Question

【题目】 A decade ago, colored lights danced around the living room on New Year’s Eve and happy music was played. Upstairs, the children were asleep. But I wasn’t feeling happy. In mid-December, my husband and I had been informed that he had cancer and that he was going to die. He had less than a year left, the doctors said.

In the years since that painful season, I have come to look back upon New Year’s Eve. New Year’s Eve brings a halt to the endless commitments that fill our daily lives and a chance to reflect. New Year’s Eve is full of possibility and anticipation. What will be the surprising experiences and delightful successes in the coming year? But also, what disappointments are waiting for us in the next twelve months?

In many ways, New Year’s Eve and the days that surround it are a line between past and future. That line is made up of a series of moments of transition (过渡) that take us out of the old and into the new. Transition can be challenging for many of us. It’s about letting go of the familiar and diving headlong (迅猛地) into the unfamiliar.

Just as, back then, I had to face letting go of the life I had led with my beloved husband and stepping into a new world as a widowed mom, I find that each year I have to step out of the version of me that suited the year that is ending and ease into the version of me who will rise to the goals I am holding for myself for the year ahead.

Last year at this time, I sat in a chair in southern France and drank in the stillness (沉静) and beauty of the countryside around me. The three children I had brought into this world talked and laughed around the table beside me as we enjoyed a lunch of bread and cheese.

I was filled with a sense of joy and I had a glowing (热情洋溢的) heart that was full of hope. It was another ending and another beginning. May we all transition into the best of what lies ahead. May we all find happiness in this holiday season.

【1】What causes author’s unhappiness on New Year’s Eve a decade ago?

A.The pressure she faced in her work.

B.The health problem her husband faced.

C.The information received from her family.

D.The relationship between her and her husband.

【2】What does the underlined word “halt” most probably mean?

A.End.

B.Start.

C.Change.

D.Meaning.

【3】What’s the author’s attitude towards the thing people should do at New Year?

A.Set challenging goals for the next year.

B.Break with daily routines and form a new habit.

C.Spend more time with family members.

D.Think about the past and get ready for the future.

【4】What’s the main purpose of writing the passage?

A.To memorialize her husband.

B.To show how she got through a hard time.

C.To share her view of New Year’s Eve.

D.To remind us that uncertainty is part of life.

Answer 1

【答案】

【1】B

【2】A

【3】D

【4】C

【解析】

这是一篇记叙文。本文主要描写了作者在经历了十年前丈夫得癌症、变成一个丧偶母亲后，对除夕夜的一些感悟。

【1】

细节理解题。根据“In mid-December, my husband and I had been informed that he had cancer and that he was going to die.”（12月中旬，我和我丈夫得知他患了癌症，将会死亡。）可知，十年前作者难过的原因是丈夫的患病。故选B。

【2】

词句猜测题。根据后文“to the endless commitments that fill our daily lives”（对充满了我们日常生活的无尽的任务）可推测出，除夕夜终止了那些无尽的任务。end意为“结束”。故选A。

【3】

推理判断题。根据“Transition can be challenging for many of us. It’s about letting go of the familiar and diving headlong (迅猛地) into the unfamiliar.”（对我们许多人来说，过渡会是一项挑战。这是关于离开我们熟悉的和猛地进入我们所陌生的一个时期。）推测出，作者对人们在新年应该做的事的态度是思考过去，准备好迎接将来。故选D。

【4】

推理判断题。本文主要描写了作者在经历了十年前丈夫得癌症，变成一个丧偶母亲后，对除夕夜的一些感悟。因此作者写此篇文章的目的是为了分享她对除夕夜的看法。