Each time I see a balloon, my mind flies back to a memory of when I was a six-year-old girl. It was a rainy Sunday and my father had recently died. I asked my mom if Dad had gone to heaven. "Yes, honey. Of course." she said.

    "Can we write him a letter?"

    She paused, the longest pause of my short life, and answered, "Yes."

    My heart jumped. "How? Does the mailman go there?" I asked.

    "No, but I have an idea." Mom drove to a party store and returned with a red balloon. I asked her what it was for.

    "Just wait, honey. You'll see." Mom told me to write my letter. Eagerly, I got my favorite pen, and poured out my six-year-old heart in the form of blue ink. I wrote about my day, what I learned at school, how Mom was doing, and even about what happened in a story I had read. For a few minutes it was as if Dad were still alive. I gave the letter to Mom. She read it over, and a smile crossed her face.

    She made a hole in the corner of the letter where she looped (缠绕) the balloon string. We went outside and she gave me the balloon. It was still raining.

    "Okay, on the count of three, let go. One, two, three."

The balloon, carrying my letter, darted upward against the rain. We watched until it was swallowed by the mass of clouds.

Later I realized, like the balloon, that Dad had never let his sickness get him down. He was strong. No matter what he suffered, he'd persevere, dart up, and finally transcend (超越) this cold world and his sick body. He rose into sky and became something beautiful. I watched until the balloon disappeared into the gray and white and I prayed that his strength was hereditar. I prayed to be a balloon.

When the girl asked her mother if they could write to her father, her mother _________.

    A.felt it hard to answer       B.thought her a creative girl

    C.believed it easy to do so        D.found it easy to lie

When the girl was told that she could send a letter to her father, she _________.

    A.jumped with joy                  B.became excited

    C.started writing immediately              D.was worried that it couldn't be delivered

In the eyes of the author, what was the rain like?

    A.An incurable disease.           B.An unforgettable memory.

    C.The hard time her father had.                D.The failures her father experienced.

What would be the best title for the passage?

    A.An unforgettable experience     B.The strong red balloon

    C.Fly to paradise                          D.A great father

完形填空(共20小题,每小题1分,满分20分)
阅读下面短文,掌握其大意,然后从36 - 55各题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中,选出最佳选项,并填写到答题纸表格。
One Saturday afternoon, my daughter Alice asked me, “Are all people the same even if they are different in color?”
I thought for a minute, and then I said, “I’ll explain,   41  you can just wait until we make a quick   42  at the grocery store. I have something   43  to show you. ”
At the grocery store, we    44   some apples --- red, green and yellow ones. Back home, I told Alice, “It’s time to   45  your question.” I put one apple of each   46   on the table. Then I looked at Alice, who had a   47  look on her face.  
“People are like apples. They come in all   48 colors, shapes and sizes. On the    49 , some of the apples may not  50  look as the others. ” As I was talking, Alice was    51  each one carefully.  
Then, I took each of the apples and peeled(削皮)them,  52  them back on the table, but   53  a different place.  
“Okay, Alice, tell me which is which.”
She said, “I   54  tell. They all look the same now. ” “Take a bite of   55 . See if that helps you   56  which one is which. ”
She took   57 , and then a huge smile came across her face. “People are   58  like apples! They are all different, but once you _ 59  the outside, they’re pretty much the same on the inside. ”
She totally   60  it. I didn’t need to say or do anything else.  

【小题1】
A.althoughB.soC.becauseD.if
【小题2】
A.stopB.startC.turnD.stay
【小题3】
A.expressiveB.encouragingC.informativeD.interesting
【小题4】
A.boughtB.countedC.sawD.collected
【小题5】
A.checkB.mentionC.answerD.improve
【小题6】
A.sizeB.typeC.shapeD.class
【小题7】
A.worriedB.satisfiedC.proudD.curious
【小题8】
A.ordinaryB.normalC.differentD.regular
【小题9】
A.outsideB.wholeC.tableD.inside
【小题10】
A.stillB.evenC.onlyD.ever
【小题11】
A.examiningB.measuringC.drawingD.packing
【小题12】
A.keepingB.placingC.pullingD.giving
【小题13】
A.onB.towardC.forD.in
【小题14】
A.mustn’tB.can’tC.shouldn’tD.needn’t
【小题15】
A.each oneB.each otherC.the otherD.one another
【小题16】
A.admitB.considerC.decideD.believe
【小题17】
A.big bitesB.deep breathsC.a firm holdD.close look
【小题18】
A.justB.alwaysC.merelyD.seldom
【小题19】
A.put awayB.get downC.hand outD.take off
【小题20】
A.madeB.tookC.gotD.did

The 92-year-old, thin, calm and proud lady, who is fully dressed each morning by eight o’clock, even though she is nearly blind, moved to a nursing home today.
Her husband of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary. After many hours of waiting patiently in the hall of the nursing home, she smiled sweetly when told her room was ready.
As she walked slowly to lift, I provided a true description of her tiny room, including the old sheets(床单) that had been hung on her window. “I love it.” She said with the happiness.
“Mrs. Jones, you haven’t seen the room…. Just wait..”  “That doesn’t matter.” She replied. “ Happiness is something you decide ahead of time. Whether I like my room or not doesn’t depend on how the furniture is arranged. It is how I arrange my mind, I have already decided to lobe it. It is a decision I make every morning when I wake up. Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open I will focus on the new day and all the happy memories I’ve stored away.” She went on to explain, “Old age is like a bank account(帐户). You put what you have in. So, my advice to you would be to put in a lot of happiness in the bank account of memories. Thank you for your part in filling my memory bank.” And with a smile, she said, “All my memories are happy ones.”
Mr. Jones was always happy in the nursing home and she died at the age of 108.
【小题1】 We can infer from the passage that the writer_____________.

