Sharing Beauty
It was in October. I was aimlessly wandering down the street, heading into a most gloriously beautiful sunset. I had an urge to speak to someone on the street to share that beauty, but it seemed everyone was in a hurry.
I took the next-best action. Quickly I ducked into a department store and asked the lady behind the counter if she could come outside for just a minute. She looked at me as though I were from some other planet. She hesitated, and then seemingly against her better judgment, she moved toward the door.
When she got outside I said to her, “Just look at that sunset! Nobody out here was looking at it and I just had to share it with someone.”
For a few seconds we just looked. Then I said, “God is in his heaven and all is right with the world.” I thanked her for coming out to see it; she went back inside and I left. It felt good to share the beauty.
Four years later my situation changed greatly. I came to the end of a twenty-year marriage. I was alone and on my own for the first time in my life. I lived in a trailer park which, at the time, I considered a real come-down, and I had to do my wash in the community laundry room.
One day, while my clothes were going around, I picked up a magazine and read an article about a woman who had been in similar circumstances. She had come to the end of a marriage, moved to a strange community, and the only job she could find was one she disliked: clothing sales in a department store.
Then something that happened to her changed everything. She said a woman came into her department store and asked her to step outside to look at a sunset. The stranger had said, “God is in his heaven and all is right with the world,” and she had realized the truth in that statement. From that moment on, she turned her life around. The author asked the woman to go outside to ______.
A.admire the sunset | B.cheer her up | C.offer some help | D.have a chat |
Four years later, the author ______.
A.found her dream job |
B.put an end to her marriage |
C.worked in a laundry room |
D.lived in the same community |
After reading the article in the magazine, the author was probably______.
A.disappointed | B.puzzled | C.inspired | D.overjoyed |
When she moved the covering cloth to look upon his tiny face, she was shocked. The doctor turned quickly and looked out the tall hospital window. The baby had been born without ears.
Time proved that the baby’s hearing was perfect. When he rushed home from school one day and threw himself into his mother’s arms, she sighed, knowing that his life was to be full of heart- breaks for his imperfect appearance.
He grew up, handsome for his misfortune and popular with his fellow students. He might have been class monitor,but for that. He developed a gift, a talent for literature and music.
Two years went by. One day, his father said to the son, “You’re going to the hospital, son. Mother and I have someone who will donate the ears you need. But it’s a secret.” The operation was a brilliant success, and a new person turned up. His talents blossomed into genius, and his school and college became a series of success. Later he married and entered the diplomatic service.
One day ,he urged his father, “Who gave so much for me?I must know! I could never do enough for him.”
“I do not believe you could, ” said the father, “but the agreement was that you are not to know... not yet.”
The years kept their secret, but the day did come--- one of the darkest days that a son must endure. He stood with his father over his mother’s casket (棺材). Slowly, tenderly, the father reached out a hand and raised the thick, reddish-brown hair to show that the mother had no outer ears.
“Mother said she was glad she never let her hair be cut, ” he whispered gently, “and nobody ever thought Mother less beautiful, did they?”
Real beauty lies not in the physical appearance,but in the heart. Real treasure lies not in what can be seen,but in what cannot be seen. Real love lies not in what is done and known, but in what is done and not known.The mother was shocked at the first sight of her baby because.
A.her baby was born without hair |
B.her baby had a tiny face |
C.her baby was born imperfect |
D.the doctor turned to look out of the window |
Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
A.The son attempted to repay the donator’s kindness. |
B.The son didn't know the truth until his mother died. |
C.With donated ears, the son’s life developed smoothly. |
D.The boy couldn't hear clearly without ears at first. |
Why did the boy's mother never have her hair cut?
A.Because her hair helped to keep a secret. |
B.Because her hair added to her beauty. |
C.Because her long hair was her pride. |
D.Because she liked her thick and brown hair. |
Which is the best title for the passage?
A.A Misfortunate Boy |
B.Mother’s Hair |
C.Mother’s Secret Love |
D.A Successful Ear Operation |
The moral view of violence, labeling it as bad and wrong, has done little to end it. The alternative view is to release our judgments and see violence for what it is: a form of suffering. This is a difficult change for many people. Not only are they in the habit of making knee-jerk(下意识的) judgments, but violent people cause harm, and therefore their suffering seems to deserve less sympathy.
