1 . Climbing, I once thought, was a very manly activity, but as I found my way into this activity, I came to see that something quite different happens on the rock.
Like wild swimming, rock climbing involves you into the landscape. On the rock, I am fully focused. Eyes pay close attention, ears are alert, and hands move across the surface. Unlike walking, where I could happily wander about absent-mindedly, in climbing, attentive observation is essential.
As an arts student studying English literature, I discovered a new type of reading from outdoor climbing. Going out on to the crags (悬崖), I saw how you could learn to read the rocks and develop a vocabulary of physical movements. Good climbers knew how to adjust their bodies on to the stone. Watching them, I wanted to possess that skillful “language”.
My progress happened when I worked for the Caingorms National Park Authority.Guiding my explorations into this strange new landscape was Nan Shepherd, a lady too. Unlike the goal-directed mindset of many mountaineers, she is not concerned with peaks or personal achievement. Shepherd sees the mountain as a total environment and she celebrates the Caingorms as a place alive with plants, rocks, animals and elements. Through her generous spirit and my own curiosity, I saw that rock climbing need not be a process of testing oneself against anything. Rather, the intensity of focus could develop a person into another way of being.
Spending so much time in high and st ony places has transformed my view on the world and our place in it. I have come into physical contact with processes that go way beyond the everyday. Working with gravity, geology (地质学), rhythms of weather and deep time, I gain an actual relationship with the earth. This bond lies at the heart of my passion for rock climbing. I return to the rocks, because this is where I feel in contact with our land.
1. What does the writer find important in climbing?| A．Balance. | B．Concentration. |
| C．Determination. | D．Perseverance. |
| A．Climbing goes together with nature. |
| B．Every mountain top is within reach. |
| C．The best climber is the one having fun. |
| D．You can not achieve high unless you change. |
| A．Time. | B．Transformation. | C．The world. | D．My view. |
| A．It challenges her to compete with men. |
| B．It allows her a unique attitude toward rock. |
| C．It teaches her how to possess a new language. |
| D．It makes her feel connected with the earth. |
2 . When I was young, I used to hate running. In fact, I wouldn’t have become a(n)
So she picked it up again, and after about a year, I started to join her at the
But on the race day, there I was.
The gun went off. Thousands of runners
After another minute, I saw the three kilometer
I
Then I looked up and saw the clock. The
| A．visitor | B．expert | C．coach | D．runner |
| A．competitive | B．common | C．brave | D．anxious |
| A．hated | B．trained | C．missed | D．admired |
| A．track | B．race | C．field | D．stadium |
| A．hesitated | B．puzzled | C．cared | D．brought |
| A．slipped away | B．went away | C．pushed forward | D．came over |
| A．mildly | B．shallowly | C．gently | D．heavily |
| A．running | B．bending | C．reaching | D．pacing |
| A．symbol | B．mark | C．pattern | D．campaign |
| A．rounded | B．found | C．made | D．got |
| A．stuck | B．crowded | C．provided | D．seated |
| A．enjoy | B．start | C．keep | D．stop |
| A．seconds | B．titles | C．sounds | D．competitors |
| A．also | B．actually | C．just | D．unfortunately |
| A．got | B．came | C．stayed | D．straightened |
3 . Nothing in life is more exciting than the sudden insight that leaves one a changed person—not only changed, but changed for the
One cold afternoon I was in a restaurant feeling extremely
Then my neighbor, an old psychiatrist (精神科医生),
Hearing my words, he said nothing but
The three voices all
“That is poisonous”, the old man explained.
“The trouble with ‘if only’ is that it doesn’t
“What should I do?” I inquired.
“Change ‘if only’ to ‘next time’,” he smiled. “This phrase will help you to
learn a lesson from a failure, move forward, and take
| A．sharper | B．busier | C．better | D．fewer |
| A．positive | B．emotional | C．wise | D．sensitive |
| A．frightened | B．moved | C．excited | D．frustrated |
| A．worries | B．advantages | C．requests | D．mistakes |
| A．appeared | B．served | C．fell | D．volunteered |
| A．unfairly | B．repeatedly | C．hardly | D．suddenly |
| A．invited | B．adapted | C．limited | D．appointed |
| A．debates | B．recitations | C．lectures | D．recordings |
| A．differently | B．frequently | C．visually | D．reasonably |
| A．selected | B．scared | C．blamed | D．distinguished |
| A．at least | B．at most | C．at all | D．at last |
| A．copy | B．change | C．express | D．separate |
| A．curiosity | B．chance | C．motivation | D．trouble |
| A．imagine | B．forget | C．describe | D．reproduce |
| A．shape | B．medicine | C．action | D．effect |
4 . At an airport I overheard a father and daughter in their last moments together. The airline had announced her plane’s
She said, “Daddy, our life together has been more than enough. Your
I could see he wanted and needed to cry. I tried not to
Saying that brought back memories I had of expressing my love and
“Why is this a forever good-bye?” I asked.
