When I was 17,I read a quote that went something like:“If you live each day as if it were your last,someday you’11 most certainly be right.”It made a deep on me.and since then, for the past 33 years,I have in the mirror every morning and asked myself:“If today were the last day of my life, I want to do what I am about to do today?” And whenever the answer has been “No” for too many days in a ,I know I need to change something.
Remembering that I’ll be soon is the most important tool I’ve ever known to help me make the big in life because almost everything falls away in the face of death, only what is truly important
About a year ago I was with cancer. My doctor even advised me to go home and get my affairs order,which is a doctor’s way of telling people to prepare to die.I with that diagnosis all day. ,at last an advanced test showed that it was a very rare cancer that is with surgery.I had the surgery and I’m fine now.
wants to die.Even people who want to go to heaven don’t want to die to get there And yet death is the destination we all .No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be,because death is very likely the single best invention of .It is life's change agent. It clears out the old to for the new.Right now the new is you, but someday not too from now,you will gradually become the old and be cleared away.Sorry to be so dramatic,but it is quite true.
Your time is ,so don’t waste it living someone else’s 1ife.Don’t be by dogma(教条) —which is living with the results of other people’s thinking.Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner .And most importantly,have the courage to follow your heart
A.impression B.curse C.decision D.joke
A.seen B.looked C.found D.1ost
A.would B.should C.might D.could
A.hurry B.1ine C.moment D.row
A.successful B.rich C.dead D.frustrated
A.apologies B.fortune C.impressions D.choices
A.proving B.leaving C.confirming D.telling
A.diagnosed B.cured C.treated D.round
A.on B.for C.in D.at
A.met B.got C.did D.1ived
A.However B.But C.Therefore D.So
A.incurable B.curable C.fatal D.changeable
A.Anyone B.Someone C.No one D.Everyone
A.want B.avoid C.share D.escape
A.destination B.1ife C.science D.disease
A.make up B.make for C.make our D.make way
A.distant B.short C.long D.away
A.1imited B.rare C.enough D.1ost
A.wasted B.cheated C.excited D.trapped
A.voice B.love C.direction D.confusion
Evelyn Glennie was the first lady of solo percussion in Scotland. In an interview, she recalled howshe became a percussion soloist(打击乐器独奏演员)in spite of her disability.
“Early on I decided not to allow the of others to stop me from becoming a misician. I grew up on a farm in the northeast Scotland and began
piano lessons when I was eight. The older I got, the more my passion for music grew. But also began to gradually lose my
. Doctors concluded that the nerve damage was the
and by age twelve, I was completely deaf. But my love for music never
me.”
“My was to become a percussion soloist, even though there were none at that time. To perform, I
to ‘hear’ music differently from others. I play in my stocking feet and can
the pitch of note by the vibrations I feel through my body and through my
. My entire sound world exists by making use of almost every
that I have.
“I was to be assessed as a musician, not as a deaf musician, and I applied to the famous Royal Academy of music in London. No other deaf student had
this before and some teachers
my admission. Based on my performance, I was
admitted and went on to
with the Academy’s hignest honours.”
“After that, I established myself as the first fulltime solo percussionist. I and arranged a lot of musical compositions since
had been written specially for solo percussionist.”
“I have been a soloist for over ten years. the doctor thought I was totally deaf, it didn’t
that my passion couldn’t be realized. I would encourage people not to allow themselves to be
by others. Follow your passion; follow your heart. They will lead you to the place you want to go.”
A. conditions B. opinions C. actions D. recommendations
A. enjoying B. choosing C. taking D. giving
A. sight B. hearing C. touch D. taste
A. evidence B. result C. excuseD. cause
A. left B. excited C. accompanied D. disappointed
A. purpose B. decision C. promise D. goal
A. turned B. learned C. usedD. ought
A. tell B. seeC. hearD. smell
A. carefulness B. movement C. imagination D. experience
A. sence B. effort C. feeling D. idea
A. dissatisfiedB. astonished C. determined D. discouraged
A. done B. accepted C. advised D. admitted
A. supported B. followed C. required D. opposed
A. usually B. finally C. possibly D. hopefully
A. study B. research C. graduate D. progress
A. wroteB. translatedC. copiedD. read
A. enough B. someC. many D. few
A. However B. Although C. When D. Since
A. mean B. seem C. conclude D. say
A. directed B. guidedC. taught D. limited
The concept of solitude(独处)in the digital world is almost non-existent. In the world of digital technology, e-mail, social networking and online video games, information is meant to be . Solitude can be hard to discover it has been given up. In this respect, new technologies have our culture.
