1 . Devon Gallagher, a college graduate from Philadelphia, wants the world to know exactly where she’s been during her worldwide vacation in a special way.
The traveler, who was born with a congenital bone disease (先天性骨病), had her right leg amputated (截肢) at the age of four. Although the amputation caused misfortune for Gallagher early on, she now sees it as an inspiration for living her best life.
To spread that message, Gallagher has taken to social media, where she shares photos of her travels around the world. Besides, she writes her location across her artificial leg (假肢) before taking a picture.
Now she has been taking pictures across Europe, which show her cycling over the canals in Amsterdam, relaxing on a wall overlooking the city of Barcelona, posing with a waffle (华夫饼) in Brussels, taking breath-taking pictures in Athens and enjoying a river cruise (巡航) in Budapest, with all the well-known locations written on her artificial leg.
“I get a new leg every two years and I can choose the design on it. One day I had a sudden idea to get a chalkboard (黑板),” Gallagher said. “My mum and grandmother didn't like the idea, but my friends thought it was great and told me to go for it, so I did.”
Gallagher said people often stare when she’s writing on her leg, but once she shared the photos, she received only positive comment. “My leg hasn't stopped me doing anything I’ve wanted to do, I know it’s my determination to prove to myself that I can do it. Therefore, I’ve been able to keep up with my peers (同龄人) and lead a pretty great life.”
Gallagher shows us that you should never let anything stand in the way of your dreams. If life gives you an artificial leg, make art.
1. What message does Gallagher want to express in her special way?| A．She enjoys her traveling across the globe. |
| B．She suffers little from her leg amputation . |
| C．She looks on her misfortune as another form of blessing. |
| D．She has exactly fallen in love with posting photos online. |
| A．She is interested in art. |
| B．She lost her both legs at the age of four. |
| C．She wrote her travel destinations on her artificial leg. |
| D．She got permission from her family for getting a chalkboard. |
| A．Considerate and cooperative | B．Reliable and generous |
| C．Independent and selfless | D．Determined and creative |
| A．Never Too Late to Share | B．A Special Artificial Leg |
| C．An Outstanding Photographer | D．Gallagher’s Summer Holidays |
2 . By now, most of us have picked up at least one pandemic (疫情期间的) hobby. And there’s a seemingly common pandemic hobby trend: People who haven’t been able to go anywhere are making imaginary travel plans. Maybe you’re among those who have spent hours researching locations―even though you’re not actually planning to travel.
It turns out that you aren’t alone. People who seem to be interested in public safety recommendations are still planning trips they don’t intend to book. And, when I suddenly found myself addicted to an imaginary girls’ trip to Joshua Tree, I wondered whether this was a healthy distraction (注意力分散).
“It’s an escapist imagination,” said Regine Galanti, a psychologist, adding that there’s nothing wrong with escapism during a global pandemic.
On the one hand, distractions are often beneficial right now. We are a full year into living with COVID-19 as a pandemic, and that means you’ve probably had to navigate a range of emotions like discomfort, sadness, or even boredom. So any hobby that doesn’t harm anyone or endanger your well-being is probably a worthy attempt.
Even if vacation planning is your happy place, Dr. Galanti suggests you “actually think about what you’re trying to achieve.” Why? “Maybe what you’re saying is, I need a vacation from work,” Dr. Galanti explains. “Then take three days off even if you are not going anywhere. “When you figure out what you’re looking for, you might be able to find a small socially distanced adventure in your backyard or a quiet place. Vacation planning is a good way to spend some time, but there might be an even better way to get what you’re desiring.
Anyway, when uncertainty is all around us, creating things to look forward to isn’t a terrible idea. And when things are safer, you’ll have all your plans in place.
1. Why do people make imaginary travel plans during the pandemic?| A．To develop a new hobby. | B．To stay safe and sound. |
| C．To be distracted from reality. | D．To get ready for future travel. |
| A．Express. | B．Balance. | C．Adapt to. | D．Deal with. |
| A．Objective. | B．Negative. | C．Supportive. | D．Unclear. |
| A．Economy. | B．Lifestyle. |
| C．Food culture. | D．Science and technology. |
3 . Once upon a time, a daughter complained to her father that her senior high school life was unhappy and that she was tired of struggling with homework all the time.
