Was there anything ________ that you wanted to talk about?

1. A.
   in common
2. B.
   in general
3. C.
   in total
4. D.
   in particular

When I was in the final year of my graduation studies, I visited a friend’s home for lunch. The moment I reached his house, I found the staircases of his building were not so good and his home was not painted very well. I couldn’t  36  in words but it was not even the type of house in which a typical middle-class Indian family lives.

The greatest things I did find there were his parents. We sat on the ground for lunch because they didn’t have a dining  37 . His mother served us very delicious food, smiled throughout and showed care for the  38  lunch session. I can never forget that.

His father worked as a normal  39  and I wondered if he earned enough money to support their two sons. While we were taking lunch, his father returned home to meet us. When he entered their home, his hands were dark black and his clothes were very dirty. My friend had no  40  about his father and made the introductions.

As soon as his father came in, my friend asked me if I wanted “Papad”（a typical Indian food）to eat. Before I could say anything, the father very gently and kindly  41  it for me, after going through many staircases even though he was looking  42 .

Today, my friend is a leader in a big company. He is able to  43  high rent in Hyderabad and have a new beautiful home. Not only that, he helped his brother  44  in his studies and is still helping.

What I want to say is that I consider  45  as richness in a poor family. The amount of money you make won’t  46  other’s hearts; the only way is with love and kindness. Struggle and bad periods are needed for everyone’s life, as they make us strong. If you have strong willpower, goals and also the attitude of hard and smart work, you can  47  be a successful person in some areas of life.

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When I was in the final year of my graduation studies, I visited a friend’s home for lunch. The moment I reached his house, I found the staircases of his building were not so good and his home was not painted very well. I couldn’t 36 in words but it was not even the type of house in which a typical middle-class Indian family lives.

　 The greatest things I did find there were his parents. We sat on the ground for lunch because they didn’t have a dining 37 . His mother served us very delicious food, smiled throughout and showed care for the 38 lunch session. I can never forget that.

　 His father worked as a normal 39 and I wondered if he earned enough money to support their two sons. While we were taking lunch, his father returned home to meet us. When he entered their home, his hands were dark black and his clothes were very dirty. My friend had no 40 about his father and made the introductions.

As soon as his father came in, my friend asked me if I wanted “Papad”（a typical Indian food）to eat. Before I could say anything, the father very gently and kindly 41 it for me, after going through many staircases even though he was looking 42 .

Today, my friend is a leader in a big company. He is able to 43 high rent in Hyderabad and have a new beautiful home. Not only that, he helped his brother 44 in his studies and is still helping.

What I want to say is that I consider 45 as richness in a poor family. The amount of money you make won’t 46 other’s hearts; the only way is with love and kindness. Struggle and bad periods are needed for everyone’s life, as they make us strong. If you have strong willpower, goals and also the attitude of hard and smart work, you can 47 be a successful person in some areas of life.

36. A. describe 　　　　　　　　　 B. take　　　 　　　　　 C. talk　　　　 　　　　 D. speak

37. A. room　　 　　　　　　　 B. car 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 C. table　 　　　　　　　　 D. hall

38. A. desirable　　　 　　 B. healthy　　　 　　　　 C. temporary　 　　　　 D. entire

39. A. doctor　　　　 　　 B. mechanic　 　　　　 C. lawyer　 　　　　　 D. teacher

40. A. comment　　　 　　 B. hesitation　 　　　　 C. worry　　 　　　　 D. expectation

41. A. borrowed　　　 　　 B. bought　　　 　　　　 C. brought　　 　　　　 D. took

42. A. tired　　　　　 　　 B. happy　　　 　　　　 C. sad　　　　 　　　 D. excited

43. A. cost　　　　　 　　 B. spend　　　 　　　　 C. took　　　　 　　　　 D. pay

44. A. dearly　　　　 　　　 B. financially 　　　　　 C. highly　　　 　　　　 D. costly

45. A. familiarity　　　 　　 B. relationship　 　　　　 C. love　　　 　　　　 D. friendship

46. A. win　　　 　　　　　 B. get　　 　　　　　　 C. gain　 　　　　　　 D. defeat

47. A. possibly　　　 　　　 B. hardly　　　 　　　　 C. suddenly　　 　　　　 D. definitely

Dear Guys,

I’d like to talk to you about the shame you subjected me to last night. Let me first refresh your memory: You, a group of fit, young men, were playing soccer on the field across from my apartment building. I, a better-than-average looking young woman, was walking along the sidewalk with my groceries. That’s when your ball came flying over the fence and landed in front of me.

