In 1982, Steven Callahan was crossing the Atlantic alone in his sailboat when it struck something and sank.He got into a life boat, but his supplies were .His chances of surviving were small. when three fishermen found him 76 days later, he was alive —much than he was when he started, but alive.
His of how he survived is fascinating.His cleverness —how he to catch fish, how he evaporated(蒸发) sea water to fresh water—is very interesting.
But the thing that my eye was how he managed to keep himself going when all hope seemed lost, and there seemed no in continuing the struggle .He was starved and9 worn-out.Giving up would have seemed the only possible choice.
When people these kinds of circumstances, they do something with their minds that gives them the courage to keep going.Many people in desperate circumstances in or go mad.Something the survivors do with their thoughts helps them find the courage to carry on difficulties.
"I tell myself I can it," wrote Callahan in his book.-Compared to what others have been through, I'm fortunate.I tell myself these things over and over, up courage..."
I wrote that down after 1 read it.It me as something important.And I've told myself the same thing when my own goals seemed off or when my problems seemed too terrible.And every time I've said it, I have always come back to my .
The truth is, our circumstances are only bad to something better.But others have been through the much worse, that is, in comparison with what others have been through, you're fortunate.Tell this to yourself over and over again, and it will help you through the rough situations with a little more courage.
A.full B.rich C.few D.enough
A.And B.Yet C.Still D.Thus
A.thinner B.stronger C.worse D.healthier
A.attitude B.assumption C.instruction D.account
A.assisted B.tended C.managed D.intended
A.make B.absorb C.select D.replace
A.attacked B.caught C.froze D.cheated
A.operation B.taste C.message D.point
A.firmly B.completely C.hardly D.generally
A.deal B.defend C.survive D.observe
A.similarly B.differently C.gradually D.commonly
A.pull B.take C.break D.give
A.for the lack of B.in the face of C.in exchange for D.As a result of
A.handle B.carry C.follow D.inspect
A.rolling B.using C.building D.making
A.defeated B.Recommended C.introduced D.struck
A.far B.long C.ever D.even
A.feeling B.senses C.plans D.influences
A.related B.measured C.contributed D.compared
A.see B.cut C.go D.think
Most people have no idea of the hard work and worry that gosintosthe
collecting of those fascinating birds and animals that they pay to see in the
zoo.One of the questions that is always asked of me is __1__ I became an animal
collector in the first __2__ .The answer is that I have always been interested
in animals and zoos.According to my parents, the first word I was able to say
with any __3__ was not the conventional“mamma”or“daddy”,__4__ the word“zoo”,
which I would __5__ over and over again with a shrill __6__ until someone,
insgroupsto __7__ me up, would take me to the zoo.When I __8__ a little older,
we lived in Greece and I had a great __9__ of pets, ranging from owls to
seahorses, and I spent all my spare time __10__ the countryside in search of
fresh specimens to __11__ to my collection of pets.__12__ on I went for a year
to the City Zoo, as a student __13__ , to get experience of the large animals,
such as lions, bears, bison and ostriches,__14__ were not easy to keep at
home.When I left, I __15__ had enough money of my own to be able to __16__ my
first trip and I have been going __17__ ever since then.Though a collector's job
is not an easy one and is full of __18__ ,it is certainly a job which will
appeal __19__ all those who love animals and __20__ .
