I chewed on my pencil as I walked back and forth across my bedroom. What was I going to do? It was bad enough that I was the new kid. But now I was sure to get laughed right out of fifth grade. How could my first homework be such a disaster?
“My name is Anna, and this summer I——”I stopped. How could I stand in front of my class and say that I’d spent the entire summer handling something that most people don’t even like to talk about? Poop (粪便). I’d spent three months shoveling (铲), collecting, and analyzing co w poop on my grandparents’ farm. I tried to think of a different adventure I could share. Maybe I could say I’d spent the summer on the Weather Control Team preventing floods.
“Time for dinner,” my mom called.
I walked slowly down the stairs and slid into my chair.
“You’ve been in your room since you came home from school,” Mom said. “What are you working on?”
I sighed. “I have to tell the class what I did this summer.”
My younger brother, Seymour, began to laugh uncontrollably. “No one will want to sit next to you after they hear you were covered in cow poop all summer!”
“OK, that’s enough, Seymour,” Dad said.
“Anna,” said Mom, putting green beans in a bowl, “be proud of the work we did this summer. Our planet would be in sad shape without scientists like your grandfather.”
It’s true that my grandfather does important work. He developed an easy way to use poop as a source of fuel. Using the poop is now easy, economical, and environmentally safe.
“I know, Mom,” I said, staring at my meatloaf. “But it’s not exactly something people want to hear about before lunch.”
That night I dreamed about more splendid adventures: cave diving in Mexico; hiking through the Amazon rainforest.
At school the next day, I bent over my desk, listening to each kid speak. My palms were sweaty, and the knot (结) in my stomach grew tighter.
“And that was my journey to Mount Everest,” Ember Adams said, finishing her report. She bowed and took her seat.
注意：
1. 续写词数应为 150个左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题纸的相应位置作答。
“It’s your turn, Anna,” Ms. Hammond said.
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The class cheered as I returned to my desk, and some of my classmates approached me with admiration in their eyes.
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“I’m sorry, but visiting hours are over,” the nurse said apologetically. “You can come back in the morning.”
My husband Eric had just got out of the operating room and was still struggling with being sick from the anesthesia (麻醉). I really wanted to stay with him until he was more comfortable, but I knew that the hospital’s visiting policies must be followed.
“I’ll take care of him before you get back, I promise.” The nurse handed me a piece of paper. “That’s my cell number. You can call or text me anytime tonight if you’re worried or just want an update.”
I thanked her and then turned to Eric. “Can I do anything for you before I leave?” He shook his head slightly without opening his eyes, and I could tell he was uncomfortable. “I can’t believe I have to leave while you’re like this,” I said, tears filling my eyes. “I’m so sorry.”
He patted my hand and signaled to me to leave. “I’ll be right here in the morning.” I said and headed to my car, still fighting tears. In my head, I knew that Eric wasn’t in danger, and he would be physically okay when I returned in the morning, but it still broke my heart that I couldn’t be with him when he needed me.
The hospital was a few hours from our house, so I was spending the night in a hotel. When I got to my room, I texted Eric’s nurse. She texted back, saying he was still sick to his stomach.
I sighed, feeling the worry rush in. What if getting sick caused his stitches (缝线) to break open? How much of the pain medicine was still in his system? What if he was in pain from his incision (切口)?
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 turned on the TV to shift my focus, but it didn’t work.
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Around midnight, I heard my phone receive a message.
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What Color Is a Hug?
When my daughter Bernadette was 10 years old, I found myself very worried about her. Her mother had passed away before she turned one, and I, needing to provide for our livelihood, had to work long hours, leaving little time for her. Although she was close to her grandparents, unfortunate circumstances took them away as well. The series of losses implanted unbearable pain on her young soul.
A merciless series of losses like that is hard on anyone, especially a child. But it was particularly hard on Bernadette because of her sensitive and loving nature. Prolonged periods of isolation and silence led her into a deep depression. The sparkle in her eyes faded, and her face lost the once-present smiles. She lost interest in playing, learning, and even declined invitations from friends. She often lost in her own thoughts without uttering a word for a long time.
