“It + be + 时间名词+before / since”从句句型中用before引导时，句意是 “过了多久才……”，主句中的be动词为过去时或将来时态；用since引导时，其句间是“自从……以来已经多久了”，主句中的be动词多为现在时(或现在完成时)或一般过去时。

Directions: Complete the following passage by using ONE word that best fits the context.
Thanksgiving Day was near. The first grade teacher gave her class   48  fun assignment --- to draw a picture of something for which they were thankful.
Most of the class would celebrate the holiday with turkey and other traditional goodies of the season. These, the teacher thought, would be the themes of most of her students’ art. And they were. Douglas made a different kind of picture,   49 . When asked to draw a picture of something for which he was thankful, he drew a hand. Nothing else. Just an  50  hand .
His abstract image captured the imagination of his peers. Whose hand could it be? One child guessed it was the hand of a farmer, because farmers raise turkeys.   51  suggested a police officer’s, because the police protect and care   52  people. Still others guessed it was the hand of God, for God feeds us. And so the discussion went --- until the teacher almost forgot the young artist himself.
When the children had gone on to other assignments, she stopped at Douglas’ desk, bent down, and asked him 53  hand it was. The little boy looked away and said, “It’s yours, teacher.”
She recalled the times she had taken his hand and walked with him here or there, as she had the other students. How  54  had she said, “Take my hand, Douglas, we’ll go outside.” Or, "Let me show you how to hold your pencil.” Or, “Let's do this together.” Douglas was most thankful for his teacher's hand. Brushing aside a tear, she went on with her work.
The story speaks of more than thankfulness. It says something about teachers teaching and parents parenting and friends showing friendship, and how much it means to the Douglases of the world. They might not always say thanks,  55  they'll remember the hand that reaches out.

---I feel the house shaking.

----So do I .It ___ be sign of an earthquake most probably. Let’s hurry to leave here.

A. ought  to B. could  C. can  D. might

Starry Night
Have you ever seen a real night sky that looks like Van Gogh’s Starry Night? I hope not! So, why would an artist paint the sky this way? Perhaps I can answer that with another question. When you’re happy, why do you sing instead of speaking? Or when you’re in love, why do you speak of roses and honey? When we do these things, we, too are artists. We’re using something that goes beyond a mere scientific description in order to communicate our feelings more powerfully than straightforward words can. So consider for a moment that Van Gogh might not have been hallucinating (产生幻觉的) on the night he painted this. Maybe he felt something so powerful that he had to go beyond the familiar to express it.
I hope I’m reminding you of something you already know as I describe the experience of being outside at night under a crystal clear sky that makes everything seem clean and refreshing. So you look up. And suddenly you see the sky that you’ve seldom seen before. It’s not just the same old dark night sky tonight. Instead, the blackness is a deep, rich blue that is more bottomless than any ocean. The stars are not spots of light but brilliant, magical diamonds that dance like tiny angels. In just this special moment, the sky is somehow alive, and it seems to speak to you silently about the meaning of infinity (无限).
Now look at the painting again. Can you see something of what makes this such a famous and well-loved image? But there’s more here than that. Van Gogh painted this while he was quite struck down by a mental disease. It is natural to imagine that he frequently battled the fear that he would never escape his prison to true freedom. It is natural for us to imagine this because each of us has faced our own personal prison, whether it be disease, the loss of a loved one, serious financial problems … In such moments it is tempting to give up to despair (绝望) and collapse in hopelessness.
Looking at this painting, I imagine Van Gogh in just such a moment of despair, when he is struck by the memory of one of those amazing night skies. He recalls the sense that he is not alone, that there is a living, infinite world with rich colorful creatures and scenes all around.
And so the sky flows across the canvas (画布) full of vitality (活力) and power. The stars don’t just sparkle; they explode. Looking closer, we notice that the earth itself seems to respond to the movement in the sky, forming its own living waves in the mountain and rolling trees. In the sleepy village, the windows of the houses glow (发光) with the same light that brightens the universe. The giant trees at the left seem to capture the joy by stretching upwards toward the sky.
What a tremendous message of hope there is in this masterpiece! Even if our troubles persist, the world around us assures us that life is worth living. That’s what the angels sing about. Doesn’t it make you want to sing, too?
【小题1】Looking at the painting Starry Night, we can see all the following except________.

Once a wise man was traveling with some of his disciples（门徒）. They  36  to pass a lake and they stopped there for a  37  . The man told one of his disciples,“ I’m
 38  . Do get me some water from that lake.”
Just as the disciple reached it, a cart started  39  the lake. As a result, the water became very  40  and muddy. The disciple thought, “ 41  can I give this water to my teacher to drink!” So he came back and said, “The water is very muddy. I don’t think it is  42  to drink.”
After half an hour, the wise man asked the  43  disciple to get him some water. The disciple obediently（顺从地） went back and found the lake was  44  muddy. He returned and  45  the wise man that the water was unfit to drink.
After another hour, the man again asked the disciple to get him a  46 . The disciple reached the lake to find it calm and still. The mud had  47  and the water was clean and clear. So he  48  some water and brought it to the wise man.
The wise man looked at the water, saying, “See what you  49  to make the water clean. You let it be — The  50  settled down on its own and you got the clear water. Our  51  is also like that! When it is disturbed, just let it be, Give it a little  52 . It will settle down on its own.”
So remember, the next time a(n)  53  has you all frazzled（精疲力竭的）, just let it be; don’t  54  immediately. Let the Mud settle and come back to the situation 55 .