1 . When I was first married to my wife, I lived and worked in Ontario, moving from small town to big city as I pursued my career as a radio broadcaster. We have two sons, both of whom were born in Toronto, but they moved, with us, to Ottawa when they were quite young. They grew up there, and then, chasing their own careers, they also moved. One went to Canada’s east coast near a city called Halifax and the other headed to the west coast to Vancouver. We had a dilemma; we were left in the middle.

At the time I was still working and my job was in Ottawa. However, as we began to consider retirement we wondered where we should spend our final years. We couldn’t be close to both of our children and there was no telling when they might again relocate. For several reasons we settled on a small town on Vancouver Island. At least we were close to one of them. However, he had his sights set on Hollywood and, when an opportunity presented itself, he left Canada and headed south. I helped him move.

So, there we were, and still are, in our little west coast town. We love our little corner of paradise but we have paid a price. We have not been there for some important events such as the births of two of our grandchildren. We have missed watching each of them grow up; we have missed the normal, noisy households that have young people in them. Our home, while very comfortable, is also very quiet.

Every fall we travel to see the children. We usually fly, first to California to see our son Scott and spend a week or more with him trying to catch up on everything we’ve missed. Then, usually in November, we make the even longer trip east across Canada to see Travis and our grandchildren, who are now teenagers, actually into their twenties. They seldom come to visit us. The distances are just too great and it is costly.

Fortunately, both our boys are doing well and our grandchildren are growing up straight and tall. We love all of them and we are secure in the knowledge that they love us but the reality is that they don’t need us. We have done our jobs and, at least in theory, we can sit back, relax and enjoy the time remaining to us. They have also missed having a set of parents and grandparents around.

Life has been good for our family but we have all paid a price.

1. What does the author mean by saying “We had a dilemma.”?

A．They were not happy about their sons’ absence.

B．They were unwilling to separate from their sons.

C．They were not yet prepared for retirement at that time.

D．They couldn’t decide which son to live close to.

2. Why does the author say they have paid a price?

A．They have lost lots of money because of his retirement.

B．They have to give a large sum of money to their sons.

C．They have been absent from their children’s life.

D．They have to afford very expensive fare to visit their sons.

3. Why do not the author’s grandchildren visit them regularly?

A．They are quite occupied with their homework.

B．It’s not easy for the kids to visit their grandparents.

C．They don’t need their grandparents any more.

D．The weather of winter in Canada is very awful.

4. What is the best title for the text?

A．Grandparents’ Love	B．Suffering Separation
C．A Price to Pay	D．Hidden Emotions

2 . Each of us struggles for self-respect and self-worth to some degree. I spent much time trying to achieve perfection in every aspect of my life.

I was a happy kid with a lot of friends and a supportive family. But growing up was really______and even scary sometimes.

During my childhood, I was constantly involved in something that included people's views about my achievements or my____. I wanted everyone's praise and acceptance, but I was my own toughest critic (挑剔的人).

After I graduated from high school, my_____to be "thin" began to trouble me. I began trying to diet by_____ my food.

In the beginning, I felt great — attractive and successful, almost superhuman. I even thought that I was better than everyone else. What I didn't see was that I was slowly______myself.

People around me began to_____my weight loss. They said with concern. "You're losing too much weight." "Elisa, you're so thin." All their words only suggested that I was getting closer to "____".

Sadly, I took my physical_____as the first important thing in my life,______that it was the way to become successful and accepted.

Then I cut down on my____ more and more, until a______day consisted of half a teaspoon of nonfat yogurt in the morning and a cup of grape juice at night.

But my poor____ began to cause me to lose_____. Then one night, like many nights before, I couldn't sleep, and felt as though my heart might beat out of my chest. I tried to ____, but I couldn’t. The beating became so rapid and so strong that I could no longer_____. What I had done to diet nearly caused me to have a heart attack. I stood up, and immediately fell down. I was really_____, and I knew I needed help. My roommate rushed me to the ____, and then I began the long road to my_____. It took a lot — doctors, nurses, nutritionists, food supplements...

And more importantly, a sense of what was true about myself got my life back on track with reality. I realized that, with my____ of trying to be "perfect" on the ____, I had sacrificed who I was on the inside. What I know now is, we are — each and every one of us — already perfect.

1.

A．natural

B．easy

C．hard

D．rapid

2.

A．performances

B．backgrounds

C．scores

D．failures

3.

A．problem

B．desire

C．way

D．promise

4.

A．controlling

B．checking

C．collecting

D．balancing

5.

A．killing

B．forgetting

C．asking

D．questioning

6.

A．help

B．accept

C．reject

D．notice

7.

