When I come across a good essay in reading newspapers,I am often inclined to cut and keep it.But just as I am about to do so I find the article on the opposite side is as much interesting.It may be a discussion of the way to keep in good health,or advice about how to behave and conduct oneself in society.If I cut the front essay,the opposite one is bound to suffer damage,leaving out half of it or keeping the text without the subject.As a result,the scissors would stay before they start,or halfway done when I find out the regretful consequence that inevitably causes my repentance.

Sometimes two things are to be done at the same time,both deserving your attention.You can only take up one of them,the other has to wait or be given up.But you know the future is unpredictable—the changed situation may not allow you to do what is left behind.Thus you are caught in a fix and feel sad.How come that nice opportunities and brilliant ideas should gather around all at once? It may happen that your life changes dramatically on your preference of one alternative to the other.

In fact that is what life is like:we are often faced with the two opposite aspects of a thing which are both desirable like newspaper cutting.It often occurs that our attention is drawn to one thing only after we are engaged in another.The former may be more important than the latter and give rise to a divided mind.I still remember a philosopher’s remarks:“When one door shuts,another opens in life.”So a casual or passive choice may not be a bad one.

Whatever we do in our lifetime,wherever life’s storm tosses us,there must be something we can achieve,some shore we can land,that opens up new vistas to us.Don’t forget God always keeps an alternative door open for every one.While the front door is closed,there must be another open for you.

When the writer finds a good article in reading newspapers,_________.

A.he is always glad to cut and keep it

B.he is always hesitant to cut and keep it

C.he often has a desire to cut and keep it

D.he often finds it difficult to decide which side to cut and keep

The writer feels regretful because_________.

A.he fails to choose a good essay

B.he fails to cut the two essays on both sides well

C.he finds the essay on the opposite side is better

D.he finds that he just keeps the text without the subject

What’s the meaning of the underlined part in Paragraph 2?

A.You’re trapped in a trouble.

B.You find it difficult to fix something.

C.You are trapped in a situation where you can’t decide which choice is better.

D.You have so many opportunities that you don’t know which to choose.

Which one do you think is the best title of this passage?

A.Paper Cutting                                               B.Two Opposite Sides

C.Difficult Choices                                           D.Another Door

When my first wartime Christmas came, I was in basic training in New Jersey and not sure if I could make it home for the holidays. Only on the afternoon of December 23 was the list of men who would have three-day passes (通行证) posted. I was one of the lucky soldiers.

    It was Christmas Eve when I arrived, and a light snow had fallen. Mother opened the front door. I could see beyond her, into the corner of the living room where the tree had always stood. There were lights, all colors, and ornaments (装饰物) shining against the green of a pine.

    “Where did it come from?” I asked.

    “I asked the Gates boy to cut it,” my mother said. “I wouldn’t have had one just for myself, but when you called--- oh, such a rush! He just brought it in this afternoon…”

    The pine reached to the proper height, almost to the ceiling, and the Tree Top Krystal Star was in its place. A few green branches reached about a little awkwardly (不够美观地) at the side, I thought, and there was a bit of bare trunk showing in the middle. But the tree filled the room with warm light and the whole house with pleasant smell of Christmas.

    “It’s not like the ones you used to find,” my mother went on. “Yours were always in good shape. I suppose the Gates boy didn’t know where to look. But I couldn’t be picky.”

    “Don’t worry, ” I told her. “It’s perfect.”

    It wasn’t, of course, but at the moment I realized something for the first time: all Christmas trees are perfect.

From the passage, we can infer that ________.

A. the writer spent his Christmas during the war

B. soldiers did not all go home for Christmas during the war

C. all the soldiers had three-day passes 

       D. the writer could not go home for Christmas

When the writer got home, ________.

A. it was December 23  

B. it was snowing heavily

C. he found a Christmas tree in the living room      

D. the Gates boy was cutting a Christmas tree for his mother

From the passage, we can conclude that ________.

A. the writer used to cut very beautiful Christmas trees                  

B. his mother didn’t like perfect trees                

C. his mother didn’t want to have a tree   

D. the writer wouldn’t have a tree cut by someone else

“All Christmas trees are perfect”, because they can remind you of ________.

A. the wartime              B. the green of a pine      C. the pleasant smell    D. the sweet home

The best title for this passage would be “________”.

