1 . Choice, we are given to believe, is a right. But for a good many people, choice gives birth to anxiety. Interested in the idea “too many choices are dizzy”. I have been conducting an experiment.     1    

When presented with a menu in a restaurant, I’ll only consider the first few options on each page. I know, it sounds crazy.     2     I used to read the menu a long time instead of sitting back and talking to my dining companion. These days I quickly select the best-sounding dishes and then chat and eat. In doing so, I find myself trying new things. The other night, for example, I ordered a smoked chicken salad. If I had permitted myself to glance further down the list, this would never have happened. But guess what?     3     So limiting my choices can sometimes lead me to a wider range of experiences.

    4     I can now access many films and TV series, yet after ten minutes of looking through apps and menus, I will more often than not find myself watching whatever Channel 4 has scheduled at 9 pm. So before I even turn on the TV, I ask myself: what do I want to watch? I think of a program. Then I just watch it.

This devotion to a simpler set of possibilities came in handy when our summer holiday to America was COVID-canceled. I didn’t go through a million TripAdvisor reviews for the best replacements. I simply went on Airbnb, saw what in England was still available and immediately booked the one I could afford.     5     And now I can actually focus on enjoying our holiday.

A．It was delicious.

B．It never proved worth a try.

C．But it’s actually quite liberating.

D．It interprets a lifestyle: less is more.

E．The same applies to home entertainment.

F．In doing so, I saved myself days of travel anxiety.

G．I’ve been expanding the choices I allow myself to have.

3 . It was midnight, and I was on my knees, burying head in my hands. I struggled to________the sobs that threatened to wake my two tiny children. The call came just hours ago—I got the job. After five interviews and three presentations, I received a generous ________, one that needed my answer by tomorrow.

To others, the decision was ________—live the dream, with its security. But to me, taking the job would_______ compromise my heart.

Exhausted, I rose to my feet, and made my way upstairs to check on my children, finding each curled up in a________sleep. I heard their breathing, soft and even I became one with the moment. And in that breathtaking silence, I heard a voice:________your heart. The words echoed through my soul.

The decision, indeed, was simple. I would ________ somebody else's dream job and keep my own. I felt a great ________ lift off my shoulders. I pursued my options for working for myself. I started to write and edit, ________pages of scripts. I stretched myself and discovered that I could learn anything if I ________ some time to it.

To be sure, I lost a number of business opportunities. But I was available to ________the simple moments with my children. On sunny days, we'd ________ to the zoo with my backpack of work projects. Each night, when I tucked my kids into bed, my ________ was full. Over time, as my kids grew, my business did, too.

Now I have no regrets. I am ________ for the life that I have, a cherished closeness with my now adult children and a variety of fulfilling, passion-filled work. I'm glad I trusted my inner ________.

1.

A．put out

B．jump at

C．turn down

D．hold back

2.

A．card

B．offer

C．letter

D．essay

3.

A．simple

B．smart

C．casual

D．cautious

4.

A．carefully

B．nervously

C．critically

D．eventually

5.

A．light

B．sound

C．fresh

D．hard

6.

A．relax

B．follow

C．rescue

D．inspire

7.

A．decline

B．change

C．respect

D．accept

8.

A．honour

B．backpack

C．weight

D．project

9.

A．publishing

B．preserving

C．exploring

D．accumulating

10.

A．devoted

B．connected

C．limited

D．donated

11.

A．imagine

B．report

C．embrace

D．adjust

12.

A．adapt

B．refer

C．turn

D．head

13.

A．heart

B．room

C．mood

D．book

14.

A．anxious

B．grateful

C．ready

D．famous

15.

A．design

B．hope

C．worry

D．voice

4 . During a period of two months, the east coast of Florida was hit by three major hurricanes!

When we ________ on the morning of September 5, my husband and I stood on the balcony (阳台）and watched the still-powerful winds break huge trees. ________, in the midst of these destructive winds, we spotted a flash of color in our ________. No more than ten feet from where we stood, a hummingbird (蜂鸟) ________ and flew in front of us.

This was the first time we had ever ________ a hummingbird in our yard — or in Florida! Because they are rare, the ________ of a hummingbird in Brevard County, Florida, is almost a ________ in itself.

Although I had been trying to plant all the right plants to ________ them, it took a hurricane for me to ________ attract them to my yard and to really observe them closely. Almost every day since the hurricanes, I have had the ________ of observing the visiting hummingbirds. With a feeder right outside my office window, I get a daily bird’s ________.

The hurricane season affected me in a very ________ way. Every time I see the hummingbirds, I am ________ of the many blessings that nature holds for us: messages of beauty, strength, and determination. But perhaps the greatest ________ is that wonders are out there waiting to pay us a visit. We just need to keep ________ seeds of beauty and faith, and we need to keep an eye out for the wonders!

1.

A．woke up

B．stood up

C．looked up

D．turned up

2.

A．Generally

B．Gradually

C．Normally

D．Suddenly

3.

A．garden

B．room

C．balcony

D．office

4.

A．dropped

B．appeared

C．remained

D．landed

5.

