“I was only thirteen when four of my team members and I were chosen by my swim coach to train with the Chinese National Team. The following piece shows how that experience has influenced me.”
The night before I left for China, my mother called me into her room. I entered not knowing what to expect. I sat down at the end of her very neatly-made bed, opposite the bedroom table on which she kept a Ming-style vase illustrated in great detail. She told me that my great-grandmother was still living in the surroundings of Beijing. Her name was Ren Li Ling and she was 97 years old. This was the first time I had ever heard of her.
The dragon on the vase snaked through the flowers and vines(藤蔓)as my mother said, “Pu Pu, look at me. You need to hear this so that when you go to China you will understand. You must keep this knowledge in your heart.”
She told me a story about my grandfather, Ren Li Ling's son, who left Beijing to go to college in Taiwan. She told me how the Chinese civil war kept him away from his mother for fifty years, so neither of them even knew that the other was alive. No one from Taiwan could visit, write, or call anyone in mainland. All lines of communication were cut off.
She told me of my grandfather's devotion to his own children, and how difficult it was for him to send his daughter to America for her education, fearing that same separation. He gave my mother all that he could give — nineteen years of love and fifty years of savings. I learned how my mother, through means only available in this country, would finally be able to unite my great-grandmother with my grandfather again. The dragon curled around the vase, connecting the separate vines. For a fleeting second, I felt it was present in my mother's room. It was all very strange, yet very clear. I began to understand that this trip to China was not just for me; it was for my mother, and her father, and his mother. Now, I had not only a future, but more significantly, a past. I saw the world with new eyes.
And so I went to China and met my great-grandmother. My great-aunt picked me up at the training center, and we rode in a taxi through the crowded city. The noise of the taxi and the city united into a deep roar. We finally stopped in front of a narrow street lined on either side with small one-level houses. As we made our way to a house like all the others, I drew the stares of many people in the street. My great-aunt led me through a rotting(朽烂的)doorway into a room with a furnace(炉子), table, and a rocking chair where an old woman wearing gloves sat facing the doorway, covered with a worn brown blanket. I walked over and immediately embraced this frail woman as if I had known her all my life. My limited, broken Chinese wasn't up to expressing my complicated feelings. And even though I couldn't completely understand what she was saying in her thick Beijing accent, I knew — the same way I knew what my mother had been trying to tell me before I left. Her joy shone through her toothless smile. She wouldn't let go of my hand. I haltingly(结结巴巴地)asked her how she had managed to live such a long life. She answered in words I will never forget, “Hope has kept me alive. I have lived this long because I wanted to see my son before I died.”
My fellow team members must have wondered how two people separated by three generations could be so close. Before this trip, I would have wondered the same thing. And even now, I can't quite explain it. We were as different as two people can be; some 85 years and 8,000 miles apart. We came from two entirely different cultures; yet we were connected by a common heritage(传统).
I stayed for dinner which was cooked in a black iron wok(锅)over the furnace. The meal was lavish(过分丰盛的), prepared in my honor. As I began to eat, with my great-grandmother beside me, I felt the dragon was present. But this time, the feeling didn't pass; the dragon had become a part of me.
My great-grandmother passed away last year at the age of 100. With her highest hopes and wildest dreams fulfilled, I know she died happy.
【小题1】 The writer’s mother called him into her room to ___________________.

A.prepare him for the trip and warn him against possible problems
B.remind him of his origin
C.ask him to look for his great-grandmother
D.share with him the story of her childhood
【小题2】 The dragon is mentioned several times in the passage because __________________.
A.the vase with the dragon on it is very valuable and beautiful
B.it stands for the blood running in every Chinese
C.it is a sign of the writer’s devotion to his birthplace
D.the writer’s mother hoped the writer would be as strong as a dragon
【小题3】 How old was the writer’s mother when she was sent to America for her education.
A.13B.16C.19D.20
【小题4】Which of the following can be inferred from the text?
A.The writer’s grandfather was afraid of a war when sending his daughter to America.
B.The hope to see her son again kept the writer’s great-grandmother alive for this long.
C.It was within the writer’s expectation that he could be so close to his great-grandmother.
D.The writer’s great-grandmother was reunited with her son before she died.
【小题5】Which is the best title for the text?
A.We Share the Same Heritage.
B.Love from My Great-grandmother.
C.A Story from My Mother.
D.An Unforgettable Training Trip.

My mother, Marisol Torres, came with her family to Australia in the early 1960s. Then my parents’ marriage ended and Mum began the study of precious stones. Her interest in opals (猫眼石) took her to the New South Wales remote town of Lightning Ridge. There were no luxuries (奢华的享受), but she was closer to nature and had a chance to find black opals and make some money.

My mother was beautiful with dark hair and brown eyes, but she was also quiet and shy. Early in the Ridge years, she kept to herself, but later, she started going to the neighbourhood centre to make friends.

It was her dream to mine, but her get-rich-quick thinking was unrealistic. She was cheated and she was never very successful. But she kept a sense of humour and a charming smile.

Then, just as friendships began to blossom, she was diagnosed with cancer and had to return south for treatment. She had the intention of cooking Spanish food as special treat for her Ridge friends, but died too soon. In her honour, my aunt, Marisa, and I fulfilled her desire when we visited the Ridge in March last year.

People who mine the Ridge come from a cross section of society, from lawyers to travels. Looks don’t mean much: it can be hard to tell who is millionaire and who is poor. Opals attracted Sebastian and Hanna Deisenberger to Lightning Ridge. They planned a two-year stay, but became permanent residents.

Then there’s Neil Schellnegger, 45, who moved to the area with his parents when he was a child. He lives with his son, Luke. Luke is a shy 19-year-old boy who enjoys helping his dad. They haven’t had much luck over the past couple of years, but their passion for opals conquers disappointment. They love the peaceful lifestyle.

Danny Hatcher, 38, is a second-generation miner and president of the Lightning Ridge Miners’ Association. He is an optimistic man, driven by the desire to find the perfect opal. “It’s magic,” he explains. “Once you start opal mining you don’t want to do anything else… There is always the potential for finding a million dollars. Nothing beats it.”

It’s a place where dreams --- spiritual or material --- can be fulfilled; a place, for one last bet in life.

1.What made the author’s mother go to Lightning Ridge?

A.The luxurious life there.                  B.Her new marriage there.

C.Her interest in opals.                     D.Her passion for nature. .

2.After the author’s mother died, she fulfilled her desire by __________.

A.treating her mother’s Ridge friends with Spanish food

B.writing a biography about her whole life

C.decorating her house in Lightning Ridge

D.finding a lot of black opals in Lightning Ridge

3.We know from the passage that _________.

A.the rich and the poor can be distinguished by their looks

B.Luke is a successful miner, just like his father

C.Sebastian is planning to leave Lightning Ridge

D.Danny Hatcher’s parents were miners in Lightning Ridge

4.Lightning Ridge is a place where dreams can be fulfilled because __________.

A.there are precious stones and life is peaceful

B.there are people from all walks of life

C.there are rich people who can help poor people

D.there is a lot of gold hidden in the ground

5.What is the author’s purpose of giving Neil Schellnegger and Danny Hatcher as examples?

A.To show the magic power of opal mining.

B.To tell people it isn’t always hard to mine opals.

C.To warn people not to take up this kind of job.

D.To persuade people to look for more resources for the country.

 

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