According to legend, the Yellow River flooded during the period of Emperor Yao, and the people
In the face of difficulties, we should have the wisdom
One morning, as I walked to the market, I saw an old man, with a bandanna(印花大方巾) covering his face, sitting in front of a tea shop. He seemed to be just watching the traffic on the road, not paying attention to anyone. His bandanna was dirty and his clothes were crumpled(褶皱的). His hair stuck out because he wore a cap that didn’t fit well. I quickly assumed he was a beggar asking for money. I decided to give him some change on my way back from the market.
A little further down the road, there was a young man lying on the pavement(人行道) with his arms outstretched(张开的). No one passing by paid any attention to him. It seemed that he had drunk too much. Thus, I thought to myself that he was just a worthless man who had spent all his money on wine.
I finished my shopping at the market and headed back. Before reaching the point where the old man sat, I took out all the change I wanted to give to him. When I approached him and held out the change, he barely looked at me, but still looked ahead. He shook his head as if he was saying he didn’t need it. I insisted and pushed the change into his hand. As I stood there feeling proud of my act of charity, the old man slowly got up and walked to the young man who was lying on the pavement. The old man kept down, woke the young man up and whispered something in his ear. It seemed that they knew each other. The young man seemed to respond and then shook his head. The old man walked back and headed for the tea shop.
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 stood there, watching in amazement, as he walked to the tea shop.
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The old man noticed that I was still there so he looked up.
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3 . This month I finally lived my dream: I visited behind the scenes at Disneyland, “the happiest place on Earth.” Watching thousands of smiling employees rushing, around the park, completely absorbed in their work, I suddenly understood the magic behind the park and why joy had escaped me for so long.
When I was younger, I tried to pursue happiness directly by creating as many happy moments as I could. However, no matter how many happy moments I had, they could not protect me from sadness. The sadness would unexpectedly arise when it shouldn’t when I was with friends or family, when I had achieved success, and when I tried to create art. It was the persistence (持续) of this sadness that finally made me realize the truth: the Happy/Sad model was wrong.
I updated my mental model to the Pleasure/Pain model. I saw that what I had called happiness was simply emotional pleasure, which was anything that confirmed the way I saw myself and the world. As I removed emotionally and physically painful moments from my life, I established a mental image of myself as a “happy person.” However, I was stuck in a one-dimensional emotional world.
Wandering down the 19th street and waving to the 100th friendly costumed character, I finally found the words that completed my third model — Joy/Fear, one that gives real depth to life. Disneyland, with its immersive (沉浸式的) world and perfect performances, goes beyond creating happiness and lessening pain. It is carefully getting rid of fear. It removes the possibility of anything going wrong, of disappointing us. And behind the scenes, Disneyland works tirelessly to ensure that everything always run the way it should.
Life is not Disneyland, however. Try as we might, we can’t control the world around us or completely erase our fearful moments. But we can control how we approach life and how we understand our fears. And in the absence of that fear, joy arises.
1. What gives the author a deep insight into happiness at Disneyland?| A．The beautiful scenes of Disneyland. |
| B．The relaxing working environment. |
| C．The smiling and committed staff. |
| D．The magical life principle. |
| A．had no close friends |
| B．didn’t get along well with family |
| C．achieved no success in the art creation |
| D．misunderstood the true meaning of happiness |
| A．It is entirely subjective. |
| B．It gives real depth to life. |
| C．It focuses on temporary joy. |
| D．It highlights the external state. |
| A．Disneyland is a magical and joyful place. |
| B．Emotional pleasure is the key to happiness. |
| C．Fear is inevitable for all of us in the whole life. |
| D．Approaching life with devotion brings genuine joy. |
4 . “Hi! Ms Brooks!” It was Sunday morning, my daughter and I were visiting a model home when I heard a(n)
