1 . Exploring the Grand Canyon is an exciting experience at any age. For more experienced adventurers, the iconic rim (边缘)-to-rim hike provides awe-inspiring views and unforgettable memories. For one man, it also means breaking a record. At 92 years old, Alfredo Aliaga has become the oldest person to complete the Grand Canyon rim-to-rim hike.
The 24-mile trek (跋涉) is no easy job. Less than 1% of Grand Canyon visitors have completed it, and even park rangers (护林员) recommend training for at least a year before attempting to accomplish it. Aliaga, an experienced hiker who has crossed the Grand Canyon multiple times, prepared for it by walking for three hours every day around his home in Berlin.
Aliaga first trekked the Grand Canyon alongside his wife, with whom he shared his love for hikes and nature. After she died from ALS in 2006, he once again returned to the Grand Canyon. Since then, he has returned to the Grand Canyon so many times to remember his wife.
Before his latest attempt, his son-in-law, Jurgen Buchenau, made a Facebook post to look out for trekkers to help the family keep records of this history-making hike. “We’d love to document what we hope will be an awesome achievement. Alfredo last completed a R2R last year when he was 91 and has been hiking in the canyon five times in the last four years, so he’s going to be ready for this!”
On October 15, after hiking for 21 hours split over two days, Aliaga completed this massive achievement. “Alfredo did it!” Jurgen wrote on Facebook. “At 4 p.m. this afternoon, he climbed out of the canyon at the Bright Angel trailhead, super satisfied and excited to have become the oldest person on record to have crossed the canyon rim to rim at age 92.”
1. Why did Aliaga decide to do the rim-to-rim hike again?| A．To break a record. | B．To challenge himself. |
| C．To recall his mate. | D．To become a celebrity. |
| A．He made a plan for the hike. | B．He offered medical support. |
| C．He helped Aliaga train for the hike. | D．He asked other hikers for assistance. |
| A．Proud. | B．Confident. | C．Surprised. | D．Calm. |
| A．Exploring the Grand Canyon | B．Breaking a Record at 92 |
| C．An Adventurous Woman | D．The Rim-to-rim Hike |
2 . Growing up in Ukraine, Vadim didn’t know what it was like to live in a safe, stable home. His parents were alcoholics who would often beat him. They’d even put him into a wine container, breaking his little body and leaving only a small opening at the top so he could breathe and see—but only just a little.
By the time Vadim turned 9, he was living in an orphanage (孤儿院). Unfortunately, as is the case with far too many little ones, his life only got worse there. Not only was he hurt, but he was placed in a room on the third floor, making it impossible to get downstairs in a wheelchair.
This left Vadim crawling up and down the stairs, an activity that was both physically and mentally tiring. He’d often be late for meals. If the food wasn’t already gone by the time he arrived, other kids would steal from him.
Then, a chain effect began when some special folks visited the orphanage. They told him a story about a spiritual figure who advocated love and forgiveness. This conversation helped the 14-year-old find his faith and, in turn, he had more hope than he ever had before.
Today, Vadim is no longer the boy subject to fate. He is a father to his own kids, and his life couldn’t be more different or better. Over the years, he’s discovered a gift for expressing himself through art. This inspired Tim Tebow Foundation, an organization fighting for the most vulnerable (脆弱的) people around the world, to ask if he’d like to create a piece that represented what it looked and felt like for him to have gone from “darkness to light.”
The result? A truly remarkable painting that features Vadim, in his wheelchair, leaving behind his old home, including the wine container his parents put him into. His new direction includes a beautiful forest full of fall leaves and bright light, showing the hope he is said to have found in the inspiring story.
1. According to the passage, Vadim’s parents treated him ________.| A．terribly | B．forgivingly | C．thoughtfully | D．strictly |
| A．Because his little roommates often did damage to his wheelchair. |
| B．Because other children would take his meal without permission. |
| C．Because he couldn’t use the wheelchair to go downstairs from a high floor. |
| D．Because getting downstairs was demanding for him physically and mentally. |
| A．an effective treatment for Vadim’s disability |
| B．a series of positive changes occurring in Vadim’s life |
| C．a sense of hope from the story of a spiritual figure |
| D．a helping hand from Tim Tebow Foundation |
| A．He says goodbye to the past and harvests happiness. | B．He admires the beauty and harmony of nature. |
| C．He excels in delicate painting techniques. | D．He leads a miserable life with his own kids. |
3 . My father loves his garden. He planted some seeds in it. But at that time, I didn’t understand why working in the dirt excited him so much.