You hurt me, so why should I have sympathy for you? It should be the other way around. Does it take a saint(圣人) to make the change from strong anger to sympathy?
Turning points arrive when we can make a choice not to suffer in silence. We then strike a soul bargain that is fearful but necessary. The bargain is that redemption(解救) is possible through love.The absence of love is absolutely the problem, and love is absolutely the solution. We don’t have to reach into another area to locate the magic power of love that is available to us here and now.
The problem is that love comes through a fallible human being. The rule is constant work on the spiritual path to clear away the obstacles that prevent love from coming through us. The work is much more like working on blocked pipe system than it is like copying a saint.
Hope is the emotion that keeps this dogged work even when results seem to be slow or impossible. Can I love the terrorist who harms my country? Can I love the criminal who wants to harm me? At the level of the soul I already do, and the spiritual path is a means to arrive at that level.
No one is required to leap into sudden sympathy for terrorists, or even to announce publicly that our enemies deserve love. But in our souls each of us harbors the knowledge that only love is going to bring violence to an end. No matter how you and I live our outward lives, our spiritual lives must remain devoted to that vision.Which one is NOT true for moral view of violence?
A.It thinks violence is bad and wrong. |
B.It plays an important role in ending violence. |
C.It is a knee-jerk judgment of people. |
D.It thinks violent people deserve less sympathy. |
Why should violent people deserve sympathy?
A.Because we should perform like a saint. |
B.Because love is absolutely the solution. |
C.Because our spiritual lives must remain devoted to that vision. |
D.Because they are first in suffering then choose violence, so they need love. |
What's the meaning "The problem is that love comes through a fallible human being"?
A.Human being is full of love. |
B.It is difficult and long way. |
C.Human being is easy to make friends. |
D.It's a problem to get love from an imperfect human being. |
Which would be the best title for the passage?
A.Violence Is Harmful to Us |
B.Love Can End Violence |
C.Change Our View of Violence |
D.Our Soul Needs Purifying |
When travelers think of an Adriatic cruise, scenes of Venice, Italy—its canals, bridges, piazzas, and stunning architecture—come to mind. It's one of the most popular cruise destinations in Europe. And for many, the sail-away from Venice, through its Giudecca Canal, is an awe-inspiring experience.
Venice may be known as La Serenissima, or "the most peaceful," which, however, isn't entirely accurate these days. Venetians have been increasingly concerned about the impact of tourism and the potential for an environmental disaster off its shoreline due to the number of cruise ships that enter and exit its lagoon(泻湖).
That's why earlier last month, Venice announced a new policy to forbid the transit(穿越) of cruise ships to the city via the Giudecca Canal. It's not that the city wants to shun the cruise industry altogether: It simply wants to force traffic further away from the landmarks along the shoreline. City officials say that most ships will now transit the Contorta Sant'Angelo Canal.
Additionally, the city is clamping down on the size of ships that can visit Venice, as well as the total number of ships that call on it on a daily basis. As of January 2014, Venice plans to reduce the visitations of larger ships (those that are 40,000 tons or heavier) by 20 percent. This effectively caps the number of ships that can enter per day to five. In November, ships heavier than 96,000 tons will not be allowed to enter Guidecca Canal at all.
How the city plans to carry out the new five-ships-per-day rule remains to be seen and have yet to be announced. Which ships will be allowed passage? Will it be first-come, first-served? However they proceed, cruise line executives want their passengers to know that Venice will remain a regular port of call—even if the transit to and from the city must evolve.Before last month, toursits left Venice by ship through ______.
A.the Giudecca Canal | B.La Serenissima |
C.the Contorta Sant'Angelo Canal | D.the Adriatic Sea |
The new policy was issued in order to_____________.
A.stress the accuracy of Venice's fame for peace |
B.reduce the damage to Venice's enviironment |
C.depend less on the crusie industry |
D.limit the number of toursits |
It can be learned from the passage that _____________.
A.People in Venice are complaining about the toursits' behaviors. |
B.Venetians are often bothered by noise and pollution. |
C.The city government has announced the concrete ways to carry out the new five-ships-per-day rule. |
D.The new policy will not discourage the tourism from developing. |
What does the underlined phrase "clapming down on" mean?
