I am a music store owner. One day, when I was cleaning the instruments in my store, I saw an old man come in. His short steps dragged on the carpet. “Is 77 too old to learn the banjo (班卓琴)?” he asked.

“You can learn to play it well,” I replied, holding back my doubts. My mind told me I was giving false encouragement. I reached the instructor’s schedule and gave the rates, the available time and the additional information that he would need. To my surprise and delight, the old man, Carl, began banjo lessons three days later with my most patient teacher.

With nothing to do at home but practice, Carl made surprising progress. After breakfast he practiced for his required half hour. While waiting for lunch he picked up his banjo again for just a couple of minutes. Since TV was difficult for him to see and hear, he often played the banjo in the evenings. Carl was always early for lessons so it was a surprise that he didn’t arrive one Tuesday.

The next morning I listened to the answering machine with sadness. “Carl’s in hospital,” the voice recorded.

Two months later, I shared the newspaper obituary with the banjo teacher. We both shed tears for a surprisingly clever banjo student.

Several months later, a woman came into the store carrying a plant. “This is for Carl’s banjo teacher,” she said. “I’m his wife, Mary.”

“Why did Carl want to play the banjo?” I asked. Mary took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Carl was at some show when he was 10 years old. He came close to the stage to watch the performers. When they were packing up their instruments, the banjo player said to Carl, ‘You want to see this up close?’ Carl climbed up on the stage and from then on he wanted to play the banjo.” Carl had waited 67 years to realize a dream! Mary gave the plant to Carl’s banjo teacher. “Thank you for the best six months of his life,” she said.

1.How did Carl learn to play the banjo well?

A. By taking short cuts.

B. By working hard.

C. By asking his wife to help him.

D. By finding the best teacher.

2.From Paragraph 2, we can know the author ______.

A. encouraged Carl though he had doubts

B. was giving true encouragement

C. didn’t want to encourage Carl

D. was unwilling to help Carl

3.The underlined word “obituary” in Para.5 means a notice that _______.

A. announces a good piece of news

B. announces somebody is needed

C. announces somebody has died

D. announces a gift for somebody

4.Why did Carl want to learn banjo?

A. He wanted to become a banjo performer.

B. He wanted to make his dream of his young age come true.

C. His wife encouraged him to learn it.

D. He wanted to spend the last best six months of his life.

I fell in love with England because it was quaint(古雅)---all those little houses, looking terribly old-fashioned but nice, like dolls’ houses. I loved the countryside and the pubs, and I loved London. I’ve slightly changed my mind after seventeen years because I think it’s an ugly town now.

Things have changed. For everybody, England meant gentlemen, fair play, and good manners. The fair play is going, unfortunately, and so are the gentlemanly attitudes and good manners---people shut doors heavily to your face and politeness is disappearing.

I regret that there are so few comfortable meeting places. You’re forced to live indoors. In Paris I go out much more, to restaurants and nightclubs. To meet friends here it usually has to be in a pub, and it can be difficult to go there alone as a woman. The cafes are not terribly nice.

As a woman, I feel unsafe here. I spend a bomb(大量的钱)on taxis because I will not take public transport after 10 p. m. I used to use it, but now I’m afraid.

The idea of family seems to be more or less non-existent in England. My family is well united and that’s typically French. In Middlesex I had a neighbor who is 82 now. His family only lived two miles away, but I took him to France for Christmas once because he was always alone.

1.The writer doesn’t like London because she______.

A. has to be polite to everyone she meets there

B. has lived there for seventeen years

C. prefers to live in an old-fashioned house

D. is not used to the life there now

2.Where do people usually meet their friends in England? ______.

A. In a cafe. B. In a restaurant

C. In a night club D. In a pub.

3.The underlined part “it” (in Para. 4) refers to______.

A. a taxi B. the money

C. public transport D. a bomb

Owls(猫头鹰) are mysterious creatures. We often think of them as scary. They sometimes live in abandoned houses. They fly without a sound through backyards at night. In stories, they appear with ghosts. When we hear an owl's familiar “wh?ooo...whooo...”,it can make us feel very frightened. Owls fly silently, without even a whisper of wings moving through the air. It's as though they appear out of nowhere—like ghosts on wings. Owls fly and hunt on the darkest of nights. An owl's night habits make it unique. Do these creatures of the night possess strange powers?

Owls possess unusual powers of sight and hearing, but they are not supernatural powers. They are natural adaptations that let them live most efficiently(高效地) at night. There is no reason to fear owls. Their habits make them helpful to humans. By hunting mice and other rodents(啮齿目动物),owls help to keep a natural balance between plant and animal life. Without owls, there would be a large number of rodents in farmers' fields and storage barns.