Witnessing my daughter’s suffering, I felt a deep sense of guilt and helplessness. I knew she needed more than just companionship; she needed a healing of the soul. I began reading more about child psychology, attempting to understand how to guide her out of this situation.
Over the next few months, I adjusted my work schedule to spend more time by her side. I tried to communicate with her, stepping into her inner world. I encouraged her to join some extracurricular classes, developing new friendships. Slowly but surely, Bernadette began to regain her interest in certain things, and smiles started to reappear on her face.
Meanwhile, I started using hugs to comfort her. Each embrace conveyed my love and support, providing her with warmth and a sense of security. Gradually, she became more cheerful and confident. She initiated social interactions, sharing her thoughts with friends. Her mood gradually lifted, and life regained its brilliance.
After years of effort, Bernadette finally stepped out of depression. Our habit of hugging has persisted to this day, becoming the most sincere bond between us. Now, as my daughter is about to enter university, and I am approaching my fiftieth birthday, she has promised me a special gift.
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。
Paragraph1:
As her summer vacation began, she seemed even busier than before.
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Before us was a warmly decorated studio, with a sign reading “Heartwarming Embrace Association.”
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________If you are constantly lack of confidence and worried about what other people think about your shortcomings, you will never get to where you need to go in life. This was what I learned from my own experience.
My name is Peter. Before I was born, the doctors examined my mom and found there was something wrong with my face, and actually it was worse. With my “weird” face, I knew I was not an ordinary ten-year-old kid. I had never been to a real school before, not because of the way I looked, but all the surgeries I had. Mom homeschooled me. I became stronger, though. So maybe it was time for me to go to the real school.
One day, I happened to hear Mom and Dad talking about me quietly. “We can’t keep protecting him.” Mom whispered to Dad, “We have to help him learn to deal with it. We can’t just keep avoiding situations that… ”, but she didn’t even finish her sentence because she saw me. “Go back to sleep, Peter,” Mom said softly.
“Everyone will stare at me at school,” I said, suddenly crying.
Mom came over, putting her hand on mine. “Honey, you know if you don’t want to do this, you don’t have to. But we spoke to the principal (校长) , Mr. Green and told him how funny and smart you are. When I told him about all your surgeries, and how brave you are, ‘Wow, I have to meet this kid.’ ” Mom smiled at me.
“He is really a nice man. Besides, a real school is really good for you. Peter, you will make lots of friends and learn things you have never learned with Mom.” Dad added, raising his hand as if to swear.
“But… I don’t want to go. I am afraid... ” I said in a low voice.
“How about at least meeting Mr. Green before you make up your mind?” Mom asked.
I nodded, unwilling to accept the arrangement.
注意：
1. 续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2. 请在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Paragraph 1:
We arrived at the school a few weeks before the start of the school.
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Paragraph 2:
After taking a tour of the school and hearing Mr. Green’s words, I realized it was time to make a change.
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Sarah couldn’t really remember when she and Laura became best friends. But they had been really close. They had lunch together in the school cafeteria, they went to the same book club, and they even had parties in each other’s house several times. As a matter of fact, the two girls had quite different personalities. Sarah was always confident and straightforward. In comparison, Laura was a bit quiet, but she was definitely the sweetest person Sarah had known.
On the first day of the new semester, Sarah couldn’t wait to meet Laura and tell her everything about her summer vacation. However, the moment she saw Laura enter the classroom, she was surprised. What could have happened to Laura? Why did she gain so much weight? Sarah knew it would be inappropriate if she raised the questions but she couldn’t resist the curiosity. “Since we are best friends, she knows I don’t mean any harm,” she thought. Thus, she asked, “Why did you get so fat?”
The instant Sarah said it, she realized she had made a mistake. People standing by began to laugh and point. Poor Laura, apparently shocked and offended by the question, stood still, tears welling up in her eyes. When she came to herself, she ran out of the classroom.