A．heard

B．drawn

C．seen

D．caught

6.

A．color

B．name

C．shape

D．sight

7.

A．symbol

B．concept

C．belief

D．wonder

8.

A．attract

B．feed

C．drive

D．impress

9.

A．formally

B．finally

C．regularly

D．constantly

10.

A．task

B．joy

C．hope

D．plan

11.

A．track

B．mind

C．view

D．shadow

12.

A．common

B．casual

C．strange

D．positive

13.

A．informed

B．warned

C．reminded

D．cured

14.

A．message

B．hobby

C．subject

D．chance

15.

A．buying

B．changing

C．receiving

D．planting

5 . I love persimmons (柿子). The sweet, bright orange fruit indicates the coming of autumn in Iran, where I grew up. Persimmons can’t grow just anywhere, but they do grow in California, where I now live. A few years ago, preparing to travel from San Francisco to Boston, I packed two persimmons, one of which I ate in the departure hall, waiting for boarding.

At this point, a lady came up, asking where the fruit was purchased. She looked a bit disappointed when hearing it couldn’t be gained at the airport and returned to her seat on the other end of the hall. “I can give the second persimmon away”, I thought to myself. When I offered her the fruit, she at first opposed, but when I insisted, she was visibly glad and appreciatively accepted. I went back to my seat, happy to have made someone else happy, and that, as far as I was concerned, was the end of the story.

Sometime during the flight, the lady caught up with me to thank me again. She shared that she had grown up in Japan, where there was a persimmon tree in the yard of her childhood home. She now lived in Boston, where she hadn’t been able to find the fruit. The taste of this persimmon was precious to her, reconnecting her with memories of her relatives.

Only then did the impact of this tiny act of generosity dawn on me. I am so moved to this day that the taste of the persimmon I never ate gives me more joy than all the ones I have eaten, combined.

My experience is not unique. Research has shown that acts of generosity for others make us happier than treating ourselves. A 2008 study by Harvard Business School professor Michael Norton and colleagues found that despite participants’ predictions to the contrary, giving money to someone else increased their own happiness more than spending it on themselves.

1. Why was the lady so grateful?

A．She found the persimmon special.

B．She missed persimmons so much.

C．She shared her experience with the author.

D．She recalled the memories with her family.

2. How did the author make readers convinced of his idea?

A．By clarifying a concept.	B．By making a contrast.
C．By giving examples.	D．By making proposals.

3. Which of the following best describes the author?

A．Modest.

B．Caring.

C．Mean.

D．Demanding.

4. Which of the following might be a suitable title?

A．The Joy of Generosity	B．An Unforgettable Experience
C．Giving is Better Than Receiving	D．The Impact of a Tiny Act

6 . For many years, I was so wrapped up in my kids and my family that I ignored how I looked. The words “________maintenance” described my approach to beauty perfectly.

It wasn’t until recently, when I had my picture taken for a work ID, that I ________ the “Youth Train” had left the station, and I was no longer on it. The woman in the ID picture looked ________ and definitely middle-aged.

For a few days, I was a little ________ by the fact that I was no longer the sweet, young thing I thought I was. For those few days, I tried a little harder to ________ younger, brighter and tighter. I ________ with my hair and added extra eyeliner.

I thought I was ________ in my seeking for a youthful glow until one of my new co-workers ________ asked me a question that told me I was ________ only myself. “I don’t suppose you know what beauty is, do you?” she asked.

That simple question opened my weary eyes once and for all. My family ________ me not for my no-longer-shiny hair but because the ________ I’m playing, that is my husband’s wife and my kids’ mom.

Someone once said that ________ is the first gift given and the first one taken away. I agree but only when it comes to ________ beauty. When it comes to staying young, a mind-lift ________ a face-lift any day. The ________ beauty, the stuff inside that all of us have, lasts a lifetime.

1.

A．delicate

B．constant

C．slight

D．low

2.

A．realized

B．recognized

C．acknowledged

D．recommended

3.

A．energetic

B．cautious

C．enthusiastic

D．tired

4.

A．confused

B．interested

C．bothered

D．desired

5.

A．act

B．dress

C．behave

D．pretend

6.

A．tied up

B．cut away

C．took turns

D．took pains

7.

A．sending

B．turning

C．succeeding

D．bringing

8.

A．casually

B．temporarily

C．briefly

D．improperly

9.

A．teaching

B．fooling

C．decorating

D．enjoying

10.

A．loves

B．helps

C．changes

D．shapes

11.

A．trick

B．role

C．joke

D．game

12.

A．relief

B．belief

C．power

D．beauty

13.

A．inner

B．natural

C．outside

D．moral

14.

A．beats

B．meets

C．warms

D．restricts

15.

A．behavioral

B．genuine

C．physical

D．biological

7 . 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。

My ex-husband had made some very bad choices in his life, and I did not want my children to pay for them all their lives, so the boys and I talked and we decided to move. We moved 2,700 miles from home. We had a small car that pulled a small U-haul over the Rocky Mountains. I could barely read a map (my 8-year-old reads them great, I learned).

