The drug store was closing for the night and Alfred Higgins was about to go home when his new boss approached him.

“Empty your pockets please, Alfred,” Sam Carr demanded in a firm voice.

Alfred pretended to be shocked but he knew he’d been caught. From his coat he withdrew a make-up kit, a lipstick and two tubes of toothpaste.

“I’m disappointed in you, Alfred!” said the little gray-haired man.

“Sorry, sir. Please forgive me. It’s the first time I’ve ever done such a thing,” Alfred lied, hoping to gain the old man’s sympathy.

Mr Carr’s brow furrowed as he reached for the phone, “Do you take me for a fool? Let’s see what the police have to say. But first I’ll call your mother and let her know her son is heading to jail.”

“Do whatever you want,” Alfred shot back, trying to sound big. But deep down he felt like a child. He imagined his mother rushing in, eyes burning with anger, maybe in tears. Yet he wanted her to come quickly before Mr. Carr called the police.

Mr. Carr was surprised when Mrs Higgins finally arrived. She was very calm, quiet and friendly. “Is Alfred in trouble?” she asked.

“He’s been stealing from the store,” the old man coolly replied.

Mrs. Higgins put out her hand and touched Mr. Carr’s arm with great gentleness as if she knew just how he felt. She spoke as if she did not want to cause him any more trouble. “What do you want to do, Mr. Carr?”

The woman’s calm and gentle manner disarmed the once-angry store-owner. “I was going to get a cop. But I don’t want to be cruel. Tell your son not to come back here again, and I’ll let it go.” Then he warmly shook Mrs. Higgins’s hand.

Mrs. Higgins thanked the old man for his kindness, then mother and son left. They walked along the street in silence. When they arrived home his mother simply said, “Go to bed, you fool.”

In his bedroom, Alfred heard his mother in the kitchen. He felt no shame, only pride in his mother’s actions. “She was smooth!” he thought. He went to the kitchen to tell her how great she was, but was shocked by what he saw.

His mother’s face looked frightened, broken. Not the cool, bright face he saw earlier. Her lips moved nervously. She looked very old. There were tears in her eyes.

This picture of his mother made him want to cry. He felt his youth ending. He saw all the troubles he brought her and the deep lines of worry in her grey face. It seemed to him that this was the first time he had ever really seen his mother.

1.Which of the following is true according to the passage?

A. It was the first time Alfred had stolen anything.

B. Alfred tried to sound big to hide his fear.

C. Mr. Carr set a trap to catch Alfred stealing.

D. Mr. Carr had planned to forgive Alfred from the beginning.

2. What does the underlined word “disarmed” probably mean?

A. annoyed                          B. made less angry

C. convinced                       D. got over

3.What was the mother’s attitude toward Alfred?

A. She felt disappointed with him.

B. She was very strict with him.

C. She was supportive of him.

D. She was afraid of him.

4.What impressed Alfred most about his mother at the drugstore was ________.

A. how angry she was

B. that she didn’t cry

C. that she was able to save him

D. how effectively she handled Mr. Carr

5. From the last paragraph, we know that Alfred ________.

A. was no longer a youth

B. felt proud of his mother

C. wanted his mother to be happy

D. felt guilty and regretful for his deed

The drug store was closing for the night and Alfred Higgins was about to go home when his new boss approached him.
“Empty your pockets please, Alfred,” Sam Carr demanded in a firm voice.
Alfred pretended to be shocked but he knew he had been caught. From his coat he withdrew a make-up kit, a lipstick and two tubes of toothpaste.
“I’m disappointed in you, Alfred!” said the little gray-haired man.
“Sorry, sir. Please forgive me. It’s the first time I’ve ever done such a thing,” Alfred lied, hoping to gain the old man’s sympathy.
Mr Carr’s brow furrowed as he reached for the telephone, “Do you take me for a fool? Let’s see what the police have to say. But first I’ll call your mother and let her know her son is heading to jail.”
“Do whatever you want,” Alfred shot back, trying to sound big. But deep down he felt like a child. He imagined his mother rushing in, eyes burning with anger, maybe in tears. Yet he wanted to come quickly before Mr. Carr called the police.
Mr. Carr was surprised when Mrs. Higgins finally arrived . She was very calm, quiet and friendly. “Is Alfred in trouble?” she asked.
“He’s been stealing from the store,” the old man coolly replied.
Mrs. Higgins pulled out her hand and touched Mr. Carr’s arm with great gentleness as if she knew just how he felt. She spoke as if she did not want to cause him any more trouble. “What do you want to do, Mr.Carr?”
The woman’s calm and gentle manner disarmed the once-angry store-owner, “I was going to get a cop. But I don’t want to be cruel. Tell your son not to come back here again and I will let it go.” Then he warmly shook Mrs. Higgins’ hand.
Mrs. Higgins thanked the old ma for his kindness, then mother and son left. They walked along the street in silence. When they arrived home his mother simply said, “Go to bed, you fool.”
In his bedroom, Alfred heard his mother in the kitchen. He felt no shame, only pride in his mother’s actions. “She was smooth!” he thought. He went to the kitchen to tell her how great she was, but was shocked by what he saw.
His mother’s face looked frightened, broken. Not the cool, bright face he saw earlier. Her lips moved nervously. She looked very old. There were tears in her eyes.
This picture of his mother made him want to cry. He felt his youth ending. He saw all the troubles he brought her and the deep lines of worry in her grey face. It seemed to him that this was the first time he had ever really seen his mother.
【小题1】Which of the following is true according to the passage?

