How many people have I met who have told me about the book they have been planning to write but have never yet found the time? Far too many.

This is Life, all right, but we do treat it like a rehearsal (排演）and, unhappily, we do miss so many of its best moments.

We take jobs to stay alive and provide homes for our families always making ourselves believe that this style of life is merely a temporary state of affairs along the road to what we really want to do. Then, at 60 or 65, we are suddenly presented with a clock and several grandchildren and we look back and realize that all those years waiting for Real Life to come along were in fact real life.

     In  America they have a saying much laughed at by the English：“Have a nice day” they speak slowly and seriously in their shops, hotels and sandwich bars. I think it is a wonderful phrase, reminding us, in effect, to enjoy the moment: to value this very day.

     How often do we say to ourselves, "I'll take up horse-riding (or golf, or sailing） as soon as I get a higher position," only to do none of those things when I do get the higher position.

       When I first became a reporter I knew a man who gave up a very well paid respectable job at the Daily Telegraph to go and edit a small weekly newspaper. At the time I was astonished by what appeared to me to be his completely abnormal (反常的） mental state. How could anyone turn his back on  Fleet Street in central London for a small local area？I wanted to know.

     Now I am a little older and possibly wiser, I see the sense in it. In Fleet Street the man was under continual pressure. He lived in an unattractive London suburb and he spent much of his life sitting on Southern Region trains.

1.The first paragraph of the passage tells us that  _______ .

A. we always try to find some time to write a book

B. we always make plans but seldom fulfil them

C. we always enjoy many of life's best moments

D. we always do what we really want to do

2.The underlined phrase "turn his back on" (paragraph 6） most probably means      .

A. leave for      B. return to       C. give up     D. rely on

3. The man ( paragraph 6） left his first job partly because he was ______.

A. in an abnormal mental state     B. under too much pressure

C. not well paid                 not respected

4.What is probably the best title for the passage?

A. Provide Homes For Our Family    B. Take Up Horse-riding

C. Value This Very Day            D. Stay Alive

 

Robert Frost was one of America’s best known and most honored serious writers. But his fame came late in his life.
He was born in San Francisco, California in 1874. He lived in California during his early childhood. He was named after the chief Southern general in America’s Civil War. The general’s name was Robert Edward Lee. The poet was named Robert Lee Frost, because his father wanted to honor the general.
Someone once asked another American writer, Ernest Hemingway, how to become a writer. The best thing, he said, was to have an unhappy childhood. If this is true, Robert Frost’s childhood was unhappy enough to make him a very good writer. Robert Frost’s father was a reporter who wanted to be a politician. He often drank too much wine and became angry. Robert was the victim of his anger.
Robert Frost finished high school in 1891. After high school, Robert’s grandfather offered to pay his costs at Dartmouth College. But Robert left the school after a few months. He did not like it. He spent the next few years working at different jobs. At one time, he worked in a factory. Later, he repaired shoes. He was a teacher. He was a reporter. Always, he wrote poetry.
Robert Frost attended Harvard University for two years. After that, he returned to the many jobs he held before. For a while, Frost tried to take care of a farm in the state of New Hampshire. He was not a successful farmer. And he continued to write poetry. He said that until 1930, he earned only about ten dollars a year from writing.
In 1912, he decided to try to make a new start. He took his family to Britain. The cost of living was low. In Britain, Frost found a publisher for his first book of poems. The book was called A Boy’s Will. When it appeared in 1913, Frost received high praise from British readers. Praise was something he had not received in his own country.
Ezra Pound, another American poet living in Britain, read the poems and liked them very much. He wrote a magazine article about Frost. He also helped get Frost’s second book of poems published in America. That book was called North of Boston.
【小题1】The followings are writers EXCEPT __________.

A．Robert Edward Lee	B．Robert Lee Frost
C．Ernest Hemingway	D．Ezra Pound

【小题2】The passage wrote about Hemingway in order to show that __________.