Then my daughter pulled me away, but Evans stayed on my mind for the rest of the weekend. Evans was a
Evans’s grades showed no sign of
In a class project, I
| A．impolite | B．uncivilized | C．familiar | D．female |
| A．mournfully | B．awkwardly | C．vaguely | D．proudly |
| A．warm-hearted | B．open-mouthed | C．easy-going | D．hard-working |
| A．gardener | B．volunteer | C．pioneer | D．racer |
| A．In case | B．Even though | C．For fear that | D．As long as |
| A．improvement | B．confusion | C．judgment | D．intention |
| A．inquired | B．proposed | C．decided | D．doubted |
| A．determination | B．lifestyle | C．hobby | D．tune |
| A．tired | B．devoted | C．casual | D．independent |
| A．advised | B．admitted | C．assigned | D．asked |
| A．strange | B．difficult | C．important | D．exciting |
| A．pack up | B．care for | C．move away | D．show off |
| A．irrigated | B．cleaned | C．filled | D．polished |
| A．fruits | B．flowers | C．shoots | D．roots |
| A．appear | B．fade | C．shine | D．adjust |
5 . Castillo wrote a letter to her father for his 50th birthday. Her father, who suffers from Down’s syndrome (唐氏综合征), had at one point been a(n)
Castillo said it took years before she had the courage to
“You
Besides having Down’s syndrome, her father has a wide
“Dad, no words can sum up how
| A．pride | B．encouragement | C．embarrassment | D．puzzlement |
| A．praises | B．believes | C．admires | D．assists |
| A．reason out | B．face up to | C．seek after | D．clear up |
| A．typical | B．different | C．rude | D．troublesome |
| A．Still | B．Moreover | C．Instead | D．Meanwhile |
| A．reserve | B．deserve | C．preserve | D．demand |
| A．area | B．division | C．range | D．circle |
| A．examinations | B．operations | C．treatments | D．medicines |
| A．courageous | B．selfless | C．promising | D．pessimistic |
| A．bear | B．relieve | C．kill | D．remove |
| A．faith | B．ambition | C．strength | D．example |
| A．awesome | B．sorry | C．casual | D．shameful |
| A．lucky | B．lovely | C．absent | D．intelligent |
| A．keeping | B．hiding | C．saving | D．drawing |
| A．guess | B．recover | C．know | D．seize |
6 . Perseverance is what helps us persist through challenges and difficulties with determination and resilience. It is this
I remember a time when I
I almost gave up. I considered changing my major and even dropping out of college altogether. Yet, I had a long conversation with my professor, during which he told me that everyone struggles with something at certain
I took his advice and decided to keep pushing myself
That experience taught me the
| A．condition | B．problem | C．quality | D．virtue |
| A．experienced | B．struggled | C．triumphed | D．experimented |
| A．encountered | B．withstood | C．fought | D．delayed |
| A．class | B．course | C．lesson | D．curriculum |
| A．grab | B．grapple | C．gamble | D．grasp |
| A．item | B．rule | C．point | D．scene |
| A．admiring | B．declaring | C．persevering | D．deserving |
| A．considering | B．despite | C．concerning | D．regardless |
| A．attended | B．enrolled | C．engaged | D．tended |
| A．though | B．although | C．even though | D．as though |
| A．keep | B．stay | C．remain | D．retain |
| A．element | B．beauty | C．choice | D．appreciation |
| A．meeting | B．combating | C．enduring | D．ensuring |
| A．nurture | B．get | C．require | D．enquire |
| A．interest | B．likelihood | C．character | D．mentality |
7 . When I tried out for the football team during the summer before 9th grade, I never imagined how important this sport would become in my life. Football is a
In the first year, I played on the defensive line. This was an amazing
In September, during my junior year, my name was mentioned in the local newspaper as the key defensive lineman on the team. After playing a fantastic season, I was given the
In this sense, the world of football has taught me an important life lesson:
| A．tough | B．popular | C．typical | D．dynamic |
| A．set | B．control | C．test | D．require |
| A．mistakes | B．adventures | C．accidents | D．injuries |
| A．performance | B．position | C．moment | D．advantage |
| A．with | B．over | C．through | D．into |
| A．valuable | B．lost | C．extra | D．regular |
| A．pride | B．choice | C．name | D．honor |
| A．Unfortunately | B．Similarly | C．Happily | D．Gradually |
| A．practices | B．tryouts | C．seasons | D．operations |
| A．But | B．Or | C．So | D．And |
| A．examined | B．changed | C．provided | D．completed |
| A．shoulder | B．hand | C．leg | D．foot |
| A．explore | B．avoid | C．love | D．support |
| A．Knowledge | B．Belief | C．Experience | D．Opinion |
| A．enjoyable | B．possible | C．sensible | D．responsible |
As far as Justin knew, there was only one way out of his neighborhood: basketball. So he ran with the ball like the hounds (猎犬) were running after him. He could drop any of the older guys at the court and the younger guys didn’t stand a chance. Justin saw his way out and he ran for it.