The drug store was closing for the night. Young Alfred Higgins, the shop-assistant, was ready to go home. Mr. Carr, the boss, stared at him and said: “Hold on, Alfred. Maybe you'd be good enough to take the things out of your pockets and leave them here before you go.”Alfred's face got red. After a little hesitation, he took out what he had stolen. Mr. Carr said, “Maybe I should call your mother and let her know I'm going to have to put you in prison.”

Alfred thought his mother would come rushing in, eyes burning with anger. But, to his surprise, she arrived wearing a smile. “Hello, I'm Alfred's mother. Is he in trouble?”she said. Mr. Carr was surprised, too. He had expected Alfred's mother to come in nervously, shaking with fear, asking with wet eyes for a mercy for her son. But no, she was most calm, quiet and pleasant and was making Mr. Carr feel guilty…. Soon Mr. Carr was shaking his head in agreement with what she was saying. “Of course”, he said, “I don't want to be cruel. You are right. Sometimes, a little good advice is the best thing for a boy at certain times in his life and it often takes the youths long time to get sense into their heads.”And he warmly shook Mrs. Higgins's hand.

Back home, without even looking at Alfred, she said, “You are a bad luck. It is one thing after another, always has been. Why do you stand there so stupidly? Go to bed.”In his bedroom, Alfred heard his mother in the kitchen. There was no shame in him, just pride in his mother's strength. He felt he must tell her how great she was. As he got to the kitchen, he saw his mother drinking a cup of tea. He was shocked by what he saw. His mother's face was a frightened, broken one. It was not the same cool, bright face he saw earlier in the drug store. As she lifted the tea cup, her hand shook. And some of the tea splashed on the table. Her lips moved nervously. She looked very old. He watched his mother without making a sound. The picture of his mother made him want to cry. He felt his youth coming to an end. He saw all the troubles he brought his mother in her shaking hand and the deep lines of worry in her grey face. It seemed to him that this was the first time he had ever really seen his mother.

1.The reason why Mr. Carr felt guilty was that ________.

A．he found Alfred was in fact innocent

B．he should have called a policeman in first

C．Alfred's mother appeared polite and gentle

D．he thought he was partly responsible for it

2.Which of the following is probably said by Mrs. Higgins while talking to Mr. Carr?

A．“Please, for God's sake, you know, he is just a kid.”

B．“I can't believe it! You are treating my son like that!”

C．“You know, it takes time for a youth to truly grow up.”

D．“Punishment makes sense because it teaches about the law.”

3.What does the underlined phrase "his mother's strength"(Para. 3) refer to?

A．Mrs. Higgins's calmness and communicating skills.

B．Mrs. Higgins's attitude towards parental sufferings.

C．Mrs. Higgins's love and care for her son Alfred.

D．Mrs. Higgins's greatness as a woman.

4.After the incident, young Alfred would probably ________.

A．feel ashamed of her mother

B．change his attitudes towards life

C．learn to live an independent life

D．hate Mr. Carr for hurting her mother

The day I became a mom was not the day my daughter was born, but seven years later. Up until that day, I had been too busy trying to survive my abusive(辱骂的) marriage. I had spent all my energy trying to run a "perfect" home that would pass inspection each evening, and I didn't see that my baby girl had become a toddler. I'd tried endlessly to please someone who could never be pleased and suddenly realized that the years had slipped by and could never return. 

Oh, I had done the normal "motherly" things, like making sure my daughter got to ballet and gym lessons. I went to all of her recitals and school concerts, parent-teacher conferences and open houses alone. We suffered from my husband's rages(暴怒) when something was spilled(溢出) at the dinner table, telling her, "It will be okay, Honey. Daddy's not really mad at you." I did all I could to protect her from hearing the awful shouting and complaints after he returned from a night of drinking. Finally I did the best thing I could do for my daughter and myself: I removed us from the home that wasn't really a home at all. 