We arrived in our new town three days later, and found an apartment. I started the boys in their new school and went to our new home to unload the U-haul. I had brought all the clothes, dishes, blankets and toys that I could fit in the U-haul. As I began unloading, a lady whom I had briefly met the day before was driving down the road and she stopped to help me unload and carry everything up the three flights of stairs. After getting moved in, I was blessed two days later when I found a job.

Things were going great. The boys went to the Boys & Girls Club after school, and I would pick them up after work. In December, two months after moving, the manager of the Boys & Girls Club called me and said that there was a group of people who wanted to choose a family for Christmas and would I mind if they chose our family. My first thought was no, because we had all the love we needed for the holidays, but then he said that my children had told him that there was no furniture in the house, and this group had a lot of used furniture, and that the boys and I would be making them very happy. So I agreed.

They called me and asked what the boys wanted for Christmas and I told them that anything would be appreciated, and I told them what their favorite toys were.

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。

They showed up on December 23.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

My children and I have supported a child every year since then.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

8 . Volunteering has been a way of life for me for the past few years since I was fifteen. In 2020 I volunteered with a newly founded social enterprise, which _________ cooking lessons for visually impaired (视障) trainee _________ at the Enabling Village kitchen. I absolutely loved it as it involved meaningful _________ with people and I was fully _________ throughout the entire time I was there. This was unlike some other types of volunteering, which may involve mostly behind-the-scenes work that can get _________ after a while.

We called ourselves “sighted assistants” and each of us was _________ with a visually impaired trainee chef. As a volunteer, I would _________ with the trainee to the Enabling Village kitchen, and then ensure their _________ as they learned to cook a new dish. This included helping them _________ the position of the sink, ensuring eggshells were completely peeled off (剥掉), __________ boiling and hot objects, as well as being careful with knives among other things.

Being there with them made me truly __________ how difficult life can be when you are __________or completely blind. Every tiny task __________ massive effort.  There are so many people with disabilities, I realised. While medicine still does not have the power to __________ all of these conditions, we are never short of ways to empower these individuals by making life __________ and more meaningful for them.

1.

A．observed

B．prepared

C．designed

D．conducted

2.

A．manager

B．lawyer

C．chef

D．doctor

3.

A．interaction

B．agreement

C．greeting

D．conflict

4.

A．confused

B．engaged

C．surprised

D．disturbed

5.

A．boring

B．frightening

C．challenging

D．promising

6.

A．faced

B．compared

C．paired

D．equipped

7.

A．flee

B．dash

C．escape

D．walk

8.

A．satisfaction

B．safety

C．pleasure

D．optimism

9.

A．leave out

B．miss out

C．figure out

D．point out

10.

A．avoiding

B．touching

C．approaching

D．feeling

11.

A．appreciate

B．wish

C．predict

D．assess

12.

A．temporarily

B．partly

C．frequently

D．initially

13.

A．simplifies

B．prohibits

C．requires

D．offers

14.

A．cure

B．hide

C．preserve

D．increase

15.

A．luckier

B．tougher

C．softer

D．easier

9 . Hank, a two-year-old cat, is a homebody. But recently, he got _________ in a 60-tall tree for five days and four nights without food or water.

Hank’s big _________ started last weekend. He explored the neighborhood _________, and a dog came out, running after him and sending him flying up a tree.

When Hank’s owner, Delores Bushong, _________ him in the neighbor’s tree, she immediately called the Humane Rescue Alliance for help. _________, Hank was too high for any ladder (梯子) to reach and the tree branch wasn’t _________ enough to support the climb of the rescuer. Bushong felt extremely _________, but her neighbors showed her that she wasn’t alone.

The neighbor, whose tree Hank had climbed, let Bushong sit in his backyard and _________ Hank down. Another neighbor_________ a can of fish, hoping it might attract the __________ cat to come down.

By day five, they tried a new __________ and it worked! They __________ a pulley (滑轮) system by circling a rope around a tall branch, and __________ a basket with some of the owner’s personal items.

The cat, following the familiar scents, climbed into the basket and was __________ from the tree.

Bushong said the help of her community was __________, and Hank’s adventure taught her a lesson about neighbors helping neighbors!

1.

A．injured

B．stuck

C．involved

D．lost

2.

A．practice

B．challenge

C．adventure

D．appearance

3.

A．by chance

B．in turn

C．on time

D．as usual

4.

A．rescued

B．observed

C．trained

D．spotted

5.

A．Typically

B．Surprisingly

C．Unfortunately

D．Strangely

6.

A．smooth

B．stable

C．flexible

D．fixed

7.

A．shocked

B．embarrassed

C．ashamed

D．helpless

8.

A．talk

B．catch

C．bring

D．frighten

9.

A．received

B．donated

C．preserved

D．sold

10.

A．energetic

B．hungry

C．curious

D．cautious

11.

A．instruction

B．opinion

C．approach

D．choice

12.

A．created

B．repaired

C．bought

D．texted

13.

A．made

B．carried

C．raised

D．decorated

14.

A．comforted

B．protected

C．returned

D．lowered

15.

A．responsible

B．serious

C．available

D．remarkable