Ice cream can’t cure cancer or bring back a lost love, but it can make one feel better for a while.

A bout 18 months ago, my father was in hospital recovering from a major lung operation. My mother had recently  36  , and my father had taken the loss of his partner of 55 years very hard and had lost interest in   37  . Trying to get him to  38  each day was quite a chore as he didn’t want anything. The one thing,  39  , that he would ask us to bring him was ice-cream.

One evening, to our   40  , he refused to eat the ice-cream,  41   I placed it in a staffroom freezer. A little while later, my son decided he wanted it, so I   42   it for him.  

As I passed another ward（病房）, a   43  asked, “Are there more where that came from?” When I explained the   44  , she apologized. She then said that she had cancer and could eat very little,  45    the occasional ­ice-cream.

The next evening, I decided to buy two ice-creams. On the way to Dad’s room, I stopped in at the   46   woman’s room, and   47   her the ice-cream I’d bought for her. She was   48  stunned that I had thought of her, and   49   the gift with tears in her eyes. I spoke with her for a few minutes,  50   what was happening in my family and listened to her   51   story of pain and suffering. It was apparent that she did not   52   many visitors, and the ice-cream and our short chat meant a great deal to her.

I   53   the gesture a few days later, and this time was  54  with a huge hug.

I never even thought to ask her name, and never saw her again, but it made me realize that an act of   55   can be more rewarding when you give it, rather than receive it.

1.A．passed away         B．gone out    C．come back     D．calmed down

2.A．work                B．life          C．studies           D．games

3.A．speak               B．laugh         C．drink             D．eat

4.A．though              B．however    C．instead                D．therefore

5.A．joy                  B．satisfactionC．surprise        D．relief

6.A．if          B．unless         C．so            D．because

7.A．borrowed         B．bought       C．made             D．fetched

8.A．woman           B．granny        C．girl      D．child

9.A．question             B．situation    C．process          D．decision

10.A．better than．      B．more than C．rather than       D．other than

11.A．pretty '            B．honest        C．sick            D．shy

12.A．offered            B．told ．      C．sold              D．charged

13.A．hardly            B．finally          C．gradually          D．totally

14.A．accepted               B．stored        C．exchanged       D．gave

15.A．remembering      B．denying      C．explaining          D．forgetting

16.A．ordinary '          B．similar        C．interesting        D．i'great

17.A．have              B．like         C．expect            D．J attract

18.A．reported          B．expressed C．noticed           D．^repeated

19.A．covered          B．connected C．rewarded         D．filled

20.A．politeness         B．kindness    C．selflessness       D．willingness

 

First, we should know          good service sells our products.

A. by the way                     B. on the way              C. in the way                  D. in a way

 

It was a Sunday and the heavy storm had lasted all night. The morning after the storm, though, was beautiful: blue skies, warm air and a calm, inviting sea touching the shore gently.

    My father realized it was a good day for fishing and invited my sister and me to go with him. I was only 14 and fishing had never been my thing, but I decided to go all the same. I' m so glad I did.

    On the way to the harbor we could see the terrible destruction on the coast, but the harbour itself was in fairly good shape．After all, it was protected by the arms of a bay that had only one tiny channel to the sea. As we got on board, we noticed two big humps(脊背) in the distance.

    On approaching them, we saw it was a mother whale with her baby. We couldn't believe it — there weren't any whales along the coast here. The storm must have driven them across the ocean into the bay, in which the still water was so badly polluted that nothing could survive.

    The little baby whale—actually as big as our boat—was obviously stuck and could not move. The mother dived under the water and came up suddenly, making big whirlpools（漩涡） and waves. "She's trying to help her baby, but on the wrong side," my father said. At this point, my father moved our boat in a semicircle to the other side and, heading the boat towards the baby whale, pushed it gently. With our several gentle pushes the big hump turned over and disappeared under water. Then it swam up right beside its mum. They struggled in their desperate attempts to escape but missed the exit and started heading in the wrong direction. We hurried up to the whales and tried to lead them towards the bay channel. Slowly, they let us lead them, sometimes rising from the water right beside us to breathe—and to give us a trusting look with those huge eyes. Once they hit their first part of clean water flowing straight from the sea, the mum gave us a wave with her tail and off. They swam into the distance.

    In the excitement it had felt like only a few minutes, but we had been with those wonderful animals for almost an hour and a half. That was the simple and lasting beauty of the day. Nearly four decades later, I still look back fondly to that golden day at sea.

1. In Para2 the author says "I' m so glad I did." because _________.

    A. he witnessed the whole process of fishing

    B. he enjoyed the beauty of the calm sea

    C. he experienced the rescue of the whales

    D. he spent the weekend with his family

2.The mother whale failed to help her baby because __________.