Her father, a chef, took her to the kitchen. He filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Once the three pots began to boil, h placed potatoes, eggs and coffee beans in them. After 20 minutes, he took them out, putting the potatoes and eggs in a bowl and the coffee in a cup.
Turning to his daughter, he said, “Look closer, and touch the potatoes.” She did and noted that they were soft. He then asked her to take an egg and break it. After puling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg. Finally, he asked her to taste the coffee. Its good smell brought a smile to her face.
“Father, what does this mean?” she asked. He then explained that the potatoes, the eggs and the coffee beans were in the same adversity (逆境)—the boiling water. However, each one reacted differently.
The strong and hard potato became soft and weak in boiling water. The egg was fragile, with the thin outer shell protecting its liquid until it was put in the boiling water. Then the inside of the egg became hard. However, the coffee beans were unique. After they were exposed to the boiling water, they changed the water and created something new. “Which one do you want to be like,” he asked. “When adversity knocks on your door, how will you respond?”
In life, challenges happen to us all, but the only thing that truly matters is what happens within us.
1. Why did the girl complain to her father?| A．Because of her tiring job. | B．Because of her hard school life. |
| C．Because of her father’ s busy work. | D．Because of the food her father cooked. |
| A．The girl liked the coffee best. |
| B．The father was good at cooking. |
| C．Different people have different reactions to adversity. |
| D．The girl didn’t like the potatoes and eggs. |
| A．thick | B．hard | C．strong | D．easily-broken |
| A．Challenges and responses. | B．Adversities and a chef. |
| C．A chef and coffee beans. | D．Father and daughter. |
4 . Seba lives in Memphis, Tennessee—a place famous for music. He grew up with music all around, but he especially loved the drumming of Stewart Copeland from the band The Police. “The Police songs are full of so much cool drumming,” he says.
Before he turned three, his parents asked him what he wanted for his birthday. “Drums!” he answered. His parents weren’t sure, but after seeing him play the drums at a local music store, they decided he was serious. They bought him a junior drum kit.
But soon Seba grew upset. He couldn’t get his junior drum kit to make the sound he heard Mr. Copeland making. It was a lesson for the family: good instruments were worth paying for. His parents bought him a professional drum kit and signed him up for lessons.
In just a few months, his drum teacher reported that Seba was learning extremely quickly and needed a higher level of training. He was still four.
Seba’s parents encouraged him to explore music in other ways. Seba learned bass (贝斯), guitar, and piano. He faced challenges—some related to his size. “I couldn’t see over my drum set,” he says. “And I couldn’t reach some of the cymbals.” He also had trouble finding a good bass that was small enough.
In 2020, Seba got special permission to join a summer music program at Berklee as an 8-year-old. Seba studied bass in an online program. To keep up, he had to practice up-to 36 hours a week.
After the intense summer, his parents thought Seba might want a break. They were wrong. Instead, Seba asked his parents to home-school him so he could keep going to Berklee during the school year. His parents had to make some big changes to make the plan work.
Last May, Seba became the youngest person ever to receive a professional certificate (证书) from Berklee. The certificate is equal to about four college-level classes.
1. What troubled Seba after he got a junior drum kit?| A．His parents signed him up for lessons. |
| B．He couldn’t make the sound he wanted. |
| C．He didn’t like the drum his parents bought |
| D．His drum wasn’t as good as Mr.Copeland’s. |
| A．He couldn’t find a bass of good quality. |
| B．He was too short to see over the drum set. |
| C．He was unable to explore all kinds of music. |
| D．He couldn’t receive a higher level of training. |
| A．He went to Berklee. | B．He had a good rest. |
| C．He continued to learn. | D．He studied online music. |
| A．Talented and hard-working. | B．Famous and honest. |
| C．Serious and responsible. | D．Grateful and polite. |
5 . When Amanda Lemay heard the story about a baker and his wife who were traveling around the United States in a van, learning from expert bakers, she wanted to do something similar. So she got rid of most of her possessions and made an old ambulance with her dad into a lovely home on wheels.
