Tim’s heart raced as he drove to the lawyer’s office. He was bequeathed (遗赠) a mysterious box his dad had never allowed him and his sister to even go near. He signed papers, but was shocked to learn he didn’t get the key to open it and nothing about the key was mentioned in the will. “You’ll have to figure that out!” the lawyer said. Tim left the office, puzzled about what his late dad had left him.
Just then, he remembered his childhood home where he and his twin sister Karen grew up. They had lost their mother just two months after they were born. They were raised by their dad Jonathan, and the two were the best friends! As they grew older, they were drawn to the mysterious box, but their dad warned them never to touch it, and even hung the key on a nail high above the fireplace so that they would never get their hands on its contents. Whatever he was hiding from his kids, he was on guard at all times.
As the years fleeted by, Tim and Karen moved on with their respective lives. And their brother-sister bond went downhill. The twins fought over who would inherit (继承) their dad’s house. Jonathan was heartbroken and whatever trick he tried to reconcile (和解) them, nothing worked. Meanwhile, Jonathan’s health began to decline, and even on his deathbed, he wished his kids would put aside their differences and get back together.
What would Tim do with the inherited box now? He went to his childhood home to find the key. The house no longer appeared like that loving home Tim remembered growing up in. When he reached to grab the key above the fireplace, he sensed someone behind him. “What are you doing here?” screamed Karen, casting the cell phone flashlight on Tim’s face.
“Dad bequeathed me his old chest, and I came here looking for the key. But what are you doing here?”
“Dad bequeathed me the key! So I came here to find the chest,” said Karen, puzzled about his father’s decision.
注意：1.写作词数应为150左右；
2.请在答题卡的相应位置作答。
“Something had to be wrong,” they thought and stared at each other.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Tears ran down their cheeks at seeing their childhood photos with their father and mother.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Wide awake, I sat up in bed before dawn. I'd had another dream about Jennifer, my middle child. She's 38 now. Usually in my dreams she's still a little shy girl.
Jennifer had been five years old and her older sister seven, when the twins were born. Everything changed. The boys demanded much of my time and energy, so I hardly had any left for their older sisters. Sweet, quiet Jennifer, sandwiched between the others, required almost nothing from me. Eventually Jennifer had her own children and lived about an hour and a half away. But it seemed as though she were worlds away.
I often dreamed about her. In this one she was a grown woman and mixed in with a crowd. I waved hard, “Jennifer! I'm over here!” But she didn't notice me.
I longed to hear my daughter's voice and called, “Hey, I had a dream about you.” Then Jennifer surprised me. “I dreamed about you too. But it was terrible. I won't even tell you.”
“But I am eager to hear.”
Her words came out without thinking, “We were walking through a vegetable garden. A farmer shouted that I'd stepped on one of his tomatoes and asked for 43 cents. I didn't have any money and turned to you. You said no. I begged. I woke up in tears.”
The pain in her voice almost cut my breath off. “There were so many things I should have done for you. I overlooked you. You seemed so competent and independent. I forgot you were just a child.”
There was silence on her end of the line. The communication seemed broken again. I called an old friend and told her about Jennifer's dream and our awkward attempt to connect. “Your relationship probably broke down over a lot of little things,” she said.
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 realized what I should do to mend our relationship.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The next day, my daughter called me excitedly.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
