On a summer evening, I was reading a newspaper in my garden. Then my 18-year-old son，Max , wandered out to me. We spent about an hour chatting together, . Then he went out to have another night out with his .
As he left to meet his friends, I on how our evening together had been one of my life’s golden moments. , such treasured times were drawing to a . In less than a week, Max will go off to Israel, where he will study art for three years. Of course, Max’s is part of the natural order. Life is rushing in, and he is moving on. I’m that my son has the drive and energy to plan his own , which is the most important thing.
To , we’ll have the phone and e-mail, but why do it happen so ? I wondered how Max felt about leaving. He isn’t the one to his inner thoughts, and he prefers to use rather than noise to make his point. However, on my birthday last week, he gave me a card as a(n) . Inside, he had placed a scratch card(刮刮卡)with a top of $100,000, as well as a message. His message read, “Dear Mum, I discovered on the Internet that the average cost of a child until adulthood is $106,428, so I want to show my . I hope you win. Then you can go on holiday to all the places you love.” Reading his words, I , cried and gave him a huge hug.
I’m going to my boy. But he’s no longer a boy, is he? I’m going to miss this lovely young man. I didn’t a bean on the scratch card, but looking at Max, I know I’ve been a winner anyway.
A．wake B．join C．disturb D．call
A．tired B．delighted C．shocked D．moved
A．friends B．teachers C．classmates D．parents
A．reminded B．revised C．recovered D．reflected
A．Besides B．Therefore C．However D．Then
A．close B．wonder C．trick D．past
A．regretting B．maturing C．studying D．leaving
A．worried B．proud C．sad D．curious
A．happiness B．luck C．future D．business
A．keep in touch B．live out C．start with D．go through
A．quickly B．strangely C．generally D．hardly
A．hide B．bury C．ignore D．show
A．chances B．dreams C．wisdom D．wealth
A．memory B．gift C．praise D．honor
A．class B．remark C．grade D．prize
A．delivering B．adopting C．raising D．educating
A．gratitude B．doubt C．action D．opinion
A．puzzled B．broke C．complained D．laughed
A．thank B．miss C．admire D．lose
A．find B．plant C．win D．buy
A new study found that inner-city kids living in neighborhoods with more green space gained about 13% less weight over a two-year period than kids living among more concrete and fewer trees. Such tell a powerful story. The obesity epidemic(流行病) began in the 1980s, and many people believe increased portion sizes and inactivity are to , but that can't be everything. Fast foods and TVs have been us for a long time. "Most experts agree that the changes were to something in the environment," says social epidemiologist Thomas Glass of The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. That something could be a of the green.
The new research, in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, isn't the first to associate greenery with better health, but it does get us close identifying what works and why. At its most straightforward, a green neighborhood means more places for kids to play – which is since time spent outdoors is one of the strongest correlates(相关的事物) of children's activity levels. But green space is good for the mind : research by environmental psychologists has shown that it has cognitive（认知的） for children with attention-deficit disorder. In one study, just reading in a green setting improved kids' symptoms.
to grassy areas has also been linked to stress and a lower body mass index (体重指数) among adults. And an of 3,000 Tokyo residents associated walkable green spaces with greater longevity (长寿) among senior citizens.
Glass cautions that most studies don't prove a causal link between greenness and health, but they're nevertheless helping spur action. In September the U. S. House of Representatives the delightfully named No Child Left Inside Act to encourage public initiatives aimed at exposing kids to the outdoors.
Finding green space is not easy, and you may have to work a bit to get your family a little grass and trees. If you live in a suburb or a city with good parks, take of what's there. Your children in particular will love it – and their bodies and minds will be to you.
A．findings B．essays C．assumptions D．abstracts
A．scold B．blame C．charge D．criticize
A．among B．along C．beside D．with
A．glued B．related C．associated D．opposed
A．scratching B．denying C．depressing D．shrinking
A．published B．contributed C．illustrated D．circulated
A．at B．to C．for D．over
A．fully B．simply C．seriously D．uniquely
A．vital B．casual C．fatal D．mental
A．still B．already C．too D．yet
A．benefits B．profits C．revenues D．awards
A．outward B．apart C．aside D．outside
A．Solution B．Reaction C．Exposure D．Addiction
A．much B．less C．more D．little
A．article B．expedition C．analysis D．option
A．curiously B．negatively C．necessarily D．comfortably
A．relieved B．appointed C．approved D．performed
A．merely B．always C．mainly D．almost
A．advantage B．exception C．measure D．charge
A．regretful B．merciful C．joyful D．grateful
Every night, my mother would come to my room, lean down and push my long hair out of the way, then kiss my forehead.