A. How to Choose a Christmas Tree                B. How Soldiers Spent Christmas     

C. The Perfect Christmas Tree                           D. The Christmas Without a Tree

I still remember the days when I was a youthful student in an engineering school. I lived a casual life, without caring about the future. I smoked, drank with friends and made girl friends. Little did I realize that casualness would certainly lead to loss.

     Two years had passed and I was staring down a report card that highlighted FAIL in more than half the subjects. I didn’t care, at least not till my dad found out about it. You see, I studied in India and unlike the United States where the students are expected to finance their own education, my dad financed me.

     Then came the day when my dad found out my habit of smoking. He lost his temper but he just told me, “Son, your allowance is cut in half from this moment on”. It hit me like a roundhouse kick (回旋踢) from Bruce Lee. I was jolted (震摇) out of my bones! I couldn’t comprehend how to pay off the debts that I had accumulated in college. I owed everybody money: the grocery store, the bars, the restaurants, my friends, etc. I was living a life filled with credit.

     When I went back to college, I knew that if I don’t change the way I live my life I won’t be able to pay everybody off. So I decided to make some changes, drastic changes. I quit smoking, cut off from my friends who led me down the wrong road, starting hanging out in libraries and reading my engineering books.

     One year later, I went from a miserable failure to a magna cum laude (优等成绩). Life was never the same again. This incident made me know that anything is possible if you take action and do something about it, however small or large. Even today it still motivates me when I feel that I’m about to lose or give up. It reminds me that I can do it!

The author wrote this text with the purpose of ________.

  A. introducing his university life to the teenage readers

  B. encouraging those lazy students to study hard at school

  C. showing you can overcome any difficulty if you take action

  D. calling on the readers not to develop bad habits in college

The author didn’t care about his study until _______.

  A. he entered the engineering school   B. he was in heavy debt he couldn’t bear

  C. he decided to give up smoking     D. his allowance was cut in half

The underlined sentence in the last paragraph means that the author ________.

  A. paid off his debt and life wasn’t hard for him any more

  B. removed his bad habits and didn’t lead a casual life

  C. never hung out with his friends but studied all day

  D. began to live a happy life due to his good grades

Which of the following statements is TRUE?

  A. Students tended to earn money for college expenses in America.

  B. The author did well in making good friends in the school.

  C. The author made great progress with the help of his friends.

  D. Students were encouraged to do part-time jobs in Indian schools.

Recently I spoke to some of my students about what they wanted to do after they graduated, and what kind of job prospects they thought they had.

Given that I teach students who are training to be doctors, I was surprised to find that most thought that they would not be able to get the jobs they wanted without “outside help”. “What kind of help is that?” I asked, expecting them to tell me that they would need a relative or family friend to help them out.

“Surgery(外科手术)”, one replied. I was pretty alarmed by that response. It seems that the graduates of today are increasingly willing to go under the knife to get ahead of others when it comes to getting a job. One girl told me that she was considering surgery to increase her height. “They break your legs, put in special extending screws, and slowly expand the gap between the two ends of the bone as it regrows, you can get at least 5cm taller!”

At that point, I was shocked. I am short, I can’t deny that, but I don’t think I would put myself through months of agony(痛苦) just to be a few centimeters taller. I don’t even bother to wear shoes with thick soles, as I’m not trying to hide the fact that I am just not tall!

It seems to me that there is a trend toward wanting “perfection”, and that is an ideal that just does not exist in reality.

No one is born perfect, yet magazines, TV shows and movies present images of thin, tall, beautiful people as being the norm. Advertisements for slimming aids, beauty treatments and cosmetic surgery clinics fill the pages of newspapers, further creating an idea that “perfection” is a requirement, and that it must be purchased, no matter what the cost. In my opinion, skills, rather than appearance, should determine how successful a person is in his chosen career.

1.We can know from the passage that the author works as ______.

A.a doctor          B.a model           C.a teacher          D.a reporter

2.Many graduates today turn to cosmetic surgery to______.

A.marry a better man\woman               B.become a model

C.get an advantage over others in job-hunt     D.attract more admirers

3.According to the passage, the author believes that ______.

A.everyone should purchase perfection, whatever the cost

B.it’s right for graduates to ask for others to help them out in hunting for jobs

C.media are to blame for misleading young people in their seeking for surgery

D.it is one’s appearance instead of skills that really matters in one’s career

4.What does the author think of his height?

A.He hates to be called a short man.

B.He tries to increase his height through surgery.

C.He always wears shoes with thick soles to hide the fact.

D.He just accepts it as it is

 

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