Watching some children trying to catch butterflies one August afternoon, I was reminded of an incident in my own childhood. When I was a boy of 12 in South Carolina, something happened to me that cured me forever of wanting to put any wild creature in a cage.

We lived on the edge of a wood, and every evening at dusk the mockingbirds would come and rest in the trees and sing. There isn’t a musical instrument made by man that can produce a more beautiful sound than the song of the mockingbird. I decided that I would catch a young bird and keep it in a cage and that in that case, I would have my own private musician.

I finally succeeded in catching one and put it in a cage. At first, in its fright at being captured , the bird fluttered(拍翅) about the cage, but eventually it settled down in its new home. I felt pleased with myself and looked forward to some beautiful singing from my tiny musician.

I had left the cage out on our back doorway and on the second day of the bird’s captivity(囚禁), my new pet’s mother flew to the cage with food in her mouth. The baby bird ate everything she brought to it. I was pleased to see this. Certainly the mother knew better than I on how to feed the baby.

The following morning when I went to see how my captive was doing, I discovered it on the floor of the cage, dead. I was shocked! What had happened? I had taken excellent care of my little bird , or so I thought.

Arthur Wayne, the famous ornithologist, happened to be visiting my father at the time and, hearing me crying over the death of my bird, explained what had occurred. “A mother mockingbird, finding her young in a cage, will sometimes bring it poisonous berries(浆果). She thinks it better for her young to die than to live in captivity.”

Never since then have I caught any living creature and put it in a cage. All living creatures have a right to live free.

1.The boy caught a mockingbird because__________.

A. he liked its beautiful feather.

B. he wanted a pet as his companion

C. he wanted it to sing for him

D. he wanted to watch it dance

2.The “ornithologist” probably means __________.

A. a religious person

B. a kind and sympathetic person

C. a school master

D. an expert in birds

3.The most important lesson the boy learned from the accident is that __________ .

A. a bird put in a cage won’t live long

B. you have to be careful about the food you give to your young

C. freedom is valuable to all living creatures

D. you should keep a young bird away from its mother

4.What can we infer according to the passage?

A. The children trying to catch butterflies reminded the author to keep a mockingbird as a pet.

B. The mockingbird sings better than any other bird.

C. The mockingbird’s mother had a better understanding than the author.

D. The author did not catch any living creature and put it in a cage after the accident.

We can make mistakes at any age. Some mistakes we make are about money. But most mistakes are about people. Did Jerry really care when I broke up with Helen? When I got that great job, did Jim really feel good about it, as a friend? Or did he envy my luck? And Paul - why didn’t pick up that he was friendly just because I had a car? When we look back, doubts like these can make us feel bad. But when we look back, it’s too late.

Why do we go wrong about our friends - or our enemies? Sometimes what people say hides their real meaning. And if we don’t really listen, we miss the feeling behind the words. Suppose someone tells you, “You’re a lucky dog.” That’s being friendly. But lucky dog? There’s a bit of envy in those words. Maybe he doesn’t see it himself. But bringing in the dog bit puts you down a little. What he may be saying is that he doesn’t think you deserve your luck.

Just think of all the things you have to be thankful for is another noise that says one thing and means another. It could mean that the speaker is trying to get you to see your problem as part of your life as a whole. But is he? Wrapped up in this phrase is the thought that your problem isn’t important. It’s telling you to think of all the starving people in the world when you haven’t got a date for Saturday night.

How can you tell the real meaning behind someone’s words? One way is to take a good look at the person talking. Do his words fit the way he looks? Does what he says agree with the tone of voice? His posture? The look in his eyes? Stop and think. The minute you spend thinking about the real meaning of what people to you may save another mistake.

1. This passage is mainly about ____________.

A. how to interpret what people say

B. what to do when you listen to others talking

C. how to avoid mistakes when you communicate with people

D. why we go wrong with people sometimes

2.According to the author, the reason why we go wrong about our friends is that ____________.

A. we fail to listen carefully when they talk

B. people tend to be annoyed when we check what they say

C. people usually state one thing but mean another

D. we tend to doubt what our friends say

3.The underlined word “it” in the second paragraph refers to ____________.

A. being friendly B. a bit of envy

C. lucky dog D. your luck

完形填空

阅读下面短文,从短文后各题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中,选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。

The town I live in is about to put cameras at all traffic lights to catch people who run red lights. It ___________me of how many people I've seen who take the yellow light as a signal to go faster. I also can't ___________ why people don't move when the traffic light has turned green. Above all, there are those ___________ situations in which someone doesn't even ___________ that the light is red, and just keeps going. That is why so many accidents happen! All these situations make me ___________ about the purpose of traffic lights.

However, it's even more ___________ to imagine letting people make their own ___________ at crowded crossroads. Do the biggest cars get to go first? Who decides who goes next? ___________ I guess I do like the idea of a system to ___________ traffic. And I'll do my best to ___________ the traffic rules: to go, to be ___________, and to stop when I'm supposed to.

It occurs to me that my ___________ have done much the same for me in___________teaching me how to live. They have given me many ___________ lights: to get along well with others, to listen and talk to them, to help others, and to live with ___________ and purpose. They have also given me some red lights so that my __________ doesn’t go astray (误入歧途): not to be greedy, to keep my temper, and to control my desires. And there also have been some yellow caution lights: to watch how much I drink, to keep control of my behavior, and to ___________ school regularly and work hard.

If I obey these rules, my life will be as___________ as it can be. Just as I'm wise to pay attention to the traffic lights when I'm walking ___________ the street, I'm wise to pay attention to the "life ___________" given to me by my parents.

1.A.informs B.reminds C.suggests D.indicates

2.A.realize B.understand C.clarify D.remember

3.A.surprising B.competitive C.dangerous D.exciting

4.A.feel B.stand C.receive D.notice

5.A.dare B.worry C.complain D.wonder

6.A.frightening B.relaxing C.confusing D.interesting

7.A.attempts B.efforts C.decisions D.preparations

8.A.Since B.But C.So D.As

9.A.affect B.control C.serve D.improve

10.A.obey B.recognize C.reflect D.analyze

11.A.sensitive B.annoyed C.cautious D.concerned

12.A.teachers B.relatives C.parents D.friends

13.A.case B.honor C.place D.terms

14.A.yellow B.red C.colorful D.green

15.A.adventure B.joy C.panic D.chance

16.A.confidence B.life C.dream D.belief

17.A.attend B.start C.leave D.join

18.A.good B.convenient C.special D.simple

19.A.through B.across C.beyond D.above

20.A.purposes B.features C.qualities D.signals

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