I used to work in an office, which had a Iocust tree growing outside the window. It had grown into a tall tree and must have been there for a long time. The tree blocked the view and made the office seem dull. Unfortunately, this happened to be the room assigned to me, and l was depressed by it for quite some time.

When the first spring came, everything was green except the locust tree.I felt very happy because I had thought it had died!

One morning, when I opened the window for some fresh air, I unexpectedly smelt a familiar sweet scent floating into my office which I could not name. Suddenly,I realized it was the locust tree!The tree that I thought dead was in full bloom!

From then on, I usually came to the office very early to see dew forming on the locust tree blossoms, and was eager to see spring again every year.

During summer, the green leaves provided shade protecting me from the harsh sunlight, but allowing enough light in to make it pleasant. In autumn, the leaves turned many different colors. Its beauty touched my soul. Many times, I thought to take photos but never did. Then, I had to leave in a hurry. Later in life, it became a great regret that I had not done so.

Actually, many times in our lives we think we own something and thus do not value it. We don't feel regretful until we lose it one day! Moreover, sometimes, we have to accept the things we don't want and need to discover the hidden beauty to find unexpected joy!

The locust tree first attracted the author most by____.

A. the way it blocked the view     B. its height

C. the smell of its flowers         D. its green leaves

In which season do you think the author paid the least attention to the locust tree?

 A. Spring.    B. Summer    C. Autumn.    D. Winter.

Which of the following statements is true of the author according to the passage?

 A. He would have regretted if the locust tree had died as he had thought it had.

 B. The locust tree turned out to be a lovely memory for him.

 C. He felt unhappy as he had forgotten to take the photos with him.

 D. His work in the office changed with the seasons every year.

It can be inferred from the passage that _______.

 A. the locust tree died soon after the author left the office

 B. the author worked in the office for at least a few years

 C. it was summer when the author took his job in the office

 D. the weather was dry when the author first saw the tree

What advice does the author intend to give us?

 A. Treasure what we've owned.                B. Look before you leap.

 C. Treat everything calmly.                   D. Never forget the past.   

On August 26, 1999, New York City experienced a terrible rainstorm. The rain caused the streets to __36__ and the subway system almost came to a stop.

    Unfortunately, this happened during the morning rush hour. Many people who were going to work were __37__ to go home. Some battled to __38__ a taxi or to get on a bus. Still others faced the __39__ bravely, walking miles to get to work.

    I __40__ to be one of the people on the way to work that morning. I went from subway line to subway line only to find that most __41__ had stopped. After making my way __42__ crowds of people, I finally found a subway line that was __43__. Unfortunately, there were so many people waiting to __44__ the subway that I could not even get down the stairs to the __45__. So I took the train going in the opposite direction, and then switch back to the downtown train. Finally, after what seemed like an forever, the train __46__ my stop. Then I had to walk several blocks in the increasingly heavy rain. When I finally got to my office, I was __47__ through, exhausted and __48__.

     My co-workers and I spent most of the day drying off. When it was 5:00 pm，I was ready to go home. I was about to turn off my computer __49__ I received an email from Garth, my Director:

    I would like to thank all of you who made the effort and __ 50__ reported to work. It is always reassuring(令人欣慰), at times like these, when employees so clearly show their __51__ to their jobs. Thank you.

Garth’s email was short, but I learned more from that __52__ message than I ever did from a textbook. The email taught me that a few words of __53__ can make a big difference. The rainstorm and the traffic __54__ had made me tied and upset. But Garth’s words immediately__55__ me and put a smile back on my face.