Lemay’s ambulance is actually a former emergency response vehicle for the US Navy, built on a 2006 Ford E350 Cutaway. Renovations were done by her and her dad. Now the dark blue vehicle has a lot of built-in cabinets on all sides, offering a lot of storage space, while the rooftop has 400-watts of solar power panels and a small roof deck where Lemay practices yoga. The inside is tastefully done to suit Lemay’s work and hobbies.
As Lemay mentions, not only did her father help, but so did the rest of her family. Lemay’s mother helped sew the decorations on the removable cushions, and her sister crafted the leather pulls. It was truly a family affair.
Her current nomadic lifestyle fits well with her work doing audiobooks, voiceovers, and publishing work. In the end, this unexpected path has Lemay rethinking what it means to be truly sustainable, now that van life has gotten her to become minutely aware of the water, electricity, and other daily resources that she uses. But all these day-to-day concerns are balanced with a greater sense of freedom.
“It’s almost mind-blowing, it feels like a completely different life because I’m doing the work online, and I can do things on my own schedule. Pretty much most of my days are mine — so by living in the van, I can be where I want to be, and do the things I want to do, and spend time outside.”
1. Why is the story of a baker and his wife mentioned in paragraph 1?| A．It shows a creative way of learning. | B．It was spoken highly by expert bakers. |
| C．It’s an example of strong determination. | D．It’s where Amanda Lemay got her inspiration. |
| A．All family members contributed to it. | B．Its cost was shared by family members. |
| C．It was made to suit the life of the family. | D．The whole family gathered to celebrate it. |
| A．To value every minute of her life. | B．To make the best of what she has. |
| C．To keep a balance between work and life. | D．To be aware of the real meaning of family. |
| A．Reflecting on life. | B．Forgetting all about work. |
| C．Working on her own schedule. | D．Being free from day-to-day concerns. |
6 . My neighbour Orlando is a paramedic (护理人员). He and his wife are some of the nicest people I have ever met. A few years back we started this sort of “favor war”, where one of us would do something for the other, such as shoveling (铲) his driveway or helping him build a shed, and next time the other would try to top it with another favor.
Yesterday morning there was maybe 2 or 3 feet of snow on the ground and I remembered he shoveled my driveway for me last snowfall. So I took out my shovel and took care of both our sidewalks and driveways because it was my turn to do a favor back. It took a while but I finished and got into my car for work. What I did not realize was that Orlando had to work that day too.
Fast forward to this morning I got a knock on my door. It was him. He immediately shook my hand and informed me that because I shoveled his driveway and sidewalk for him, he was able to get to work earlier. As soon as he started his shift, a call came through that a young boy was in a medical emergency. Luckily he and his partner were only about 2 minutes away, but the next closest ambulance was in 10 minutes. This kid didn’t have 10 minutes. He barely had 2 minutes. Because my neighbour got to work sooner, the young boy got to live his life.
This isn’t a brag (吹嘘). This is to inform others that even the smallest favors can have the biggest impacts. It wasn’t too much of trouble to shovel his driveway for him, but because I did, the young kid got to see his family again, go back to school again, talk to his friends again and live his life.
1. What can we know about the writer and Orlando?| A．They once had a conflict. | B．They signed a favorable agreement. |
| C．They favor shoveling snow together. | D．They are always ready to help each other. |
| A．The writer. | B．The boy’s parents. |
| C．Orlando and his partner. | D．Orlando and his wife. |
| A．To tell him to clear up the snow. | B．To tell him to do a favour back. |
| C．To express his thanks to him. | D．To say he started his shift. |
| A．Never ask for trouble. | B．No favor is too small. |
| C．One cannot always be lucky. | D．Don’t lose heart in an emergency. |
7 . Bertie knew there was something in the wind. His mother had been sad in recent days, not sick, just strangely sad. The lion had just lain down beside him, his head warm on Bertie’s feet, when Father cleared his throat and began, “You’ll soon be eight, Bertie. A boy needs a proper education. We’ve found the right place for you, a school near Salisbury in England.”
His heart filled with a terrible fear, all Bertie could think of was his white lion. “But the lion,” he cried, “What about the lion?”
“I’m afraid there’s something else I have to tell you,” his father said. Looking across at Bertie’s mother, he took a deep breath. Then he told Bertie he had met a circus owner from France, who was over in Africa looking for lions to buy. He would come to their farm in a few days.