I don't remember when it first started me -----her hands pushing my hair that way. But it did make me annoyed, for they felt work - worn and against my young skin．Finally, one night, I shouted at her: ―Don’t do that any more –your are too rough! She didn’t say anything in . But never again did my mother close out my day with that expression of her love．
Time after time, with the years, my thoughts returned to that night. I'm not a little girl any more．Mom is in her mid - seventies, and those hands I thought to be so rough are still doing things for me and my .
Now, my own children are . Mom no longer has Dad. It was late on that Thanksgiving Eve, as I went to sleep in the bedroom of my youth, a familiar hand before stealing across my face to brush the from my forehead. Then a kiss, ever so touched my brow. In my , thousands of times, I the night my young voice complained. Mom’s hand in my hand, I said how I was for that night. I thought she'd remember, as I did, Mom didn't know what I was talking about. She had forgotten — and —long ago.
That night, I fell asleep with a new for my gentle mother and her caring hands. And the I had carried around for so long was nowhere to be found．
A．surprising B．hurting C．annoying D．amazing
A．rough B．gentle C．smooth D．strong
A．noises B．words C．hands D．feelings
A．anger B．silence C．fear D．reply
A．healthy B．familiar C．popular D．perfect
A．coming B．remaining C．following D．passing
A．often B．even C．never D．once
A．family B．neighbor C．husband D．home
A．developed B．grown C．moved D．forgotten
A．imagined B．hesitated C．regretted D．trembled
A．hair B．tears C．dirt D．kisses
A．quickly B．roughly C．gently D．slowly
A．memory B．opinion C．history D．diary
A．chanced B．missed C．hated D．recalled
A．Beating B．Catching C．Picking D．Stopping
A．happy B．annoyed C．sorry D．amused
A．and B．while C．because D．but
A．remembered B．faded C．forgiven D．apologized
A．hope B．appreciation C．thought D．approval
A．guilt B．pride C．sorrow D．failure
My father was a self-taught mandolin player. He was one of the best string_______ players in our town. He could not______ music, but if he heard a tune a few times, he could play it.
Dad loved to play the mandolin for his ___ ___ for he knew we enjoyed singing, and hearing him play. He was always there, ___ ___ his time and efforts to see that his family had enough in their life. I had to grow into a man and have children of my own ________I realized how much he had sacrificed.
I joined the United States Air _ _ in January of 1962. Whenever I would come home ___ ___ , I would ask Dad to play the mandolin. He could ___ __ _your soul with the tones that came out of that old mandolin. He seemed to shine when he was playing. You could see his _ ___ in his ability to play so well for his family.
In 1950, our family moved to Maryland. While working at Todd Steel, he was _ ___ in an accident. On that particular day, Dad got the third index finger of his left hand ________ by the machine. He didn't lose enough of the finger ____ it would stop him picking up anything, but it did _ _ his ability to play the mandolin. After the accident, When I came home and asked him to play, Dad would make ______ for why he couldn't play. For the family it didn't make any ___ ___ that Dad couldn't play as well.
In August of 1993, my father was discovered with lung cancer. He chose not to receive treatments so that he could live out the rest of his life ____ dignity. About a week before his death, we asked Dad if he would play the mandolin for us. He made excuses but said "okay". He knew it would probably be the _ ___ time he would play for us. He tuned up the old mandolin and played a few _ __ . When I looked around, there was not a _ _ eye in the family. We saw before us a quiet man with an inner strength. Dad would never play the mandolin for us again. Dad was doing something he had done all his life, _ ______. As sick as he was, he was still pleasing others. Dad sure could play that Mandolin!
A．equipment B．instrument C．musical D．musician
A．read B．see C．look at D．copy
A．audience B．employer C．family D．friends
A．employing B．devoting C．spending D．wasting
A．since B．when C．after D．before
A．Power B．Energy C．Force D．Strength
A．on duty B．on holiday C．on vacation D．on leave
A．feel B．touch C．contact D．keep
A．proud B．pride C．please D．praise
A．involved B．participated C．took part D．joined
A．cut in B．cut up C．cut off D．cut out
A．which B．that C．what D．where
A．destroy B．affect C．effect D．injure
A．uses B．preparations C．excuses D．impressions
A．difference B．sense C．comment D．decision
A．at B．on C．off D．in
A．first B．latest C．last D．longest
A．notes B．bills C．symbols D．signs
A．wet B．dry C．cried D．crying
A．sponsoring B．taking C．distributing D．giving
A little boy invited his mother to attend his school's first teacher-parent meeting. To the little boy's ____, she said she would go. This ____ be the first time that his classmates and teacher ____ his mother and he felt ____ of her appearance. Although she was a beautiful woman, there was a severe scar (疤痕) that ____ nearly the entire right side of her face. The boy never wanted to ____ why or how she got the scar.
