Late one night, a thief crept into a wealthy merchant’s house. He was a young thief, without . In fact, this was his first professional appearance. So he had planned everything .
All went marvelously well at first. He found, as he expected , an open window and got into the room . But, stepping his way through the room, he stubbed (碰到) his bare toe against a table leg. Choking back a cry of , terrified of waking the merchant, he hit himself the forehead and called himself a fool. He had forgot to bring a light.
In the darkness, however , he was able to see an oil lamp on the table, and it, then he gave a of relief. As he picked up the lamp, a small spider came out from under its .
“Thank you for saving my life,” said the spider. “Before he went to bed, the merchant set this lamp down on top of me so I couldn’t . If you hadn’t come along, I wouldn’t have lasted the night; indeed, I’d have extremely uncomfortable situation for a long time.”
“You have saved a life and shown , ”the spider went on, although the impatient thief said he had not intended to do so. “Better yet, you have done so without the least thought or hope of . You have gained more merits (优点) than you could possibly imagine.”
“But you’re only a spider,” said the thief.
“And you’re only a .” said the spider. “My dear friend, when you understand that life is life, whether on eight or two , you will have understood much. Your deed, in any case, has got rid of the bad things from your heart. Go from here with a fresh spirit. And good luck to you.”
The thief did so and never thought to again.
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I met Billy the last summer before college. He was handsome and his irreverence(玩世不恭) was to me. We liked each other the first instant we met. , I was a straight A student and my parents had high hopes for me to an Ivy League (常春藤联盟) school. Billy did not concentrate all his attention his study and school life. However, we were in love --- so teenager love. I still remember we had a plan for prom(舞会). It was understood that we had about where we would dance and drink and party together.
This meant one thing to my parents---panic. And it grew as the letters began to roll in. Of the eleven schools I applied to, nine accepted me. And one of them was Brown University---the Ivy League in 1770 in historic Providence, Rhode Island.
There was no that I was drawn to Brown, but Billy (who had joined the army) was down south and I had offers for me there, too. I was torn between my love for him and my family .
One week the start of school, my mother had a talk with me. She said I was eighteen years old and I had a to make--- one that went beyond the choice of to attend university.
In August, I and drove north to Providence. It took several months to that my life was moving on in a way that was completely different from Billy’s. Brown changed my life, opening doors and giving me the I now use to think, to learn and to write. Life is always about it seems, and the older I get, the more I understand this. Still, there are times when I think of Billy because he taught me about love.
A．confusing B．disturbing C．appealing D．amusing
A．Unfortunately B．Actually C．Luckily D．Originally
A．leave B．start C．finish D．attend
A．in B．at C．on D．from
A．special B．crazy C．wrong D．normal
A．talked B．looked C．lied D．argued
A．description B．rejection C．application D．acceptance
A．constructed B．assessed C．assisted D．informed
A．point B．use C．doubt D．need
A．left B．sent C．exposed D．employed
A．waiting B．asking C．hoping D．searching
A．tradition B．connection C．reputation D．expectation
A．before B．after C．at D．since
A．plan B．decision C．rule D．promise
A．out B．away C．far D．deep
A．when B．where C．whether D．how
A．got up B．packed up C．looked up D．turned up
A．foresee B．imagine C．realize D．consider
A．chances B．position C．equipment D．tools
A．surprises B．adventures C．opportunities D．choices
Andy was born with a developmental(发展的disorder.The two sides of his brain were not normally together.The right side of his could not communicate with the left.At the age of three,it was for him to walk,speak,and play.He could only echo (重复) back a few words,and walked while someone held each of his hands.
Then came the .He attended an all-day center where he every unimaginable treatment.He struggled,sometimes in ,to get stronger.Andy hated it when his parents would him there in the
mornings.However,they —against all odds(逆境)—that he would grow up to live a healthy life. They believed it for themselves,and for Andy.
It .Today Andy is a successful 13-year-old high school student and has won the gold medal for his math competition. His _____ has been nothing short of a wonder. He receives special help with a few things, but _____ his friends in all the activities he loves. Andy overcame a lot of to move from adversity (逆境) to victory.
Ask yourself:“What are the seeds of hidden in my struggles today?If I get up when I ,what will that make possible tomorrow? ”
“Overnight success” is the of years of tenacity (坚韧)and continued .
Victory is possible for those who never give in to whatever bad to them.They’ll find the path to their dream. ,they will accept adversities as universities that will foster (促进) strength,growth,and skills to attract the victory they seek.
A．touched B．used C．mixed D．joined
A．ear B．body C．foot D．shoulder
A．difficult B．easy C．interesting D．funny
A．fast B．strangely C．strongly D．slowly
A．power B．attention C．struggles D．failures
A．watched B．followed C．received D．enjoyed
A．tears B．smiles C．excitement D．disappointment
A．make B．leave C．forget D．put
A．doubted B．believed C．guessed D．imagined
A．lovely B．rich C．normal D．colorful
A．paid off B．set out C．ran out D．went off
A．story B．problem C．experience D．progress
A．sees B．visits C．invites D．joins
A．objects B．Enemies C．habits D．difficulties
A．flower B．spirit C．strength D．pride
A．lose B．fail C．fall D．stop
A．mark B．result C．symbol D．sign
A．learning B．taking C．offering D．refusing
A．related B．happened C．appealed D．referred
A．However B．Otherwise C．Besides D．Rather
Sorry, I’m late. I ____ have turned off the alarm clock and gone back to sleep again.
