John chose his food carefully in Walmart. He estimated he had 36　 80 cents today. He was pleased he had got good 37　 for his money again.

At the exit, the freezing wind 38　 him of his gloves. He was sure he was wearing them when entering the

39　 . He made a search of his pockets. Then he thought they must have been　 40　 somewhere in the store. John had bought the black gloves for $35 ten years ago. They were leather, soft and durable. Until then, he had worn cheaper man-made material that never lasted long. His　 41　 to buy the gloves turned out to be good, which even 42　 his position on the bus, as poorer passengers stared at him 43　 .

　 take long to be 　 46　 that the gloves were not there. His 47　 grew heavier. “People have changed”, he 48　 . “Years ago, if somebody　 49 something lost, they would give it back.”

　 Yet he did not give up. This time he focused on the gloves on other shoppers’　 50　 . Suddenly he　 51　 a lady nearby wearing a black pair of gloves. He said, “Hi!” But when the surprised lady returned his　 52　 , his eyes dropped to the floor, for the fingers of her gloves were too small for him.

　 Without gloves, he had to　 53　 his hands into his sleeves. Back home, John was　 54　 . He could not do without gloves. John decided to buy another leather pair. But before that, he stepped into Walmart again to see if by any

　 55 his gloves had been returned to the lost and found office. The girl looked into her drawer and took out a pair of men’s leather gloves. “Are they?”

　 “Yes! Mine!” John shouted with joy.

　 Not long before, my daughter's shoes were scratched with a knife.She burst into 26 ．I took them to the shoemaker to get them 27 ．

　　　 The young apprentice （学徒） glanced at the opening and said, " 28　 I can do except replace the upper．" His master looked at them and said to me, "If you 29　 me, I will add more scratches on both of the shoes．"

　　　 I was 30　 and asked why．

　　　 He explained, "As if the openings were made　 31　 for the sake of special style and reuse．"

　　　 Two days later I found there were indeed more scratches on 32　 shoe, but all the openings were patched （打补丁） by soft red leather with edges sewed by thick thread, 33 more unique and interesting than ever．I couldn't help but 34 the master's skill．

　　　 Another time, my wife's sister's white blouse had been torn, leaving a large opening on the back．My wife　 35 the blouse carefully, and then said, "Let me take it 36 and mend it．"

　　　 Seeing the blouse again, I was shocked: all the torn parts had been sewed up by thin and 37 thread and they 38 a look of ice crystal （冰晶 ） hanging from a winter's branch． 39 , she had attached a snowman and a cabin made of flowery cotton rags onto the shirt．I 40　 with praise, "It's just as beautiful as a piece of　 41 !"

　　　 "I was inspired by that craftsman．Patches are supposed to be 42, but a skillful craftsman can make it take on a kind of perfection," replied my wife．

　　　 Her words inspired me even more: Perfection is　 43　 to achieve in everything; Patches are unavoidable, so is human's life．Since you can't　 44　 the existence o f wound, you should not expect people's　 45　 by exposing the wound, which reveals nothing meaningful．

26．A．laughter　 B．cheers　　 C．tears D．speech

27．A．made B．repaired　 C．decorated D．preserved

28．A．Anything　 B．Something C．Everything　　　 D．Nothing

29．A．trust B．inform　　 C．appoint　　 D．convince

30．A．annoyed　 B．confused　 C．disappointed　　 D．discouraged

31．A．on purpose　　　 B．by accident　　 C．in vain　　 D．beyond control

32．A．neither　　 B．any　 C．every D．each

33．A．remaining B．growing　 C．looking　　 D．feeling

34．A．appreciate B．witness　　 C．praise　　　 D．describe

35．A．delivered　 B．checked　 C．washed　　 D．ironed

36．A．outside　　 B．downtown　　　 C．home D．abroad

37．A．red　 B．white C．pink D．purple

38．A．took on　　 B．put on　　　 C．decided on　　　 D．focused on

39．A．Therefore B．Otherwise C．Anyway　 D．Besides

40．A．sighed　　 B．signed　　　 C．greeted　　 D．paused

41．A．cake B．art　　 C．furniture　 D．jewellery

42．A．pretty　　　 B．attractive　 C．tough　　　 D．ugly

43．A．easy B．improper　 C．likely D．impossible

44．A．change　　 B．imagine　　 C．stand D．prove

45．A．respect　　 B．friendship C．sympathy D．apology