At the age of sixteen, I joined a volunteer group with my dad. After we arrived, we “our family”was living in a trailer(拖车) that was in condition. A crew had been working on it for two weeks, every time they finished one problem, another surfaced.
We decided the only reasonable was to build a new house-something unusual but under these circumstances. The family was with their new house.
While we ate lunch together, I asked the family’s three boys, Josh, Eric and Ryan,“What do you want for your new ?”we were when Josh responded,“I just want a bed.”
The boys had slept in a bed! They were accustomed to plastic mats. we decided beds would be the perfect . A few volunteers drove to the nearest city and beds and new bedding.
When we saw the delivery truck coming, we told the family about the . We could hardly ourselves. It was like watching children on Christmas morning.
As we the frames of the beds together, Eric ran into the house to us. As my father slipped a pillowcase (枕套) onto one of the pillows, Eric asked,
“What is that?”
“A pillow,”he replied.
“What do you it?”Eric continued to ask.
“When you go to sleep, you put your on it,”I answered softly. Tears came to our eyes as he handed Eric the pillow. “Oh . . . that’s soft,”he said, it tightly.
Now, when my sister or I start to ask for something that seems urgent, my Dad gently asks,“Do you have a pillow?”We know exactly what he .
A．imagined B．discovered C．supposed D．required
A．bright B．strange C．perfect D．poor
A．but B．for C．so D．once
A．effort B．purpose C．solution D．treatment
A．amazing B．expensive C．rare D．necessary
A．careful B．patient C．thrilled D．nervous
A．kitchen B．pool C．room D．family
A．upset B．glad C．disappointed D．shocked
A．still B．just C．never D．seldom
A．award B．gift C．lesson D．target
A．bought B．made C．rent D．returned
A．program B．journey C．opportunity D．surprise
A．contain B．believe C．feel D．express
A．awkward B．confused C．excited D．restless
A．fitted B．moved C．tied D．replaced
A．amuse B．guide C．inform D．watch
A．do with B．come with C．try on D．begin with
A．body B．head C．back D．hands
A．waving B．hugging C．pushing D．pulling
A．explains B．means C．proves D．reflects
When I was a young teenager, about 14, I was already ready to work. My father was a dairy man and he had been working his entire life. For him, getting up at 5 a.m. and working a couple of hours before I went to school, and then more after school until there was not enough to see, were normal.
My father considered putting good work ethics in me to be very . He began to show me these, not through , but through his actions. He would not a job until it was done. He put his all into everything he did. However, he showed me this not just in working, but in everything. Like when I was in soccer, I wanted to a game once, and he explained to me that I had made a and that even if I just skipped one game, then I did not to play the rest of the games.
So the day I started my first job at the age of 14, I was to show my father that I could do it well, and that I was not going to . My entire was to make my father proud of me. I knew that I did, he would not say it in words, but he would show it. My first job was doing for a company. As most of you know, construction is not an easy job, especially being so . When someone as young as I started working, they would either or get stronger. I got stronger. I worked the I had been taught and I gave that day everything I had. In the end, my boss was . He even called to tell my parents what a good worker I was, and my parents’ eyes . From that day on I have worked every job to my full , because that day defined(界定) my life. It defined how I was going to work, and I will always stick to it in the rest of my life.
A．going B．working C．learning D．playing
A．time B．chance C．light D．strength
A．ridiculous B．easy C．absolute D．important
A．facts B．words C．practice D．assessment
A．quit B．find C．do D．finish
A．might B．would C．could D．should
A．enjoy B．defeat C．skip D．take
A．commitment B．improvement C．devotion D．compromise
A．decide B．submit C．resist D．deserve
A．prepared B．shocked C．delighted D．interested
A．stick B．leave C．fail D．play
A．problem B．world C．trick D．goal
A．in case B．now that C．even if D．as though
A．regulation B．construction C．communication D．reception
A．weak B．poor C．delicate D．young
A．break B．struggle C．pause D．object
A．manner B．moment C．way D．method
A．impressed B．surprised C．inspired D．excited
A．stared B．shone C．lifted D．opened
A．occupation B．potential C．spirit D．skill
W: May I see your license, please?