The next few days was very hard for Sarah. Whenever she reached out to Laura, Laura would walk away on purpose or pretended that she hadn’t seen Sarah. At first, Sarah was truly sorry for hurting Laura’s feelings. But as she tried several times in vain to make up with Laura, Sarah became angry. “Enough is enough,” she thought. However, Sarah couldn’t help feeling regretful because deep down she knew it was her fault.
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。
One day after school, Sarah stopped Laura.
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Touched by Sarah’s sincere words, Laura was hesitant.
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What my father wore embarrassed me! I wanted him to dress like a doctor or lawyer, but he always dressed like my father, getting up before dawn every day to make breakfast for my mother and me.
We lived in South Texas, where my father worked as a repairman. He often wore a pair of jeans and a shirt, keeping his pencils, glasses and wrenches (扳手) in his breast pocket. His boots were those with steel toes that made them difficult to pull off his feet, which I sometimes helped him with when he returned from repairing cars — his job that also shamed me.
I blamed the way he dressed. I felt that my classmates laughed at me because they’d seen him mowing lawns (修剪草坪) in cut-off jeans and black boots. My classmates’ families paid men to beautify their lawns, while their fathers travelled in the bay wearing lemon-yellow sweaters and expensive shoes.
He preferred clothes that allowed him the freedom to move under cars. So even when taking part in a school trip with me, he was dressed in his repairman’s suit. On the school bus to the campsite, all students on the bus happily chatted with their parents except me, who lowered the head, avoiding spotting my classmates’ mocking glance (讥笑的眼光) or hearing their jokes, which I thought was about nothing else but what my father wore.
I regretted telling my parents the school trip, and I was very angry why my mother had no spare time while my father happened to have a vacation. But my father failed to read my mind. He was very happy, whistling a tune along the way.
Though my father didn’t sense my bad mood, the school bus seemed as sad as I was. It drove more and more slowly and finally it stopped on the roadside. The driver got out to check the bus but found nothing wrong. Students and parents on the bus began to whisper about what was happening, worried that the delay might spoil the journey.
注意：
1.续写词数应为150 左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卷的相应位置作答。
When others were complaining, my father stood up.
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The school bus restarted and everyone cheered.
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Jack was a bright and curious child, always eager to learn new things and explore the mysterious world about science. However, he often found himself in disagreement with his mother. His mother was always busy with her work and she didn’t have enough time to learn about his interests and passions.
One day, Jack came home from school feeling particularly excited. He just found a sci-fi book about an adventure on the moon. Upon arriving at home, he couldn’t tear himself away from the book. He read and read until it was dark. Having finished reading it, he couldn’t wait to share it with his mother, only to be told that he should focus on more practical subjects like math and history, which would help him get into a good college and have a successful career.
Jack couldn’t understand why his mother didn’t see the value in what he was doing. He felt that she was holding him back and not allowing him to pursue his true interests. “Why can’t you see how important this is to me?” Jack asked his mother angrily. “I’m never going to be happy if I have to spend my life doing things that I show no interest in just because they are practical or make you proud.”
The once peaceful home was filled with tension and anger. His mother’s voice grew louder as she shouted, “You can’t just do whatever you want! You should be responsible for your future!” Jack, fueled by his own frustration, shot back, “I am tired of you always telling me what to do! I am not a child anymore! You only care about your own feeling! You never thought about my feeling!” They were so caught up in their own anger and hurt that they failed to see how their words and actions were affecting each other.
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。
Jack rushed into his bedroom and locked the door heavily.
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When Jack heard his mother’s words, regretful tears rolled down his face.
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“Daddy, I have something to tell you. I wanted to ask your permission to go to America.” I didn’t finish my speech as he shouted, “No!” “But why? What…”, I replied. “If this all is about money, then you may not worry, I got a scholarship …”
I didn’t know what to do. I felt a warm tear running down my cheek. I thought there would be no problem because he always knew how much I dreamt about studying abroad. I was so angry and said: “But why do I have to ask your permission? I am already 18 and I’m not a kid anymore. You can’t tell me what is right and what is wrong.”