“I am old and she lives too far away. And the
“When you were saying good-bye I heard you say, ‘I wish you enough’. What does that mean?”
He began to smile. “That’s a wish that has been
“When we said ‘I wish you enough’, we wanted you to have a life filled with enough good things to
“I wish you enough sun to keep your attitude bright. I wish you enough pain so that the smallest
He then began to
| A．leaving | B．arrival | C．delay | D．cancel |
| A．grocery | B．wealth | C．reward | D．love |
| A．disturb | B．evaluate | C．shelter | D．pursue |
| A．temporary | B．separate | C．blank | D．forever |
| A．sympathy | B．appreciation | C．approval | D．greatness |
| A．precise | B．numerous | C．limited | D．wasted |
| A．Naturally | B．Gradually | C．Unexpectedly | D．Hopefully |
| A．dream | B．secret | C．chance | D．reality |
| A．carried out | B．handed down | C．worn down | D．sorted out |
| A．in detail | B．in action | C．on purpose | D．with regret |
| A．access | B．host | C．label | D．support |
| A．history | B．text | C．memory | D．childhood |
| A．sadness | B．misfortune | C．joy | D．mistake |
| A．abandon | B．possess | C．wonder | D．expect |
| A．smile | B．weep | C．freeze | D．shout |
5 . When I was younger, I faced one obstacle, the divorce (离婚) of my parents. I wanted to know why my mother left and no longer lived in my house, but I was not able to understand exactly what had happened. Puzzles became my escape as I knew that all puzzles have an answer; they had unknowingly become a large part of my childhood as they made sense to me unlike what was going on in my life.
My love for puzzles led me to buying a Rubik’s cube (魔方) after I saw my friend solve his own. In the beginning, I was unable to follow the guide that came with the first Rubik’s cube I bought, but then I searched up a tutorial online and learned by watching. Using my skill of memory, I was able to remember possible patterns that the Rubik’s cube could be after each step.
After I learned how to solve a Rubik’s cube and learned that it could be solved many ways, I never got tired of solving it, because there were so many combinations that every time I mixed it up, there was a different solution.
My outlook of the world changed, as I realized that there is not one concrete solution to everything, but multiple solutions. Being able to see things differently, the ways I solved some problems with multiple solutions were uncommon among my classmates. My 10th grade math teacher had acknowledged this when he wrote a comment on my test, saying he had not thought about solving a problem the way I had solved it. I gained a new perspective in approaching the challenges of life. The obstacles that we encounter throughout our lifetime are preparation in order for us to solve the everlasting mystery of life.
1. What were the puzzles for the author at the beginning?| A．A replacement for friends. | B．A way to understand parents. |
| C．A solution to the mysteries of life. | D．A distraction from parents’ divorce. |
| A．For the joy in the process. | B．For the achievements in learning. |
| C．For the possibility to different solutions. | D．For the praise from teachers and classmates. |
| A．Hard work pays off. | B．Rome isn’t built in one day. |
| C．Failure is the mother of success. | D．There is more than one way to go in life. |
| A．They make life more challenging. | B．They prepare people for life puzzles. |
| C．They test people’s problem-solving skills. | D．They prevent people from finding solutions. |
6 . When I was a senior high school student in 1980, God gave me a gift, it was happiness.
One weekend, I went to visit my grandparents in the countryside.
However, it’s easier said than done.
| A．Happiness depends on what we have! |
| B．They get a bad grade on a test |
| C．How sad I felt at that time! |
| D．On my way home a car hit me and cut off my arms because of its high speed. |
| E．Maybe it was just a joke for me. |
| F．It took me nearly half a year to get out of the sadness completely. |
| G．I had a wonderful time here. |
7 . A young woman one day said something that hurt her best friend of many years. She regretted it immediately and would like to do anything to take the words back. what she had said hurt her friend so much that her woman herself also felt very painful. To make up what she had done, she went to an old wise man in the village and ask for advice.
