2 . It was June 15, and in two days I would be turning thirty. I was insecure about entering a new decade of my life and feared that my best years were now behind me.

My daily routine included going to the gym for a workout before going to work. Every morning I would see my friend Nicholas at the gym. He was seventy-nine years old and in terrific shape. As I greeted Nicholas on this particular day, he noticed I wasn’t full of my usual vitality and asked if there was anything wrong. I told him I was feeling anxious about turning thirty. I wondered how I would look back on my life once I reached Nicholas’ sage, so I asked him, “What was the best time of your life?”

Without hesitation, Nicholas replied, “Well, Joe, this is my philosophical answer to your philosophical question.”

“When I was a child in Austria and everything was taken care of for me and I was nurtured by my parents, that was the best time of my life.”

“When I was going to school and learning the things I know today, that was the best time of my life.”

“When I got my first job and had responsibilities and got paid for my efforts, that was the best time of my life.”

“When I met my wife and fell in love, that was the best time of my life.”

“The Second World War came, and my wife and I had to flee Austria to save our lives. When we were together and safe on a ship bound for North America, that was the best time of my life.”

“When we came to Canada and started a family, that was the best time of my life.”

“When I was a young father, watching my children grow up, that was the best time of my life.”

“And now, Joe, I am seventy-nine years old. I have my health, I feel good and I am in love with my wife just as I was when we first met. This is the best time of my life.”

1. Why did the author feel anxious according to the article?

A．He would be 30 in two days.

B．He was worried about getting old.

C．He didn’t go to the gym to exercise.

D．Nicholas asked questions he didn’t want to answer.

2. What do we know about Nicholas’ life experiences?

A．He spent his childhood with his grandparents in Austria.

B．He dropped out of school, found a job and got paid.

C．He took part in the Second World War and met his wife.

D．He started a family and became a young father in Canada.

3. What do you think of Nicholas’s life?

A．Casual.

B．Anxious.

C．Positive.

D．Negative.

4. What can we learn from Nicholas?

A．Live a day at a time.	B．You get what you pay for.
C．Every man has his price.	D．Strike while the iron is hot.

3 . I was an avid (热衷的) list maker. I thought the lists would help me finish things more ________ so that I would have my own ________ each day. Instead, I felt tired all the time, and it was hard to fall asleep as I ________ my to-do list for the next day in my mind. I was ________ and painful.

My real turning ________ came about a few years ago. I was having the inside of our house painted. ________, I had to move all things out of the painters’ way. After the painting, I decided to think about what I would put back. I ________ many decorations because they made the rooms small and ________. And the house felt so much more open, peaceful and beautiful. When I started to hang our calendar back up, I noticed how ________ each day was. Every square was filled in. I decided to continue my ________ of the calendar.

It was near the end of July, so I ________ “clearing” August and September. I kept doctors’ appointments (预约) and family events. But I ________ extra tasks I had taken on that left me very little time to relax, read or spend time with my family. I felt a great sense of ________ after that.

I still make ________ to keep myself organized, but I am down to one page. I schedule time for myself each day — to do what I ________. The tidy beauty of our home and schedule gives me great peace and joy.

1.

A．naturally

B．secretly

C．effectively

D．creatively

2.

A．duty

B．time

C．method

D．reason

3.

A．adapted to

B．searched for

C．depended on

D．went over

4.

A．amazed

B．stressed

C．bored

D．pleased

5.

A．point

B．occasion

C．opportunity

D．stage

6.

A．Otherwise

B．However

C．Besides

D．Thus

7.

A．put up

B．took over

C．threw away

D．broke through

8.

A．dark

B．crowded

C．warm

D．unusual

9.

A．meaningful

B．different

C．full

D．long

10.

A．preparing

B．recovering

C．clearing

D．establishing

11.

A．imagined

B．missed

C．avoided

D．started

12.

A．removed

B．challenged

C．ensured

D．preserved

13.

A．eagerness

B．shame

C．relief

D．belonging

14.

A．profits

B．lists

C．wishes

D．goals

15.

A．want

B．prove

C．approach

D．inspire

4 . Happiness is for everyone. You don’t need to care about those people who have beautiful houses with large gardens and swimming pools or those who have nice cars and a lot of money and so on. Why? Because those who have big houses may often feel lonely and those who have cars may want to walk on the country roads at their free time.

In fact, happiness is always around you if you put your heart into it. When you are in trouble at school, your friends will help you; when you study hard at your lessons, your parents are always taking good care of your life and your health; when you get success, your friends will say congratulations to you; when you do something wrong, people around you will help you to correct(改正) it. And when you do something good to others, you will feel happy, too. All these are your happiness. If you notice them, you can see that happiness is always around you.

Happiness is not the same as money. It is a feeling of your heart. When you are poor, you can also say you are very happy, because you have something else that can’t be bought with money. When you meet with difficulties, you can say loudly you are very happy, because you have more chances(机会) to challenge yourself. So you cannot always say you are poor and you have bad luck. As the saying goes, life is like a revolving(旋转)door. When it closes, it also opens. If you take every chance you get, you can be a happy and lucky person.

1. Happiness is for_________.

A．those who have large and beautiful houses	B．those who have cars
C．those who have a lot of money	D．all people

2. When you do something wrong, _________.

A．you may correct it	B．you will have no chance to challenge yourself
C．anybody will laugh at you	D．you will be happy

3. Which is the title of the passage?

A．Do Something Good to Others	B．Happy and Lucky
C．Happiness	D．Life and Success

5 . 阅读下面短文，根据短文内容填空，在未给提示词的空白处仅填写1个适当的单词。在给出提示词的空白处用括号内所给词的正确形式填空。

Discovering yourself     1     (play) an important role in inspiring your confidence. By     2     (do) so, you could know what you are weak in. And you may also realize you’re quite a great person     3     great strengths. So when you’re in a hard situation, you will believe in     4     (you) and spend the most difficult time with confidence. Otherwise you may give up and then lose everything. Therefore, the ability to trust yourself will decide your future a lot.

