Neighbors rescued a woman from her burning home early Monday morning，and three firefighters were hurt putting out the flames in Green Bay.
The fire was discovered around 4 o'clock at a three-story home in the South Quincy Street on the city's east side. Investigators(调查者) say 68-year-old Mary Taylor lives there with her two dogs.
“I got out of bed and went to the front window and could hear somebody was yelling(叫喊)，‘Fire!’” Curt Dworak said.When he realized what was happening, he threw on some clothes and ran to help. “I was just hoping Mary wasn't in there，but her car was in the driveway，so I just reacted,” he said, “I just broke the glass and then went in through the window.”
Dworak yelled for Mary but got no response. As he searched，the fire grew and debris(碎片) started falling around him. I didn't know what to do. I yelled for her a couple more times，and then I heard her. Disoriented(分不清方向的)and unable to move, Mary was sprawling(趴) on the floor in the back of her house，so Dworak picked her up and carried her to safety.
Dworak, who has been hailed as a hero by Green Bay Fire Department but shrugged of the praise，said，“They would have done the same thing. Mary is a nice lady，and how could you live with yourself if you didn't do something like that?”
Mary was up and talking before she was taken to the hospital to be checked out. Dworak escaped without a thin cut.
【小题1】
As soon as Dworak realized there was a big fire，he        .

A．It was Dworak who found the fire first.

B．Dworak was badly injured by the fire.

C．Mary lost consciousness in the flames.

D． Mary is friendly to her neighborhood.

An African farmer had heard tales about other farmers who had made millions of dollars by discovering diamond mines. These tales so excited the farmer that he could hardly wait to sell his farm and go prospecting for diamonds himself.

So he sold the farm and spent the rest of his life wandering the African continent, searching unsuccessfully for the shining stone that brought such high prices on the markets of the world.

Finally, broke and worn out, he threw himself into a river and drowned.

Meanwhile, back at the farm, the man who had bought his farm happened to be crossing a small river on the property one day when he saw something shining at the bottom of the river. He picked it up. It was a sparkling stone - a good size stone - and, admiring it, he later put it on his fireplace mantel（壁炉架） as an interesting curiosity.

Several weeks later, a visitor admired the stone, looked closely at it, lifted it in his hand and nearly fainted. He asked the farmer if he knew what he'd found. When the farmer said no, that he thought it was just a piece of crystal, the visitor told him he had found one of the largest diamonds ever discovered.

The farmer was astonished. He told the man that his small river was full of these brilliant stones, and his farmland was covered with them. Not all were as large, perhaps, as the one on his mantel, but they were sprinkled generously throughout his property.

Needless to say, the farm the first farmer had sold, so that he could search for a diamond mine, turned out to be the most productive diamond mine on the entire African continent.

【小题1】Why did the first farmer sell his farm?

A. He had made a fortune by selling diamonds.

B. He was tired of his life as a farmer.

C. He wanted to make more money elsewhere.

D. He was told that there was no diamonds on his farm.

【小题2】What happened to him after he sold his property?

A. He found a river full of diamonds on his farm.

B. He lost everything including his own life.

C. He discovered a mine filled with brilliant stones.

D. He finally got his property back with diamonds.

【小题3】When the second farmer first found a shining stone, he ______.

A. felt sorry for what he had done to the first farmer

B. was excited to see he would soon be very rich

C. found it special and brought it home

D. couldn’t wait to share his joy with his friends

【小题4】The visitor nearly passed out after a close look at the stone because _______.

A. he was shocked by the misfortune of the first farmer

B. the discovery was too good to be true

C. it was not discovered on his own farm

D. he was blinded by the light from the stone

【小题5】What do we learn from the story?

A. Treasure a farm with a river running across it.

B. Show your belongings to others to find their real value.

C. Dig deep into what we have instead of wandering elsewhere.

D. Ask for professional advice before selling anything to others.

My husband has always had a huge affection for older people and has helped out several elderly friends in the past. Mr. Dave   16   the same lake as my husband John for over 15 years．A friendship   17  but when Mrs. Dave died five years ago, it left Mr. Dave   18  . So John took Mr. Dave fishing with him every time he went. Mr. Dave was very   19  for 80 years old and never tired of being with John．
A few years later Mr. Dave had a stroke(中风)that paralyzed(麻痹)his right side．He lost his speech and was   20  a nursing home. Restricted to his bed and unable to  21 , Mr. Dave began to suffer from   22 .
This almost broke John’s heart. He finally got   23  from the nursing home to take Mr. Dave out for a ride．They were both   24   to be together again but it was very painful for Mr. Dave to be   25  into John’s truck. Because he was paralyzed on one side. The   26  of that side pulled heavily on his good side．
John had gotten his truck a year earlier, a real cowboy Cadillac,   27  was the truck of his dreams. But one day he   28  it so he could buy a van(厢式货车)that was  29  for a wheelchair. The van isn’t sporty or fast but it surely   30  Mr. Dave’s pain on their outings.
John has made a   31  fishing rod that Mr. Dave can use,   32  they still go fishing together. Even though Mr. Dave can’t   33 , he has led the nursing home staff to believe John is his son. I don’t know anyone who would   34  their prized possession to help a friend. I hope he can be an example for others to take similar steps to   35   those who are in need.