1.A.how B.where C.when D.whether
2.A.region B.field C.place D.case
3.A.clarity B.emotion C.sentiment D.affection
4.A.except B.but C.except for D.but for
5.A.recite B.recognize C.read D.repeat
6.A.volume B.noise C.voice D.pitch
7.A.close B.shut C.stop D.comfort
8.A.grew B.was growing C.grow D.grown
9.A.many B.amount C.number D.supply
10.A.living B.cultivating C.reclaiming D.exploring
11.A.increase B.include C.add D.enrich
12.A.later B.further C.then D.subsequently
13.A.attendant B.keeper C.member D.aide
14.A.who B.they C.of which D.which
15.A.luckily B.gladly C.nearly D.successfully
16.A.pay B.provide C.allow D.finance
17.A.normally B.regularly C.usually D.often
18.A.expectations B.sorrows C.excitement D.disappointments
19.A.for B.with C.to D.from
20.A.excursion B.travel C.journey D.Trip
I remember vividly the call that changed my life. It was Tuesday, February 18. When the1rang in the kitchen of my Los Angeles, the 2was Marty Banderas, a literary agent to whom I had sent a draft( 草稿 )of my novel three weeks earlier. “I have a couple of 3 .” Banderas saiD. “First, how old are you?” “I'm 48,” I replieD. “Are you in good 4?” “Yes, excellent. What’s this about? ” “I’ve sold your novels 5one and a half million dollars.” I sat down in 6. I had written fourteen novels in twenty years, but each one had been 7by the publishers. I suppose many people would have been 8, but not me. Each time, I just 9 writing another one. My husband advised me to find something else to do, but I refused to 10up. Seeing this book 11was the best thing that has ever happened to me. It's a mystery story (like all the others) and it was on the best-seller 12two weeks after publication! I got my first lesson in story 13from my grandmother. She used to read my stories. She was the one who gave me a 14of words. She sparked (激发) my 15and she has been a 16influence on me. I always had stories running through my 17and as soon as I could write, I 18them down on paper. I married young and I have three children, but I never stopped writing. 19novels between doing the diapers(婴儿的尿布) and dishes. I'm writing another novel now. Yes, my 20has changed my life.
1. A. phone B. bell C. clock D. alarm
2. A. line B. step C. outside D. doorway
3. A. novels B. things C. questions D. problems
4. A. wealth B. health C. condition D. order
5. A. to B. for C. on D. in
6. A. need B. joy C. settlements D. shock
7. A. rejected B. received C. decided D. lost
8. A. worried B. encouraged C. discouraged D. excited
9. A. couldn't help B. got down to C. got used to D. went on
10. A. hold B. look C. give D. set
11. A. sold B. published C. printed D. passed
12. A. books B. shops C. record D. list
13. A. writing B. organizing C. telling D. reading
14. A. use B. love C. meaning D. respect
15. A. hope B. efforts C. novels D. imagination
16. A. lasting B. normal C. careful D. general
17. A. head B. mouth C. voice D. work
18. A. took B. put C. broke D. added
19. A. writing B. reading C. developing D. translating
20. A. friend B. call C. success D. work
My father often works very hard. And he has 1to see a film. Here I’ll tell you 2about
One afternoon, when he finished his work and 3go home, he found a film ticket under the4on his desk. He thought he 5to have not much work to do that day and 6was quite wonderful to pass the 7at the cinemA. So he came back home and 8finished his supper. Then he said 9to us and left.
But to our 10, he came back about half an hour later, I 11him what was the matter. He smiled and told us about 12funny thing that had happened at the cinema.
When my father was sitting in his seat, a 13came to my father’s and said that the seat was14. My father was surpriseD. He took out the ticket 15looked at it carefully. It was Row17, 16 . And then he looked at the seat. It was the same. So he asked her 17her ticket. She took out the ticket at once and the seat shown in it was Row 17, Seat 3.
18? What’s the matter with all this? While they were wondering suddenly the woman said, “The 19of the tickets are different.” So they looked at the ticket more carefully. After a while, my father said, “Oh,20, I made a mistake. My ticket is for the film a month ago. Take this seat, please.” With these words, he left the cinema.
1. A. little money B. much money C. little time D. much time
2. A. a funny story B. a good story C. an old story D. a strange story
3. A. was to B. was about to C. had to D. ought
4. A. box B. book C. glass D. paper
5. A. happened B. liked C. pretended D. wanted
6. A. it B. this C. that D. which
7. A. morning B. afternoon C. day D. evening
8. A. early B. quietly C. quickly D. suddenly
9. A. hello B. good-bye C. good evening D. good night
10. A. disappointment B. joy C. sorrow D. surprise
11. A. asked B. explained C. told D. wanted
12. A. a B. one C. some D. the
13. A. man B. woman C. doctor D. nurse
14. A. hers B. his C. taken D. wrong
15. A. and B. but C. or D. so
16. A. Seat1 B. Seat2 C. Seat3 D. Seat4
17. A. it bring B. to get C. to see D. to show
18. A. Why B. How C. When D. where
19. A. designs B. colors C. prices D. owners
20. A. I’m sad B. I’m sorry C. I’m wrong D. I’m worried
A newly trained teacher named Mary went to teach at a Navajo Indian reservation. Every day, she would ask five of the young Navajo students to __1__ the chalkboard and complete a simple math problem from 2homework.
