1 . Sadness and regret often go hand in hand, but we can’t let them hold us back. We must find peace and move forward.

Ever since I was young, it had been my greatest dream to attend Harvard, “the best” university in my eyes. I studied hard and maintained (保持) my good grades so that one day I could get into Harvard.     1     After all, I had always passed exams with flying colors.

However, my whole world fell apart when I got my rejection (拒绝) letter from Harvard. Everyone, including me, had gotten their hopes up so high that it was a long way down.

I gave in to my disappointment. I couldn’t understand what went wrong.     2     I cried all day and night, letting my disappointment and sadness eat me away.

Each time I tried to regain (重获) control, the feeling of rejection would come back and hit me hard. I knew that I couldn’t continue like this.     3     Though it was hard, I started rebuilding myself little by little every day because it’s okay to lose and to fail.

It doesn’t matter how many times or how hard you fall.     4     .

Even if it was painful at first, I went to Yale and attended my classes with a heavy heart. Over time the wound healed (愈合) itself up.     5     I fell but got back up. I didn’t let my disappointment silence me or control my actions.

A．I regretted that I hadn’t studied hard.

B．Everyone has different ideas about success.

C．It is how quickly you get back up that matters.

D．I knew that the news was hard to accept, but I had to face it.

E．Even if my future might be different from what I expected, I considered it a victory.

F．All my friends and families believed I would be able to get into my dream university.

G．Even greeting to Yale, which I considered a “second best” university, couldn’t revive me.

2 . My grandchild, Harold, was celebrating his 7th birthday. Asked what _________ he wanted, he said he wanted me to make fudge (乳脂软糖). I _________ it perhaps 20 years earlier with little success. What I once made was either fudge _________ or a hard and burnt rock.

Harold remembered me telling of these _________, but he held the _________ that I could successfully make fudge for him. Since he eagerly wanted it, I _________ and I tried my best to make it.

I followed the _________ step by step, which told me to “continue stirring the cooked mixture until it turns white and shiny”. I _________ stirring it. And then something _________ happened. I felt the fudge start to harden. “This is just the ____________ moment,” I thought. I stopped stirring immediately and poured it into a big plate. How happy! The fudge came out ____________ for the first time!

As I presented the perfectly crafted fudge to Harold, his eyes sparkled with ____________ and a wave of pride ____________ me. It dawned on me that life is about a series of challenges and, more importantly, opportunities for ____________. It’s about embracing the unknown and believing in oneself even when past experiences may suggest otherwise. Harold’s simple ____________ had become a catalyst (催化剂) for personal growth and overcoming my own limitations.

1.

A．colour

B．gift

C．plan

D．game

2.

A．did

B．witnessed

C．bought

D．considered

3.

A．stick

B．pie

C．candy

D．soup

4.

A．changes

B．failures

C．thrills

D．hardships

5.

A．fact

B．reason

C．belief

D．theory

6.

A．complained

B．resisted

C．persisted

D．agreed

7.

A．story

B．recipe

C．grandson

D．thought

8.

A．avoided

B．regretted

C．enjoyed

D．kept

9.

A．scary

B．interesting

C．amazing

D．awkward

10.

A．quiet

B．proper

C．regular

D．difficult

11.

A．ahead

B．late

C．fine

D．wrong

12.

A．joy

B．intelligence

C．humor

D．inspiration

13.

A．stood for

B．weighed on

C．struck at

D．washed over

14.

A．education

B．involvement

C．growth

D．fun

15.

A．interruption

B．request

C．answer

D．pleasure

3 . It was early winter several years ago. I had pulled out my old winter coat for another year’s use. It was still in pretty good shape although it was looking dirty from so many winters’ wear. I didn’t really need a new one but I wanted one and casually mentioned it to my daughter one day. She was such a sweet, loving girl that I should have guessed what would happen next. A few weeks later she gave me a new winter coat as a gift.

I put the old one in my closet and started to wear the new coat every day. Each day, though, when I opened my closet, something troubled me. It seemed a shame that my old but still good coat should just sit there keeping no one warm during the cold winter days. After a few weeks, I took it out and drove to a local charity shop. I knew that there was someone who couldn’t afford a coat but could get my old one.

My new coat is my old coat now. It is getting a little dirty and worn, too. It has black marks on the sleeves. It is in too bad shape to even donate to charity. I wonder if I should buy a new one soon, but I think I will wait for a while. I don’t really need a new one and maybe I can find something else to give to the charity shop instead.

Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “Want is a growing giant whom the coat of Have was never large enough to cover.” Perhaps the best way to deal with our wants then is to give instead. Love, after all, brings us the most joy. And the more of it you give away, the more of it you have.

1. Which word can best describe the author’s daughter?

A．Wealthy.

B．Thoughtful.

C．Easy-going.

D．Humorous.

2. Why was the author in shame when seeing his old coat in the closet?

A．It cost too much.	B．It was looking dirty.
C．There was not enough room for his new coat.	D．It was not sent to someone in need.

3. What is the author’s decision after his second coat becomes old?

A．Telling his daughter.	B．Buying a new one soon.
C．Donating it to charity.	D．Sending something else to charity.

4. What does the author want to show in the last paragraph?

A．Giving fills our wants.	B．Love is the key to joy.
C．The more you give, the more you lose.	D．A coat is large enough to cover our wants.

4 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。

The year 2013 marked a turning point in my life. In June, my husband was offered a new Job in Ghana. Feeling that I had hit a career bottleneck as a photographer and copywriter (广告文字撰写人), I, without any hesitation, made the decision to relocate with him.

While my husband engaged in work, my visa didn’t grant me the same privilege. But that’s okay. I didn’t know what to do anyway. I was left isolated, homesick and lacking purpose. Our new home was a bungalow near a river that cut across expansive grasslands. With few people around our home, I turned to nature, which had been a fondness of mine since childhood. Every day, I would take my camera and wander around, photographing aimlessly.

It wasn’t long before September arrived, bringing the full flow of the rainy season. After one particularly bad thunderstorm, I found a finch (雀) — a poor little thing barely a month old with one wing broken — on the ground. Evidently, he had been abandoned by his flock, his nest blown from a tree. The sight was heartbreaking. He was the size of my lite finger. His eyes were tightly shut and he was shuddering, too young to survive alone. I somehow felt a connection with it. Immediately I scooped him up and cautiously placed him in a cardboard box with towels, mimicking a nest, and stayed up all night researching how to care for him.

The next day, he seemed to regain some energy. He woke with his mouth open, though still too weak to let out a call. I fed him some food and chirped (叽喳) at him. To my amusement, he chirped back and even climbed into my hand. I affectionately gazed at this adorable creature, who was now boldly pecking (啄) my fingers now and then. A surge of warmth ran through me. Tenderly stroking his feathers, I chirped a lullaby, singing him to sleep. Gradually, his eyes drooped and he drifted off. I couldn’t help but chuckle at the scene — as far as he was concerned, I was his mother.

Para 1. “I will take care of you.” I murmured, making my promise to him.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Para 2. At that moment I realized that as I dedicated myself to the finch’s care, something within me changed.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

5 . In some ways, the kitchen is the heart of the home. It is where we ______ our day with a cup of coffee or tea. The kitchen is where we ______ ourselves, body and soul.

Sometimes you need order in the kitchen for things to run ______. Sometimes you need one person to be ______ charge. Imagine you are cooking dinner for your friends. As you are making the soup, your friend Sara ______ it and says, “This needs more salt.” So, she adds more salt.

Then Harlan comes in. He tastes your ______ and says, “You didn’t put enough pepper.” So he grinds (磨碎) some fresh black pepper into the pot.

Cecilia sees him. She tastes the soup and says, “You forgot vinegar. It’s my ______ ingredient.” Then she ______ in some vinegar.

You are happy to spend time with your friends. But, quite ______, all their opinions about your soup are becoming ______. Worst of all, you taste the soup and it’s ______!

And that is where we get the expression “too many cooks ______ the soup.”

This expression describes an age-old ______: If too many people help to complete a task, it may not go very well.

So there should be a cook in the kitchen. He is the ______. Other people can be assistants helping him. And the cook has the final ______.

1.

A．enjoy

B．finish

C．start

D．spend

2.

A．prepare

B．eat

C．cook

D．feed

3.

A．frequently

B．actively

C．smoothly

D．quickly

4.

A．from

B．for

C．with

D．in

5.

A．tastes

B．heats

C．mixes

D．drinks

6.

A．meat

B．soup

C．vegetable

D．food

7.

A．wonderful

B．famous

C．secret

D．delicious

8.

A．pours

B．fills

C．puts

D．blows

9.

A．importantly

B．strangely

C．interestingly

D．frankly

10.

A．charming

B．inviting

C．annoying

D．embarrassing

11.