Unfortunately, in early May, my father was seriously injured in an accident. He had to stay in bed for a while. My mother had several business trips, so she couldn’t take care of the garden. I didn’t want my father to worry, so I said that I would take care of his garden until he recovered. I assumed that the little plants would continue to grow as long as they had water, and luckily it rained fairly often, so I didn’t think much about the garden.
One Saturday morning, my father said to me, “Christine, the vegetables should be about ready to be picked. Let’s have a salad today!” I went out to the garden and was upset to see that many of the lettuce leaves and carrots had been half eaten by bugs. There were hundreds of bugs all over them!
I panicked for a moment but then I quietly went to the nearest store to buy some vegetables.
When I gave the salad to him, he said, “Oh, Christine, what a beautiful salad! I can’t believe the carrots are this big already. You must be taking very good care of my garden. I felt a little bit guilty.
Coming home, my mother saw the bag from the supermarket in the kitchen. I was embarrassed and I admitted, “Dad wanted a salad, but the garden was a disaster. I didn’t want to disappoint him, so I went to the store.” She laughed but promised to help me in the garden and weeks later I was finally able to pick some.
I carefully made a salad and took it to my father. He looked at it with a hint of a smile. “Christine, the carrots are smaller in this salad, but they taste better.”
Now, I better understand how putting a lot of effort into caring for something can help you appreciate the results more, however small they may be. Perhaps this was one of the reasons for my father’s love of gardening.
1. Why did Christine originally promise she would do the gardening?| A．She was asked by her father to do it. |
| B．She was interested in growing vegetables. |
| C．She wanted to improve her gardening skills. |
| D．She knew it was important to her father. |
| A．Animals often dug holes in the garden. | B．Insects destroyed the lettuce and carrots. |
| C．The plants were given too much water. | D．The vegetables were marked incorrectly. |
| A．Her father couldn’t see the garden’s progress. |
| B．Her mother regularly helped her to make a spray. |
| C．Her mother helped her to buy the vegetables. |
| D．Her father went on a business trip at that time. |
| A．Always get ready for a rainy day. | B．Don’t be disappointed by bugs. |
| C．Hard work can often be rewarding. | D．Working alone produces results. |
4 . When I was a little boy growing up, my Mom, Dad, brothers and I lived in my Nana’s old house. It was surrounded by four huge vegetable gardens. And around the house so many flowers were planted. It was so beautiful there in the spring and summer. That wasn’t all, though. On the back porch Nana had dozens of potted plants hanging on hooks. She watered them, talked to them and nurtured them. And in the winter she would carry them all inside and set them on shelves near the windows of our enclosed front porch. There with a little water and a lot of love she kept them alive, green, and growing even during the coldest, darkest months.
As a boy I was puzzled by all the effort she put into them. I understood the vegetable gardens. They helped to feed the family all winter long. I even understood the flowers around the house. They were pretty and smelled so sweet in the summer months. The reason she put so much effort into caring for those potted plants, however, eluded me. They didn’t give us any food and they rarely had any flowers on them. They remained a mystery to my child’s mind.
Now as I’ve grown older I am beginning to understand why my Nana had those potted plants. It is the same reason I have so many pictures of sunrises and forests hanging in my home. They remind me during the dark, cold, winter months full of bare trees and yellow grass that light, love, and growth still exist. They remind me that Spring will come again. They remind me that God loves us and is still with us even when the earth doesn’t show it.
Today I see Nana’s potted plants in a new light. They are worth every bit of the love and care she put into them. But what tells me most about light and love is Nana herself. She is light to my soul even in my darkest times. And her love lives on in my heart even if she is in Heaven. May we all learn to love as she loved, shine as she shined, and live as she lived.