“No! You can’t send him to a circus!” said Bertie. “He’ll be shut up behind bars. I promised him he never would be. And they will come to see him and laugh at him. He’d rather die. Any animal would!” But as he looked across the table at them, he knew their minds were quite made up.
Bertie felt completely betrayed. He waited until he heard his father’s deep breathing next door. With his white lion at his heels, he crept downstairs in his pyjamas, took down his father’s rifle from the rack and stepped out into the night. He ran and ran till his legs could run no more. As the sun came up over the grassland, he climbed to the top of a hill and sat down, his arms round the lion’s neck. The time had come. “Be wild now,” he whispered. “You’ve got to be wild. Don’t ever come home. All my life I’ll think of you, I promise I will.” He buried his head in the lion’s neck. Then, Bertie clambered down off the hill and walked away.
When he looked back, the lion was still sitting there watching him; but then he stood up, yawned, stretched, and sprang down after him. Bertie shouted at him, but he kept coming. He threw sticks. He threw stones. Nothing worked.
There was only one thing left to do. Tears filling his eyes and his mouth, he lifted the rifle to his shoulder and fired over the lion’s head.
1. Bertie’s mother was sad probably because she________.| A．had lied about her good health condition | B．had decided to send Bertie to a new school |
| C．knew selling the lion would upset Bertie | D．knew Bertie would hate to go to England |
| A．some audience | B．other animals | C．Bertie’s friends | D．circus’s owners |
| A．kill the lion out of helplessness | B．protect himself from being chased |
| C．threaten the lion back to the wild | D．show his anger towards his father |
| A．circuses are the last places for animals to live |
| B．animals belonging to the wild should be set free |
| C．parents are sometimes cruel to their children |
| D．people and animals can be faithful to each other |
8 . My teacher held up a piece of broken glass and asked, “Who broke this window?”
Thirty boys tried to think about not only what they had done, but also what the teacher might have found out. She seldom became angry, but she was this time.
“Oh,” I thought. I was the one who broke the window. It was caused by a naughty throw of a baseball. If I admitted guilt, I would be in a lot of trouble. How would I be able to pay for a big window like that? I didn’t even get an allowance. “My father is going to have a fit as a result of it,” I thought. I didn’t want to raise my hand, but some force much stronger than I was pulled it skyward (朝向天空). I told the truth, “I did it.” It was hard enough to say what I had done.
My teacher took down a book from one of our library shelves and I had never known my teacher to strike a student, but I feared she was going to start with me.
“I know how much you like birds,” she said as she stood looking down at my guilt-ridden face. “Here is the field guide about birds that you are constantly checking out. It is yours now. It’s time we got a new one for the school anyway. You will not be punished, but remember that I am not rewarding you for your misdeed (恶行), but I am rewarding you for your truthfulness.”
I couldn’t believe it! I wasn’t being punished and I was getting my own bird field guide — the very one that I had been saving up money to buy.
The lesson my teacher taught me stays with me every day, and it will echo forever.
1. From the story, we can learn that the boy .| A．didn’t break the window on purpose |
| B．lacked the courage to admit his guilt |
| C．tried to think about what he had done |
| D．didn’t know what the teacher had found out |
| A．be punished by the teacher |
| B．make his father angry |
| C．pay for the broken window |
| D．get a bird field guide |
| A．Afraid—Surprised—Thankful. |
| B．Frightened—Amazed—Proud. |
| C．Regretful—Guilty—Excited. |
| D．Nervous—Afraid—Satisfied. |
| A．Every coin has two sides. |
| B．Honesty is always valued. |
| C．Bad luck never comes alone. |
| D．You can’t be too careful. |
9 . Is it cake? Is it art? Is it both? It’s the third year that the Blanton Museum of Art at the University of Texas at Austin has hosted its Great Blanton Bake-Off (烘焙大赛), and 16 bakers delivered on the challenge to recreate any of the 21, 000 works, from Italian Renaissance paintings to Latin American prints, in the Blanton’s collections, in cake form.