36. A. break                  B. flood                C. sink                  D. crash

37. A. forced                B. refused              C. adjusted            D. gathered

38. A. order                  B. pay                   C. call                   D. search

39. A. climate               B. scenery             C. storm                D. burden

40. A. used                   B. promised           C. deserved            D. happened

41. A. practice                     B. routine                     C. process              D. service

42. A. to                       B. through             C. over                  D. for

43. A. operating            B. cycling              C. turning              D. rushing

44. A. check                 B. carry                 C. find                  D. board

45. A. street          B. ground              C. floor                 D. platform

46. A. paused                B. crossed              C. reached             D. parked

47. A. wet                    B. weak                 C. sick                  D. hurt

48. A. ashamed             B. discouraged              C. surprised           D. puzzled

49. A. while                  B. when                C. where               D. after

50. A. hardly                B. casually             C. absolutely          D. eventually

51. A. devotion             B. donation            C. connection         D. reaction

52. A. accurate                     B. urgent               C. brief                 D. humorous

53. A. promise                     B. appreciation       C. advice               D. guidance

54. A. troubles                     B. signals                     C. rules                 D. signs

55. A. corrected            B. supported          C. amazed             D. refreshed

I sometimes wonder if old Finchley has the right personality to be a research scientist. He keeps asking when he’ll be coming back. After all, it was his own fault. Nobody tries out what has just been invented on themselves any more but Finchley. Well, he must have pumped about a thousand cubic centimeters into himself before I noticed he was clearly becoming smaller.

  It was funny watching him, because his clothes remained the same in size. They simply piled up around him so that he looked like a small boy in his father’s clothes. But he kept getting smaller and smaller. As my colleague Dawson and I watched him, he disappeared! All we could see was Finchley’s clothes on the floor. They looked so strange, because the lab coat was on top, shirt and trousers inside and, I suppose, underclothes inside again. It gave me a strange feeling, and I think Dawson was a bit shaken, too.

  Dawson was sitting on his chair in front of a microscope he’d been using to examine a family of mites(螨虫). He looked through the scope kind of absently again, and was nearly scared to lose awareness when he found old Finchley waving back from the other end.

  It seems as if Finchley had taken a free ride on a dust mite and landed on the land of the mite family. Of course, we didn’t know till Finchley told us later. But anyhow, as I said, Dawson nearly passed out. He jumped off his chair and pointed at the microscope, too shocked to speak.

Finchley disappeared because ________.

 A. he took something poisonous      

B. he was changed into a dust mite

   C. his father’s clothes totally covered him up

 D. what he and his colleagues invented resulted in his disappearance

It frightened Dawson to see Finchley _______.

 A. got into his scope by accident      B. was waving through his telescope

   C. suddenly got lost in his clothes      D. gradually disappeared in the lab

It can be inferred that Finchley, Dawson and the writer have possibly invented _____.

 A. some kind of medicine               B. a new powerful microscope

   C. a machine to make people small    D. a new way to make a culture of mite

It can probably be concluded that Finchley ________.

   A. passed out there and then         B. is not fit to be a scientist

   C. is a devoted scientist            D. will remain tiny all the time

I made a promise to myself on the way down to the vacation beach cottage. For two weeks I would try to be a loving husband and father. Totally loving. No ifs, ands or buts.

The idea had come to me as I listened to a talk on my car radio. The speaker was quoting a Biblical passage about husbands and their wives. Then he went on to say, “Love is an act of will. A person can choose to love.” To myself, I had to admit that I had been a selfish husband. Well, for two weeks that would change.

And it did. On arriving at the beach cottage, I kissed Evelyn meeting me at the door and said, “That new yellow sweater looks great on you.” “Oh, Tom, you noticed”, she said, surprised and pleased. Maybe a little puzzled. After the long drive, I wanted to sit and read. Evelyn suggested a walk on the beach. I started to refuse, but then I thought, “Evelyn’s been alone here with the kids all week and now she wants to be alone with me.” We walked on the beach while the children flew their kites.

So it went. Two weeks of not calling the Wall Street firm where I am a director; a visit to the shell museum though I usually hate museums. Relaxed and happy, that’s how the whole vacation passed. I made a new promise to keep on remembering to choose love.

There was one thing that went wrong with my experiment, however. Evelyn and I still laugh about it today. On the last night at our cottage, preparing for bed, Evelyn stared at me with the saddest expression.

