阅读下面短文，掌握其大意．然后从1—15各题所给的A、B、C和D项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
Returning from a trip overseas, I sensed that something was wrong between Keith, one of my two sons, and me. So I asked him, “Keith, have I done anything that really __1__your feeling?”
Immediately, he said, “Yes. Last Christmas you promised us a special    2   that I really wanted but you never gave it to me.”
The    3  was that I’d completely forgotten about it. I   4    , “Is there anything else I’ve done wrong, but didn’t apologized for?”
Again, his   5   was immediate, “Remember last Christmas when Mom said you had to go to the  6   because Stephen was going to be born? You left us at home and  7       in a hurry. Remember?”
“Well, you left and forgot the suitcase.” I couldn’t believe he  8    all the details! “After you came back from the hospital you were  9   . When you got home, the suitcase had been opened and everythinghad been thrown all over the place, and you   10  me.”
“And you didn’t do it?” I asked.
“No, I didn’t . I was just searching for my gift.”
My heart sank. I felt  11   . I hugged Keith and asked him to  12    me. His Honesty made me think of our other son, Kevin. Maybe I’d hurt his feelings, too. I went to ask him the same question. Kevin’s answer was as immediate as his  13   , “Last Christmas you promised us a special toy, but you forgot about it.”
Though Christmas had passed, I took my two sons to the store that day and bought them what I had promised. The  14   thing wasn’t the toy. The problem was I’d made a promise too  15    and didn’t keep it as their father.

Job stress has been known to cause heart problems in people who already have cardiovascular(心血管) disease. Now Finnish scientists have shown that  50  in healthy people the pressure of work can cause damage.
High blood pressure, lack of  51  , smoking and being overweight  52  to heart disease—a    53   killer in many industrialized countries.
But Mika Kivimaki, of the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, and his colleagues, who studied the  54  histories of 812 healthy Finnish men and women in a metal industry company over 25 years, said job stress also plays an important role.
Workers who had the highest job-related stress levels at the start of the study were more than twice as  55   to die of heart disease,  56   the study published in The British Medical Journal.
Work stress  57  too much work as well as a lack of satisfaction and feeling undervalued and  58   .
Many people work long hours but if the effort is 59  the stress is minimized. Kivimaki said job pressure is damaging when being overworked is  60  with little or no control, unfair supervision and few career opportunities.
The British Heart Foundation said the results  61   earlier research showing that people in jobs with low control, such as manual workers, could be at greater  62  of heart disease than other employees.
“It is   63   for people to try to minimize levels of stress at work and for employers to  64  people to have more control at work and to be rewarded for their success,” the foundation said in a statement.

My chance came at last. Our school was going to hold a sports meet. I knew what it   41  to me so I got up very early to prepare for it. I  42  running and jumping. When I was   43 , I reminded myself of my promise and went on.
  44  the time came nearer, I felt quite   45 . On the first day I came fourth in the 1500m   46  but I was far from   47  because what I wanted most was the highlight of the sports meeting—250x8 relay race. I would run the last leg for my team.
With a shot, the race began. All the students were   48  for their team. The competition was so   49  that I began to feel nervous. Before my turn came, my team was   50  the others. Even worse, I almost dropped the stick when I was trying to   51  it.
  52 after that, there was nothing in my mind except to run as fast as possible. Just when I was approaching the finish line, my legs   53 . Then my promise came to mind again and   54  me to go on. To my surprise, I was the first to   55 the finish line!
  56 , I had proved to myself and those who had often laughed at me that I am not   57  at all! My classmates greeted me warmly and I hugged them tightly. I had won the prize as well as their   58 .
From the sports meeting, I learnt that sometimes things are not so difficult as they   59  to be. Just try your best without fear and you might be surprised at the   60 .

The letter was a great disappointment to me. It was from Holy Cross, the only school I really wanted to  41 . I scanned the page, “…. We had a great applicant pool this year. …We can’t offer spaces to   42  … and place you on our waiting list.”
“What does it say, honey?” my dad asked, his voice full of   43  for me.
“I didn’t get in, but I’m on the waiting list.”
“Well, at least it isn’t   44 ,” he said brightly.
“Yeah, but   45 , I don’t want to be on the waiting list; I want to be   46 . No one gets in off the waiting list. It’s a way of saying ‘Thanks for   47 ’.”
“Then let’s go out there and tell them so.”
“That sounds   48 , dad.” I said sadly, “It doesn’t work.”
Upset and annoyed, I   49  myself in my room. However，my father’s advice kept   50  in my head. I thought about it for a few days, finally coming to the   51  that he was right. And the next day I seated myself across from Mr. Luis Soto, my admissions officer.
“What can I do for you, Nacie?” he asked pleasantly.
“Well, sir, I am here to tell you that I love this school and would love a   52  to be here. I just wanted to tell you how much going here would   53  to me—it is my only dream college— and that I would use my time here to the best   54 . I wanted to let you know that if you gave me a chance and reconsidered my application, you wouldn’t   55  it.” The words had poured out  56 I could stop them or check their desperate tone.
Mr. Soto looked me over for a minute before he smiled broadly.
“OK, that is the kind of thing we love to hear. Congratulations, you’re in.”
It was so   57  and I asked, “I’m sorry?”
“We want people in the class who want to be here, who will   58  the best of this education. I’m glad you came to talk   59  to me. I’m happy to offer you a position in the Class of 2009.”
The whole experience taught me a lesson: if you truly want something, never, ever   60 .