One of you approached and asked politely if I would throw the ball back to you. Fighting the urge to drop my bags and run screaming down the street, I reluctantly agreed.

Before I continue, let me explain something that I didn’t have a chance to mention last night: I hate sports. More specifically, I hate sports involving balls. This results from my lack of natural ability when it comes to throwing, catching and hitting. I’m bad at aiming too. So you can understand why I’d be nervous at what I’m sure seemed to you like a laughably simple request. However, wanting to appear agreeable, I put my bags down, picked up the ball and, eyes half-shut, and threw it as hard as I could.

It hit the middle of the fence and bounced back to me.

Trying to act casually, I said something about being out of practice, then picked up the ball again. If you’ll remember, at your command, I agreed to try throwing underhand. While outwardly I was smiling, in my head, I was praying, Oh God, oh please oh please oh please. I threw the ball upward with all my strength, terrified by what happened next.

The ball hit slightly higher up on the fence and bounced back to me.

This is the point where I start to take issue with you. Wouldn’t it have been a better use of your time, and mine, if you had just walked around the fence and took the ball then? I was clearly struggling; my smiles were more and more forced. And yet, you all just stood there, motionless.

Seeing that you weren’t going to let me out of the trouble, I became desperate. Memories of middle school softball came flooding back. I tried hard to throw the ball but it only went about eight feet, then I decided to pick it up and dash with ball in hand towards the baseline, while annoyed thirteen-year-old boys screamed at me that I was ruining their lives. Children are cruel. Being a big girl now, I pushed those memories aside and picked up the soccer ball for the third time. I forced a good-natured laugh while crying inside as you patiently shouted words of support over the fence at me.

“Throw it granny-style!” one of you said.

“Just back up a little and give it all you’ve got!” another offered.

And, most embarrassing of all, “You can do it!”

I know you thought you were being encouraging, but it only served to deepen the shame.

Anyway, I accepted your ball-throwing advice, backed up, rocked back and forth a little, took a deep breath and let it fly.

It hit the edge of the fence and bounced back to me.

I surprised myself --- and I’m sure you as well --- by letting out a cry, “DAMN IT!!!” I then willed myself to have a heart attack and pass out in front of you just so I’d be put out of my misery. Alas, the heart attack didn’t happen, and you continued to look at me expectantly, like you were content to do this all night. I had become a sort of exhibition for you. I could feel your collective thoughts drifting through the chain-link: “Can she really not do it? But I mean, really?”

Unfortunately for you, I wasn’t really game to continue your experiment. Three failed attempts at a simple task in front of a group of people in a two-minute period was just enough blow for me for one night. I picked up the ball one last time, approached the fence and grumbled, “Please just come get the damn ball.”

And you did. And thanks to you, I decided at that very moment to never throw anything ever again, except disrespectful glances at people who play sports.

Sincerely, Jen Cordery

1. The writer agreed to throw the ball because _______.

A. she needed to have a relax carrying the heavy groceries

B. she wanted to refresh her childhood memories

C. she could not refuse the polite request from the young man

D. she had fallen in love with the young man at first sight

2.Which of the following is closest in meaning to the underlined word “game”?

A. anxious                                      B. brave                                C. afraid                                D. curious

3.Why did the writer mention her middle school memory?

A. To explain why she failed the attempts to throw the ball back.

B. To complain that she had not mastered the ball throwing skills.

C. To show how cruel those 13-year-old boys were.

D. To express her dislike towards softball.

4.What the boys said before the writer’s third attempt actually made the writer ________.

A. inspired                                     B. encouraged                     C. embarrassed                   D. depressed

5.What’s the writer’s purpose in writing this open letter?

A. To express her regret over what she did the day before.

B. To announce that she would never play ball games again.

C. To explain her own inability to throw the ball over the fence.

D. To criticize the young men for their cruelty to her dignity.