“What’s the matter?” I asked her.

“Tom,” she said in a voice filled with distress, “ I don’t?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well…that checkup I had several weeks ago…our doctor…did he tell you something about me? Tom, you’ve been so good to me…am I dying?”

It took a moment for it all to be understood. Then I burst out laughing.

“No, honey,” I said, wrapping her in my arms. “You’re not dying; I’m just starting to live.”

From the story we may infer that Tom drove to the beach cottage ______.

A. with his family     B. with Evelyn    C. alone      D. with his children

During the two weeks on the beach, Tom showed more love to his wife because ______.

A. he was determined to be a good husband

B. he had made a lot of money in his Wall Street firm

C. she looked lovely in her new clothes

D. the doctor said his wife was seriously ill

The author says, “There was one thing that went wrong with my experiment.” What does “one thing” refer to?

A. He praised her sweater, which puzzled her.

B. She insisted on visiting a museum, which he hated.

C. He knew something about her illness but didn’t tell her.

D. He was so good to her that she thought she must be dying.

By saying “I’m just starting to live,” Tom means that ______.

A. he is just beginning to understand the real meaning of life

B. he is just beginning to enjoy life as a loving husband

C. he lived an unhappy life before and is now starting to change

D. he is beginning to feel regret for what he did to his wife before

阅读下面短文,  从短文后各题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和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。

When I was about 13, my father would take me on short outings on Saturdays. On the way home, Dad _36_ stopped at the Dairy Queen for 10-cent ice creams. I couldn’t _37_ it, but I could pray from the _38_ we started heading home to that corner where we would either go straight for the ice cream or _39_ and go home empty-handed. That corner _40_ either mouth-watering excitement or _41_.

On one special day, we were heading home, and again I was praying for the _42_ sound of his offer. It _43_. “Would you like an ice cream today?” “That sounds great, Dad!” But then he said, “How would you like to _44_ today?”

Twenty cents! My mind reeled(震惊). I could afford it. I got a weekly allowance of 25 cents, plus some _45_ for odd jobs(零活). But _46_ it was my money, ice cream wasn’t a good use of it. In a fit of _47_, I said, “Well, in that case, I guess I’ll _48_.” My father just said, “Okay, Son.”

But as we headed home, I realized how wrong I was and begged him to _49_. But he just said, “That’s okay, we don’t really need one.” I felt _50_ for my selfishness and ungratefulness. He didn’t mind, or _51_ act disappointed.

I _52_ that generosity（慷慨）goes two ways and gratefulness sometimes costs more than “thank you”. On that day gratefulness would have cost 20 cents and it would have been the _53_ ice cream I’d ever had.

I’ll tell you one more thing. We _54_ another trip the next week. As we _55_ the corner, I said, “Dad, would you like an ice cream today? My treat.”

A. never                 B. hardly             C. frequently     D. strangely

A. expect               B. mention           C. wait                       D. get         

A. month                   B. day                 C. weekend          D. moment        

A. finish                B. drive                C. turn                 D. return       

A. indicated              B. meant               C. suggested          D. instructed    

A. anger                    B. shame              C. happiness         D. disappointment

A. funny                    B. surprising         C. interesting        D. beautiful    

A. came                   B. spoke              C. went                D. flew       

A. serve                     B. treat                       C. buy                 D. provide    

A. extra                  B. limited            C. little                D. easy      

A. after                    B. while               C. when             D. although 

A. sadness                B. regret                      C. curiosity          D. selfishness 

A. accept                  B. pay                 C. pass              D. eat      

A. turn back            B. keep up           C. stop by           D. give in    

A. unsatisfied           B. awful                      C. frightened     D. crazy     

A. even                  B. never                      C. only               D. somehow  

A. knew              B. learned            C. acknowledged         D. found    

A. dearest                 B. worst              C. cheapest           D. best       

A. made out             B. prepared for     C. went on           D. took up  

A. crossed               B. left                C. saw            D. approached