A．salty

B．awful

C．sour

D．hot

12.

A．spoil

B．share

C．make

D．polish

13.

A．mystery

B．discovery

C．tradition

D．problem

14.

A．leader

B．host

C．assistant

D．manager

15.

A．method

B．direction

C．advice

D．say

6 . Signs That You Are Growing

Growing is a lifelong process. Here are the signs that show that you are actually growing and not getting stuck in the process.

    1    

Often, we see how badly people look when they get overly upset due to unimportant things. So the first sign of maturity (成熟) is letting the small things go and not getting angry over a tiny detail that didn’t go as you planned.

You start forgiving and understanding other people

When we are young, we are often unforgiving. As we mature, we are better able to understand the world beyond black and white.     2    . It enables us to look beyond the obvious and let go of simple judgments. We begin to understand better that others have complex (复杂的) lives and personalities, and so we become more willing to forgive their mistakes.

You always complete things that matter

Immature people don’t know when to commit (承诺) themselves and their energy or resources are always not well employed.     3    . In this way, they can often keep their promises and honor their commitments.

You accept the possibility of being wrong

    4    . They are always able to accept the possibility that they are wrong, that they don’t know something, because there is always more to learn.

Being mature is knowing that you are always growing up. You are never done learning and developing. This means that you don’t set yourself up as the highest authority.     5    .

A．You follow the crowd

B．You let the small things go

C．Instead, mature people focus on completing things that matter

D．Immature and mature people can both have plans for their lives

E．Rather, you open your mind to other ideas and new possibilities

F．Becoming more understanding is a sign of strength, not weakness

G．Mature people appear more confident, however, they are not overconfident

7 . One day, my 12-year-old daughter participated in a school poetry reading event. All her classmates were invited to write a “lie poem” about how ________ they were and read them aloud. They were supposed to ________ untruths about themselves that made them sound ________ wonderful. As I listened to the poems, I realized that the children were actually ________ the picture of their future. By “lying” to themselves, they were creating a ________ of who they wanted to be in the future.

I couldn’t help admiring the school for ________ the children to dream big in such a special way, even if it might not be the first intention. In fact, most of us are ________ to see the truth of who we could be. My daughter’s school developed an unintended ________ to that difficulty: If it’s hard for you to imagine the ________ in yourself, then you might want to begin by expressing it as a ________, as did the children who wrote the poems.

Think up some stories about who you would like to be. In due course, this ________ exercise would help you build the necessary blueprint for ________ your achievements. Without a picture of your ________ self, you can’t live into that self. So ________ it till you make it. The lie will become the ________ in the end.

1.

A．rich

B．busy

C．great

D．smart

2.

A．point out

B．make up

C．hold back

D．rely on

3.

A．unbelievably

B．unconsciously

C．unacceptably

D．unreasonably

4.

A．exaggerating

B．restoring

C．admiring

D．clarifying

5.

A．sample

B．vision

C．message

D．principle

6.

A．forcing

B．requesting

C．motivating

D．warning

7.

A．unable

B．anxious

C．nervous

D．unwilling

8.

A．excuse

B．balance

C．solution

D．connection

9.

A．interest

B．courage

C．expectation

D．potential

10.

A．fantasy

B．fortune

C．benefit

D．reference

11.

A．healthy

B．creative

C．gentle

D．formal

12.

A．ensuring

B．informing

C．stretching

D．measuring

13.

A．highest

B．biggest

C．happiest

D．bravest

14.

A．stop

B．forget

C．hide

D．pretend

15.

A．dream

B．reality

C．memory

D．nightmare

8 . I come from a long line of farmers. When my parents moved to Wisconsin, farming allowed them to _________ back to Laos, to the culture, and the land. Wisconsin’s cornfields _________ the rice fields of Laos. But for me as a child, farming was just a _________. I would be assigned (分配) a row of green beans. My mom _________ me a big basket and it was my _________ to fill it. That was how I spent my summer vacation _________ my friends were either at camp or doing other fun activities.

I didn’t _________ how farming brought hope to my parents until I was an adult. I am a _________ removed from Laos and I have found that farming allows me to _________ my parents’ story. It allows me to see a little bit into their story. What I’ve __________ from my mom is that you can grow just about anything. My mom wants to start growing __________ like she did back in Laos. With a snowy climate, it is something I never thought __________ here. To me, this shows resilience (适应力). Maybe it __________ and maybe it doesn’t. But there is __________ in that.