A．he had great influence on Frost’s poetry and life

B．Frost’s poetry style was the same as Hemingway’s

C．Frost was unhappy because he was the victim of his father

D．Frost spent his childhood unhappily

【小题3】What can we learn from the passage?

A．Once Frost’s first book was published he gained great praise in his country.

B．After leaving Harvard University, he began to learn to write poetry.

C．Frost was found lo have a gift in poetry while he studied in high school.

D．Robert Frost’s father was angry and drank a lot because he didn’t realize his dream.

【小题4】What’s the passage mainly about?

A．Robert Frost’s unhappy childhood.

B．Robert Frost’ s first and second book.

C．Robert Frost’s family and jobs.

D．Robert Frost’s life and poetry.

When Albert Einstein was young, he was a quiet child who spent much of his time alone. He was slow to talk and had difficulty in learning to read.

When Albert was five years old, his father gave him a compass. Albert was filled with wonder when he discovered that the compass needle always pointed in the same direction ---- the north. He asked his father and his uncle what caused the needle to move. Their answers were difficult for Albert to understand. Yet he spent a lot of time thinking about them. He said later that he felt something must be hidden behind things.

Albert didn’t like school. The German schools of that time were not pleasant. Students couldn’t ask questions. Albert said he felt as if he were in prison..

One day Albert told his uncle Jacob how much he hated school, especially mathematics. His uncle told him to solve mathematical problems by pretending to be a policeman. “You are looking for someone,” he said, “but you don’t know who he is. Call him X. Find him by using your mathematical tools.”

Albert learned to love mathematics. He was studying the complex mathematics of calculus while all his friends were still studying simple mathematics. Instead of playing with his friends he thought about things such as “What would happen if people could travel at the speed of his light?”

Albert wanted to teach mathematics and physics. He graduated with honors, but it was a pity that he could not get a teaching job.

1.According to Paragraph 2, we can learn that Albert Einstein ________.

A．was interested in the compass

B．wanted to be a great scientist

C．was not clever enough

D．didn’t like thinking by himself

2.Why did Albert Einstein hate school?

A．He couldn’t play with his friends there

B．Students were not allowed to ask questions.

C．The schools were like prisons at that time

D．He had to learn mathematics that he didn’t like.

3.What does the underlined word ‘complex’ probably mean?

A．Useful

B．Difficult

C．Boring

D．Interesting

4.We can learn from the passage that ________.

A．Einstein became a mathematics teacher after graduation

B．Einstein gradually loved mathematics with his uncle’s help.

C．Einstein’s uncle was a policeman.

D．Einstein liked playing with other children.

 

There was once a farmer who lived near a road. It was not a busy road,but from time to time,cars passed the farm.
　　Near the farm gate, there was a large hole in the road. this hole was always full of water, and the drivers of the cars could not see how deep the hole was. They thought it was probably not deep.So when they drove into the hole, they could not drive out because it was so deep.
　　The farmer did not spend much time working on his farm. He spent most time watching the hole. Whenever a car drove into it, he would pull the car out with his tractor and he would charge the drivers for much more money than they had expected.
　　One day, a driver of a car said to him, "You must have made a lot of money pulling cars out of this hole night and day."
　　"Oh no," the farmer said, "I don’t pull cars out of the hole at night. At night I fill the hole with water."
【小题1】Many cars went into the hole because the drivers_____.

A．were going too fast to stop their cars	B．did not see the hole ahead of them
C．did not know the hole was very deep	D．liked very much driving through water

【小题2】The drivers were _____ to pay the farmer for pulling their cars out of the hole.

A．glad

B．forced

C．ready

D．anxious

【小题3】Why did the farmer fill the hole with water at night?

A．He was busy working on the farm during the day.

B．He spent much time watching the hole by day.

C．Some cars had driven into the hole at night.

D．Nobody would be able to find the secret out.

【小题4】What did the writer think of the farmer?

A．He was selfish(自私).	B．He was clever.
C．He was foolish.	D．He was kind.