I shut the door so hard that it staggered. I was so disappointed that all these years he couldn’t see what I was doing. The tears were flowing on their own. I realized how much my love for dad was, however, I just could not stay at my hometown anymore.
I left home and my eyes were full of anger and tears. I didn’t know what to do and what to expect, but I decided to go far away from home and start creating my dream life. I took a bus and went to the airport.
I closed my eyes and felt that something was wrong. Everything was so silent when suddenly I heard my phone ringing. It was a nurse from the local hospital:
“Hello! Are you the daughter of Kuat?”, she asked. “Your dad has had a heart attack and he’s in a coma now. The situation’s serious. We want you …”
I wasn’t listening to her anymore. Tears were flowing and I started to choke when all of a sudden I heard a man’s voice and opened my eyes. I realized that it was a nightmare.
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 started searching for my phone and wanted to hear my dad’s voice.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________“Here you are, my sweetie. I’m not letting you leave because I don’t want you to forget me.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Ari was a lonely young man who lived on a large island called Iceland. Most of the villagers were fishermen. Ari often wondered what lay beyond the island. The days were long and cold, and he spent many hours in his small house thinking about what life would be like in a warm, sunny place.
“I shall find a true friend far away from here,” Ari thought, and he began writing a letter. He described himself as a loner who had few visitors, yet he had a warm heart. It was his hope to find true friendship with someone who understood his sadness.
Ari described the volcanos on his snowy island and the impressive glaciers (冰川). He wrote about the sky turning green, blue, yellow, and pink at night when the Northern Lights shined in the heavens like silk. For days, Ari poured his soul and innermost thoughts into the letter. Then he placed it into a bottle, and sealed (密封) it tightly.
Ari threw the bottle into the sea and wished upon the brightest star that a true friend would find the letter.
A year later, Ari received a letter. He had no idea who would be writing him, but with joy, he opened the envelope.
Dear Ari,I found your simple but lovely letter. Imagine my surprise when your little bottle from so far away washed up on my shore. I; too, live on an island. It is called Sardinia. My island is warm and filled with mountains, beaches and waters. Most of the people I know are my family, and I, too, long for a true friend. Now that you have found a friend far away, I do hope that you will write and tell me more about your life and people.
Your new friend,
Renata
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。
For three years, Ari and Renata exchanged letters.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Without telling Renata, Ari started a long journey.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________I had all the usual child fears. I couldn’t go to sleep unless the light in my bedroom was on. I dreaded that someday when my mother was distracted, Crazy Betty (our local small-town oddball) would grab me in the grocery store. On the hottest summer nights, my feet had to be wrapped tightly in my bed sheets; if one of them hung bare over the side of the bed, who knew what might grab it in its cold, slimy claw.
But all other frights paled in comparison with the Great Fear, the Titanic of my childhood terrors. That fear — and I admit, I feel a tightening in stomach typing the words even today — was that something would happen to Monk-Monk, my beloved toy monkey. That was the deepest fear of my childhood and I learned from it the lesson of cherishing what’s important in my life.
Looking at Monk-Monk today, you wouldn’t see what I see. You’d see a torn, discolored sock monkey, very much past his prime, stuffing leaking from his stumpy tail, holes on his sock-body inexpertly stitched up with thread that doesn’t match. I see my dearest childhood friend, my companion of a thousand nights. When I was only two and very ill, an aunt made him for me and delivered him to the hospital. I bonded with him fiercely and rarely let him out of my sight. When no one else was around, Monk-Monk played endless games with me, soaked up my tears, and listened to my secrets.
And then Uncle Ken came to visit. He lived in Ohio and occasionally he would come and stay with us for a couple of days. I didn’t know Uncle Ken well, and I didn’t like him very much. I had the feeling that he didn’t really like me, either. He clearly thought it was pretty silly that a big first-grader was dragging a sock monkey around, and he teased me by saying he thought he’d take Monk-Monk home to Ohio with him. His words almost scared me to death. I clutched Monk-Monk more tightly.
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 was at school a few days later when Uncle Ken left.
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Finally Monk-Monk was found jammed behind the sofa.
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