Lizabel Stella, the museum’s social media and digital content manager, came up with the idea of the Bake-Off at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, when the museum had to temporarily close. At the time, Stella, like many in lockdown, found herself scrolling through social media more than usual, and noticed how people were turning to baking as a therapeutic (治疗的) and fun activity. “I was thinking that people couldn’t come to the museum and that people loved baking. How could I blend them together?” Stella told a reporter. Then Stella cooked up the idea.
To participate in this year’s competition, bakers accessed the museum’s online catalog to select an artwork to reimagine and entered into one of three categories: Under-18, Amateur or Professional. Then, contestants had to upload photos of their creations to either Facebook or Instagram (or both) by May 15. The museum shared the cakes with the public on World Baking Day (May 17) through social media stories, and the “virtual audience” had 24 hours to vote for their favorites. The winner of each category received gift cards from local pastry shops.
“Art can be quite conceptual. And baking is tangible — so it’s a different way to consume art,” said an American artist. “Unlike baking, art doesn’t necessarily engage all the senses — you can’t necessarily smell art, you can’t necessarily taste art, and you definitely can’t touch art. But with baking, you can do all those things and it is a nice way to bring them together.”
“The competition is about having fun at heart,” Stella explained. “We’re going through a lot of hard things right now. It’s important to remember that it’s okay to take a break — not to ignore the things that are happening, but to make time for the things that move you.”
1. What’s mainly talked about in Paragraph 2?| A．The inspiration for Stella’s novel idea. |
| B．Stella’s great interest in baking therapy. |
| C．Stella’s life during the museum’s closure. |
| D．The influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on Stella. |
| A．To sign up for a group by their age. |
| B．To recreate famous artworks with cake. |
| C．To hand in their works on World Baking Day. |
| D．To advertise their works for votes on social media. |
| A．Suspicious. |
| B．Confused. |
| C．Appreciative. |
| D．Concerned. |
| A．She was hard-working and generous. |
| B．She went through many hardships. |
| C．She was optimistic and creative. |
| D．She enjoyed taking adventures. |
10 . Seven years ago, American Libby Green was traveling with her mom to the French Mediterranean resort city of Nice.
Meanwhile, German-born Marcel Gnauk and a friend were also in Nice, attending the Crossover Festival, a celebration of eclectic music.
Walking on the city’s beachfront Promenade des Anglais, Marcel spotted Libby holding a Hasselblad, a traditional medium-format film camera, and couldn’t resist approaching her. The pair chatted about this valuable object and then their travel. The next day, Libby flew back to the US, but they kept in contact.
In the early years of their relationship, sharing their travel experiences online became part of their routine. Then, when traveling in Phnom Penh, Libby filmed some pigeons taking flight that she wanted to use in a film. But she couldn’t record the sound of their wing beats.
They looked on the internet, searching sound libraries, but couldn’t find anything appropriate. So, Marcel took a $100 audio recorder, and went searching for the missing sound to record. He didn’t find any pigeons—but he did manage to change the direction of the couple’s future.
Marcel turned the recorder on in a small construction zone where women were shoveling gravel, listening through a cheap set of headphones. He was shocked. Everything became alive, and from that day until now he had never stopped recording.
In the six years since that first recording, Libby and Marcel have captured audio in more than 25 countries. They share their experiences through Instagram. Through postings they offer not just their passion and experiences recording sounds, but also details of the equipment and techniques they use. Through their website they offer 500 royalty-free sound libraries. Of these, 145 are free to download.
Marcel says their “a-ha” moment came when he was sitting in front of a computer in 2017. Libby had added a donation button to their website, and a Hollywood post-production creative had donated a few dollars. He realized others shared a passion for sound—and were willing to pay for it. Now their passion becomes a business.
1. What attracted Marcel when he saw Libby?| A．Her voice. | B．Her camera. | C．Her kindness. | D．Her beauty. |
| A．When they made a film in France. |
| B．When they shared travel experiences online. |
| C．When they searched the woods for a specific bird. |
| D．When they tried to record sounds of birds beating wings. |
| A．Marcel got a surprise. | B．Marcel could do nothing but sigh. |
| C．Marcel couldn’t say a word. | D．Marcel felt really worried. |
| A．An Unforgettable Travel | B．A Secret to Happiness |
| C．A Passion for Sounds | D．A Lesson From Nature |