A．might B．should C．can D．Will
My father was in the navy, which meant that my mother was married to both my father and the sea. As was often the , we had to pack our belongings into boxes and those we had grown to love. We would arrive at our new home and find ourselves once again standing at the pier (码头) good-bye to my father as hisshippulled him away from us. My mother would turn my brother and me around before the ship was out of , wipe our tears, and take us back home to start the process of in the new environment again.
Throughout the years of changing , schools and friends, there remained one constant in my childhood — my mother. For both my and me, she was the cook, maid and teacher. She played these roles while some type of part-time job. Leaving a career is just one of thesacrifices which my mother made for my family as we moved around the world with our father every three years or so. she had to deal with only a small budget, my mother, , managed to make each house the very home that is safe and .
This probably sounds like a depressing way to live, with two small children: “single”
parenthood, short-term friendships, and the inability to her career or establish a home. But it was not for my mother. She turned this into adventure for us all! Each relocation (变换位置) was a chance to another part of the world. My mother greeted each new culture, climate and neighborhood. Each new house was a to rearrange furniture, make curtains and pictures. Every part-time job was an opportunity to learn something new and work with interesting people.
No matter how difficult the life was, she was always having a attitude. She always had strength in the face of struggle and change. My mother was so all those years during my childhood — she was my island in a sea of change. She is my hero.
A．situation B．condition C．case D．matter
A．leave out B．leave behind C．leave off D．leave for
A．speaking B．staring C．waving D．talking
A．range B．shape C．sight D．control
A．adapting B．suiting C．matching D．fitting
A．names B．jobs C．addresses D．directions
A．father B．classmates C．brother D．relatives
A．performing B．seeking C．waiting D．applying
A．terrible B．promising C．hopeless D．negative
A．Once B．While C．When D．Unless
A．somewhere B．anyhow C．somewhat D．somehow
A．romantic B．comfortable C．mysterious D．wealthy
A．generally B．actually C．especially D．unfairly
A．desert B．develop C．affect D．limit
A．lifestyle B．value C．journey D．opportunity
A．acquire B．explore C．occupy D．realize
A．load B．sadness C．result D．challenge
A．hang B．draw C．took D．sold
A．changeable B．cautious C．positive D．negative
A．experienced B．brave C．ordinary D．annoyed
When Glen Kruger picked a small cat from an animal shelter, he did not expect much. Yet right from the start, eight years ago, there was an uncommon connection between him and the small black cat. He ____ her Inky.
“I grew up on a hundredacre farm and had only cats ____ playmates,” Kruger, the seventyyearold man, says. “My hearing was damaged by the ____ of farm equipment, so I learned to connect with ____. They react to what they see and what you do.”
Inky was a gentle cat, ____ the house with five other cats. But on a January night in 2009, Inky did ____ that would set her apart from ____ cats forever.
Kruger had gone down to the basement to ____ the wood stove for the night. When he was finished, he ____to the top of the stairs and reached to turn off the lights. In doing so, he slipped and ____ his back against an old shelf. The heavy shelf came crashing down and sent Kruger down the stairs.
____ in a pool of blood on the basement floor, Kruger felt ____ going into shock(休克)．He shouted for help, ____ his wife, Brenda, was asleep in their bedroom at the opposite end of the house. ____ Kruger noticed Inky watching from the top of the stairs.
“Go get Brenda,” Kruger said to Inky.
Inky ____ to the bedroom door and scratched ____ until Brenda opened it. Then Inky led her to the ____. Brenda found her husband ____ the stairs and called 911. Kruger was rushed to the hospital. “I spent six months ____ there,” says Kruger. “Although I became lame, I was blessed.” Since the accident, Inky has ____ left Kruger's side.
A．gave B．chose C．named D．remembered
A．like B．as C．except D．among
A．sound B．alarm C．noise D．voice
A．animals B．friends C．farmers D．neighbors
A．sharing B．visiting C．dividing D．discovering
A．anything B．nothing C．something D．everything
A．familiar B．lovely C．ordinary D．outstanding
A．shut out B．shut off C．shut down D．shut up
A．marched B．flew C．struggled D．climbed
A．bent B．hit C．shook D．pulled
A．Falling B．Lying C．Appearing D．Thinking
A．it B．itself C．him D．himself
A．and B．but C．or D．so
A．Thus B．Otherwise C．Then D．Rather
A．walked B．ran C．returned D．withdrew
A．rapidly B．suddenly C．madly D．urgently
A．bedroom B．basement C．yard D．house
A．at the bottom of B．in the middle of C．at the top of D．in the front of
A．regretting B．resting C．relaxing D．recovering
A．never B．ever C．still D．already