Just home from work, Daddy stopped in the kitchen where Mother and I were preparing supper. From the look on his face, we knew something was  1  him.

“Mr. Roth is worse,” he said. “The doctor says it’s only a   2  of time now. The old man can  3  his pain, but not the long hours he has to spend along. His eyes are  4  bad that he can’t read, and he doesn’t get much  5  . He keeps begging for a big dog to be his companion,   6  he can reach out and touch as he sits in his wheelchair in the sun.”

“Why don’t they 7  him a dog?” I asked.

“Honey, with Mr. Roth in the hospital so much of time, there are a lot of  8  . There isn’t enough money.”

“They could go to the animal shelter and get one,” I  9  .

“Yes,” Daddy said. “I suppose they could. But it has to be a   10  dog, one they can trust to be gentle. Not all big dogs are.”

After supper, I  11  back where my big German shepherd(牧羊犬), Dan, was dozing under a tree. He jumped up and ran to meet me  12  he always did when I came into sight. There were no other 12-year-old girls in our neighborhood, so I   13  Dan for companionship. When I rode my bicycle, he ran behind me; when I roller-skated on the sidewalk, he trotted（小跑）behind. It had been that way since Daddy   14  him home four years before.

Now, I couldn’t forget Daddy’s words in the kitchen. I threw my arms around Dan’s neck and buried my face   15  his stiff hair.

“I love you,” I whispered to him. “I’d be  16  without you, but …oh, Dan, I know what I should do,   17  I don’t want to do it .”

I thought about Mr. Roth. He was old, sick and almost  18  . It seemed to me that he was just about out of blessings. I got up   19  . I knew what I had to do, and if I didn’t do it right now, I’d   20  myself out of it.

I went to my father and said, “Mr. Roth can borrow Dan.” Tears started down my face.

1．A．catching                B．bothering             C．puzzling              D．frightening

2．A．sort                      B．lot                       C．waste                  D．matter

3．A．bear                      B．consider              C．cure                    D．overcome

4．A．so                        B．too                      C．very                    D．also

5．A．relationship            B．company             C．wealth                 D．business

6．A．someone               B．this                     C．one                     D．that

7．A．buy                      B．offer                   C．find                    D．promise

8．A．supplies                B．operations            C．expenses             D．visitors

9．A．replied                  B．asked                  C．explained             D．suggested

10．A．fierce                  B．special                 C．useful                 D．brave

11．A．  came in              B．got up                C．turned away        D．went out

12．A．once                   B．though                C．as                       D．if

13．A．came across        B．thought of           C．depended on        D．felt like

14．A．brought               B．trained                 C．drove                  D．delivered

15．A．through               B．on                       C．beneath               D．in

16．A．lost                     B．anxious               C．aggressive           D．confused

17．A．so                       B．and                     C．or                       D．but

18．A．dead                   B．blind                   C．lonely                  D．painful

19．A．slowly                 B．quickly                C．suddenly             D．unwillingly

20．A．help                    B．force                   C．talk                     D．show