They would stand there, silently, 3to complete the task. Mary couldn’t figure it out. 4she had studied in her educational curriculum helped, and she 5hadn’t seen anything like it in her student-teaching days back in Phoenix.
What am I doing wrong? Could I have chosen five students who can’t do the 6? Mary would wonder. No, 7 couldn’t be that. Finally she 8the students what was wrong. And in their answers, she learned a 9lesson from her young 10pupils about self-image and a(n) 11of self-worth.
It seemed that the students 12 each other’s individuality and knew that 13 of them were capable of doing the problems. 14 at their early age, they understood the senselessness of the win-lose approach in the classroom. They believed no one would 15 if any students were shown up or embarrassed at the 16. So they 17to compete with each other in public.
Once she understood, Mary changed the system 18she could check each child’s math problem individually, but not at any child’s expense 19his classmates. They all wanted to learn, 20 not at someone else’s expense.
1. A. go to B. come to C. get close to D. bring
2. A. his B. their C. his own D. her
3. A. happy B. willingly C. readily D. unwilling
4. A. Anything B. Nothing C. Everything D. Neither
5. A. almost B. certainly C. hardly D. never
6. A. question B. chalkboard C. problem D. homework
7. A. they B. it C. everything D. each
8. A. asked B. questioned C. told D. understood
9. A. outstanding B. surprising C. annoying D. frightening
10. A. sunburned B. tender C. Indian D. naughty
11. A. sense B. image C. way D. aspect
12. A. had B. ignored C. respected D. cared
13. A. none B. no one C. each D. not all
14. A. Especially B. Even though C. Even so D. Even
15. A. lose B. win C. achieve D. answer
16. A. time B. situation C. chalkboard D. condition
17. A. refused B. rejected C. tried D. promised
18. A. if B. so that C. unless D. in case
19. A. in favour of B. of C. by means of D. in front of
20. A. and B. but C. so D. or
A Strange Greeting, a True Feeling Last week I was invited to a doctor’s meeting at the Ruth hospital for incurables. Inoneof the wards a patient, an old man, got up shakily from his bed and moved towards me. I could see that he hadn't long to 1 , but he came up to me and placed his right foot close mine on the floor.
“Frank!” I cried in astonishment. He couldn’t 2, as I knew, but all the time 3his foot against mine.
My 4raced back more than thirty years to the 5days of 1941, when I was a student in London. The 6was an air-raid shelter, in which I and about hundred other people slept every night. Two of the regulars were Mrs. West and her son Frank.
7wartime problems, we shelter-dwellers got to 8each other very well. Frank West 9me because he wasn’t 10, not even at birth. His mother told me he was 37 then, but he had 11of a mind than a baby has. His “ 12” consisted of rough sounds——sounds of pleasure or anger and 13 more. Mrs. West, then about 75, was a strong, capable woman, as she had to be, of course, because Frank 14 on her entirely. He needed all the 15of a baby.
One night a policeman came and told Mrs. West that her house had been flattened by a 500-pounder. She 16 nearly everything she owned.
When that sort of thing happened, the rest of us helped the 17 ones. So before we 18that morning, I stood beside Frank and 19my right foot against his. They were about the same size. That night, then, I took a pair of shoes to the shelter for frank. But as soon as he saw me he came running and placed his right foot against mine. After that, his 20to me was always the same.
1. A. work B. stay C. live D. expect
2. A. answer B. speak C. smile D. laugh
3. A. covering B. moving C. fighting D. pressing
4. A. minds B. memories C. thoughts D. brains
5. A. better B. dark C. younger D. old
6. A. cave B. place C. sight D. scene
7. A. DiscussingB. Solving C. Sharing D. Suffering
8. A. learn fromB. talk to C. help D. know
9. A. needed B. recognized C. interested D. encouraged
10. A. normalB. common C. unusual D. quick
11. A. more B. worse C. fewer D. less
12. A. word B. speech C. sentence D. language
13. A. not B. no C. something D. nothing
14. A. fed B. kept C. lived D. depended
15. A. attention B. control C. treatment D. management
16. A. lost B. needed C. destroyed D. left
17. A. troublesomeB. unlucky C. angry D. unpopular
18. A. separatedB. went C. reunited D. returned
19. A. pushedB. tried C. showed D. measured
20. A. noddingB. greeting C. meeting D. acting