1 . I woke to the sound of birds outside my window and lay in bed, going over the busy day ahead of me. Finally, I got up and attempted to switch on the light — nothing happened. I checked my phone. No Wi-Fi, no data. With our unstable cell service, there was no way of knowing if we had received alerts fbr a power failure. I grabbed a sweater, went downstairs, found a flashlight and a match to light the gas stove, and then boiled water to brew coffee. Outside the window, the falling snow obscured (遮蔽) the sunrise. Deep piles of snow covered the road.
My work meetings and deadlines, my sons’ classes and tests, my husband’s plans — everything would have to wait. Why does this happen today of all days?“ I asked. Thankfully, the wood stove was still going strong. I took a deep breath. I supposed we had everything we needed.
The house was quiet as I sipped my coffee and cuddled (搂抱) our dog. One by one, my husband and sons came downstairs and complained about the turn the day had taken.
I opened the curtains to let light in. We gathered around the table and had cereal. After breakfast, my husband played a game of solitaire. Then my sons joined him in building a house of cards that reached three levels until our cat jumped up to investigate and knocked it down. We played a round of Scrabble and had my favorite snow day lunch: grilled cheese and tomato soup.
Then we took a long walk in the woods behind our house, walking along the stream. We spotted deer tracks and played in the snow that was coming down in big fluffy flakes. When we returned, all the clocks in the house were blinking. I started to make dinner, happy to have things back to normal — even better than normal.
It was a day that began without electricity, cut off from the rest of the world, and ended with hot chocolate and power restored. We were recharged by the unexpected gift of a day together.
1. What did the author find when she woke up?| A．Heavy snow trapped the family in the house. |
| B．The electricity supply had been cut off. |
| C．It was still early for breakfast. |
| D．Her phone wouldn’t be turned on. |
| A．Their arrangements were upset. |
| B．They had to serve themselves with simple meals. |
| C．The family encountered a shortage of supplies. |
| D．Everyone was angry about this unexpected event. |
| A．To pave the way for her insight. |
| B．To present the daily life of the family. |
| C．To show the close family relationship. |
| D．To create a lighthearted atmosphere. |
| A．It was a temporary disaster. |
| B．It was a day full of exciting adventures. |
| C．It was a lovely day of family togetherness. |
| D．It was a rare moment of leisure and freedom. |
2 . My nephew Tyden and I were celebrating another nephew’s birthday at a local amusement center. It was the kind of place where you got tickets for scoring points in the games and then cashed them in for prizes.
Tyden won top prize of tickets，so we went to cash them in and select his gifts. I felt a little sad because my loved one and I had our first date at this center and had exchanged little things from the showcase. I noticed a turtle and remembered my partner loved it. I asked the young man behind the showcase if I could just buy the turtle without tickets. He said. “Unluckily. that is not a choice.”
I needed to win 350 tickets to cash the turtle in.so I left Tyden choosing his gift alone there. I bought game tokens（代币）and entered the game room. I had just chosen a game I thought I could win when I heard Tyden's excited voice，“Auntie，Auntie！Look！”
He pulled the turtle out from behind his back and gave it to me. My eyes were filled with tears. and my heart burst with love. He had listened to that whole conversation and chosen to give the turtle to me instead of getting whatever he wanted.
Before I could thank him. he said，“I wanted you to have it，so you didn't have to spend money，which would cause you to work hard”.
I held him in my arms，and told him how much I loved him. I am beyond thankful to have the title of his Auntie
1. What did the author fail to do?| A．Find another gift． | B．Buy a turtle． | C．Exchange gifts． | D．Please her loved one |
| A．To get a prize． | B．To beat Tyden． | C．To challenge herself． | D．To win tickets for her nephew. |
| A．Worried． | B．Moved． | C．Surprised． | D．Confused． |
| A．Hard-working． | B．Clever． | C．Honest． | D．Caring. |
3 . Our words have the ability to build our loved ones up and guide our communication in the right direction.
Tell the truth gently(和缓地). It might feel like the right thing to hide the truth to avoid hurting your loved ones, but being dishonest breaks trust.
Respect each other's views. Is it more important to be “right” or protect your relationship? Remember there are a lot of “rights," depending on who you are talking to, so avoid getting caught up in right vs. wrong.
Be a good listener.
| A．Think before you speak. |
| B．Ask directly for what you want. |
| C．Instead, learn to respect each other's differences. |
| D．But sometimes they can have the opposite results. |
| E．When someone is speaking to you, give them your attention. |
| F．We practice and pass on healthy communication rules in our family. |
| G．However, the truth should always be told in a gentle way and with love. |
When the tragedy struck me during the Depression (大萧条), my father did the only thing he could.