M: But officer, did I do something wrong?
W: Do you mean __ (say) you didn’t see the speed limit sign back there ?
M: Um, no, madam, I guess I didn’t.
W: In other words, you drove by __ fast to read it. The sign says 35km/h. A school is just nearby, you know?
M: Don’t get me wrong, but my speedometer didn’t read much ___ (fast) than that .
W: Then, why is it ____ my radar showed you were going 45km/h? Let me put it __
__ way. I’m going to give you a ticket. Again, may I see your license, please?
M: Here it is, officer. But let me explain. I was late for an important ____ (appoint) and I was worried that I wouldn’t make it on time. So …
W: Uha, just a minute, here. Your license is no longer valid. You ____ (renew) it two weeks ago. I’m going to write your name up for that, too.
M: What? Really?
W: Your license became invalid on your birthday and that was two weeks ago according to the date here. You are in violation of (违犯) the law ––– driving ____ a valid license.
M: I’m sorry , madam. I didn’t realize that.
W: Here’s the ticket for not having a valid license. But I’m only going to give you ____ warning about exceeding the speed limit. Be __
__ (care) next time.
M: Yes, madam, I will. Thank you.
My son, Sam, struggled through elementary school. But his sixth grade teacher took the time to ____ Sam’s strengths and inspired him to be a better student.
On Valentine’s Day, my eleven-year-old son Sam ____ me to allow him to buy his teacher an enormous red heart-shaped box filled with chocolates. We compromised，and he ____ her a smaller but respectably sized heart. On his small ____ , $4.99 was a huge investment, and I was touched by his ____ .
Sam has not always loved teachers. He doesn’t yet admit that he ____ school, but he does like to hang out in his classroom after three o’ clock, and he is ____ about some class projects.
Last year, Sam’s most memorable achievement was having the longest “missing assignment” list in the __ fifth grade. He ____ all year to keep his head above the academic sea. Many nights Sam sank into tears of ____ while working his way through another pile of homework.
I must admit I was ____ when I first met Mrs. Hogan. She was a ____ teacher. She seemed so young and sweet and inexperienced. How was this new teacher going to ____ a boy who had feared school?
As I observed this teacher’s ____ with my son at the end of each day, I realized that Sam’s inattentiveness and disorganization were not the ___ things that Mrs. Hogan noticed. She recognized Sam as a knowledgeable, capable student who loved to read. He managed to meet her ____.
Sam began to do his homework without numerous reminders ____ a major search through his crowded backpack. He brought home less and less class work. He ____ six A’s on his second-quarter report card.
I ____ don’t know how much of this miracle is due to the magic of Mrs. Hogan. I do know that my son loves his sixth grade teacher, and I think there is a ____ in relationships that can inspire children when nothing else can.
A．improve B． encourage C． push D． drive
A．advised B． promised C． allowed D． begged
A．bought B． agreed C． rejected D． met
A．standard B． age C． budget D． basis
A．will B． cleverness C． generosity D． bravery
A．likes B． hates C． attends D． misses
A．annoyed B． excited C． surprised D． worried
A．remarkable B． favorable C． honorable D． entire
A．struggled B． intended C． failed D． continued
A．regret B． surprise C． frustration D． pleasure
A．interested B． concerned C． moved D． wrong
A．working B． caring C． rising D． beginning
A．lift up B． stay up C． sit up D． get up
A．cooperation B． relationship C． interaction D． discussion
A．precious B． interesting C． obvious D． primary
A．questions B． requests C． demands D． expectations
A．although B． or C． if D． so
A．marked B． accepted C． earned D． left
A．clearly B． strongly C． yet D． still
A．mass B． magic C． handwriting D． plan
From my second grade on, there was one event I feared every year: the piano recital（独奏演唱会）. A recital ______I had to practice a boring piece of music and perform before strangers. Each year I _____ask my father if I could skip the recital “just this once”. And each year he would shake his head, muttering（嘀咕） _______about build self-confidence and working toward a _______.