A．perfection

B．devotion

C．ambition

D．attention

8.

A．strength

B．exercise

C．appearance

D．examination

9.

A．believing

B．realizing

C．pretending

D．declaring

10.

A．expense

B．movement

C．food

D．travel

11.

A．pleasant

B．difficult

C．typical

D．different

12.

A．memory

B．nutrition

C．knowledge

D．taste

13.

A．weight

B．hope

C．sleep

D．heart

14.

A．relax

B．walk

C．cry

D．talk

15.

A．breathe

B．resist

C．wake

D．remember

16.

A．scared

B．annoyed

C．discouraged

D．disappointed

17.

A．bed

B．hospital

C．school

D．office

18.

A．glory

B．discovery

C．recovery

D．victory

19.

A．skill

B．decision

C．experience

D．deal

20.

A．whole

B．face

C．mind

D．outside

3 . When I was growing up, I had an old neighbor named Doctor Gibbs. He didn’t look like any doctor I’d ever known. He never yelled at us for playing in his yard, but was always very kind.

When Doctor Gibbs wasn’t saving lives, he was planting trees. He had some interesting theories about planting trees. He hardly watered his new trees, an attitude which flew in the face of conventional wisdom.

Once I asked why and he told me that watering plants spoiled them because it made them grow weaker. He said he had to make things tough for the trees so that only the strongest could survive. He talked about how watering trees made them develop shallow roots and how, if they were not watered, trees would grow deep roots in search of water.

So, instead of watering his trees every morning, he’d beat them with a rolled-up newspaper. I asked him why he did that, and he said it was to get the trees’ attention.

Doctor Gibbs died a couple of years after I left home. Every now and then, I walked by his house and looked at the trees that I'd watched him plant some 25 years ago. They were tall and strong.

Every night before I go to bed, I check on my two sons. I often pray that their lives will be easy. But lately I’ve been thinking that it’s time to change my prayer. I know my children are going to encounter hardship. There’s always a cold wind blowing somewhere. What we need to do is to pray for deep roots, so when the rains fall and the winds blow, we won’t be torn apart.

1. What did the author think of Doctor Gibbs’s planting trees at first?

A．Perfect .	B．Puzzled.
C．Amused.	D．Impractical .

2. What did Doctor Gibbs do to the trees he planted?

A．He let them grow quickly.

B．He beat them to get their attention.

C．He helped them search for water.

D．He read a newspaper near them.

3. Which of the following can best describe Doctor Gibbs?

A．Kind and wise.	B．Calm and brave.
C．Careful and ambitious	D．Strict and devoted.

4. What does the author learn from Doctor Gibbs?

A．Elders are treasures.

B．Two heads are better than one.

C．A man without distant care must have near sorrow.

D．Only those who bear the most become the highest.

4 . I'd done it before, and so I had no reason to believe that this time would be any different. I was sure that when I returned home from my mission trip, as always, I'd bring back nothing more than some mud on my boots, a hole or two in my jeans and, of course, a lot of great memories.

The summer before my high school graduation, I went to West Virginia with others as volunteers to repair the homes of those in need. Arriving at our destination, my group was assigned the task of rebuilding sections of a home that had been damaged by fire. No sooner had we parked on the home's dirt driveway than we saw an excited little girl, no more than six years old, standing in the doorway of the family's temporary home. Shoeless and wearing dirty clothes and the biggest smile I'd ever seen, she yelled, "Ma, Ma, they really came! " I didn't know it then, but her name was Dakota, and four more days would pass before she’d say another word near me.

Behind Dakota was a woman in a wheelchair—her grandmother, we'd soon learn. I also discovered that my job that week would be to help change a fire—damaged dining room into a bedroom for this little girl. Grabbing our tools, we went to work. Over the following days, I noticed Dakota peeking at us every now and then as we worked. A few times. I tried talking with her, but she remained shy and distant, always flying around us like a tiny butterfly but keeping to herself.

By our fifth and final day, however, this was about to change.

Before I went to work on her home on that last morning, I spoke for a moment or two with the grandmother. I was especially pleased when she told me how much Dakota loved her new room so much, in fact, that she'd begged to sleep in it the previous night, even though it wasn't quite ready. As we talked, I noticed something I hadn’t seen before—Dakota was hiding behind her grandmother. Cautiously, she stepped into view, and I could see that just like her clothes, her face was still dirty. But no amount of soil could hide those bright blue eyes and big smile. She was simply adorable. I wanted so much to hug her, but respecting her shyness, I kept my distance.