As a kid, I hated doing farm work and I never thought that someday I would say that I kind of __________ putting my feet in the mud and weeding (除草) the corn.

1.

A．connect

B．head

C．retire

D．report

2.

A．changed

B．covered

C．replaced

D．affected

3.

A．dream

B．game

C．chore

D．mystery

4.

A．sold

B．gave

C．sent

D．lent

5.

A．intention

B．opportunity

C．choice

D．job

6.

A．while

B．if

C．since

D．until

7.

A．regret

B．monitor

C．appreciate

D．complain

8.

A．generation

B．graduate

C．professional

D．beginner

9.

A．give away

B．make up

C．act out

D．relate to

10.

A．expected

B．learned

C．chosen

D．demanded

11.

A．corn

B．rice

C．beans

D．flowers

12.

A．flexible

B．necessary

C．legal

D．possible

13.

A．improves

B．revives

C．works

D．exists

14.

A．confusion

B．permission

C．balance

D．hope

15.

A．miss

B．risk

C．delay

D．escape

9 . As a child, I was proud of my southern origin. My own voice reflected my family’s past and present-part northern Mississippi, part Tennessee, all southern. There was no sound I loved more than my grandmother’s accent: thick, sweet, warm.

While growing up, I began to realize outside of our region, southerners were often dismissed as uncultured and ignorant. I was ready to leave behind my tiny town in West Tennessee, starting a new life and jumping at big chances in some far-off cities. In that embarrassing space between “teen” and “adult”, my accent was a symbol of everything I thought I hated about my life in the rural South. I feared it would disqualify me from being a noted magazine writer. I would have to talk less “country”. So I killed a piece of myself. I’m ashamed of it, but I’m more ashamed that I tried to kill that part of someone else-change Emily’s accent.

I met Emily in college. She was determined to work for the student newspaper, which was where I spent most of my waking hours, and we became friends. She, unlike me, accepted her roots. Early in our friendship, her mother asked where I was from, assuming it was somewhere up north. Then I felt my efforts paid off and even wanted to ignore the mistake.

Emily is two years younger and she cared about my opinion. I advised her to be more like me and hide her signature Manchester accent. I stressed that throughout our college years, often by making fun of her vowel (元音) sounds. I told myself I was helping her achieve her dream of working as a reporter. Now, I see that it was actually about justifying my hiding part of myself.

Grandma Carolyn used to tell me, “Girl, don’t forget where you come from.” Now I truly understand that. Many things have faded from memory, but this sticks in my mind with uncomfortable clarity. Now that I am grown and have left the South, it’s important to me.

1. What made the author want to leave her hometown?

A．Appeal of convenience in cities.

B．Her dream of becoming a writer.

C．Outside prejudice against southerners.

D．Her desire for the northern accent.

2. How did the author feel about the mistake of Emily’s mother?

A．Upset.

B．Pleased.

C．Ashamed.

D．Surprised.

3. Why on earth did the author try to change Emily’s accent?

A．To prove herself right.	B．To help Emily be a reporter.
C．To make herself influential.	D．To protect Emily’s self-dignity.

4. What message does the text want to convey?

A．Stay true to your roots.	B．Never do things by halves.
C．Hold on to your dreams.	D．Never judge a person by his accent.

10 . Traveling itself is an experience hard to be described in words.     1     Especially the solo (独自) traveling experience is so transforming that it lives with you forever. Here I am sharing some lessons.

    2     Thinking how I would manage my entire day among strangers on campus, I pretended to be sick. Then I had the same feeling when I was planning to travel alone. Exploring a city on my own was a big fear for me but I successfully managed it all and now, I seek out new opportunities and experiences. I love to push myself.    3    

Having grown up and lived all my life in a single place, I had a small set of friends since my school days which continued till my college days.    4     I met a few very interesting people with whom I could feel an instant connect and got some new friends for life.

I totally agree that traveling with family and friends is fun and enjoying. But traveling alone is satisfying too. It’s among those few things that you do for yourself and nobody else.    5     During my solo travels I have explored my inner self and have expanded my boundaries which people around me have acknowledged at times.

A．I want to experience more.

B．But all this changed with my first solo trip.

C．I never thought I would travel alone in my life.

D．I was so scared when I went to school first time.

E．Every journey prepares you for the journey of life.

F．The farther you travel, the more independent you become.

G．After all you need to take care of yourself a bit too at times.