The tragedy happened in the year 1933. I was only 6 years old when I was rushed to the hospital with two crushed feet. My parents were told I might never walk again.
The accident happened when I was sitting in front of our house in Lowell, Massachusetts. I was playing in a puddle (水坑) after a rainstorm when I felt a huge weight on my feet. When I looked up, there was a car tire on my feet. I cried out, but the motor was running and no one could hear me over the engine.
The driver had run across the street for a newspaper. When he got back to his car, he drove away — never knowing he had parked on my feet.
Just about then, our neighbor’s son came home and saw me bent over my feet in pain. He immediately carried me home, and I remember thinking how tall and strong he was.
An ambulance came, and I remained in the hospital for 3 weeks while my feet were “repaired”. When I returned home, I could hardly walk.
I sat in our bay window and watched the children play on the street and longed to join them...but I couldn’t. I felt so left out despite my parents’ company.
My parents were told that if I was ever to walk again, I’d need treatment, which in those days meant riding a tricycle (三轮车) to strengthen the muscle and eventually get my feet back into condition for walking.
Our family couldn’t afford such an expensive thing. Times were tough during the Depression, and there were five mouths to feed, besides buying coal and wood for the stove.
Dad couldn’t afford the bus fare and on cold winter days he walked 7 miles every day in his only winter coat to get to work. No, there was no money for a tricycle. I would be a disabled person all my life.
Paragraph 1:Then one day, while sitting at my usual place in the window, I saw my father walking up the street carrying a tricycle on his shoulder.
Paragraph 2:
It was many years later before I learned where and how Dad had got the tricycle.
Several years ago, I traveled by train to Stockholm. I was visiting two friends who were to meet me at the train station. I stood there waiting for my first friend to arrive and in the midst of all the hurrying passengers that Friday afternoon, I heard a weak voice; it sounded like a question. I turned and saw a young man standing with a white cane ( 拐 杖 ) , his suitcase by his feet. I approached and asked,“Do you need help?”“Yes,”he replied, nodding his head, appearing relieved.
He had been trying for some time, unsuccessfully, to get someone’s attention. He had missed his train home. His cell phone battery was dead, and he needed to call his mother to tell her of the circumstances.
This young man named Mustafa, I found out, had just completed his first week at a school for the blind. He went to school on Mondays and returned home on Fridays. Of course I helped him call his mother. I did not understand what he spoke with her on my cell phone, but I could tell the language was Swedish. Of course the next problem was finding the right train home and telling his mother the new arrival time. Yet in this disordered train station, I did not want to miss connecting with my friend Bogdan who was on his way to the spot where we were standing.
Before I could dial the number to call Bogdan, he was suddenly already there. I described the problem and Bogdan took the young man’s arm and we were off on our adventure to help get Mustafa home. While sorting out where his home was, what train, and what time, my second friend Marcello called and wondered where we were. Soon he joined us. It happened that Marcello speaks 12 languages.
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。
Marcello’s gift in language was a great advantage.
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Now we were leading Mustafa to his train.
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6 . If feels like every time my mother and I start to have a conversation，it turns into an argument．We talk about something as simple as dinner plans and suddenly，my mother will push the conversation into World War？She'll talk about my lack of a bright future because I don't plan to be a doctor．And much to her disappointment，I don't want to do any job related to science，either．In fact，when I was pushed to say that I planned to major （主修） in English and communications，she nearly had a heart attack．
"Why can't you be like my coworker's son？"she bemoans all the time．Her coworker's son received a four year scholarship and is now earning 70，000 dollars a year as an engineer．I don't know what to answer except that I simply can't be like Mr Perfect as I've called the unnamed coworker's son．I can't be like him．I'm the type of person who loves to help out in the community，write until the sun goes down，and most of all，wants to achieve a career because I love it，not because of fame （名声） or salary．
I understand why my mother is worried about my future major．I've seen my mother struggle to raise me on her small salary and work long hours．She leaves the house around 6：30 am and usually comes home around 5 pm or even 6 pm．However，I want her to know that by becoming a doctor，it doesn't mean I'll be successful．I'd rather follow my dreams and create my own future．
1. Which of the following topics do the writer and his mother often talk about？ ______| A．The writer's studies． | B．The writer's future job． |
| C．Dinner plans． | D．Wars around the world． |
| A．doesn't want the writer to major in English |
| B．doesn't think the writer should be a doctor |
| C．gets along very well with the writer |
| D．doesn't think working in the science field is a good idea |
| A．agrees | B．shouts |
| C．complains | D．smiles |
| A．He wants to be like his mother's coworker's son． |
| B．He wants to find a job in his community in the future． |
| C．He doesn't think his mother's coworker's son is perfect． |
| D．He wants to do something he really likes in the future． |
