It was an afternoon in the winter. Some friends and I were talking at a restaurant. We talked and talked and soon swimming became the ___1____. Suddenly I hit upon an idea. “Wouldn’t it be ___2___ if we went swimming? Others went swimming in winter, and __3___ couldn’t we? Besides, we could be ___4__ if we did. ” I told them about this and they all said it was a good idea indeed.
Early in the morning, three days __5____, we four were standing at the bus stop, with bags in our hands, ___6___ for a bus to take us to the __7___. The sky was clear, the sun was shining, but all the same, it was very cold, __8___ our heavy overcoats were not enough to keep us ___9__. We all felt that we should go back, but no one wanted to __10___.
We soon reached the sands. There was nobody there, but we were not to be discouraged. __11___ we were proud that we were the __12___ ones that dared to challenge the weather. Besides, the sun could keep us warm. So we __13__ ourselves quickly.
But things were not going to be so nice as we thought. The sea wind was blowing, we felt __14___ cold and we shook from head to feet. At last we decided to ____15__ the sea water. We put our feet in first, only to take them back___16___. The water was unbelievably cold. ___17___ I suggested that we should all jump in at the same time. We all went back ten steps. I gave the order and we all rushed forward. We jumped. That feeling I had when I was in the water I shall never ___18___. I was up and rushed again to the seaside. So __19___ my friends. We put on our clothes as quickly as possible and went home.
We four did not go to school the next three days, for we all __20__ a bad cold. We missed the lessons, but we had this unforgettable experience.

A year ago, I paid no attention to English idioms, though my teacher stressed the importance again and again. But soon, the importance of English idioms was shown in an amusing experience.
One day, I happened to meet an Englishman on the road, and soon we began to talk. As I was talking about how I was studying English, the foreigner seemed to be astonished. Gently shaking his head and shrugging his shoulders, he said, “You don’t say!” “You don’t say!” I was puzzled. I thought, perhaps this is not a proper topic. “Well, I’d better change the topic.” So I said to him, “Well, shall we talk about the Great Wall? By the way, have you ever been there?” “Certainly, everyone back home will laugh at me if I leave China without seeing it. It was wonderful.” He was deep in thought when I began to talk like a tourist guide. “The Great Wall is one of the wonders in the world. We are very proud of it”. Soon I was interrupted again by his words：“You don’t say!” I couldn’t help asking, “Why do you ask me not to talk about it?” “Well, I didn’t request you to do so,” he answered, greatly surprised. I said, “Didn’t you say ‘you don’t say’?” Hearing this, the Englishman laughed to tears. He began to explain, “‘You don’t say’ actually means ‘really?’ It is an expression of surprise. Perhaps you don’t pay attention to English idioms.” Only then did I know I had made a fool of myself. Since then I have been more careful with idiomatic expressions.
Always remember: what the English teachers say is always right to us students.
【小题1】A year ago, I paid no attention to English idioms because _______.

一      I turn on the TV for you，Grandpa?
一Yes，thanks a lot，my dear. You’re so considerate.

We are going on a long train journey. Out of the windows, we can see cars running on nearby highways, children waving at a crossing, cattle grazing（吃草） on a distant hillside, smoke pouring from factories, village houses and city skylines.
But   36  in our minds is the final destination（目的地）. On a certain day at a certain hour, we will  37  into the station. Bands will be playing and flags   38  . Once we get there, so many wonderful dreams will   39  and the pieces of our lives will fit together like a(n)   40   jigsaw（拼图） puzzle. How restlessly we pace the aisles（过道）, damning（诅咒） the minutes for waiting, waiting for the station.
“When we reach the  41  , that will be it!” We cry “When I am 18.” “When I  42  a new 450SL Mercedes Benz!” “When I put the   43  kid through college.” “When I have   44  off the debts!” “When I get a promotion（提升）.” “When I reach the age of retirement, I shall live   45  ever after!”
  46  , we come to realize that there is no such station as we arrive at once and for all. The  47  joy of life is the trip. The station is only a dream. It   48  leaves us behind.
“Cherish（珍视） the moment” is a good   49  . It is the burdens（负担） of today that drive us to keep on   50  . And it is the regrets over yesterday that motivate（激发） us to overcome the   51  and look forward to the future.
So   52  pacing the aisles and counting the miles.   53  , climb more mountains, eat more ice cream, go barefoot（赤脚） more   54  , swim more rivers, watch more sunsets, laugh more and cry less. Life must be lived   55  we go along. The station will come soon enough.
【小题1】A hidden      B faint      C deep      D buried
【小题2】A pull      B get      C approach      D arrive
【小题3】 A floating      B waving      C raising      D shaking
【小题4】A come up      B come around      C come out      D come true
【小题5】A divided      B separated      C completed      D united
【小题6】A station     B age      C target      D point
【小题7】A borrow      B buy      C order      D rent
【小题8】A first      B best      C last      D eldest
【小题9】A cut      B left      C taken      D paid
【小题10】A happily      B fully      C anxiously      D freely
【小题11】A Believe it or not      B Sooner or later      C Once again      D All at once
【小题12】A simple      B basic      C true      D final
【小题13】A eventually（最后）      B accidentally      C instantly      D constantly
【小题14】A motto（箴言）      B sentence      C concept     D slogan（标语）
【小题15】A pushing      B trying      C working      D sticking
【小题16】A effort      B mistake      C challenge      D fault
【小题17】A consider      B stop      C go on      D plan on
【小题18】A Besides      B Thus      C However      D Instead
【小题19】A often      B gently      C quickly      D slowly
【小题20】A if      B unless      C as      D once

A year ago I paid no attention to English idioms,  21  my teacher said again and again that it was important．
One day, I happened to __ 22 _ an Englishman on the road, and soon we began to  __23  ．As I was talking about how I was studying English, the foreigner shook his head, saying, “You don’t say! You don’t say!”  I was  24 ___ , I thought, perhaps this is not a __ 25 __ topic．Well, I’d __ 26 change the topic．So I said to him, “Well, shall we talk about the Great Wall?  _27 _ the way, have you ever __28__ there?” “Certainly, everyone back home will __29 __ me if I leave China without seeing __30 ．It was great．” I said, “The Great Wall is one of the wonders in the world． It is a place of  31 ．” Soon I was interrupted again by his words, “ __ 32  !” I couldn’t  _33 __ asking, “Why do you ask me not to talk about it?” “Well, I didn’t ask you to do __34__ ”, he answered, gently surprised．
I said, “Didn’t you say ‘You don’t say’?”
Hearing this, the Englishman _ 35__  to tears．He began to __ 36___ ,“‘You don’t say actually means ‘really?’．It is an  _37__  of surprise．Perhaps you don’t pay attention __38___ English idioms．”
Then I knew I had made a fool of __39__ ．Since then I have been more  ___50__  with idioms．