Slowly, she began walking toward me. It wasn't until she was just inches away that I noticed the folded piece of paper in her tiny hand. Silently, she reached up and handed it to me. Once unfolded, I looked at the drawing she'd made with her broken crayons on the back of an old coloring book cover. It was of two girls—one much taller than the other—and they were holding hands. She told me it was supposed to be me and her and on the bottom of the paper were three little words that instantly broke my heart. Now almost in tears, I couldn't control myself anymore—I bent down and hugged her. She hugged me, too. And for the longest time, neither one of us could let go.

By early afternoon, we finished Dakota's bedroom, and so I gladly used the rare free time to get to know my newest friend. Sitting under a tree away from the others, we shared a few apples while she told me about her life. As I listened to her stories about the struggles she and her family went through daily, I began to realize how boring various aspects of my own life were.

I left for home early the next morning. I was returning with muddy boots and holes in my jeans. But because of Dakota, I brought back something else, too—a greater appreciation for all of the blessing of my life. I’ll never forget that barefoot little butterfly with the big smile and dirty face. I pray that she’ll never forget me either.

1. From the appearance description of the little girl, we know _______.

A．she formed a bad living habit

B．she hoped for a better education

C．she was an innocent and lovely child

D．she was strong and calm in the inner world

2. What were probably written on the bottom of the paper?

A．Enjoy your help.

B．Please don’t leave.

C．Help me, please.

D．Hug me close.

3. How did the author feel after unfolding the piece of paper?

A．She worried about the little girl’s future.

B．She decided to keep helping the little girl.

C．She felt a greater affection for the little girl.

D．She got surprised at the little girl’s worthless gift.

4. What does the passage mainly tell us?

A．One must learn to share life experiences.

B．One often wants to lead a meaningful life.

C．One occasionally benefits from the poverty.

D．One should be more grateful for the gift of life.

5 . The mind is a wonderful thing.It’s also excuse-making machine that frequently tries to convince us not to take action we know are good for us.If we hadn't learned about these excuses, or how to overcome them, we would never have succeeded in making these positive changes.

So why does the mind mess with us and make unreasonable excuses? Because the mind wants comfort, that's the reason.It’s afraid of discomfort, pressure and change.The mind is absorbed in its comfort zone, and anytime we try to stretch that zone too far, for too long, the mind tries desperately to get back to "ground zero" at any cost.These damaging excuses, such as "I can't do it", "It is too hard for me", "It’s too late now" and so on, are no strangers to our minds.

It seems too difficult at first, so you think you can't stick to the positive change you're making.This excuse can be countered (对抗）by looking at the fact that other people were no more capable than you thought you were.For example, my 60-year-old next-door neighbor finished running a marathon, so I told myself, "If she can do it, so can I !" Truth be told, the only person who tells you "I can't" is yourself.If you hear those words echoing in the back of your mind, tune them out.

I've witnessed people reinventing themselves at all ages 48-year-olds starting families, 57-year-olds graduating from college for the first time, 71-year-olds starting successful businesses, and so forth.

Another common excuse is that "I've already failed too much." If you break down, it's fine, because you are only human.Just don't stay down; take a rest, and then pick yourself up so you can go to where you'd rather be.As Winston Churchill said, "Success is never final; failure is never fatal .It is courage to continue that counts."

Some people feel like quitting when they have almost reached their goal, while others attain   goals through their efforts until the last second.So make some necessary adjustments to get rid of the bad habit of making excuses.Keep going! No excuses! Think, work, and climb, that's how you'll move your life forward.

1. Why does our mind make excuses?

A．It tends to seek comforts rather than suffering.

B．It needs rest and relaxation .

C．It is preparing for the difficult times.

D．It is the way it tries to find a solution.

2. What might "ground zero" in Paragraph 2 refer to?

A．The lowest spot.	B．The safest place
C．The original place	D．The proper position

3. Knowing his neighbor finished the marathon made the author realize________.

A．completing a marathon was not too difficult

B．people often neglect their abilities

C．looking down upon the others is wrong

D．people shouldn't let negative thoughts step in their way

4. For someone who fears failure, the author advises him to_______.

A．learn from those good examples

B．stop for a while and examine himself

C．try to adjust himself, and get back on his feet

D．look for new directions and keep trying

5. What is the author's purpose in writing this passage?

A．To tell readers how to make a change.

B．To help readers develop a new view of life.

C．To encourage readers to leave their comfortable zone.

D．To tell readers to stop making excuses and keep fighting.

6 . My mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s(老年痴呆症) last summer.Suddenly, it was difficult for me to accept that the roles were now reversed-my mother became my child, and I became her mother.I became impatient, argued with her, once I even yelled at her.Gradually, I was used to this kind of life.Now I am able to deal with her and the situation better.I have learned a lot of life lessons from the experience.