The desire to be connected has brought solitude to a(n) as we’ve known it. People have become so in the world of networks and connections that one can often be contacted they’d rather not be. Today we can talk, text, e-mail, chat and blog, not only from our
, but from our mobile phones as well.
Most developed nations have become on digital technology simply because they’ve grown accustomed to it, and at this point not
it would make them an outsider. , many jobs and careers require people to be . from this point of view, technology has changed the culture of work. Being reachable might feel like a to those who may not want to be able to be contacted at all times.
I suppose the positive side is that solitude is still possible for anyone who wants it. Computers can be shut and mobile phones can be turned off. The ability to be “connected” and “on” has many , on mountains, and mobile phones have saved countless lives. They can also make people feel and forced to answer unwanted calls or to unwanted texts.
Attitudes towards our connectedness as a society across generations. Some find today’s technology a gift. Others consider it a curse. Regardless of anyone’s view on the subject, it’s hard to imagine what life would be like daily advancements in technology.
A.updated B.received C.shared D.collected
A.though B.until C.once D.before
A.respected B.shaped C.ignored D.preserved
A.edge B.stage C.end D.balance
A.sensitive B.intelligent C.considerate D.reachable
A.even if B.only if C.as if D.if only
A.media B.computers C.databases D.monitors
A.bent B.hard C.keen D.dependent
A.finding B.using C.protecting D.changing
A.Also B.Instead C.Otherwise D.Somehow
A.connected B.trained C.recommended D.interested
A.pleasure B.benefit C.burden D.disappointment
A.slightly B.hardly C.merely D.really
A.out B.down C.up D.in
A.aspects B.weaknesses C.advantages D.exceptions
A.hidden B.lost C.relaxed D.deserted
A.trapped B.excited C.confused D.amused
A.turn B.submit C.object D.reply
A.vary B.arise C.spread D.exist
A.beyond B.within C.despite D.without
We all know that some things are obviously right. For example, it is right to be to other people. It is also right to look after the environment. Some things are wrong, too. For instance, we should not hurt or bully(欺负)others, nor should we litter. Rules often tell us what is right or wrong.
Rules can help the public make the right , and remain safe. Car drivers have to obey traffic regulations that tell them the right things to do on the road to avoid crashes. Cyclists who give signals before turning or stopping help prevent .
If people follow rules without taking other matters into consideration, it will be for them to form what is sometimes called a “black and white” view. For example, they may believe that people should always tell the truth, and that lying is acceptable. Such people always stick to their views, even if it means that they may get into .
Sometimes it may not be so easy to know what is right or wrong. Some people choose not to eat meat because they believe that it is
to eat animals, but others argue that they can eat meat and
be kind to animals; some insist that stealing is always wrong, but others think that one does not need to feel so when stealing some food to eat, if he lives in a really poor area and he is .
Rules help us live together in harmony, because they show us the right way to (13) others. However, some people argue that rules may be
, having observed that rules change all the time, and that some schools have some regulations and others have different ones—so who is to what is right?
A.kind B.sensitive C.fair D.generous
A.equally B.slightly C.clearly D.increasingly
A.suggestions B.conclusions C.turns D.choices
A.accidents B.mistakes C.falls D.deaths
A.interesting B.vital C.easy D.valuable
A.seldom B.rarely C.merely D.never
A.trouble B.power C.prison D.control
A.roughly B.eventually C.deliberately D.exactly
A.awful B.cruel C.unhealthy D.unnecessary
A.kind B.sensitive C.fair D.generous
A.nervous B.anxious C.afraid D.guilty
A.begging B.starving C.growing D.wandering
A.follow B.instruct C.treat D.protect
A.disgusting B.confusing C.unsafe D.unimportant
A.predict B.explain C.decide D.consider
I often read of incidents of misunderstanding or conflict. I’m left
. Why do these people create mistrust and problems, especially with those from other ?
