Some years ago, writing in my diary used to be a usual activity. I would return from school and spend the expected half hour recording the day’s events, feelings, and impressions in my little blue diary. I did not really need to express my emotions by way of words, but I gained a certain satisfaction from seeing my experiences forever recorded on paper. After all, isn’t accumulating memories a way of preserving the past?

　　When I was thirteen years old, I went on a long journey on foot in a great valley, well-equipped with pens, a diary, and a camera. During the trip, I was busy recording every incident, name and place I came across. I felt proud to be spending my time productively, dutifully preserving for future generations a detailed description of my travels. On my last night there, I wandered out of my tent, diary in hand. The sky was clear and lit by the glare of the moon, and the walls of the valley looked threatening behind their screen of shadows. I automatically took out my pen….

　　At that point, I understood that nothing I wrote could ever match or replace the few seconds I allowed myself to experience the dramatic beauty of the valley. All I remembered of the previous few days were the dull characterizations I had set down in my diary.

　　Now, I only write in my diary when I need to write down a special thought or feeling. I still love to record ideas and quotations that strike me in books, or observations that are particularly meaningful. I take pictures, but not very often—only of objects I find really beautiful. I’m no longer blindly satisfied with having something to remember when I grow old. I realize that life will simply pass me by if I stay behind the camera, busy preserving the present so as to live it in the future.

　　I don’t want to wake up one day and have nothing but a pile of pictures and notes. Maybe I won’t have as many exact representations of people and places; maybe I’ll forget certain facts, but at least the experiences will always remain inside me. I don’t live to make memories—I just live, and the memories form themselves.

　　51. Before the age of thirteen, the author regarded keeping a diary as a way of ______.

　　A. observing her school routine

　　B. expressing her satisfaction

　　C. impressing her classmates

　　D. preserving her history

　　52. What caused a change in the author’s understanding of keeping a diary?

　　A. A dull night on the journey.

　　B. The beauty of the great valley.

　　C. A striking quotation from a book.

　　D. Her concerns for future generations.

　　53. What does the author put in her diary now?

　　A. Notes and beautiful pictures.

　　B. Special thoughts and feelings.

　　C. Detailed accounts of daily activities.

　　D. Descriptions of unforgettable events.

　　54. The author comes to realize that to live a meaningful life is ______.

　　A. to experience it

　　B. to live the present in the future

　　C. to make memories

　　D. to give accurate representations of it

Now that I am no longer young, I have friends whose mothers have passed away. I have heard these sons and daughters say they never fully appreciated their mothers ___36___ it was too late to tell them. I am blessed with the dear mother who is still alive. I ___37___ her more each day. My mother does not change, but I ___38___. As I grow older and wiser, I realize ___39___ an exceptional person she is. How ___40___ that I am unable to speak these words in her ___41___, but they flow easily from my pen.
　　How does a daughter begin to thank her mother for life itself? For the love, patience and just ___42___ hard work that go into ___43___ a child? For running after a toddler (学走步的小孩), for understanding a ___44___ teenager, for tolerating (忍受;容忍) a college student who knows ___45___ ? For waiting for the day when a daughter ___46___ how wise her mother really is?
　　How does a ___47___ woman thank a mother for ___48___ to be a mother? For being ready ___49___ advice (when asked) or remaining ___50____ when it is most appreciated? For not saying, “I told you so,” when she could have uttered these words ___51___? For being ___52___ herself-loving, thoughtful, patient, and forgiving?
I don’t know how, dear God, except to ask you to bless her as richly as she ___53___ and to help me live up to the example she has ___54___. I pray that I will look as good in the eyes of my children as my mother ___55___ in mine.

Some years ago, writing in my diary used to be a usual activity. I would return from school and spend the expected half hour recording the day’s events, feelings, and impressions in my little blue diary. I did not really need to express my emotions by way of words, but I gained a certain satisfaction from seeing my experiences forever recorded on paper. After all, isn’t accumulating memories a way of preserving the past?

　When I was thirteen years old, I went on a long journey on foot in a great valley, well-equipped with pens, a diary, and a camera. During the trip, I was busy recording every incident, name and place I came across. I felt proud to be spending my time productively, dutifully preserving for future generations a detailed description of my travels. On my last night there, I wandered out of my tent, diary in hand. The sky was clear and lit by the glare of the moon, and the walls of the valley looked threatening behind their screen of shadows. I automatically took out my pen….

At that point, I understood that nothing I wrote could ever match or replace the few seconds I allowed myself to experience the dramatic beauty of the valley. All I remembered of the previous few days were the dull characterizations I had set down in my diary.

Now, I only write in my diary when I need to write down a special thought or feeling. I still love to record ideas and quotations that strike me in books, or observations that are particularly meaningful. I take pictures, but not very often—only of objects I find really beautiful. I’m no longer blindly satisfied with having something to remember when I grow old. I realize that life will simply pass me by if I stay behind the camera, busy preserving the present so as to live it in the future.

I don’t want to wake up one day and have nothing but a pile of pictures and notes. Maybe I won’t have as many exact representations of people and places; maybe I’ll forget certain facts, but at least the experiences will always remain inside me. I don’t live to make memories—I just live, and the memories form themselves.