1. Which of the following is close in meaning to the underlined word “eluded” in paragraph 2?| A．Upset. | B．Misguided. | C．Confused. | D．Distracted. |
| A．They were a sign of hope. | B．They resembled sunrise and forests. |
| C．They constantly kept Nana company. | D．They were portable and easy to nurture. |
| A．To advocate growing potted plants. | B．To sing the praise of Nana’s spirit and love. |
| C．To stress the benefits of a positive lifestyle. | D．To recall beautiful memories spent with Nana. |
| A．A non-fiction. | B．A book review. |
| C．An agricultural leaflet. | D．A celebrity biography. |
5 . Most people who ran the marathon last month spent days before resting up and days after recovering. But not Jacky Hunt-Broersma. In total, she ran 104 marathons in 104 days. If it’s confirmed by Guinness World Records, that would be a new world record. And she did it all with one leg and a prosthesis (假肢).
“Someone able-bodied had done it previously. I wanted to see if I could do it on a prosthetic leg and see what would happen,” she said. “I thought it would be a great way to inspire others to push their limits because I truly believe that we’re stronger than what we think. And I’ve been so pleasantly surprised that my body is held up, everything is held up and I’ve made it to 104.”
She actually did not pick up the sport until after she lost the lower part of her left leg in 2001 to a type of cancer called Ewing sarcoma. Runners using a prosthetic leg can’t use a regular one. They need a running blade (刀锋式跑步义肢). Hunt-Broersma has two, but she was only able to run with one because of the swelling she experienced in her left leg that made it impossible to connect to the other blade. But even with the pain that occurred, she has been able to put up with it and continued.
All together, Hunt-Broersma ran over 4, 385 kilometers. During that time she has had a lot of time to think and has learned a few things about herself. “It has taught me how strong one can be and how important absolute determination is. If you’re mentally strong, you can do anything,” she said. “And our bodies are just amazing ... This whole journey was impressive and super hard, but it’s told me how strong I can be as a person and how far I can push myself.”
1. Why did Hunt-Broersma decide to run marathons?| A．She wanted to set a new record. |
| B．She intended to challenge herself. |
| C．She was driven by her interest. |
| D．She was inspired by people like her. |
| A．She didn’t get professional training. |
| B．She found it hard to keep her balance. |
| C．She suffered discomfort in her left leg. |
| D．She couldn’t use regular running blades. |
| A．Rome wasn’t built in a day. |
| B．Time works wonders. |
| C．A good beginning is half the battle. |
| D．Nothing is impossible to a willing heart. |
| A．Annoyed. | B．Sympathetic. |
| C．Admiring. | D．Humorous. |
6 . Growing up in suburbia, yard work was punishment. I’d take almost anything else. I didn’t like being outside, and I especially didn’t like bugs or dirt.
When I left home at 17 with a backpack of belongings, I figured my gardening days were behind me. There were no yards to work in—only concrete! The concrete jungle that awaited me seemed like a welcome escape from the outdoor chores that had once felt like a sentence.
It wasn’t until my mid-20s that I, thinking it was the adult thing to do, brought home a small daisy (雏菊) in a pot to put on my fire escape. Less than 24 hours later, a squirrel (松鼠) arrived and dragged it away, pot and all. That’s New York for you! I took it as a sign and didn’t try any more plants in that apartment.
When I married, my wife and I bought a house in outer Brooklyn. There was enough room to have a garden if we wanted one. We decided to see if we could grow anything, mostly for the novelty factor. Much to my surprise, digging in the dirt felt like fun and totally not a chore! In the early mornings, I would bend down to inspect the soil waiting for the plants to appear. Watering at dusk, I whispered to the baby plants, expecting them to keep growing. The plants kept the neighborhood squirrels fed and provided a place for bumblebees to nap. I felt a rush of power and excitement.
As the flowers and vegetables bloomed, I noticed something in me was growing as well. Since running away from home as a teenager, I’ve always done my best to build a shelter for myself wherever I was living. I hung pictures on the walls. I built new holiday traditions with friends. I painted the walls bright colors. But it always felt like maybe that deep connection to a particular space was missing. In gardening, I finally found this new layer of depth. I guess you could say I was putting down roots.