It had been some time since Jack had seen the old man. College, career, and life itself got in the way. In fact, Jack moved clear across the country in pursuit (追寻) of the dreams. There, in the rush of his busy life, Jack had little time to think about the past and often no time to spend with his wife and son. He was working on his future, and nothing could stop him.
Over the phone, his mother told him, “Mr. Belser died last night. The funeral（葬礼） is Wednesday.”  Memories flashed（闪现）through his mind like an old newsreel as he sat quietly remembering his childhood days.
“Jack, did you hear me?”
“Oh, sorry, Mom. Yes, I heard you. it’s been so long since I thought of him. I’m sorry, but I honestly thought he died years ago,” Jack said.
“Well, he didn’t forget you. Every time I saw him he’d ask how you were doing. He’d reminisce (回忆) about the many days you spent over ‘his side of the fence’ as he put it, ” Mom told him.
“I loved that old house he lived in,” Jack said.
“You know, Jack, after your father died, Mr. Belser stepped in to make sure you had a man’s influence (影响) in your life,” she said.
“He’s the one who taught me carpentry. I wouldn’t be in this business if it weren’t for him. He spent a lot of time teaching me things that he thought were important. Mom, I’ll be there for the funeral.” Jack said.
Busy as he was, he kept his word. Jack caught the next flight to his hometown. Mr. Belser’s funeral was small and uneventful. He had no children of his own, and most of his relatives had passed away.
The night before he had to return home, Jack and his Mom stopped by to see the old house next door one more time, which was exactly as he remembered. Every step held memories. Every picture, every piece of furniture … Jack stopped suddenly.
“What’s wrong, Jack?” his Mom asked.
“The box is gone,” he said.
“What box?” Mom asked.
“There was a small gold box that he kept locked on top of his desk. I must have asked him a thousand times what was inside. All he’d ever tell me was ‘the thing I value most’,” Jack said.
It was gone. Everything about the house was exactly how Jack remembered it, except for the box. He figured someone from the Belser family had taken it.
“Now I’ll never know what was so valuable to him,” Jack said sadly.
Returning to his office the next day, he found a package on his desk. The return address caught his attention.
“Mr. Harold Belser” it read.
Jack tore （撕）open the package. There inside was the gold box and an envelope（信封）. Jack’s hands shook as he read the note inside,
“Upon my death, please forward this box and its contents to Jack Bernett. It’s the thing I valued most in my life.” A small key was taped to the letter. His heart racing, and tears filling his eyes, Jack carefully unlocked the box. There inside he found a beautiful gold pocket watch. Running his fingers slowly over the fine cover, he opened it.
Inside he found these words carved: “Jack. Thanks for your time! Harold Belser.”
“Oh. My God! This is the thing he valued most …”
Jack held the watch for a few minutes, then called his assistant and cleared his appointments for the next two days. “Why?” his assistant asked.
“I need some time to spend with my son,” he said.
【小题1】Why did Belser send Jack his gold watch?

A．Because he had no children or relatives.

B．Because he was grateful for Jack’s time with him.

C．Because he thought he had to keep his word.

D．Because Jack had always wanted it during his childhood.

【小题2】Why did Jack say he needed some time to spend with his son?

A．He was very tired of his work and wanted to have a good rest.

B．He had promised to spare more time to stay with his son.

C．He had missed his son and his family for days.

D．He came to realize the importance of the time with his family.

【小题3】Why did Jack think Mr. Belser died years ago?

A．College and career prevented him from remembering Mr. Belser.

B．Jack was too busy with his business and family to think about Mr. Belser.

C．Jack was too busy realizing his dreams to think about Mr. Belser.

D．His present busy life washed away his children memories.

【小题4】Jack’s mother told him on the phone about Mr. Belser EXCEPT that _________.

A．Mr. Belser often asked how Jack was doing

B．Mr. Belser’s funeral would take place on Wednesday

C．Mr. Belser had asked for Jack’s mailing address

D．Mr. Belser had pleasant memories of their time together

【小题5】Which of the following is the most suitable title for this passage?

A．The Good Old Times

B．The Lost Childhood Days

C．An Old Gold Watch

D．What He Valued Most