I am not one who is frightened easily, but I must admit that one night I saw a figure that really struck terror into my heart．

I   1   it was a cold moon - lit night when I was walking home．It was the first night of my whole life that I had been outside   2   at such a late time．There were   3  few people on the road at night．Even during the day, the road was used by only some．On that night, it seemed even   4  ．While I was walking, I could hear some   5   made by creatures that love the night world．I moved really fast towards home．It was   6   because I was hungry．More importantly, I was eager to get back home for warmth．All of a sudden, I   7   an old lady in a short distance away．Her   8   was covered with a white cloth．She was   9  to me, I think．

I was a bit   10  ．I wanted to know   11   she was there at that time of the late night．I stopped walking for a while．As I   12  there, stories about ghosts （鬼） began to come to my mind one after   13  ．I was soon   14   fear and started to run as fast as I could．When I reached home I could   15   speak．

The next day, however, I   16   that place again to make sure that the woman was not a ghost but indeed a real person．But I could find no footprints there   17   a banana plant．I realized then that it was the banana plant with its leaves moving in the gentle wind that   18   like a woman waving her hand．I had indeed made a fool of myself; but after the   19  night’s experience, this   20   was small relief to me．

1．A．realized                 B．recognized           C．remembered        D．reminded

2．A．alone                    B．asleep                  C．awake                 D．lonely

3．A．never                    B．often                   C．seldom                D．rarely

4．A．busier                   B．noisier                 C．quieter                D．wider

5．A．noises                   B．quarrels               C．songs                  D．voices

6．A．completely            B．mainly                 C．obviously            D．partly

7．A．made sense of       B．caught sight of     C．got ahead of        D．took hold of

8．A．waist                    B．leg                      C．head                   D．hand

9．A．smiling                  B．waiting                C．whispering          D．waving

10．A．mysterious          B．cautious              C．conscious            D．curious

11．A．why                    B．when                  C．what                   D．how

12．A．lay                      B．sat                      C．stood                  D．walked

13．A．another               B．other                   C．others                 D．the other

14．A．addicted to          B．filled with            C．far from              D．short of

15．A．clearly                 B．easily                  C．hardly                 D．loudly

16．A．traveled               B．visited                 C．appreciated          D．went

17．A．over                    B．without               C．than                    D．except

18．A．felt                     B．looked                 C．smelt                  D．sounded

19．A．previous              B．next                    C．last                     D．following

20．A．invention             B．achievement         C．contribution         D．discovery

“Dad, I am coming back.” These five words changed my world.

My daughter, Amy, had left home seven years before to live in San Francisco shortly after her brother Matthew's suicide. Over the years, we had talked on the phone, written letters, and spent time together during her infrequent trips back East. Whenever she came home, however, there was always a tension between us. Because of my work, I had been under a great deal of pressure when she was growing up, and I would occasionally "pop my cork（拔瓶塞）." Amy was a little afraid of me.

It was late October when Amy arrived after driving across the United States. Almost immediately, we got into a conflict over some minor problem. I became worried that I might not be able to handle living with her. I had accepted an early retirement incentive and would be home a great deal. Amy would also be there working as a freelance writer for a publishing company in California.

Before Amy arrived, I had begun writing a book about my job experience. I knew the manuscript （手稿） needed much editing. Amy agreed to help me, and we set up a weekly meeting in which we went over her suggested changes. It was rough for me in the beginning because it was hard to accept that my work was far from perfect. Week after week, she skillfully helped me to improve my work.

Through my writing, she began to understand why I was under so much strain （压力） when she was little. Also, I was told she suffered from the pain of dealing with depression.

Amy said to me one morning, “Your book has saved my life. I was beginning to wonder if anything was worthwhile. Using my skills to help you with your manuscript has been my anchor （精神支柱） over the last six months.”

“Amy, you have inspired me with a great love of writing, and an even greater love of a fantastic editor, who just happens to be my daughter,” I answered.

1．As a little girl, Amy probably thought of her father as         .

      A．kind                    B．hard – working    C．irresponsible        D．bad – tempered

2．After Amy arrived, at first the writer         .

       A．quarreled a lot with her about his book

       B．decided to retire as quickly as possible

       C．thought he couldn’t get on well with her

       D．tried hard to stop her from staying at home

3．From what Amy said, we know that       .

       A．her father cared little for her

       B．her father’s book is of no value

       C．it took her father three years to finish his book

       D．she was pessimistic （悲观的） before helping her father

4．Which of the following words can best describe the ending of the story?

       A．Sad.         B．Happy.             C．Unpredictable.         D．Uncertain.