On my birthday this year, I decided to do something very different. I had been   31  so much and I wanted to reach out to bring happiness to someone else. So, that   32 , I bought some flowers and went to a hospital. I had no   33  who I was going to present the flowers to, but I would find someone who needed   34  .
I asked the nurses in the hospital, who thought it   35  that I didn’t have anyone in particular to see.   36 , they gave me the room number of a(n)   37  lady, who needed some comfort.
I entered the room with the flowers. The elderly woman looked up, staring at me   38 . She was greatly moved when I told her about my   39  in being there. She was an amputee(被截肢者) and she explained to me that she was very worried   40  they were going to fit her with prosthetic leg(假肢). She knew that as she was getting used to the “  41 ”leg, she would be in  42  .
Later, in the following two hours, we  43  a lot and both felt very happy. I  44  until it was dark. I will always remember how   45  she was the moment she received the flowers from me—a   46  . She called me her angel and said she had no more   47  .
I   48  that story with my neighbor and she   49  that she was going to do the same thing on her birthday. And I hope that she will   50  others to be kind and do the same thing. You never know you might be considered someone’s angel one day.

What I Want for You and Every Child in America
Dear Malia and Sasha,
I know that you’ve both had a lot of ___（31） these last two years on the campaign trail, going to picnics and parades and state fairs, eating all sorts of junk food your mother and I probably shouldn’t have let you have．But I also know that it hasn’t always been easy for you and Mom, and that as excited as you both are about that new puppy, it doesn’t ____（32）for all the time we’ve been apart．I know ____（33）I’ve missed these past two years, and today I want to tell you a little more about why I decided to take our family on this journey．
When I was a young man, I thought life was all about me-about how I’d___（34） my way in the world, become successful, and get the things I want．But then the two of you came into my____（35） with all your curiosity and mischief （捣乱） and those smiles that never____（36） to fill my heart and light up my day．
I want all our children to go to schools_____（37） of their potential-schools that challenge them, inspire them, and instill （灌输） in them a sense of_____（38） about the world around them．I want them to have the chance to go to college____（39）their parents aren’t rich．And I want them to get good jobs: jobs that pay well and give them benefits like health care, jobs that let them spend time with their own_____（40）and retire with dignity．
I want us to____（41） the boundaries of discovery so that you’ll live to see new technologies and inventions that improve our lives and make our planet cleaner and safer．And I want us to push our own human boundaries to reach _____（42）the divides of race and region, gender and religion that_____（43） us from seeing the best in each other．
That was the_____（44） your grandmother tried to teach me when I was your age, reading me the opening lines of the Declaration of Independence and telling me about the men and women who marched for_____（45） because they believed those words put to paper two centuries ago should mean_____（46）．
She helped me understand that America is great not because it is perfect but because it can always be made better and that the_____（47）work of perfecting our union falls to each of us．It’s a charge we pass on to our children, coming closer with each new generation to_____（48）we know America should be．
These are the things I want for you, to_____（49）in a world with no limits on your dreams and no achievements beyond your reach．And I want every child to have the same chances to learn and dream and grow and thrive that you girls have．That’s why I’ve taken our family on this great adventure．
I am so proud of both of you．I love you______（50）you can ever know．And I am grateful every day for your patience, poise （自信）, grace, and humor as we prepare to start our new life together in the White House．
Love, Dad

The day before Father’s Day, Mrs. Berry asked her students to __36 ___ a card for their fathers. She passed out paper and pieces of cloth.
Elizabeth looked for a while at the blue cloth and began to cut it. Then she  folded (折)her paper in half and began writing. When Elizabeth finally looked at the message the teacher gave on the paper, she noticed something else. She felt her   37  grow hot — she hadn’t heard that anyone who didn’t have a father could make one for a grandfather or an uncle.
As her teacher walked to her, Elizabeth tried  38 her card with her arm, but Mrs Berry gently  39 it so that she could read it. Elizabeth sat  40 , waiting for her to say something, but she saw a  41 roll down Mrs Berry’s face. She had never made Mrs Berry so upset.
When school was over, Elizabeth  42 until all the other kids left so that she could  43 . “I’m sorry for not listening. I’ll make another card  44 you want. I’ll do it  45 and bring it tomorrow.”
“ 46 are you talking about?” asked Mrs Berry.
“My Father’s Day card. I know you’re upset because I didn’t do it  47 .”
“Elizabeth, that was the  48  card in the whole class. It was so  49  that it made me cry.”
Elizabeth was so  50 that she ran out of the classroom.
When her mom came home from work that night, Elizabeth  51 to give her the card early.
On the front of the card was a  52 of Elizabeth’s mom, with a blue piece of cloth cut like her hair. Inside the card she had written:
Dear Mom,
I know you work really hard to be both a mommy and a(n)  53 . I want to thank you and  54 you a happy Father’s Day!
Love,
Elizabeth
When her mom read the card she started  55 , just like Mrs Berry did.