6 . A man was fishing on the bank of a river. A boy came to see him fishing. The man was really good at fishing and he could catch a full basket of fish in a short time. The man saw that the boy was very cute, and he wanted to give him a whole basket of fish. But the boy shook his head. The man was surprised and asked, “Why don’t you want the fish? ”

The boy replied, “I want the fishing rod(竿)in your hands.”

The man asked, “Why do you want the rod? ”

“I will eat up all the fish in the basket soon, but if I have the fishing rod,I can use it to catch a lot of fish by myself.”

Many people will certainly say the boy is very smart...wrong! If he doesn’t know fishing skills. He can’t catch fish without a fishing rod. It’s useless to only have a fishing rod, fishing skills are more important than having a fishing rod.

Many people want to have a “fishing rod” in their life. They are just like the boy, they thought that if they had a fishing rod, they would have fish to eat. Life is full of exciting things, we should try to learn fishing skills instead of having a fishing rod.

1. The man was fishing on the bank of________.

A．a river

B．a lake

C．a pool

D．a sea

2. Many people thought the boy was________after he explained why he didn’t want the fish.

A．smart

B．silly

C．wrong

D．hardworking

3. Life is full exciting things,we should try to________.

A．fish

B．eat fish

C．learn fishing skills

D．have a fishing rod

8 . I was driving in my car the other day. The sun was out, the radio was playing, and I was singing along. The song was a _____ one and even my weak voice sounded good singing it. Then it _____,   however. The sweet sound of the music _____ and there came the unpleasant news. Gas prices _____ again. Fans of two sports teams got into fight. I sighed and wondered about this _____ world we live in.

_____,   I could take no more and turned off the radio. Silence seemed preferable to listening to _____ else about the crazy,   competitive society we live in. I slowed down as I entered a town and _____ the people as I drove by. A tall man was _____ an elderly lady out of a car and helping her place her walker so she could go into store in her wheelchair. A smiling woman was ______ food onto the square while a dozen birds flew down to enjoy the food being laid out before them. A young man was walking along,   carrying his ______ safely in his arms. When the daughter pulled the hat off his head,   they both ______. I laughed too as I looked at all of his ______. The radio may have been off in my car,   ______ in my heart I was still singing.

In truth, this world could have more kindness and less ______. Kindness makes us all winners in this life and our life will be full of love and joy.

1.

A．long

B．boring

C．joyful

D．sad

2.

A．appeared

B．remained

C．happened

D．stayed

3.

A．ended

B．continued

C．jumped

D．fell

4.

A．cut down

B．made up

C．went down

D．went up

5.

A．exciting

B．interesting

C．unusual

D．crazy

6.

A．Finally

B．Generally

C．Secretly

D．Calmly

7.

A．anything

B．everything

C．something

D．nothing

8.

A．touched

B．watched

C．avoided

D．recognized

9.

A．freeing

B．protecting

C．helping

D．keeping

10.

A．collecting

B．moving

C．covering

D．throwing

11.

A．daughter

B．son

C．dog

D．cat

12.

A．stopped

B．stood

C．laughed

D．shouted

13.

A．weakness

B．kindness

C．loneliness

D．safeness

14.

A．For

B．Or

C．And

D．But

15.

A．silence

B．development

C．competition

D．sickness

9 . My name is Ally Del Monte. I remember it clearly. When I was 10 years old, my _________ and I were on our first vacation at Disney World, and we were going to a “Pirate and Princess Party”. We didn’t know that it was a costume (戏服) party but no _________ — my mom said she’d _________ me to get a princess dress. We _________ the land of princesses, but they didn’t have one for me.

I was in the beginning stage of Lyme disease. My _________ and medication caused my overweight. I was too _________ for the kids costumes and the adult costumes wouldn’t _________for me.

The lady at the shop said, “I’m sorry, she’s too fat to be a princess.” I was only 10 years old, and I was _________ because I thought I would never be _________ enough or skinny enough to be the princess that I wanted to be.

Several years later, I just turned 16, and instead of a party, I asked for a family __________. I chose to go to Disney World. Our trip was right in the middle of Halloween, and I knew I could wear a costume. It was still __________ to find a princess dress in my __________, but my mom and I decided to make our own, a magical princess dress to prove to my 10-year-old self that I am a princess, and I don’t have to look for a certain __________ to be one.

I’ve __________ that no matter what you look like, you can be a princess. A princess isn’t a size. It’s a state of __________.

1.

A．classmate

B．partner

C．family

D．friend

2.

A．problem

B．surprise

C．chance

D．wonder

3.

A．persuade

B．encourage

C．send

D．take

4.

A．struggled for

B．paid for

C．asked for

D．headed for

5.

A．trouble

B．illness

C．injury

D．addiction

6.

A．big

B．small

C．tall

D．thin

7.

A．appear

B．work

C．cheat

D．crack

8.

A．annoyed

B．puzzled

C．heartbroken

D．confused

9.

A．pretty

B．positive

C．confident

D．outgoing

10.

A．dinner

B．camp

C．celebration

D．trip

11.

A．hard

B．convenient

C．strange

D．possible

12.

A．room

B．size

C．hand

D．pack

13.

A．time

B．way

C．place

D．attitude

14.

A．shared

B．heard

C．learned

D．requested

15.

A．wealth

B．shock

C．health

D．mind