, memories of family and, yes, memories of food. What happens, then, when a disease steals our memories?
During the course of my mother’s Alzheimer’s, I often asked myself what becomes of us when our memories are gone. It’s as if our memories are like a mirror that reflects who we are, and slowly our image fades in that mirror until we find no one there at all. Alzheimer’s is a disease that breaks hearts as well as minds. Whether or not I am likely to get the same disease that took my mother, I hope I will never forget all the love and care Mom has given us. I will spend Christmas with Mom each year anyway.
December 25 was very cold—the way it should be in Michigan. My brother Joe, my sister Mary, my sister-in-law Toni and I—along with my nieces Clare and Rachel, my cousin Carol, and my wife, Julee—piled into our cars and headed to Clausen Manor to see Mom. “Does she even know it’s Christmas?” I asked Julee on the way.
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。
On our arrival at Alzheimer’s unit, we showed Mom the gifts we brought to her and Carol put a Twelve Days of Christmas picture book on Mom’s lap.
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We stared in astonishment unable to believe our ears.
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