“Would you tell me which way I should go from here?” asked Alice.
“That depends a good deal on where you want to get,” said the Cat.
“I really don’t care where” replied Alice.
“Then it doesn’t much matter which way you go,” said the Cat.
--- from “ Alice in Wonderland ”
My name is David. And I have a brother called Mike.
One day, my brother called me and asked me for some advice. He was trying to decide between two job offers:
Job 1 – The first job was your typical 40 hour a week “office” job.
Job 2 – The second job was more of a career in the insurance industry(保险业), where he would start at the bottom, and after many years and many long hours eventually rise to the top (if he was good).
The second job did not pay as well as the first job (at the beginning), but the pay-off of the second job (in the future) was much greater than the first job. So which job should my brother take? Well the answer is…it depends.
Just like the Cat was trying to tell Alice, which road you take depends a great deal on where you want to end up.
Begin with the End in Mind
I asked my brother what was his life’s purpose. He said his purpose was to “teach,” but he wanted to make a lot of money first. I told my brother to forget about the money, and I advised him to focus on his purpose. I then asked him which job best supported his end result of “teaching.” He said the first job best supported his goal because he would only have to work 40 hours a week, which would give him spare time to teach. He continued on to say, “but if I take job number two, I can work hard and make more money, then I can retire early and “teach” later in life.” I again advised him to “focus” on his purpose, not money. Things don’t end wrong, they begin wrong!
You Can’t Ride Two Horses Well
It would be very difficult to have a successful teaching career while you’re working 70-80 hours a week in the insurance business; no one can ride two horses well. As they say, you can do anything, but not everything. I advised him to get started today by choosing the job that best supported that decision.
Tomorrow Never Comes
My brother was thinking that he could always start teaching later in life, but the reality is, tomorrow never comes. Unless you decide right now to follow your feelings, they will probably never be completed. You only live once, don’t go to the end of your life with one regret.
The Money Will Come
My brother seemed to be overly concerned with making money. I told him not to be anxious about making money. You will always have greater money when you’re doing what you love.
In a word, whenever you’re at a cross-road, be sure to make the decision that best supports the goal of your life. If you do, then you will be well on your way.
【小题1】Mike ___________ David one day.

In my life, I have received many gifts from my mother. The most important was my life. However, there’s another special gift I will never forget.

When I grew up, I left home and got a job in South America. One day , a call came from my brother, “Something is wrong with Mom. She’s forgetful (健忘). She thinks we’re hiding (藏) you from her…”

I got back home at once. It was clear that she would not be able to stay in the house alone.

For nearly 4 years I stayed with my mother and we had fun. We even planted some vegetables together in the garden. It was not easy for me. I had to stop working. When I had to leave , I had to ask someone to look after her or drive her to my brother’s.

When it became clear that she was near the end, family memebers were called to come to say their good byes. For 3 weeks my sister and I just sat with Mom, took long walks and spent some real time with each other. My sister and I were both with Mom when she was passing away (去世), holding her hands and telling her how much we loved her. At the end of life, my mother gave me the gift of time with my sister in a way we would never have given ourselves.

1.The writer knew there was something wrong with her mother________.

2.The writer spent 4 years _______.

3.The writer’s family memebers were called _________.

4.From the passage, we know___________.

5.What’s the best title for this passage?

A teacher stood in front of his history class of twenty students just before handing out the final exam. His students sat quietly and waited for him to speak.

“It’s been a pleasure teaching you this term,” he said. “You’ve all worked very hard, so I have a pleasant surprise for you. Everyone who chooses not to take the final exam will get a ‘B’ for the course.”

Most of the students jumped out of their seats. They thanked the teacher happily, and walked out of the classroom. Only a few students stayed. The teacher looked at them. “This is your last chance,” he said. “Does anyone else want to leave?” All the students there stayed in their seats and took out their pencils.

The teacher smiled. “Congratulations (祝贺),” he said. “I’m glad to see you believe in yourselves. You all get A’s.”

1.This story most probably took place       .

A. at the beginning of the term         B. in the middle of the term

C. at the end of the term               D. at the beginning of the school year

2. Most of the students got Grade ______.

A. ‘A’           B. ‘B’           C. ‘C’           D. ‘F’

3.Why did some students stay in their seats?

A. Because they wanted to take the exam.

B. Because the teacher told them to stay in their class.

C. Because they were afraid to leave.

D. Because they didn’t have anything to do.

4. The teacher gave the students who stayed in the classroom A’s because ______.

A. the teacher liked them

B. they were cleverer than the other students

C. they believed in themselves

D. they studied hard

5. The underlined word “them” in Paragraph 3 refers to “______”.

A. students staying in their seats          B. students leaving the classroom

C. their seats                      D. all the students

An Englishman was showing a foreign visitor around London. “What’s that strange building?” asked the visitor. “That’s the Tower of London.” “I see. How long did it take to build it?” “About 500 years.” “In my country we can build it in five months,” Shortly after that they came to St. Paul’s Cathedral(大教堂). “Very interesting!” said the visitor. “How long did it take to build it ?” “Near forty years.” said the Englishman. “In my country we can finish it in forty days at most,” said the visitor. This went on all day.
They visited most of the best known buildings in the city. Every time they saw a new one, the visitor asked what it was and how long it took to build it. Then he said that they could do the same thing much faster in his country.
At last the Englishman got angry with the visitor though he tried not to show it. Several days later they came to the House of Parliament(议会)and the visitor asked his usual question, “What is that?” The Englishman answered, “ I have no idea. It wasn’t there last night.”
【小题1】The Englishman showed the foreign visitor around _______ one day.