My mother reacts very sensitively to my feelings.That is typical of Alzheimer’s patients.When I visit her, feeling busy and tense, she reacts immediately, takes on my mood, and becomes nervous and negative.But when I appear cheerful and attentive, she is happy.This has taught me to pay more attention to my own feelings when I am with other people.

I was thought I was very tolerant( 容 忍 的 ), but in reality, my tolerance ran out as soon as someone turned away from what I considered “right”.With my mother I can now really be tolerant.Through her illness she has developed a childlike tactlessness(不得体).Eating out in restaurants, for example, is a bit embarrassing when she shouts at the waiter that the food is so bad or talks about people at the next table in a loud voice.Of course I make sure that my mother doesn’t offend(冒犯) anyone, but I’ve stopped complaining about others and have become more tolerant.

I have also learned that everything has special value.When my mother got sick, I didn’t want to burden my two daughters with it.They are young and have enough going on with their education and starting their careers.I felt that it was simply my job as my mother’s daughter.The most wonderful discovery I’ve made through my mother’s disease may be that my children not only offer to help me when they sense that I’m feeling overwhelmed, but that they take care of my mother on their own initiative(主动地).They visit her often, play cards with her, and look at photo albums together with her.It shows me that it’s all worth it.

1. Which of the following is common behavior of Alzheimer’s patients?

A．Curiosity about everything.	B．Sensitivity to other’s moods.
C．Fear of strange people.	D．Quick reaction.

2. The underlined word “overwhelmed” in the last paragraph is closest in meaning to        .

A．concerned

B．scared

C．embarrassed

D．stressed

3. We can infer from the passage that        .

A．the writer accepted the role change immediately

B．the writer only paid attention to her mother’s feelings

C．the writer has a great sense of responsibility

D．the daughters took over the responsibility to look after their grandmother

4. This passage is mainly about        .

A．how I cared for my sick mother

B．how I became more tolerant

C．what I have learned from my mother’s illness

D．why I am feeling overwhelmed

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。续写的词数应为150左右。

A long time ago, there was a happy prince and princess in a country. They took care of and loved each other very much, and their country was happy, too. Therefore they didn't envy anything else. There was one thing they worried about. They wanted to make sure they could live happily forever like this.

One day, one of the officials found out the couple's worry and told them, “Prince, I heard that there is a magic charm(吉祥饰物)，and it can protect you from any unfortunate event. If you always carry the magic charm with you, your fear and worry will disappear.” “Is it true? Where can I find that charm?” The prince asked him joyfully. “There is an old man in the forest, and he knows about everything. You can ask him.”

The couple visited the old man, and asked for help with their worries and fears. The old man nodded his head as if he knew everything and said, “Travel all around the world. Then, when you meet a very happy couple, ask them to cut a piece of their underwear. If you keep the piece of the underwear, your fear and worry will go away.”

The couple appreciated the old man's kindness and set out on the journey. The couple wandered around everywhere and heard about a happy knight (骑士) and his wife in a town. They went to visit the knight. “Are you really happy like the rumor?” Then the knight answered. “Of course, we are, Prince. But our only worry and problem is that we didn't have any children.”

They had to find an absolutely happy couple, so they continued their journey. They visited a happy couple who were famous for their happiness in the next town. And they asked the couple if they were really happy. The couple answered. “Yes, we are very happy. But we have too many children. A mother with a large family of children never has a peaceful day. We worry too much about our children.”

They could not get a magic charm this time too, and kept going on their trip. It was very hard to find the happiest couple in the world.

One day, the prince couple met a shepherd(牧羊人)and his wife in a big field.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Feeling disappointed and tired out, the prince couple decided to go back.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

8 . Many people become successful because they pay attention to the lessons that life teaches them.     1     However, by learning to deal with the challenges, one can come out of the experience, wiser, stronger and more able to face whatever else lies ahead.

Life lessons can occur in any area. Although we learn many things each day, we don’t always learn something that we feel will affect our behavior for the rest of our lives.    2    It is usually something we are greatly changed by.

For example, if we respond in a certain way to something and then face unpleasant consequences, we’ll rethink how we handled the situation. This can serve as a life lesson so that when we’re faced with similar circumstances, we can consciously change our behavior.     3    

Such lessons in relationships are as varied and unique as each relationship, yet there are common themes.     4     Some of us learn a major life lesson when a loved one dies, and we wish we had spent more time with that person. This lesson can result in us spending more time with our remaining loved ones.