A.is one of Mrs. Jones children
B.is a relative of Mrs. Jones
C.works in the nursing home
D.is the owner of the nursing house
【小题2】 The room in which the old lady will live ____________.
A.isn’t in good condition
B.is fairly big
C.is very comfortable
D.is equipped with new furniture
【小题3】 Which of the following words can best describe Mrs. Jones?
A.ProudB.Pleasant
C.LoyalD.Honest
【小题4】 The author intends to tell us_________________.
A.why the lonely woman was happy
B.what a nursing home was alike
C.how to live a long life
D.how to lead a happy life

Each time I see a balloon, my mind flies back to a memory of when I was a six-year-old girl. It was a rainy

Sunday and my father had recently died. I asked my mom if Dad had gone to heaven. "Yes, honey. Of course." she said.    

    "Can we write him a letter?"

    She paused, the longest pause of my short life, and answered, "Yes."

    My heart jumped. "How? Does the mailman go there?" I asked.

    "No, but I have an idea." Mom drove to a party store and returned with a red balloon. I asked her what it was for.

    "Just wait, honey. You'll see." Mom told me to write my letter. Eagerly, I got my favorite pen, and poured out my six-year-old heart in the form of blue ink. I wrote about my day, what I learned at school, how Mom was doing, and even about what happened in a story I had read. For a few minutes it was as if Dad were still alive. I gave the letter to Mom. She read it over, and a smile crossed her face.

    She made a hole in the corner of the letter where she looped the balloon string. We went outside and she gave me the balloon. It was still raining.

    "Okay, on the count of three, let go. One, two, three."

The balloon, carrying my letter, darted upward against the rain. We watched until it was swallowed by the mass of clouds.

Later I realized, like the balloon, that Dad had never let his sickness get him down. He was strong. No matter what he suffered, he'd persevere, dart up, and finally transcend this cold world and his sick body. He rose into sky and became something beautiful. I watched until the balloon disappeared into the gray and white and I prayed that his strength was hereditary. I prayed to be a balloon.

1.When the girl asked her mother if they could write to her father, her mother _________.

A.felt it hard to answer       B.thought her a creative girl

C.believed it easy to do so           D.found it easy to lie

2.When the girl was told that she could send a letter to her father, she _________.

A.jumped with joy

B.became excited

C.started writing immediately

D. was worried that it couldn't be delivered

3.In the eyes of the author, what was the rain like?

A.An incurable disease.

B.An unforgettable memory.

C.The hard time her father had.

D.The failures her father experienced.

4.What would be the best title for the passage?

A.An unforgettable experience          B.The strong red balloon

C.Fly to paradise                           D.A great father

 

How I Turned to Be Optimistic

I began to grow up that winter night when my parents and I were returning from my aunt's house, and my mother said that we might soon be leaving for America. We were on the bus then. I was crying, and some people on the bus were turning around to look at me. I remember that I could not bear the thought of never hearing again the radio program for school children to which I listened every morning.

I do not remember myself crying for this reason again. In fact, I think I cried very little when I was saying goodbye to my friends and relatives. When we were leaving I thought about all the places I was going to see—the strange and magical places I had known only from books and pictures. The country I was leaving never to come back was hardly in my head then.

The four years that followed taught me the importance of optimism, but the idea did not come to me at once. For the first two years in New York I was really lost—having to study in three schools as a result of family moves. I did not quite know what I was or what I should be. Mother remarried, and things became even more complex for me. Some time passed before my stepfather and I got used to each other. I was often sad, and saw no end to “the hard times. ”

My responsibilities in the family increased a lot since I knew English better than everyone else at home. I wrote letters, filled out forms, translated at interviews with Immigration officers, took my grandparents to the doctor and translated there, and even discussed telephone bills with company representatives.

From my experiences I have learned one important rule: Almost all common troubles eventually go away! Something good is certain to happen in the end when you do not give up, and just wait a little! I believe that my life will turn out all right, even though it will not be that easy.

1.How did the author get to know America?

A.From her relatives                      B.From her mother

C.From Books and pictures                  D.From radio programs

2.Upon leaving for America the author felt       .

A.confused          B.excited           C.worried           D.amazed

3.What can we learn about the author from Paragraph 4?

A.She worked as a translator

B.She attended a lot of job interviews

C.She paid telephone bills for her family

D.She helped her family with her English

4.The author believes that      .

A.her future will be free from troubles

B.it is difficult to learn to become patient

C.there are more good things than bad things

D.good things will happen if one keeps trying

 

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