Many years ago in a small village, an old man was hired to clear the spring (泉水) up on the mountain. He patrolled (巡逻) the spring every day, and swept away all the leaves and other things that would dirty the fresh flow of water. Soon, beautiful swans (天鹅) came to the clear spring, and the village became a popular attraction for visitors.

Years passed. One evening the town leaders held a meeting. As they looked at the salary list, one of them said, “Why do we keep this old man on year after year? I don’t think we need him or his work.” Later, the old man was asked to leave.

For several weeks, nothing changed. By early autumn, the leaves began to fall off the trees, and the spring was covered with leaves. A few days later, the water was much darker. Only a few months after the old man left, all the swans left, as did the tourists. Disease reached deeply into the village.

Quickly, the leaders held a special meeting. Realizing their mistake, they rehired the old man. Then within a few weeks, the spring began to clear up. Soon new life returned to the village.

So, my friends, do you see? No matter how small your work or your life seems to be, never overlook it. Anything we can do will make a difference.

1.The leaders decided to ask the old man to leave because they thought ______.

A．his work was unnecessary                 B．he did his work carelessly

C．he was too old to do the job               D．he could do other better jobs

2.How did the leaders feel a few months after the old man left?

A．Regretful.         B．Moved.           C．Excited.           D．Calm.

3.What does the underlined word “overlook” mean in the last paragraph?

A．Believe.           B．Ignore(忽略).       C．Praise.            D．Punish.

4.With this story, the writer wants to tell us that ______.

A．even a small job can be important           B．work can bring old people happiness

C．everyone should always respect others       D．everyone can be his own master

Sitting in the play area of the doctor’s office, my children, Paul, four, and Bailey, three, built a Lego tower while we waited to be called for Paul’s examination.

“Good job, you guys,”I said, trying not to sound too tired. My husband was away on business, and it was difficult being alone with the kids. At times I felt like I was living in the jungle(丛林) rather than the suburbs.

“Don’t put the Lego in your mouth, Bailey,”I said. Paul grabbed(抓取) it from him.“That’s not nice, Paul,”I said. He gave back the Lego. I looked around the waiting room. A woman was eating something, a couple were talking, and an old gentleman in a blue jacket was reading a magazine. I wished I could sit quietly for a while. I wanted to be able to take a rest, or go shopping alone. At once, I was ashamed of myself. What kind of mother was I? “God,”I thought, “help me to be the very best mom I can be.”

The nurse came into the waiting room to get us. Just at that moment, the old gentleman in the waiting room put down his magazine and came up to me. With a smile on his face, he said, “Your children are most certainly lucky to have such a wonderful mother.”“Thank you,”I replied in a low voice and watched him walk back to his seat. We followed the nurse into the examination room. While she weighed Paul, I told her how that man had made my day.

Motherhood is still a jungle sometimes, but now when I feel tired I remember the encouraging words of the old gentleman.

1.The writer went to the doctor’s office because       .

2..From Paragraph 2, we know the writer felt that looking after her children alone was   .

3.The writer criticized(批评) Paul when he       .

4.What can we learn from the passage?

第三部分阅读理解(共15小题;每小题2分,满分30分)
阅读下列短文,从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C、D)中，选出最佳选项。并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
A
Each time I see a balloon, my mind flies back to a memory of when I was a six-year-old girl. It was a rainy Sunday and my father died. I asked my mom if Dad had gone to heaven. “Yes, honey. Of course,” she said.
“Can we write him a letter?”
She paused, the longest pause of my short life, and answered, “Yes.”
My heart jumped. “How? Does the mailman go there?” I asked.
“No, but I have an idea.” Mom drove to a party store and returned with a red balloon. I asked her what it was for.
“Just wait, honey. You’ll see” Mom told me to write my letter. Eagerly, I got my favorite pen, and poured out my six-year-old heart in the form of blue ink. I wrote about my day, what I learned at school, what Mom was doing, and even about what happened in a story I had read. For a few minutes it was as if Dad were still alive, I gave the letter to Mom. She read it over, and a smile crossed her face.
She made a hole in the corner of the letter where she looped(缠绕) the balloon string. We went outside and she gave me the balloon. It was still raining.
“Okay, on the count of three, darted(猛冲) upward against the rain. We watched until it was swallowed by the clouds.
Later I realized, like the balloon, that Dad had never let his sickness get him down. He was strong. No matter what he suffered, he’d persevere, dart up, and finally transcend(超越) this cold world and his sick body. He rose into sky and became something beautiful. I watched until the balloon disappeared into the gray and white sky and I prayed that his strength was hereditary(遗传的). I prayed to be a balloon.
56. When the girl asked her mother if they could write to her father, her mother ________.
A. felt it hard to answer                          B. thought her a creative girl
C. believed it easy to do so                        D. found it easy to lie
57. When the girl was told that she could send a letter to her father, she _________.
A. jumped with joy                               B. became excited
C. started writing immediately                D. was worried that it couldn’t be delivered
58. In the eyes of the author, what was the rain like?
A. A terrible disease.                              B. An unforgettable memory.
C. The hard time her father had           D. Her father’s smile.
59. What would be the best title for the passage?
A. The strong red balloon                       B. An unforgettable experience.
C. Fly to heaven                                D. A great father.

I had an experience some years ago, which taught me something about the ways in which people make a bad situation worse by blaming themselves. One January, I had to hold two funerals on successive days for two elderly women in my community. Both had died “ full of years”, as the Bible would say. Their homes happened to be near each other, so I paid condolence(吊唁) calls on the two families on the same afternoon.