    5     Since the lesson is learned through the consequences of our actions or reactions, in this way we can gain insight into how we think, act and react in certain situations. Perhaps one of the biggest lessons we can finally learn is that while we can’t control everything, we can control our response to things.

A．Life lessons are unique to each person.

B．Some of these lessons are learned the hard way.

C．This separates a life lesson from everything else we learn.

D．Spending more time with loved ones is one of the examples.

E．Life lessons can serve to help us understand ourselves better.

F．One way to improve your life is to learn something new every day.

G．To put it simply, a life lesson teaches us not to make the same mistake twice.

9 . One Mother to Another

On Wednesday evening, our daughter, who was at a boarding school over 200 kilometers away, told us that she had lost her phone when she took part in an activity off campus. We realized that we had little chance of finding it.

The next morning, my phone beeped (哔哔响) loudly. A kind voice announced that she had something that belonged to my daughter. I _______ that I lived a three-hour drive away, and told her I would ask a friend to fetch the phone. My daughter had written my number on the inside of her phone’s case — good thinking!

After contacting the people I know who lived near the school, I was out of _______ — no one could go and _______ the phone, not surprisingly as it was the working day and everyone was busy. I decided to ask the lady to post the phone to my daughter. But when I sent her a text to ask if this would be OK, she replied, “We will _______ it and we’re going to drive down to the boarding school tonight.” To my _______, this wonderful couple, who had already spent a busy day at work, was making a round trip on the night, _______ for returning a phone to a complete stranger. How touching it was!

I gave them directions and they _______ the phone into the hands of my daughter at her boarding house. The only word of an explanation was, “I’ve got children of my own, and I know how a mother _______.”

We had thought that the chance of getting back the phone was _______, but we got it back in such a short time. It was a wonderful reminder of the good in the world and how the actions of one person can __________ the world to another.

1.

A．suggested

B．reported

C．explained

D．argued

2.

A．date

B．luck

C．work

D．control

3.

A．pick up

B．carry out

C．hand in

D．give away

4.

A．find

B．show

C．miss

D．take

5.

A．regret

B．surprise

C．amusement

D．disappointment

6.

A．especially

B．certainly

C．definitely

D．probably

7.

A．conducted

B．arranged

C．delivered

D．identified

8.

A．doubts

B．interests

C．predicts

D．worries

9.

A．free

B．slim

C．hard

D．fair

10.

A．tell

B．face

C．mean

D．join

10 . I was making a stop on my book tour. A sweet woman approached me, and pleasantly _______ she wouldn't buy a book. She said she _______ wanted to ask me a question: How did I get into acting and how did I _______ to stay in it? I was _______the performance, so I didn't want to waste energy with a long response. I said, "Persistence," without thinking.

She laughed and said, "Well, sure. That's true with everything, right?"

A light came on in my brain. She was righter than she knew. I said, "Yes, but not how you mean. Success is a _______of persistence. So is failure. We become whatever we're persistent at. I had friends who were always exactly 20minutes late－persistently late. You could set your _______by them. I know actors who persistently destroy their own chances. They don't _______ enough. They don't learn their lines. Persistently."

A lot of the time our methods of working are a series of habits, good and bad, we _______sometime in the past. Habits feel_______. My ex-acting teacher once said, "Comfort is the enemy of the artist."

I wasn't crazy about his statement back then, because I was uncomfortable, but still wasn't an artist. I see the ________ of it now. People________take the easy path. It's human nature to look for the________ at the back of the book. We often see the effort in finding better habits as a problem to be avoided, but in doing so, we persistently waste our ________.

As actors, we know we can become anything with enough rehearsal. ________look at what you do persistently. If you don't like your habits, change them. No matter what your passion is the power to ________the map of your life is essential.

1.

A．suggested

B．admitted

C．shouted

D．decided

2.

A．even

B．hardly

C．just

D．also

3.

A．attempt

B．consider

C．refuse

D．manage

4.

A．tired from

B．annoyed about

C．fed up with

D．happy with

5.

A．product

B．cause

C．factor

D．kind

6.

A．standard

B．watch

C．goal

D．speed

7.

A．reflect

B．create

C．refuse

D．prepare

8.

A．broke

B．chose

C．developed

D．arranged

9.

A．annoying

B．comfortable

C．confident

D．useless

10.

A．wisdom

B．beauty

C．hope

D．history

11.

A．never

B．persistently

C．fortunately

D．unwillingly

12.

A．contents

B．questions

C．pages

D．answers

13.

A．money

B．time

C．effort

D．potential

14.

A．So

B．But

C．And

D．Instead

15.

A．read

B．follow

C．redraw

D．lose