That day I became a mom was the day when my daughter and I were sitting in our new home having a calm, quiet dinner just as I had always wanted for her. We were talking about what she had done in school and suddenly her little hand knocked over the full glass of chocolate milk by her plate. As I watched the white tablecloth and freshly painted white wall become dark brown, I looked at her small face. It was filled with fear, knowing what the consequence of the event would have meant only a week before in her father's presence. When I saw that look on her face and looked at the chocolate milk running down the wall, I simply started laughing. I am sure she thought I was crazy, but then she must have realized that I was thinking, "It's a good thing your father isn't here!" She started laughing with me, and we laughed until we cried. They were tears of joy and peace and were the first of many tears that we cried together. That was the day we knew that we were going to be okay. 

Whenever either of us spills something, even now, seventeen years later, she says, "Remember the day I spilled the chocolate milk? I knew you had done the right thing for us." That was the day I really became a mom. I discovered that being a mom isn't only going to ballet or gym, recitals, and attending every school concert and open house. It isn't keeping a tidy house and preparing perfect meals. It certainly isn't pretending things are normal when they are not. For me, being a mom started when I could laugh over spilled milk. 

                                       ---- By Linda Jones from “Chicken Soup for Soul”

1.What does the underlined part "the right thing" refer to?

A．Becoming a single mother.

B．Divorcing with her abusive husband.

C．Doing all the motherly things well and running the family.

D．Not blaming on her daughter’s spilling the chocolate milk.

2.Which statement is NOT true?．

A．The author had suffered from an unfortunate marriage for a long time.

B．All the things the author did were to protect her daughter

C．The author hadn’t been a mother until she removed from her marriage.

D．Both the author and her daughter were frightened at the husband and father.

3.Why did the author and her daughter laugh and then cry?

A．Because it was a thorough relief after they had suffered too much.

B．Because they were actually crazy.

C．Because they wouldn’t see the abusive man any more.

D．Because spilling the chocolate milk on the wall was really funny.

4.What is the best title for this article?

A．How To Be a Better Mon?               B．The Day I Became a Mom

C．A Thing Happened 17 Years Ago          D．Survive an Abusive Marriage

The drug store was closing for the night and Alfred Higgins was about to go home when his new boss approached him.
“Empty your pockets please, Alfred,” Sam Carr demanded in a firm voice.
Alfred pretended to be shocked but he knew he’d been caught. From his coat he withdrew a make-up kit, a lipstick and two tubes of toothpaste.
“I’m disappointed in you, Alfred!” said the little gray-haired man.
“Sorry, sir. Please forgive me. It’s the first time I’ve ever done such a thing,” Alfred lied, hoping to gain the old man’s sympathy.
Mr Carr’s brow furrowed as he reached for the phone, “Do you take me for a fool? Let’s see what the police have to say. But first I’ll call your mother and let her know her son is heading to jail.”
“Do whatever you want,” Alfred shot back, trying to sound big. But deep down he felt like a child. He imagined his mother rushing in, eyes burning with anger, maybe in tears. Yet he wanted her to come quickly before Mr. Carr called the police.
Mr. Carr was surprised when Mrs Higgins finally arrived. She was very calm, quiet and friendly. “Is Alfred in trouble?” she asked.
“He’s been stealing from the store,” the old man coolly replied.
Mrs. Higgins put out her hand and touched Mr. Carr’s arm with great gentleness as if she knew just how he felt. She spoke as if she did not want to cause him any more trouble. “What do you want to do, Mr. Carr?”
The woman’s calm and gentle manner disarmed the once-angry store-owner. “I was going to get a cop. But I don’t want to be cruel. Tell your son not to come back here again, and I’ll let it go.” Then he warmly shook Mrs. Higgins’s hand.
Mrs. Higgins thanked the old man for his kindness, then mother and son left. They walked along the street in silence. When they arrived home his mother simply said, “Go to bed, you fool.”
In his bedroom, Alfred heard his mother in the kitchen. He felt no shame, only pride in his mother’s actions. “She was smooth!” he thought. He went to the kitchen to tell her how great she was, but was shocked by what he saw.
His mother’s face looked frightened, broken. Not the cool, bright face he saw earlier. Her lips moved nervously. She looked very old. There were tears in her eyes.
This picture of his mother made him want to cry. He felt his youth ending. He saw all the troubles he brought her and the deep lines of worry in her grey face. It seemed to him that this was the first time he had ever really seen his mother.
【小题1】Which of the following is true according to the passage?