Yesterday, after telling my brother, Rhys, and me to stop playing like wild animals, Mom went to take a bath. We were having a pillow fight when 　36 one hit a vase. Mom 　37 the loud crash. Wasting no time, she came 　38 into the room. I was sure that she was going to shout at us, but instead she just knelt by the 39 and began to cry.

　 This made Rhys and me feel pretty 　40 . We went over and put our arms around her, and she explained to us why she was so upset. In the pieces 　41 a broken glass rose, one petal (花瓣)gone, which was given by Dad on their first wedding anniversary. Dad had said that if he ever forgot to bring flowers home 　42 an anniversary in the future, Mom was to look at that one. It was like their love—it would last a 　43 .

　 We began crying, and 　44 to glue it. But Mom said that wouldn’t really fix it. 　45 it had been broken, the 　46 of the “limited edition” had reduced. As Mom 　47 began to pick up the mess, we tried everything we could think of to　 48 her up, but even our best funny faces didn’t 　49 . Tears kept coming down her cheeks. Everything was picked up. Seeing Mom going back to the bath, I 　50 her and put both hands on her shoulders, saying, “All things can be 　51 ，Mom. The only thing that cannot be broken is our 　52 . It’s the only thing that can never be broken. ”

　 Mom hugged me very tightly and 　53 smiled. After dinner that night, Mom glued the petal back onto the rose. Then she softly said, “My rose is truly unique. Its tiny damage reminds me of 　54 more important：the realization that love 　55　 forever. ”

36. A. gradually　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. suddenly

C. surprisingly　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. immediately

37. A. caused　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. witnessed

C. heard　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. ignored

38. A. dressing　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. shouting

C. flying　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. crying

39. A. pieces　　　　　　　　 B. vase　　　　　　　　　　　　 C. pillow　　　　　　　 D. ground

40. A. disappointed　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. angry

C. awful　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. sensitive

41. A. grew　　　　　　　　 B. lay　　　　　　　　　　　　　 C. stood　　　　　　　 D. existed

42. A. for　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. in　　　　　　　　　　 C. from　　　　　　　　 D. by

43. A. decade　　　　　　　 B. year　　　　　　　　　　　　 C. season　　　　　　　　　　 D. lifetime

44. A. offered　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. supported

C. pretended　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. agreed

45. A. Just as　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. In case

C. Now that　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. Even though

46. A. price　　　　　　　　　 B. wealth　　　　　　　 C. value　　　　　　　　 D. treasure

47. A. skillfully　　　　　　 B. hopefully　　　　　 C. kindly　　　　　　　 D. slowly

48. A. cheer　　　　　　　　 B. make　　　　　　　　 C. light　　　　　　　　 D. get

49. A. smile　　　　　　　　 B. work　　　　　　　　 C. show　　　　　　　 D. say

50. A. prevented　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. stopped

C. kept　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. followed

51. A. destroyed　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. mended

C. improved　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. broken

52. A. friendship　　　　　　　　　　　　 　　　　　　　　　　 B. honesty

C. love　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. happiness

53. A. finally　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. quickly

C. confidently　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. immediately

54. A. anything　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. something

C. nothing　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. everything

55. A. changes　　　　　　　　　　 B. appears　　　　　　　　　 C. lasts　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. keeps

Rising above the names

　　 I was shopping in the supermarket when I heard a young voice.

　 “Mom，come here！There's this lady here my size！”

　　 The mother rushed to her son；then she turned to me to apologize.

　　 I smiled and told her，“It's okay.”Then I talked to the boy，“Hi，I'm Darryl Kramer.How are you？”

　　 He studied me from head to toe，and asked，“Are you a little mommy？”

　 “Yes，I have a son，”I answered.

　 “Why are you so little？”he asked.

　 “It's the way I was born，”I said.“Some people are little.Some are tall.I'm just not going to grow any bigger.”After I answered his other questions，I shook the boy's hand and left.

　　 My life as a little person is filled with stories like that.I enjoy talking to children and explaining why I look different from their parents.

　　 It takes only one glance to see my uniqueness.I stand three feet nine inches tall.I was born an achondroplasia dwarf(侏儒)．Despite this，I did all the things other kids did when I was growing up.

　　 I didn't realize how short I was until I started school.Some kids picked on me，calling me names.Then I knew.I began to hate the first day of school each year.New students would always stare at me as I struggled to climb the school bus stairs.

　　 But I learned to smile and accept the fact that I was going to be noticed my whole life.I decided to make my uniqueness an advantage rather than a disadvantage.What I lacked in height，I made up for in personality.

　　 I'm 47 now，and the stares have not diminished as I've grown older.People are amazed when they see me driving.I try to keep a good attitude.When people are rude，I remind myself，“Look what else I have－a great family，nice friends.”