At the meeting, the people were ___ by the kindness and natural beauty of his mother ____ the scar, but the little boy was still embarrassed (尴尬) and ____ himself from everyone. He did, however, get within ____ of a conversation between his mother and his teacher.
The teacher asked ____, "How did you get the scar on your face?"
The mother replied, "____ my son was a baby, he was in a room that caught fire. Everyone was ___ afraid to go in because the fire was ____，so I went in. As I was running toward his bed, I saw a long piece of wood coming down and I placed myself over him trying to protect him. I was knocked ____ but fortunately, a fireman came in and saved both of us." She ____ the burned side of her face. "This scar will be ____, but to this day, I have never ____ what I did."
At this point, the little boy came out running toward his mother with tears in his eyes. He held her in his arms and felt a great ____ of the sacrifice (牺牲) that his mother had made for him. He held her hand ____ for the rest of the day.
A．enjoyment B．disappointment C．surprise D．excitement
A．would B．could C．should D．must
A．noticed B．greeted C．accepted D．met
A．sick B．ashamed C．afraid D．tired
A．included B．passed C．covered D．shaded
A．talk about B．think about C．care about D．hear about
A．impressed B．surprised C．excited D．comforted
A．in sight of B．by means of C．by way of D．in spite of
A．hid B．protected C．separated D．escaped
A．understanding B．reminding C．hearing D．learning
A．carefully B．seriously C．nervously D．anxiously
A．As B．When C．Since D．While
A．so B．much C．quite D．too
A．out of control B．under control C．in control D．over control
A．helpless B．hopeless C．senseless D．useless
A．pointed B．showed C．wiped D．touched
A．ugly B．lasting C．serious D．frightening
A．forgot B．recognized C．considered D．regretted
A．honor B．sense C．happiness D．pride
A．quietly B．slightly C．tightly D．suddenly
My neighbor Jennifer is blind, but you’d never know it. She makes such good use of her other , including her "sixth sense", that she hardly gives the impression that she has anything. Jennifer looks after her children much like the rest of us, that she doesn’t push too hard on them, really benefit a lot from her relaxed attitude. She knows when to clean the house, and she moves around so fast that often don't realize she's blind.
I this the first time after my six-year-old daughter, Kayla, went to play there. When Kayla came home, she was very about her day. She told me they had baked cookies, played games and done art projects. But she was excited about her finger-painting project.
“Mom, guess what?” said Kayla, all smiles. “I learned how to colors today! Blue and red make purple, and yellow and blue make green! And Jennifer with us”. To my great , my child had learnt about color from a blind friend! Then Kayla continued, “Jennifer told me my showed joy, pride and a sense of accomplishment（成就感）. She really _ what I was doing!” Kayla said she had never known how good finger paints felt Jennifer showed her how to paint without looking at her paper.
I realized Kayla didn't know that Jennifer was blind. It had just never in conversation. When I told my daughter that Jennifer was blind, she was for a moment. At first, she didn't believe me. “But Mommy, Jennifer knew exactly what was in my picture!” Kayla . And I knew my child was because Jennifer had listened to Kayla describe her art work. Jennifer had also heard Kayla's in her work.
We were silent for a minute. Then Kayla said slowly, “You know, Mommy, Jennifer really did ‘see’ my picture. She just used my .”
Indeed, she uses a special type of “vision” that all mothers have.
A．senses B．means C．methods D．ways
A．enjoyed B．found C．missed D．got
A．instead B．except C．since D．but
A．which B．it C．she D．who
A．children B．family C．guests D．friends
A．witnessed B．heard C．recognized D．realized
A．sad B．satisfied C．excited D．sorry
A．not at all B．not so C．a little D．especially
A．mix B．draw C．write D．paint
A．stayed B．painted C．talked D．studied
A．surprise B．encouragement C．delight D．excitement
A．attitude B．picture C．homework D．paper
A．understood B．found C．saw D．touched
A．after B．unless C．until D．when
A．talked about B．turned out C．referred to D．come up
A．curious B．quiet C．puzzled D．worried
A．cried B．insisted C．required D．informed
A．uncertain B．wrong C．worried D．right
A．shortcomings B．difficulties C．pride D．description
A．eyes B．pens C．hands D．paper