One day when Justin was shooting around at the local court, some guys from another block ran up and asked to play. The big one in the middle said that he had heard that Justin was the best and he wanted to see if it was true. Justin refused him at once. But the big guy insisted, and Justin’s cousin was encouraging, “Come on, Justin, drop this guy.” So Justin figured that he’d just do what everyone wanted and play.
Justin was running all over the big guy and making his shots while he did it. But suddenly Justin was pushed hard by the big guy and went flying in just such a way that he unluckily tore up his right knee. The doctor said Justin might never play again. Justin almost broke down.
The first six weeks in hospital, Justin just lay in bed with his leg in a long cast (石膏). He watched three reruns (再播放) of The Simpsons every day and ate potato chips until the bag was empty, and then he’d dig the salt and grease out of the corner with his finger. It seemed as if he blew up like a balloon. Right when he reached the bottom of the pit of despair (绝望), Justin’s sister, Kiki, came home from the university.
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。
She came in the house like a whirl of sunshine.
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After spending those weeks with his sister, Justin realized he didn’t want to feel bad for himself any more.
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9 . I didn’t know how to say no, and was afraid to tell people what I wanted. Instead, I got myself tangled (纠结的) in a web of obligations (义务), anxiety, and white lies.
The worst thing was that I didn’t even realize what I was doing. I thought I knew how to say “no”, but couldn’t remember the last time I had. Like a lot of people, I just wanted to be accepted, appreciated, loved, and that the only way to get those things was to put everyone else’s needs before my own.
I never seemed to have time for things I really wanted to do. I’d like to learn Spanish, write more fiction, and travel. These aren’t huge goals. And yet, my people-pleasing ways cut into my free time to stop these desires.
But recently, I decided I’d had enough. As an experiment, I began standing up for myself, even at the risk of alienating (使疏远) myself from everyone and having my entire life come crashing down around me. Several days ago, a good friend asked me to go for coffee at 5 pm. I was planning to go to the gym. So I said, “Sorry, I’ve got things I want to do tonight.” She said sincerely, “That’s fine. Maybe another time.” It was all so simple that I got surprised.
Saying “no” is so much easier. If someone asks me to do something I have zero interest in, I’m polite but honest. “I’m sorry. I don’t think that’s really for me.” The words slip out of my mouth faster than some other excuses.
Learning how to say “no” has added several extra hours to my days, days to my weeks, and to my years. I no longer have to give up my plans to help friends with their matters, or set aside a weekend for others. Saying “no” has set me free.
1. Why was the author afraid of saying “no”?| A．She didn’t want to tell lies. | B．She wanted to keep her hobby a secret. |
| C．She wanted to please every one. | D．She was always willing to help others. |
| A．She was trusted no longer. | B．She lost the chance to make friends. |
| C．She felt sad now and then. | D．She had no time for her own hobbies. |
| A．Natural. | B．Painful. | C．Angry. | D．Worried. |
| A．Lonely. | B．Relaxed. | C．Anxious. | D．Lost. |
Sports Day was getting close in the school. All the children were very excited and were practicing for the big race. John, one of the fast runners of the school, was confident that he would win for he was not doing anything at all. “You have to work hard to come first in the race John. You are not practicing at all,” said John’s mother.
“Mom, you know how fast I am! Why should I waste my time running? Only I will win; no one else will win!”said John. “John, you may be right but talent (天赋) without hard work is not good at all. This laziness of yours will cost you greatly,” his mother warned him. John just laughed. He was so confident that he would win the trophy (奖杯) as no one else in his class was as fast as he was!.
Tim, a classmate of John, was also participating (参加) in the running race. He was not a fast runner. However, he practiced till late at night and had developed great endurance (持久力) to run the race.
There were a few days left for the Sports Day but John did not practice at all. On the other hand, Tim practiced day and night.
The Sports Day was almost around the corner but John was confident that no one could beat him and had not practiced at all. But Tim with his hard work had become a very great runner.
At last, the Sports Day arrived. All the students showed up on the ground to cheer their favorites. The coach blew the whistle (口哨) and everyone began to run toward the finishing line. It was so exciting. John and Tim left all the racers far behind. Both of them were neck to neck.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右；2. 请按如下格式在相应位置作答。
Suddenly, John went ahead of Tim.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________John’s mother came up to Tim and praised him for his hard work.
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