My grandparents were married for over half a century, and played their own special game from the time they had met each other. The goal of their game was to write the word "shmily" in a     31    place for the other to find. They took turns leaving "shmily" around the house, and as soon as one of them     32    it, it was their turn to hide it once more.
There was no     33    to the places where "shmily" would appear. Sometimes, "Shmily" was written in the     34    left on the mirror after a hot shower, where it would reappear bath after bath.     35   , my grandmother even unrolled an entire roll of toilet paper to     36    "shmily" on the very last sheet.
It took me a long time before I was able to fully     37    my grandparents' game. It was     38    their funny little game; it was a way of life. Grandma and Grandpa held hands every chance they could. They    39    kisses as they ran into each other in their tiny kitchen. Before every meal they bowed their heads and gave their     40   : a wonderful family, good fortune, and     41  .
But there was a    42   cloud in my grandparents' life: my grandmother had breast cancer, which had first appeared ten years earlier. As always, Grandpa was with her every
    43    of the way. He comforted her in their yellow room, painted that way     44____    she could always be surrounded by sunshine, even when she was too     45    to go outside.   Then one day, what we all     46    finally happened. Grandma was gone.
"Shmily." It was written in yellow on the pink ribbons of my grandmother's funeral bouquet. As the crowd     47    and the last mourners (哀悼者) turned to leave, my aunts, uncles, cousins and other family members     48    and gathered around Grandma     49   . Grandpa stepped up to my grand-mother's casket and,     50    with sorrow, he began to sing to her. Through his tears and grief, the song came, a deep and throaty lullaby (摇篮曲).
SHMILY: See how much I love you.

“ Down-to-earth” means someone or something that is honest, practical and easy to deal with．It is  36  to find someone who is down-to-earth．A person who is down-to-earth is easy to talk to  37  accepts other people as equals．A down-to-earth is just the 38 of someone who acts importantly and proudly.
Down-to-earth persons may be  39  members of society, of course．But they do not let their importance “ go to their  40 ”．They do not  41  themselves to be better persons than others of less importance, someone who is filled with his own importance and  42 , often without cause, is said to have “his nose in the air”．There is no way a person with his nose in the  43 can be down-to-earth．Americans use another expression that means almost the same  44  “down-to-earth”．The expression is “both-feet-on-the-ground”．Someone with both-feet-on-the-ground is a person  45  a good understanding of reality．He has what is called “   46  sense”．He may have  47  , but he does not allow them to  48  his knowledge of what is real．The opposite kind of person is  49  who has his “head-in-the-clouds”．A man with his head in the clouds is a dreamer whose mind is not in the  50  world.
Sometimes  51  a dreamer can be brought back to earth． 52  words from a teacher can usually bring a day-dreaming student down-to-earth.
Usually, the person who is down-to-earth is very  53  to have both-feet-on-the-ground.
 54  we have both our feet on-the-ground, when we are down-to-earth, we act  55  and openly toward others．Our lives are like the ground below us, solid and strong.

It was the last day of the final examination in a large eastern university. On the steps of one building, a group of students were talking about the exam that was going to begin in a few   41 .On their faces was confidence（信心）.This was their   42  exam—then they would graduate and begin to work.
Some talked of jobs they already had, others talked of jobs they   43 get. With the certainty of four years of college, they felt 44 and able to take control（控制）of the world.
The coming exam, they knew, would be a(n)   45 task, as the professor had said they could bring  46 books or notes they wanted, requesting only that they did not  47 each other during the test.
  48 they entered the classroom. The professor passed out the papers. And smiles  49 on the students’ faces as they found there were only five questions.
Three hours had passed 50 the professor began to collect papers. The students no longer looked confident. On their faces was a frightened expression. Papers in hand, no one spoke as the professor faced the class.
He looked at the  51 faces before him, and then asked: “How many completed all five questions?”   52 a hand was raised.
“How many answered four?” Still no hand.
“Three? Two?” The students moved restlessly in their seats.
“One, then? Certainly somebody finished  53 .” But the class remained silent.
The professor put down the papers. “That is exactly what I   54 ,” he said. “I just want you to know that, although you have completed four years of study, there are 55 many things about the   56 you don’t know. These questions you could not answer are relatively common（普遍）in everyday  57 .” Then, smiling, he added, “You will all  58 this course, but remember—even though you are now college graduates, your education had just  59 .”
The years have weakened the name of the professor, but not the  60 he taught.