【题目】You may have heard of the man who decided to repair the roof of his house. To be safe, he tied a rope around his waist and threw the other end of it over the top of the house. He asked his son to tie it to something secure. The boy fastened the safety rope to the bumper(保险杠) of their car parked in the driveway. It seemed like a good idea at the time. But a little while later, his wife, unaware of the rope securing her husband, she started the car and drove away. Imagine what the result would be.

This story, factual or not, points to a great truth. It is a truth about where we place our security; about those things to which we’ve tied our safety lines. What is your rope tied to? Think about it. What do you depend on to keep you from disaster? Is your rope tied to a good job? Is it tied to a relationship with somebody you rely on? Is it tied to a company or an organization?

Writer Susan Taylor tells of discovering how unreliable some of our safety lines really are. She tells of lying in bed in the early hours of the morning when an earthquake struck. As her house shook, she fell out of bed and managed to go to the doorway, watching in horror as her whole house cracked down around her. Where her bed had once stood, she later discovered nothing but a pile of bricks. She lost everything — every button, every dish, her automobile, every article of clothing. Susan trembled, scared and crying, in the darkness. In the early morning she cried and called out for help.

Thoroughly exhausted, she thought that maybe she should be listening for rescuers instead of crying. So she grew still and listened. In the silence around her, the only sound she heard was the beating of her own heart. It occurred to her then that at least she was still alive and, amazingly enough, unhurt.

She thought about her situation. In the stillness, fear abandoned her and a feeling of indescribable peace and happiness flooded in, the likes of which she had never before known. It was an experience that was to change her life forever.

In the deepest part of her being, Susan realized a remarkable truth. She realized she had nothing to fear. Amazingly, whether or not she was ever rescued, whether she ever made it out alive, she sensed she had nothing to fear.

For the first time in her life she understood that her true security did not depend on those things in which she had placed her trust. It lay deep within. And also for the first time, she knew what it was to be content in all circumstances. She realized that whether she had plenty or hardly enough, somehow she would be all right. She just knew it. She later wrote, “Before the quake I appeared very successful, but my life was out of balance. I wasn’t happy because I had been making money and always wanting more. My home, my job, my clothes, a relationship — I thought they were my security. It took an earthquake and losing everything I owned for me to discover that my security had been with me all along…There’s a power within us that we can depend upon no matter what is happening around us.”

She had tied her rope to the wrong things. It took a disaster for her to understand that those things are not trustworthy. So she let go of the rope and discovered peace. She found that her true security was a power within- dependable and sure.

What is your rope tied to? And what would happen if you found the courage to let go of it?

1In Paragraph 1, the writer tells the story of the man to___________.

A. describe a scene B. introduce a topic

C. offer an argument D. satisfy the readers’ curiosity

2If the story of the man was true, the most probable result would be that___________.

A. the bumper of the car broke up

B. the house was destroyed by the car

C. the man was badly injured or even killed

D. the wife was scolded by her husband

3Why was Susan crying in the darkness?

A. Because she was afraid of staying in the dark.

B. Because she wanted to be heard by the rescuers.

C. Because she was frightened and felt helpless.

D. Because she had tied her rope to the wrong thing.

4What did Susan feel after she thought about her situation?

A. She felt she was still alive.

B. She felt very peaceful.

C. She felt completely hopeless.

D. She wanted to change her life forever.

5How did Susan like interpersonal relationship and income before the earthquake?

A. They were meaningless.

B. They were very important.

C. They were unnecessary.

D. They were among some choices.

6Which of the following should be the best title?

A. An Experience from an Earthquake. B. A Rope Tied to a Car.

C. Please Let Go of Your Trust. D. What to Depend on.

【题目】If you put a buzzard(秃鹰) in a pen(围栏) six to eight feet square and entirely open at the top, the bird, in spite of its ability to fly, will be a prisoner. The reason is that a buzzard always begins a flight from the ground with a run of ten to twelve feet. Without space to run, it will not even attempt to fly, but remain a prisoner for life in a small prison with no top.

The ordinary bat that flies around at night, a remarkably nimble creature in the air, cannot take off from a level place. If it is placed on the floor or flat ground, all it can do is to shuffle about helplessly and, no doubt, painfully, until it reaches some slight height from which it can throw itself into the air. Then, at once, it takes off like a flash.

A bumblebee (大黄蜂), if dropped into an open tumbler(平底玻璃杯), will be there until it dies, unless it is taken out. It never sees the means of escape at the top, but insists on trying to find some way out through the sides near the bottom. It will seek a way where none exists until it completely destroys itself.

In many ways, there are lots of people like the buzzard, the bat and the bumblebee. They are struggling about with all their problems and frustrations, not realizing that the answer is right there above them.

【1】Why does a buzzard choose to stay in a pen?

A. Because it is safe to live there.

B. Because it gets used to living there.

C. Because it cannot take off within an limited area.

D. Because it lost its ability to fly.

【2】 The underlined word in the second paragraph probably means .”

A. to run slowly B. to move slowly

C. to pace slowly D. to fly slowly

【3】A bumblebee will completely destroy itself for .

A. it does not look for a way out above

B. it is dropped into an open cage

C. it does not try to find a way to escape

D. it hurts itself while flying

【4】 In which way are many people similar to a buzzard, an ordinary bat and a bumblebee?

A. They are overcoming all their problems and frustrations.

B. They are all content with the things as they are.

C. They choose to give in to problems and frustrations.

D. They do not seek new ways to deal with difficulties.

违法和不良信息举报电话:027-86699610 举报邮箱:58377363@163.com

精英家教网