The old man understood the young woman’s suffering. He know he must help her. He knew he could never remove her pain, but he could teach. And he also knew the result would depend only on her character.
“Tonight, take your best feather pillows and put single feather on the doorstep of each house in the village before the sun rises,” he said.
The young woman hurried home to prepare for it, even though the feather pillows were very dear to her. All night long, she made her efforts alone in the cold. Finally it got light and she places the last feather on the step of the last house. Just as the sun rise, she returned to the old man.
“Now,” said the man, “go back and refill your pillows with the feathers you have put on the steps. Then every thing will be as it was before.”
“You know that’s impossible! The wind blew away each feather as fast as I placed them on the doorsteps!” The young woman was surprised.
“That’s true,” said the old man. “Each of your words is like a feather in the wind. Once your words are spoken, no matter how much effort you make and how sincere you are, you can never return them to your mouth. Choose your words well and protect people you love from being hurt.”
1. According to Paragraph 2, the old man ______.| A．could remove her pain | B．knew a lot about her character |
| C．refused to teach her | D．decided to help her learn something |
| A．In the evening | B．At midnight |
| C．At sunrise | D．In the afternoon |
| A．put the feathers back to the pillows | B．make some now pillows |
| C．take away the feathers | D．Find more feathers |
| A．Taking one’s advice before doing. |
| B．Thinking carefully before speaking. |
| C．Asking for advice when you have troubles. |
| D．Talking to people when you have troubles. |
George was so excited he could hardly wait to get to the store. He walked so fast that his sister Beth had to run. “Do you have to hurry like that?” she puffed. On his way from school he had seen that baseball cap in Rogers’ store window. Only a dollar and this was the last cap! George had looked at the cap a long time. He wanted it more than anything. Every boy at school had one.
George thought of his piggy hank, into which he put every coin for running errands (差使) for his family and neighbors.
George raced home, not stopping for anything. He held the fat iron pig, opened it carefully, and poured out the coins. Ten...twenty...thirty...ninety cents. If only he had one more dime (一角硬币)!
Lost in thought, George stared out the window. “What’s wrong, George?” asked Mother George told about the money and the cap. “If you give me what you have, I’ll add a dime,” Mother said, handing him a dollar bill.
George jumped up. “Oh, thanks, Mom. That’s great!” George gave all his coins to Mother and took the dollar bill. And away went George and Beth to the store with the dollar bill in George’s pocket.
They turned the last comer. Ahead was a group of boys and girls, talking heatedly and looking down at the sidewalk.
One of the children was Ronny, a new boy who had been in this town only a short time. Ronny’s father had been sick, so there wasn’t much money for extras - like baseball cap.
“What’s the matter?” Beth asked, anxiously.
“It’s Ronny,” answered one of them. “He’s been working and finally saved up a whole dollar, and now it’s lost!”
George went over to Ronny.
“We’ll all help look. We’ll find it!”
“I was going to get that last cap in Rogers’ window. I wanted it a lot. With that cap, I could join them.” Ronny said slowly.
Suddenly George remembered how Ronny had watched the fellows playing baseball, his eyes lighting up eagerly as they shouted and ran.
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。
George stared at the ground, thinking hard.
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Forcing a smile, George showed Beth the empty pocket.
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9 . 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. |
10 . At a family picnic for employees of the company where my father worked, they held a contest for children. I was 13, full of enthusiasm, so I
The host gave each child a cloth handkerchief and told us the winner would be the one who cast it the
It
I took a long wind-up, and the balled handkerchief
| A．admitted | B．threw | C．trapped | D．talked |
| A．farthest | B．strongest | C．highest | D．biggest |
| A．escaped | B．wrinkled | C．opened | D．appeared |
| A．pain | B．applause | C．laughter | D．anger |
| A．demonstrate | B．apply | C．improve | D．learn |
| A．responsibility | B．imagination | C．demand | D．passion |
| A．delighted | B．frightened | C．amused | D．annoyed |
| A．cloth | B．technique | C．rule | D．line |
| A．ant | B．rock | C．leaf | D．shoe |
| A．fined | B．disqualified | C．dismissed | D．banned |
| A．loosely | B．randomly | C．firmly | D．delicately |
| A．anticipating | B．enjoying | C．stopping | D．confirming |
| A．dashed | B．jumped | C．shot | D．rocketed |
| A．died | B．roared | C．continued | D．weakened |
| A．glance through | B．tap into | C．give up | D．go over |