More than 100 species of owls occupy a variety of habitats around the world. A few oceanic islands and the Antarctic have no owls. The world's owls come in different sizes. For example, the Eurasian eagle owl—one of the largest—has a body that is two to three feet long, with a wingspan(翼展) of up to five and one?half feet. The North American elf owl (the world's smallest owl) is five to six inches long and has a wingspan that measures slightly more than one foot.

Most male and female owls of the same species look alike, although females are usually larger. In some species, the female's colors are like those of the trees or grass where she makes her nest.

Baby owls, called chicks, stay with their parents until they are about three months old. They soon find their own hunting areas, where they may stay for the rest of their lives. Some owls can live 20 years or more.

1.Most people regard owls as________.

A.clever B.hard?working C.shy D.terrifying

2.Owls help humans in that they________.

A.frighten rodents away from humans

B.help preserve the balance of nature

C.have unusual powers

D.help guard backyards

3.What is special about owls?

A.They fly silently.

B.They are night hunters.

C.They possess supernatural powers.

D.They can be found around the world.

根据短文内容,从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。

Are you new to experiencing relationships? Well, let me give you some advice on having a healthy and possibly long-term relationship.

1.Do not hide things from them; do not lie. Don’t be afraid to say things that aren’t very flattering about yourself. Getting them to trust you is the most important element in any relationship. If there’s no trust, there’s nothing there. So please be honest and they’ll learn to open up to you.

Make sure you give them respect. Now respect isn’t just simply treating her or him nicely. There’s a lot more to it. You have to learn to adjust to their liking. 2. Don’t just think about yourself ; think about what your partner needs out of it as well.

3.Always be willing to help them and give them honesty and positivity at the same time. Make them feel you are someone they can really count on. This is an important step in a relationship.

Make sure you have a good sense of humor with them. Laughter is the key to happiness. Laugh a lot with them, and joke with them. Laughter may seem silly, but it’s the secret to a lot in life. It will keep the sparks alive. 4.

Make sure the communication is good. This goes along with trust, but always communicate how you feel, even if it’s something that upsets you. Instead of screaming, talk to them. 5.It’s important to communicate this to them, not to keep it bottled up.

A. If they did something that made you unhappy, tell them about it in a respectful manner.

B. Basically, learn to study your partners’moods, wants and needs.

C .Don’t start to neglect them and make them feel unwanted.

D. Make sure you are helpful to your partner.

E. Be an honest person with them.

F. Laughter keeps the relationship strong and lasting.

G. Show them your personality.

完形填空

When I was a little boy, I would play outside for hours on sunny summer days and then have a deep and peaceful sleep at night. Sometimes, I’d have some vivid dreams, making me for a moment. I would stare out into the darkness to see if anything was there and then over and go back to sleep. I can still remember a few times when I woke up, out into the darkness, and actually someone there. It was Mom over me as I slept. Each time she told me to go back to sleep and I closed my eyes again, feeling and loved.

I asked Mom why she watched me sleep from time to time, but seeing my own children so fast, I think I know why. She wanted to catch a moment in time and it in her heart forever. I just that she carried a lot of those moments with her into Heaven when she at only .

Last night I was sleeping lightly I suddenly felt someone near me. I opened my eyes and saw Mom’s standing in the room, smiling at me. And then she was gone.

Now may say that this was just a dream, a wish or part of an old . To me, though, it was that Mom’s loving spirit was still watching over me. To me, it was evident enough to know that one day I would be with her and everyone I have ever loved.

Trust in their love. Know that your own life can be full of , too. Then joyfully go out and live it with a brave heart and a smiling soul.

1.A. excited B. awake C. worried D. afraid

2.A. take B. climb C. look D. roll

3.A. looked B. burst C. went D. found

4.A. met B. dreamed C. expected D. saw

5.A. helping B. treating C. watching D. sitting

6.A. angrily B. gently C. silently D. gladly

7.A. safe B. nervous C. quiet D. anxious

8.A. sometimes B. often C. never D. seldom

9.A. before B. for C. since D. after

10.A. bring up B. grow up C. lift up D. raise up

11.A. find B. remove C. hold D. cover

12.A. decide B. remember C. wonder D. hope

13.A. passed away B. put away C. ran away D. took away

14.A. after B. while C. when D. before

15.A. body B. shadow C. shape D. figure

16.A. some B. none C. all D. any

17.A. dream B. memory C. story D. wish

18.A. chance B. time C. proof D. belief

19.A. connected B. buried C. reunited D. joined

20.A. love B. joy C. hope D. surprise

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