At the first home, the son of the deceased(已故的)woman said to me, “ If only I had sent my mother to Florida and gotten her out of this cold and snow, she would be alive today. It’s my fault that she died.” At the second home, the son of the other deceased woman said, “ If only I hadn’t insisted on my mother’s going to Florida, she would be alive today.That long airplane ride, the sudden change of climate, was more than she could take. It’s my fault that she’s dead.”

You see that any time there is a death, the survivors will feel guilty. Because the course of action they took turned out bad, they believe that the opposite course—keeping Mother at home, putting off the operation—would have turned out better. After all, how could it have turned out any worse?

There seem to be two elements involved in our willingness to feel guilty. The first is our pressing need to believe that the world makes sense, that there is a cause for every effect and a reason for everything that happens that leads us to find patterns and connections both where they really exist and where they exist only in our minds.

The second element is the view that we are the cause of what happens , especially the bad things that happen. It seems to be a short step from believing that every event has a cause to believe that every disaster is our fault. The roots of this feeling may lie in our childhood.

A baby comes to think that the world exists to meet his needs, and that he makes everything happen in it. He wakes up in the morning and summons the rest of the world to its tasks. He cries, and someone comes to attend to him. When he is hungry, people feed him , and when he is wet, people change him. Very often, we do not completely outgrow that childish view that our wishes cause things to happen.

1. What is said about the two deceased elderly women?

A. They lived out a natural life.

B. They died of exhaustion after the long plane ride.

C. They weren’t used to the change in weather.

D. They died due to lack of care by family members.

2. The author had to conduct the two women’s funerals probably because ______.

A. he wanted to comfort the two families

B. he was an official from the community

C. he had great pity for the deceased

D. he was minister of the local church

3. People feel guilty for the deaths of their loved ones because _____.

A. they couldn’t find a better way to express their sorrow

B. they believe that they were responsible

C. they had neglected the natural course of events

D. they didn’t know things often turn in the opposite direction

4. According to the passage, the underlined part in paragraph 4 probably means that_____.

A. everything in the world is predetermined

B. the world can be explained in different ways

C. there is an explanation for everything in the world

D. we have to be sensible in order to understand the world

5. What’s the idea of the passage?

A. Life and death is an unsolved mystery.

B. Every story should have a happy ending.

C. Never feel guilty all the time because not every disaster is our fault.

D. In general, the survivors will feel guilty about the people who passed away.

第二节完形填空（共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分）
阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的四个选项(A、B、C、D)中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
A woman came out of her house and saw three old men with long white beards sitting in her front yard. She said, “I don’t think I      36    you, but you must be hungry. Please   37    and have something to eat.”
“Is the man of the house    38   ?” they asked. “No,” she replied, “He’s out.” “Then we cannot come in,” they replied. In the evening when her    39    came home, she told him what had happened. “   40     them I am home and invite them in!” The woman went out and invited the men in. “We do not go into a house    41    ,” they replied. “Why is that?” she asked.
One of the old men explained, “His name is Wealth,” he said    42     one of his friends, “and he is Success, and I am Love.” Then he added, “Now go in and    43     your husband which one of us you want in your home.”
The woman went in and told her husband what was said. Her husband was    44    . “How nice!” he said. “Since that is    45     , let us invite Wealth. Let him come and fill our home with wealth!” His wife    46    . “My dear, why don’t we invite Success?” Their daughter-in-law was listening from the other corner of the house. She jumped in with her own    47    , “Wouldn’t it be better to invite Love? Our home will then be filled with love.” “Let us    48     our daughter-in-law’s advice,” said the husband to his wife. “Go out and invite    49     to be our guest.” The woman went out and asked the three old men, “Which one of you is Love? Please come in and be our    50    .”
Love got up and started walking toward the house.
The other two also got up and    51     him.    52    , the lady asked Wealth and Success, “I only invited Love. Why are you coming in?”
The old men replied together, “If you    53     Wealth or Success, the other two of us would have stayed out, but    54     you invited Love, wherever he goes, we go with him.    55     there is Love, there is also Wealth and Success!”
36. A. like                    B. know                C. recognize          D. need
37. A. go out                B. get away           C. get up               D. come in
38. A. home                  B. room                C. family               D. office
39. A. friend                 B. father                C. brother              D. husband
40. A. Go tell            B. Do tell                     C. Go ask                     D. Do ask
41. A. one by one          B. one after anotherC. alone                D. together
42.A. laughing at          B. looking at          C. pointing to        D. staring at
43. A. argue with          B. discuss with       C. debate with        D. quarrel with
44. A. overjoyed           B. surprised           C. excited              D. worried
45. A. the situation     B. the position              C. the case             D. the point
46. A. agreed                B. appreciated        C. nodded              D. disagreed
47. A. suggestion           B. plan                  C. solution             D. explanation
48. A. discuss            B. take                  C. consider            D. ignore
49. A. Success           B. Wealth                     C. Love                 D. them
50. A. friend                 B. relative             C. son-in-law         D. guest
51. A. followed             B. stopped             C. honored            D. pleased
52. A. Pleased           B. Surprised          C. Delighted          D. Disappointed
53. A. invited            B. Invite                C. had invited        D. have invited
54. A. when                  B. while                C. if                      D. since
55. A. Wherever            B. However          C. Whenever          D. Whatever