So it was with really great______that I stood in church one recent Sunday, video camera in hand, and ______my 68-year-old father sweating in his shirt ______rising to play the piano in his very first recital.
My father had longed to play music since childhood, but his family was poor and couldn’t _______lessons. He could have gone on regretting it, _______too many of us do. But though he was rooted in his past, he wasn’t _______there. When he retired three years ago, he ______ his church music director to take him as a student.
For a moment after my father sat down at the keyboard, he ______stared down at his fingers. Has he forgotten the ______? I worried, remembering those split seconds______ago when my mind would go blank and my fingers would _______. But then came the beautiful melody（旋律）, from the ______fingers that once baited（装饵于）my fishing lines. And I______he had been doing what music teachers always stress: _______the music and pretend the others aren’t there.
“I’m ________of him for starting something new at his age,” I said to my son Jeff.
“Yeah, and doing it so_______,” Jeff added.
With his first recital, my father taught me more about courage and determination than all the words he used those 30-plus years ago.
A．reflected B．explained C．meant D．proved
A．would B．could C．might D．should
A．nothing B．everything C．anything D．something
A．goal B．stage C．journey D．chance
A．trouble B．satisfaction C．strength D．disappointment
A．kept B．sent C．watched D．felt
A．through B．from C．against D．before
A．miss B．afford C．select D．understand
A．as B．once C．if D．while
A．educated B．protected C．stuck D．spoilt
A．allowed B．invited C．inspired D．persuaded
A．roughly B．simply C．merrily D．curiously
A．words B．videos C．notes D．lessons
A．decades B．weeks C．hours D．moments
A．play B．freeze C．click D．adjust
A．same B．warm C．different D．dirty
A．predicted B．realized C．imagined D．insisted
A．pass over B．turn up C．bring in D．concentrate on
A．ashamed B．aware C．tired D．proud
A．casually B．anxiously C．nicely D．frequently
It’s a small gas station that has snacks, drinks, cigarettes, and candies. The young man behind the counter knows his ____ by name and what they normally want to buy. He treats children and adults with equal ____. He reads science fiction behind the counter when business is ____.
One day, three people rushed in and grabbed food off the shelves as fast as they could,____ not intending to pay for it. He hit the “panic button” , then went over the counter and ____ the front door. It was obvious that they were homeless, and equally obvious that they weren't going____ with their illgotten gains. They ____ the food and simply crowded together in panic—knowing the police were ____the way.
Imagine what they must have felt like when they were told they didn't have to steal even if they were that ____. “We have food in the back, expired (到期)but still ____ to eat. If you need food, you ____ have some.”
They were told to ____ what they had dropped and put it back, and then asked to straighten out the mess. They were doing just that ____ the police arrived. The officers were told the situation was under control and the police were no longer ____.
This wasn't what they had ____. They were being treated as human beings who could right the wrong they'd done. Shocked, they quickly followed orders to take turns and use the restroom to clean up.
Soon three ____ people walked out with all the ____ their arms could hold. They were____ that，if they needed to come back again, they were to ask and not just grab.
And then the young man went back to read until the next customer came in. He would be the ____ person in the world to claim he was a hero. But he gave three people something they were in desperate need of—a ____ amount of selfrespect and a little bit of hope.
A．friends B．neighbors C．customers D．passengers
A．respect B．pride C．wisdom D．privilege
A．slow B．busy C．heavy D．swift
A．bravely B．reasonably C．hardly D．obviously
A．opened B．locked C．closed D．broke
A．nowhere B．somewhere C．anywhere D．everywhere
A．hid B．lifted C．swallowed D．dropped
A．in B．on C．off D．by
A．anxious B．cautious C．courageous D．hungry
A．safe B．easy C．sweet D．unique
A．must B．can C．should D．need
A．hold up B．hand out C．pick up D．hand in
A．when B．after C．before D．since
A．popular B．necessary C．reliable D．important
A．wanted B．desired C．expected D．admired
A．dirtier B．cleaner C．cleverer D．quicker
A．money B．cigarettes C．drinks D．food
A．reminded B．warned C．ordered D．persuaded
A．first B．last C．best D．worst
A．large B．fair C．small D．full