I was growing up in Kuala Lumpur in the early 1960s, children from different races and regions played and studied in harmony. At that time my family lived a stone’s from Ismail’s. And no one was bothered that Ismail was a Malay Muslim and I was an Indian Hindu—we just
our differences. Perhaps, our elders had not filled our heads with unnecessary advice, well or otherwise.
We were nine when we became friends. During the school holidays, we’d
the countryside on our bicycles, hoping to the unexpected. At times Ismail would accompany my family as we made a rare shopping trip to town. We would be glad of his .
When I was twelve, my family moved to Johor. Ismail’s family later returned to their village, and I touch with him.
One spring afternoon in 1983, I stopped a taxi in Kuala Lumpur. I
my destination. The driver acknowledged my but did not move off. Instead, he looked at me. “Raddar?” he said, using my childhood nickname(绰号). I was astonished at being so addressed
(称呼). Unexpectedly! It was Ismail! Even after two we still recognized each other. Grasping his shoulder, I felt a true affection, something to describe.
If we can allow our children to be without prejudice, they’ll build friendships with people, regardless of race or religion, who will be their side through thick and thin. On such friendships are societies built and we can truly be, as William Shakespeare one wrote, “we happy few, we band of brothers”.
A.interesting B.pleased C.puzzled D.excited
A.parties B.cities C.villages D.races
A.why B.which C.how D.when
A.together B.around C.alone D.apart
A.drop B.throw C.move D.roll
A.refused B.made C.sought D.accepted
A.paid B.meant C.preserved D.treated
A.explore B.search C.discover D.desert
A.get through B.deal with C.come across D.take away
A.arrival B.choice C.effort D.company
A.lost B.gained C.developed D.missed
A.stated B.ordered C.decided D.chose
A.attempts B.instructions C.opinions D.arrangements
A.anxiously B.carelessly C.disappointedly D.fixedly
A.familiarly B.strangely C.fully D.coldly
A.departures B.months C.years D.decades
A.possible B.funny C.hard D.clear
A.them B.themselves C.us D.ourselves
A.from B.by C.with D.against
A.still B.otherwise C.then D.instead
The first day of school our professor introduced himself and challenged us to get to know a new classmate. I to look around when a gentle hand my shoulder. I turned around to find a wrinkled, little lady looking up at me with a smile.
She said, “Hi. My name is Rose. I’m eighty-seven years old. Can I give you a hug?” I laughed and responded, “Of course you may!” and she gave me a giant squeeze.
“Why are you in college at such a young, innocent ?” I asked. “I always having a college education and now I’m getting !” she told me.
Later, we became close friends. Every day we would leave class together and she her wisdom and experience with me. Over the
of the year, Rose became a campus icon and she made friends wherever she went.
At the of the semester we invited Rose to speak at our football banquet(宴会). I’ll forget what she taught us. When she was introduced, frustrated and a little embarrassed, she cleared her
and said, “We do not stop playing because we are old; we
old because we stop playing. There are only two secrets to staying
, being happy, and achieving success. You have to and find humor every day. You’ve got to have a dream. When you your dreams, you die.”
One week after graduation Rose died in her sleep. Many college students attended her funeral in tribute to(悼念)the wonderful woman who taught example that it’s never too to be all you can possibly be.
A.lay down B.stood up C.fell off D.went out
A.touched B.felt C.wounded D.clapped
A.beautiful B.young C.old D.kind-hearted
A.sadly B.coldly C.absently D.enthusiastically
A.age B.speed C.point D.year
A.talked about B.tried out C.looked forward D.dreamed of
A.those B.one C.that D.they
A.learned B.told C.shared D.debated
A.course B.path C.distance D.road
A.easily B.rarely C.unwillingly D.strangely
A.middle B.beginning C.end D.top
A.ever B.never C.still D.already
A.throat B.face C.nose D.eyes
A.grow B.prove C.look D.stay
A.rich B.healthy C.cheerful D.young
A.eat B.cry C.laugh D.shout
A.have B.lose C.get D.keep
A.bitterly B.fortunately C.peacefully D.hopefully
A.to B.for C.in D.by
A.early B.bad C.good D.late