There is an inspiring, self-care practice in the time and energy it takes to plant, water, and wait and wait to see if the magic happens. It’s the act of growing that I find the sweetest.
What are you growing?
1. How does the author interpret his departure at 17?| A．As a necessary step for growth. | B．As a great relief. |
| C．As an escape from social expectations. | D．As a bittersweet transition. |
| A．There was a shift in his perspective. | B．He regarded a squirrel as a bad sign. |
| C．He began to miss the days before 17. | D．A sense of responsibility grew in him. |
| A．A colorful life. | B．Friends’ respect. |
| C．Creative ideas. | D．A sense of belonging. |
| A．their own sources of growth | B．the importance of gardening |
| C．the output of the growing plants | D．their favorite flowers and vegetables |
7 . The first day of school is a special milestone for any student, but for one family in Wisconsin, it’s extra special. Two sisters Mia and Samantha, their mom Amy and grandmother Christy attended Carthage College together this fall.
Amy said, “I’m really proud to be watching my daughters grow up and be more mature and have new experiences, and very happy to see my mom achieve something that she’s always wanting to do.”
Mia shared that she always felt her two older role models would return to school someday. To 19-year-old Samantha, her mom and grandmother’s entry to university was rather a surprise. “It was clear that Mia and I were admitted. And then all of a sudden, they were admitted too,” Samantha remembered. “It was really surprising. And I didn’t expect it.”
Amy, a mother of five children, has worked at Carthage College for over two decades and wanted to be enrolled one day. Calling herself “Carthage’s biggest fan”, she said she felt like she now had the time to pursue higher studies.
As for 71-year-old Christy, she retired three years ago but is still eager to learn. In fact, she still continues to support and volunteer at local nonprofits. Christy said she was also inspired by her son Joshua, who is pursuing his second master’s degree. She has decided to go forward with a master’s degree in business, design and innovation alongside her daughter.
The women are inspirational to anyone who doesn’t want their age to block their dreams. Amy advised everyone to go after what they want because life is too short. “Put that doubt aside and just go for it,” she said. Christy added, “Never hesitate to follow your fear. In my life, it has led me to my greatest opportunities and has also built my greatest strengths. If I always stayed in my comfort zone, I wouldn’t be where I am today.”
1. Why was the first day of school very special to the family in Wisconsin?| A．All the family members went to the same college. |
| B．Different generations became schoolmates. |
| C．Twin sisters went to college with their father. |
| D．Carthage College Amy and Christy were admitted to is very famous. |
| A．Calm. | B．Worried. | C．Moved. | D．Surprised. |
| A．She retired at the age of sixty. |
| B．She has five grandchildren in all. |
| C．Her majors are the same as Amy’s. |
| D．Her son graduated from the same college. |
| A．Follow your heart and pursue your dream. |
| B．Many hands make light work. |
| C．Rome was not built in a day. |
| D．There is no royal road to learning. |
8 . After I made it to the city center, I started to feel it might be easy for a foreigner to deal with the great size of Beijing. With growing confidence, I decided to take the subway to the hotel, not realizing that the network didn’t go that far. Impressed with the cleanliness of the station, I bought a ticket and boarded the first subway that came along.
After a few minutes I asked in English a young man seated next to me where I should get off closest to the Friendship Hotel. Wearing a smart business suit and tie, he would surely speak English, wouldn’t he? Unfortunately, he couldn’t understand me but seemed very friendly. I showed him the room card with all the information of the Friendship Hotel in Chinese characters. He looked at it, and then his eyes moved quickly to the carriage (车厢) subway map. Next, he raised three fingers of his right hand.
In Australia, raising fingers at someone is not usually nice, but this man wasn’t smiling. At the next station he showed me two fingers. Now in Australia, that’s really rude, but I got the message. When we stopped at the third station, he didn’t just point to the door, but got up, took me out of the train, and led me to the top of the stairs, and out onto the street. Then he stopped a taxi and told the driver where to take me.
All this came from a man who couldn’t speak my language, and I couldn’t speak his. I was now speechless, especially when he refused my offer of money. I felt a little embarrassed having even thought he would accept a tip.