　　 It's the children's questions that make my life special.I enjoy answering their questions.My hope is that I will encourage them to accept their peers(a person of the same age，class，position，etc.)，whatever size and shape they come in，and treat them with respect.

1．Why did the mother apologize to the author?

A．Because the boy ran into the author.

B．Because the boy laughed at the author.

C．Because the boy said the author was fatter than him.

D．Because the mother thought the boy's words had hurt the author.

2．When did the author realize that she was too short?

A．When she grew up.

B．When she was 47 years old.

C．When she began to go to school.

D．When she met the boy in the supermarket.

3．Which of the following word can best replace the underlined word“diminished”？

A．Dismissed. 　　　　 B．Increased.

C．Decreased. 　　　　 D．Discriminated.

4．How does the author feel about people's stares?

A．Angry. 　　　　　　 B．Calm.

C．Painful. 　　　　　 D．Discouraged.

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

A few years after Mom died, Dad handed me a plastic bag. That evening, I 　36 　 the bag to find dozens of shells, each one 　 37 　 in white tissue paper and having Mom’s handwriting.

The shells were pretty 　　38 　 , but to Mom, they were evidence of her endlessly magical life and 　 39 　 me of the seashore trip with her. She was 61 when she 　40 　 these shells, and already showing 　 41 　 of the lung disease that would kill her the next year. We knew something was 　 42 　 and mom needed an adventure. She suggested a dinner and a movie. But two friends and I had bigger 　　43 　 .

Mom had been to the ocean only twice, but she 　　44 　 the seashore. Her kitchen was decorated with souvenirs from those two trips. I called Mom and told her that we would 　　45　 for Jersey Shore. Mom was so　 46 that she screamed and Amber, her dog, who was sitting on her lap was 　　47 　 to jump onto the floor.

One of my favorite 　 48 　 on the road was a discussion about movies. Mom often got the titles wrong. “Ohhhh,” she said, “what was that movie about a teacher at the boys’ school?” Before anyone could 　 49 　 , she shouted, “I remember! The Dead Man’s Poet!” I looked in the rearview mirror and saw a back seat full of 　 50 　 . “Mom,” I said. “You mean Dead Poets Society?” “That’s it!” Mom yelled. 　 51 　 filled the car.

Once we got to Stone Harbor, she began to 　 52 　 the trip, greeting strangers and spending hours gathering shells.

　 The morning we left, I found her photographing every inch of her bedroom. “I don’t ever want to 　　53 　 this,” she said.

For a long time, Mom’s shells stayed 　 54 　 in a drawer. Last month, I 　 55 them again while searching for something else. I put them in a visible place as a reminder from a mother who never lost her sense of wonder.

36. A received　　 　　 　　　 B. opened　 　　　　 C. checked　　 　 　　　 D. packed

37. A. folded　　 　　 　　　 B. included　　 　 　　　 C. trapped　　　 D. covered

38. A. amazing　　　 B. common　　 C. lucky　　 　　 　　　 D. funny

39. A. reminded　　 　 B. demanded　　 C. informed　　 D. warned

40. A. moved　　　 　 B. protected　　 　　　 C. collected　　 D. examined

41. A. signals　　 　　　　　　 B. scenes　　　 C. signs　　　　 D. sights

42. A. wrong　　 　　 　　　 B. missing　　　 C. strange　　　 　　　 D. boring

43. A. cars　　　 　　 　　　 B. days　 　　　 C. maps　　　　 D. plans

44. A. remembered　　 　　 B. trusted　　 　 　　　 C. loved　　　 　 　　　 D. respected

45. A. wait　　　 　　　　　　 B. head　　　　 C. look　　　 　　 　　　 D. pay

46. A. encouraged　　 B. relaxed　　　 C. surprised　　 　　　 D. excited

47. A. frightened　　 B. embarrassed　 C. disappointed　 D. pleased

48. A. reasons　　　 　 B. thoughts　　 　 　　　 C. memories　　 D. questions

49. A. realize　 　　　　 B. add　　　 　　 　　　 C. advise　　　 D. answer

50. A. confusion　　 　 B. worry　　　 　　　 C. emotion　　 D. peace

51. A. Pride　　 　　　 B. Laughter　　 C. Shouts　　　 D. Challenges

52. A. enjoy　　 　　　 B. organize　　 C. support　　　 D. take

53. A. decide　　 　　 　　　 B. forget　　　 C. believe　　　 D. mean

54. A. unexpected　　 B. stuck　　 　　 　　　 C. unknown　　 　　　 D. buried

55. A. mistook　 　　　　 B. developed　 　 C. discovered　　 　　　 D. prepared