文章大意：本文是一篇记叙文。文章主要讲述了作者在尝试了榴莲后，喜欢上了这种水果，他切开榴莲的技巧也逐渐变得娴熟。后来有位店家向作者推荐熟透后自己裂开的榴莲，被拒绝了，但作者偶然发现那样的榴莲味道更好，因此领悟到更高的艺术在于让事情以最好的方式自行发生，做事应顺其自然。
1 . I first saw a real durian (榴莲) in an Asian supermarket in Queens. That strange-looking fruit was big, heavy, and covered with sharp pricks (刺). I decided to buy one. The Chinese checkout girl carefully wrapped it thickly in a newspaper before putting it into a shopping bag.
On the train home, I cautiously opened the Chinese newspaper and lifted it out. Its strangeness made me think of kung fu, yoga and Taijiquan.
Upon arriving home, I dug out the biggest knife and cut through the tough prickly husk (壳). I tasted the pale-yellow flesh, delicious!
After that, durian was my favourite fruit. My skill at cutting durian open was improving. I showed the skill to my girlfriend.
A few years later, we moved to Taiwan. One day I noticed some durians had begun to open by themselves. The owner tried to get me to buy one but I shook my head, thinking it was far-gone. Instead I selected one whose outer husk wasn’t open.
The next morning I woke up to a strong durian smell. I found a small crack (裂缝) had appeared all on its own. I used the smallest pressure and tasted a more delicious durian. Suddenly, I realized something. I ha felt so satisfied with my own skill in opening the durian that I never thought about letting the durian open itself. The higher art was not in doing but in not doing — letting the thing happen on its own in the way it happens best.
1. Why did the Chinese checkout girl wrap the durian thickly in a newspaper?
| A．To decorate the durian. | B．To stop the durian from falling apart. |
| C．To prevent the author from being hurt. | D．To encourage the author to read Chinese. |
2. What came to the author’s mind when he looked at the durian on the way home?
| A．A strange fruit. | B．A delicious dinner. |
| C．Other passengers’ attention. | D．Some symbols of Asian culture. |
3. Why didn’t the author take the recommended durian?
| A．He thought it was too ripe. | B．He enjoyed the selection of durian. |
| C．He wanted a chance to show his skill. | D．He preferred the durian with open husk. |
4. What message did the author want to share?
| A．Practice makes perfect. | B．Let nature take its course. |
| C．Interest is the best teacher. | D．Kill two birds with one stone. |