This experience made it clear I had to learn some Chinese quickly or my adventures might start turning into misadventures.
1. Why does the author decided to take the subway?| A．Because he believed in his ability to deal with the trip |
| B．Because the network covered most of the stops |
| C．Because he lived near the city center |
| D．Because he had a good impression of its cleanliness |
| A．still remained puzzled | B．understood the author well |
| C．answered the author directly | D．pointed at the subway map |
| A．helpful. | B．impolite. | C．warm-hearted. | D．responsible. |
| A．To prove the importance of being careful |
| B．To introduce a young man who didn’t know English |
| C．To complain some cultural misunderstanding |
| D．To describe one of his adventurous experiences |
9 . An old English saying says, “Laughter is the best medicine.” One person who certainly would have agreed with this is Norman Cousins.
Norman Cousins worked for a magazine called Saturday Re-view for almost forty years. He also wrote articles about peace, traveling to many different countries to share his ideas.
In the 1960s, after returning to the United States from a busy and tiring trip to Europe, Mr. Cousins got sick. In less than a week after he got back, he could not stand. Every move that he made was painful. He was not able to sleep at night. The doctors told Mr. Cousins that they did not know how to cure (治 疗) his problem and he might never get over the illness. Mr. Cousins, however, refused to give up hope.
Mr. Cousins thought that the illness could be caused by unhappy thoughts. He did not want to take medicine to cure himself. Instead, he felt that happy thoughts or laughter might cure his illness.
He began to experiment on himself while still in the hospital by watching comedy shows on television. Mr. Cousins quickly found that ten minutes of real laughter during the day gave him two hours of sleep without pain at night.
Deciding that the doctors could not help him, Mr. Cousins left the hospital and checked into a hotel room where he could continue his experiments with laughter. For eight days, Mr. Cousins rested in the hotel room watching comedy shows on television, reading funny books, and sleeping whenever he felt tired. Within three weeks, he felt well enough to have a holiday to Puerto Rico, where he began running on the beach for exercise. After a few months, Mr. Cousins was able to carry on his work. He had laughed himself back to health.
1. What is the text mainly about?| A．A funny person. | B．An amazing life. |
| C．An interesting cure. | D．A medical experiment. |
| A．They promised to cure him. |
| B．They didn’t think he was really sick. |
| C．They told him not to give up hope. |
| D．They said they were unable to help him. |
| A．thinking happily and laughing |
| B．writing comedies and being positive |
| C．taking a holiday and taking good care of himself |
| D．running on the beach and relaxing |
| A．Watch funny TV shows. | B．Read funny books. |
| C．Steep whenever he feels tired. | D．Take medicine. |
10 . I feel it important for families to have regular meals together. One of my best childhood memories was dinner with my parents and two sisters. As a result, last year I decided that the entire family would have dinner together three days a week. Because my husband and I both work and our three kids are busy with school activities, we could hardly have a chance to get together as a family. But we thought it possible for everyone to set aside three evenings a week for a sit-down dinner.
First we tried setting three fixed days for our experiment Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. After trying the plan some weeks, almost everyone was unhappy. Then my son had the idea of having everyone post his or her schedule for the week on the fridge every Sunday. I would choose the three best days.
For a while, the kids continued to resist (抵触) the idea, saying they would rather spend the time with their friends or joining in sports or other activities, But with time going on, they began to see these evenings together positively. We discussed each other’s, problems. We made vacation plans. We laughed a lot. Months later, anyone who had to miss a family meal felt regretful.
We all now feel that we’ve been able to build stronger relationships within the family and communicate better. The idea of having regular family meals together, which seemed difficult at first, has brought about many positive changes in our lives.
1. What made the writer decide to have regular family meals together?| A．Her good childhood memory. | B．Her kids’ needs for help. |
| C．Her husband’s advice. | D．Her son’s idea. |
| A．Two. | B．Three. | C．Four. | D．Five. |
| A．On Mondays. | B．On Wednesdays. | C．On Fridays. | D．On Sundays. |
| A．To Keep Positive, Talk More Often | B．To Stay Healthy, Have More Sports |
| C．The Kids That Are Often Busy Feel Happy | D．The Family That Eats Together Stays Together |