    A. she had stayed in the polluted water for too long

    B. the whirlpools she had made were not big enough

    C. she had no other whales around to turn to for help

    D. the waves pushed her baby in the wrong direction

3.What is the theme of the story?

    A. Saving lives brings people a sense of happiness.

    B. Fishing provides excitement for children.

    C. It's necessary to live in harmony with animals.

    D. It's vital to protect the whale in the ocean.

 

Both my parents came from towns in Mexico. Then I was born in E1 Paso，Texas and when I was four, my family moved to a housing project in East Los Angeles.

Even though we struggled to make ends meet, my parents stressed to me and my four brothers and sisters how fortunate we were to live in a great country with limitless opportunities. They influenced us with the concepts of family, faith and nationalism.

I got my first real job when I was ten. My dad injured his back working in a cardboard­box factory and was retrained as a hairstylist. He rented space in a little shopping mall and gave his shop the fancy name of Mr.Ben’s Coiffure.

The owner of the shopping center gave Dad a discount on his rent for cleaning the parking lot three nights a week，which meant getting up at 3 a．m..To pick up rubbish, Dad used a little machine that looked like a lawn mower. Mom and I emptied garbage cans and picked up litter by hand. It took two to three hours to clean the lot. I’d sleep in the car on the way home.

I did this for two years，but the lessons I learned have lasted a lifetime. I acquired discipline and a strong work ethic(道德), and learned at an early age the importance of balancing life’s competing interests－in my case，school，homework and a job. This really helped during my senior year of a high school, when I worked 40 hours a week flipping burgers at a fast­food joint while taking a full load of college preparation courses.

The hard work paid off. I attended the U．S.Military Academy and went on to receive graduate degrees in law and business from Harvard. Later, I joined a big Los Angeles law firm and was elected to the California State Assembly(州议会)．In these jobs and in everything else I’ve done, I have never forgotten those nights in the parking lot. The experience taught me that there is dignity in all work and that if people are working to provide for themselves and their families that is something we should honor.

59. Before my father got injured，we________.

A. didn’t like living in the USA                   B. lived a poor but happy life

C. were lucky to move to the USA                 D. had many ways to make money

60. When he recovered，to make a living my father________.

A. ran a small shopping mall                  B. did a part­time job

C. worked as a barber                        D. became a street cleaner

61. Working in the parking lot for two years had taught me________.

A. how to obey school discipline             B. how to do two things well at a time

C. that discipline and work were of equal value 

D. that I must do as many things as possible at a time

62. The author tells us in the last paragraph that we should be proud of those who________.

A. have done all kinds of jobs                      B. are cleaning the parking lot

C. have achieved a lot in their lives               D. are bearing their responsibilities

 

Sunday, October 5

Clear, 69°F

My wife, Eleanor , and I took the train from Paris to Strasbourg, where we were met by our driver and guide,and the minibus which goes along with the boat. We stopped off in Barn for an hour on the way. Then we were taken to Nancy where the boat was kept.

After the other passengers arrived, we had our first dinner on the boat. After dinner we walked into downtown Nancy, a village with a large square and wooden houses.

Monday, October 6

Rained last night, cloudy in the morning, 69°F

We spent about two hours in Nancy, then sailed on the Canal de la Marne au Rhine. Kind of a lazy day. Eating breakfast, lunch, and dinner, after dinner we watched a tape on Baccarat. Where we will visit tomorrow.

It was pleasant to sit out on deck （甲板）and watch the scenery go by at about 3 mph.

Tuesday, October 7

Light rain, 64°F

This mourning we drove over to Baccarat and toured its museum and the church , which has this unbelievable lamp that is going on a world tour the next day. We did lost of shopping , then walked across the bridge to see a very , very modern Catholic church with special Baccarat windows.

We drove to the top of the Voges Mountains and started down the eastern side Later we drove to Sorrenbourg to see the 13th century church at the Cordeliers. It contains the largest window by Mar.

Wednesday, October8

Cloudy.65 °F

Today we sailed from Schneckenbush to Saverne. We went though two caves, an extremely unusual part of the journey. This river scenery is very different. We were in a mountain valley with grassland on one side and a forest beginning to show some color on the other.

Thursday, October9

Cloudy, 66°F

Our dependable minibus was waiting to load the luggage and take us to the hotel where everyone went their separate ways. Our boating days are over until next time.

1. Where did the author get off the train?

A. Paris            B. Strasbourg           C. Nancy         D. Barn

2. On which days did the tourists spend most of their time on the boat?

A. Monday and Tuesday           B. Tuesday and Wednesday

C. Wednesday and Wednesday      D. Monday and Wednesday

3. From the text, we learn that Baccarat and Sorrenbourg are the names of_________.

A. towns           B. churches              C. museums       D. mountains

4.What does the author think of the tour?

A. Tiring            B. Expensive              C. Enjoyable      D. Quick