 

“Dad，I am coming back．”These five words changed my world．

My daughter，Amy，had left home seven years before to live in San Francisco．Over the years， we spent together during her infrequent trips back ．Whenever she came home， however， there was always a tension between us．Because of my work，I had been under a great deal of pressure when she was growing up，and I would occasionally blow off steam．Amy was a little afraid of me．

It was late October when Amy arrived．Almost immediately，we got into a conflict over some minor problem．I became worried I couldn’t handle living with her．After my retirement， I would often be home．Amy would often be home working as a writer for a publishing company in California．

Before Amy arrived，I had begun writing a book about my job experience．I knew the manuscript （手稿）needed much editing．Amy agreed to help me，and we set up a weekly meeting in which we went over her suggested changes．It was rough for me in the beginning because it was hard to accept that my work was far from perfect．Week after week，she skillfully helped me to improve my work．

Through my writing，she began to understand why I was under so much strain（压力）when she was a little girl．Also，I was told she suffered from the pain of dealing with depression．

Amy said to me one morning，” Your book has saved my life．I was doubting the value of my existence．Helping you with your manuscript has been my anchor over the last six months．”

“Amy，you have inspired me with a great love of writing，and an even greater love of a fantastic editor，who just happens to be my daughter，” I answered．

1．The underlined phrase “blow off steam” in Paragraph 2 can be best explained as “_____”．

       A．stay up late       B．get angry           C．work over time    D．feel tired

2．After his daughter’s arrival，the writer_____．

       A．quarreled a lot with her

       B．made his retirement decision

       C．doubted whether they could live together well

       D．stopped her from staying at home

3．From what the daughter said，we know that____．

       A．her father’s book dealt with a theme of life's value

       B．her father cared for her very much

       C．it took her father half a year to finish his work

       D．helping her father write was a spiritual support

4．which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

       A．The writer and his daughter had been more apart than together．

       B．The daughter was employed by a California-based company．

       C．At first，the writer refused his daughter’s help with his book．

       D．Thanks to the book， the daughter is completely free of depression．

The other day as I talked with a friend I 　 1　 a story that I heard this summer.”A{n} 2 person, seeing a butterfly struggling to free itself from its cocoon, and wanting to help, very 　3 loosed the filaments (细丝) to form a(n) 4 . The butterfly was freed, got out of the 　5 , and moved its wings about 　6 could not fly. What the sympathetic person did not know was that only through the 　7 struggle can the wings grow strong enough for flight. Its shortened life was spent 　8 ; it never knew freedom, 　9 really lived.”

I call it learning to love with an open hand. It is a 　10 which has come slowly to me and has been wrought (锤炼) in the fires of pain and in the waters of patience. I am learning that I must 　11 the one I love, for if I hold firmly and try to control , I shall lose what I try to control 　 12 .

As I learn and practice more and more, I can say to the one I love, “I love you, I value you, I respect you and I trust that you have the 　13 to become all that it is possible for you to become — if I don’t 　14 your way. I love you so much that I can set you free to walk beside me in 　15 and in sadness. I will 　16 your tears but I will not ask you not to cry. I will care and 　17 you, but I will not hold you up when you can walk alone. I will try to listen to your meaning 　18 your word, but I shall not always agree. I can not 　19 be with you or hear what you say for there are times 　20 I must listen to myself and care for myself.”

1. A. created　 　 B. recalled　　　 C. wrote　　 　 D. repeated

2. A. sympathetic　 　 B. curious　 C. apologetic 　 D. angry

3. A. kindly　　 　　　 B. carefully　　 C. cautiously　　 D. gently

4. A. closing　 　 B. opening　 C. admission　　 D. permission

5. A. filaments　　　　 B. wings　　　　 C. cocoon　　　　 D. shell

6. A. and　　　　　 B. or　　　　 C. but　　　　　 D. while

7. A. faith　　　　　　 B. birth　　　　 C. death　　　　 D. worth

8. A. on the ground B. in the air　　 C. in the water　　 D. in the trees

9. A. ever　　　　　　 B. always　　 C. constantly　　 D. never

10. A. practicing　　　 B. learning　　　 C. struggling　　 D. teaching

11. A. free　　　　　　 B. praise　　 C. value　　　　 D. open

12. A. win　　　　　 B. love　　　　　 C. earn　　　　　　 D. hold

13. A. confidence　 B. will　　　　　 C. strength　　　　 D. courage

14. A. get in　　　　　 B. get out of　　 C. get away from D. get off

15. A. disappointment　 B. wonder　　 C. fun　　　　　 D. joy

16. A. enjoy　　　　　　 B. sympathize C. share　　　　　　 D. criticize

17. A. attend　　　 B. comfort　 C. trust　　　　　　 D. believe

18. A. as long as　　　 B. as far as 　 C. as well as　　　 D. as much as

19. A. quickly　　　　　 B. immediately　 C. always　　　　 D. simply

20. A. where　　　　　　 B. when　　　　　 C. why　　　　　 D. which