题目内容
her daughter too, two cousins and, of course, my wife, my son and me. We ate at one of those restaurants
where the menu is written on a blackboard held by a friendly waiter and had a wonderful time. With dinner
concluded, the waiter set the check down in the middle of the table. That's when it happened. My father did
not reach for the check.
In fact, my father did nothing. Conversation continued. Finally it dawned on me. Me! I was supposed to
pick up the check. After all these years, after hundreds of restaurant meals with my parents, after a lifetime
of thinking of my father as the one with the dollars, it had all changed. I reached for the check and pulled out
my American Express card. My view of myself was suddenly changed. With a stroke of the pen, I was
suddenly an adult.
Some people mark off their life in years, others in events. I am one of the latter, and I think of some events
as rites of passage. I did not become a young man at a particular year like 13, but when a kid strolled into the
store where I worked and called me "mister", I turned around to see whom he was calling. He repeated it
several times-"mister, mister"-looking straight at me. The realization hit like a punch: Me! He was talking to me.
I was suddenly a mister.
B. I was no longer a child
C. he had no money with him
D. he did not notice the check
B. it was my turn
C. it surprised me
D. I felt sorry
B. I was not willing to pay the check.
C. We were happy on Cape Cod.
D. We didn't enjoy our meal.
B. my mother
C. my parents
D. my father
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However, while some seem to be lost in the desire to succeed, others take an opposite attitude. In a culture which values only the winner and pays no attention to the ordinary players, they strongly blame competition. Among the most vocal are youngsters who have suffered under competitive pressures from their parents or society. Teaching these young people, I often observe in them a desire to fail. They seem to se ek failure by not trying to win or achieve success. By not trying, they always have an excuse: “I may have lost, but it doesn’t matter because I really didn’t try.” What is not usually admitted by themselves is the belief that if they had really tried and lost, that would mean a lot. Such a loss would be a measure of their worth. Clearly, this belief is the same as that of the true competitors who try to prove themselves. Both are based on the mistaken belief that one’s self – respect relies on how well one performs in comparison with others. Both are afraid of not being valued. Only as this basic and often troublesome fear begins to dissolve (缓解) can we discover a new meaning in competition.
However, while some seem to be lost in the desire to succeed, others take an opposite attitude. In a culture which values only the winner and pays no attention to the ordinary players, they strongly blame competition. Among the most vocal are youngsters who have suffered under competitive pressures from their parents or society. Teaching these young people, I often observe in them a desire to fail. They seem to se ek failure by not trying to win or achieve success. By not trying, they always have an excuse: “I may have lost, but it doesn’t matter because I really didn’t try.” What is not usually admitted by themselves is the belief that if they had really tried and lost, that would mean a lot. Such a loss would be a measure of their worth. Clearly, this belief is the same as that of the true competitors who try to prove themselves. Both are based on the mistaken belief that one’s self – respect relies on how well one performs in comparison with others. Both are afraid of not being valued. Only as this basic and often troublesome fear begins to dissolve (缓解) can we discover a new meaning in competition.