A.limiting | B.abandoning |
C.banning | D.punishing |
In spite of the uncertainty of the economy, the movie industry has been stricken by a box-office outburst. Suddenly it seems as if everyone is going to the movies, with ticket sales this year up 17.5 percent, to $1.7 billion.
And it is not just because ticket prices are higher. Attendance has also jumped, by nearly 16 percent. If that pace continues through the year, it would amount to the biggest box-office increase in at least two decades.
Americans, for the moment, just want to hide in a very dark place. People want to forget their troubles, and they want to be with other people. Helping feed the outburst is the mix of movies, which have been more audience-friendly in recent months as the studios have tried to adjust after the discouraging sales of more serious films.
As she stood in line at the 18-screen Bridge theater complex here on Thursday to buy weekend tickets for “Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience,” Angel Hernandez was not thinking much about escaping reality. Instead, Ms. Hernandez, a Los Angeles parking lot attendant and mother of four young girls, was focused on one very specific reality: her wallet.
“Spending hundreds of dollars to take them to Disneyland is ridiculous right now,” she said. “For $60 and some candy money I can still be a good mom and give them a little fun.”
A lot of parents may have been thinking the same thing Friday, as “Jonas Brothers” sold out more than 800 theaters, and was expected to sell a powerful $25 million or more in tickets.
The film industry appears to have had a hand in its recent good luck. Over the last year or two, studios have released movies that are happier, scarier or just less depressing than what came before. After poor results for a rush of serious dramas built around the Middle East, Hollywood got back to comedies.Which of the following is not a reason for the improvement of the movie industry?
A.A growing number of people are going to the cinema. |
B.People are richer with the development of economy. |
C.More comedies are made than serious films. |
D.People have to pay more to watch a movie. |
Ms. Hernandez purchased the movie tickets because ________.
A.she tried to escape reality |
B.she was a crazy movie fan |
C.she was fond of Disneyland |
D.she wanted to please her kids |
According to the text, which of the following number is not used to describe the shooting up of the movie industry?
A.17.5% | B.$1.7 billion |
C.$60 | D.$25 million |
The passage is developed mainly by ________.
A.presenting the effect and analyzing the causes |
B.following the order of time |
C.describing problems and drawing a conclusion |
D.making comparison of ideas |
They’re WILD animals
By Ernst-Ulrich Franzen
March 11, 2010(3) Comments
The story about the woman who lost some fingers while feeding a bear at a zoo in Manitowoc, after she ignored warnings and barriers(栅栏), reminded me of the story I heard about a couple who put their baby on the back of a wild horse in South Dakota to get a really cute picture. We all do silly things at times — no one is immune — but treating wild animals as lovely pets has to fall into a special category. Teddy bears and Disney movies aren’t actually representative of real bears.
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1. TosaLeft - Mar 11, 2010 10:46AM
Don’t you think that maybe, just maybe some alcohol was involved?
2. tk421 - Mar 11, 2010 11:09 AM
It was already approved that alcohol was involved. Stories that begin with a drunk person saying “Hey, I got an idea, watch this!” rarely end well.
3. Tristan Kloss - Mar 11, 2010 11:41 AM
Alcohol certainly isn’t involved when people decide to keep “pets” like chimpanzees, baby tigers, etc. Stupidity, definitely. Dogs are pets because of thousands of years of domestication. Even farm animals, which have been kept by humans for thousands of years as well, aren’t let in the house. So why keep animals that treat human contact with, at best, indifference(冷淡、不在乎) and, at worst, violence?In Ernst-Ulrich Franzen’s opinion, the woman lost her fingers because ________.
A.the zoo keepers didn’t warn her of the danger |
B.she didn’t know the bear was a wild animal |
C.she was somehow influenced by cartoon characters |
D.she climbed over the barriers and angered the bea |
TosaLeft thinks the wounded woman ________.
A.may have been drunk | B.may be a little stupid |
C.was addicted to wine | D.fed wine to the bear |
tk421 means a drunk person ________.
A.should be forbidden to enter the zoo |
B.usually gets himself into trouble |
C.is often fond of making up stories |
D.usually likes to show himself off |
What does Tristan Kloss think of people treating wild animals as pets?
A.Kind. | B.Illegal. |
C.Loving. | D.Stupid. |