1. Before the age of thirteen, the author regarded keeping a diary as a way of ______.

A. observing her school routine     B. expressing her satisfaction

C. impressing her classmates       D. preserving her history

2.What caused a change in the author’s understanding of keeping a diary?

A. A dull night on the journey.

B. The beauty of the great valley.

C. A striking quotation from a book

 D. Her concerns for future generations.

3.What does the author put in her diary now?

A. Notes and beautiful pictures.

B. Special thoughts and feelings.

C. Detailed accounts of daily activities.

D. Descriptions of unforgettable events.

4.The author comes to realize that to live a meaningful life is ______.

A. to experience it             B. to live the present in the future

C. to make memories           D. to give accurate representations of it

　　My parents were all standing there, shouting at each other.　　　　　　　　　　    1．________

The word “divorce（离婚）” was repeated and broke my heart each　　　　　　   

time. I had trapped between them and didn’t know what to do.　　　　　　　　　　　　 2．________

A million thoughts rushed into my mind, but nothing of them could　　　　　　　　    3．________

ease my feelings. I rushed back to my room, seated down i n　　　　　　　　　　　　   4．________

silence and stared out of the window. The leaves were floating in air.　　　　　　　　 5．________

They struggled trying to catch the wind and finally they had to fall　　　　　　　　    6．________

on the ground. 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　   

　　I knew I was not the only one who had got through this. But I　　　　　　　　   7．________

must learn to fight against this. Later in the day I took up with a pen　　　　　　　　  8．________

and wrote down. It is until I take a step back and look at my family　　　　　　　　   9．________

that I can really appreciate this thing has helped me grow strong and　　　　　　　　 10．________

mature（成熟）.

My heart sank when the man at the immigration counter gestured to the back room. I was born and raised in America, and this was Miami, where I live, but they weren’t quite ready to let me in yet.

　 “Please wait in here, Ms. Abujaber,” the immigration officer said. My husband, with his very American last name, accompanied me. He was getting used to this. The same thing had happened recently in Canada when I’d flown to Montreal to speak at a book event. That time they held me for 45 minutes. Today we were returning from a literary festival in Jamaica, and I was shocked that I was being sent “in back” once again.

　　The officer behind the counter called me up and said, “Miss, your name looks like the name of someone who’s on our wanted list. We’re going to have to check you out with Washington.”

　　“How long will it take?”

　　“Hard to say…a few minutes,” he said, “We’ll call you when we’re ready for you.” After an hour, Washington still hadn’t decided anything about me.

“Isn’t this computerized?” I asked at the counter, “Can’t you just look me up?”

“Just a few more minutes,” they assured me.

　　After an hour and a half, I pulled my cell phone out to call the friends I was supposed to meet that evening. An officer rushed over. “No phones!” he said, “For all we know you could be calling a terrorist cell and giving them information.”

　　“I’m just a university professor,” I said. My voice came out in a squeak.

　　“Of course you are. And we take people like you out of here in leg irons every day.”

　　I put my phone away.

　　My husband and I were getting hungry and tired. Whole families had been brought into the waiting room, and the place was packed with excitable children, exhausted parents, and even a flight attendant.

　　I wanted to scream, to jump on a chair and shout: “I’m an American citizen; a novelist; I probably teach English literature to your children.”

After two hours in detention (扣押), I was approached by one of the officers. “You’re free to go,” he said. No explanation or apologies. For a moment, neither of us moved. We were still in shock. Then we leaped to our feet.

　　“Oh, one more thing,” he handed me a tattered photocopy with an address on it, “If you aren’t happy with your treatment, you can write to this agency.”

　　“Will they respond?” I asked.

　　“I don’t know—I don’t know of anyone who’s ever written to them before.” Then he added,” By the way, this will probably keep happening each time you travel internationally.”

　　“What can I do to keep it from happening again?”

　　He smiled the empty smile we’d seen all day, “Absolutely nothing.”

　　After telling several friends about our ordeal, probably the most frequent advice I’ve heard in response is to change my name. Twenty years ago, my own graduate school writing professor advised me to write under a pen name so that publishers wouldn’t stick me in what he called “the ethnic ghetto”—a separate, secondary shelf in the bookstore. But a name is an integral part of anyone’s personal and professional identity—just like the town you’re born in and the place where you’re raised.

　　Like my father, I’ll keep the name, but my airport experience has given me a whole new perspective on what diversity and tolerance are supposed to mean. I had no idea that being an American would ever be this hard.

1.The author was held at the airport because ______.

A. she and her husband returned from Jamaica

B. her name was similar to a terrorist’s

C. she had been held in Montreal

D. she had spoken at a book event

2.She was not allowed to call her friends because ______.

A. her identity hadn’t been confirmed yet

B. she had been held for only one hour and a half

C. there were other families in the waiting room

D. she couldn’t use her own cell phone

3.We learn from the passage that the author would ______ to prevent similar experience from happening again.

A. write to the agency?????????? B. change her name??

C. avoid traveling abroad??????? D. do nothing

4.Her experiences indicate that there still exists ______ in the US.

A. hatred???????????????????? B. discrimination?????

C. tolerance?????????????????? D. diversity

5.The author sounds ______ in the last paragraph.

A. impatient?? B. bitter???????? C. worried??????????? D. ironic (具有讽刺意味的)