One cold rainy evening last October, as a medical student, I was in a hospital, gathering data
for my graduation paper.
Holding a patient questionnaire   34  some simple yes-or-no questions, I walked towards a 43-year-old patient who lay in bed alone. I was worried whether she would approve of my demands at such a late hour.   35 , she treated it with consideration. Soon I finished and prepared to leave.   36  I could stand up, she spoke up in a weak voice asking where I was from and why I was working so late in the evening.
Then she started talking about herself as well as her   37 , "My husband died about a year ago,   38  me the only breadwinner of my family. My pay as a cleaner is   39  enough for me and my three kids. I don't know what my children would be if something bad happened to me."
I didn't know what to say. I desperately tried to remember the lessons from a communication skills class I had taken years earlier, but my mind was  40.
Without realizing it, I had begun   41  her hand. Now that I didn't have anything to say, I just sat quietly while she talked. That's when it occurred to me that she was not expecting any 42 from me. She   43  wanted me to listen. All 1 did was nod my head as a way of showing my 44.
The conversation went on for about 20 minutes. Finally, she stopped talking. "I'm very sorry for keeping you here to listen to my problems, but I feel   45  now. I had no one to   46 out my problems to. Thank you so much, doctor."
Sometimes patients do not need expensive medicine or advanced technology.   47 , they just need someone with the   48  to lend an ear and spare a little of their time. For me, that is one of the best things a doctor can do for a patient, doesn't it?

One cold rainy evening last October, as a medical student, I was in a hospital, gathering data

for my graduation paper.

     Holding a patient questionnaire   34   some simple yes-or-no questions, I walked towards a 43-year-old patient who lay in bed alone. I was worried whether she would approve of my demands at such a late hour.   35  , she treated it with consideration. Soon I finished and prepared to leave.   36   I could stand up, she spoke up in a weak voice asking where I was from and why I was working so late in the evening.

    Then she started talking about herself as well as her   37  , "My husband died about a year ago,   38   me the only breadwinner of my family. My pay as a cleaner is   39   enough for me and my three kids. I don't know what my children would be if something bad happened to me."

     I didn't know what to say. I desperately tried to remember the lessons from a communication skills class I had taken years earlier, but my mind was  40.

    Without realizing it, I had begun   41   her hand. Now that I didn't have anything to say, I just sat quietly while she talked. That's when it occurred to me that she was not expecting any 42 from me. She   43   wanted me to listen. All 1 did was nod my head as a way of showing my 44.

    The conversation went on for about 20 minutes. Finally, she stopped talking. "I'm very sorry for keeping you here to listen to my problems, but I feel   45   now. I had no one to   46 out my problems to. Thank you so much, doctor."

     Sometimes patients do not need expensive medicine or advanced technology.   47  , they just need someone with the   48   to lend an ear and spare a little of their time. For me, that is one of the best things a doctor can do for a patient, doesn't it?

1.A. made up of     B. fed up with    C. put up with        D. come up with

2.A. Calmly         B. Excitedly       C. Gladly             D. Eagerly

3.A. When                 B. Before          C. As                       D. After

4.A. job            B. illness         C. family            D. children

5.A. causing        B. getting         C. forcing              D. leaving

6.A. extremely      B. exactly        C. especially         D. absolutely

7.A. casual         B. clear          C. steady                     D. blank

8.A. holding        B. shaking         C. carrying          D. treating

9.A. thanks         B. praise          C. warmth                 D. reply

10.A. even           B. ever           C. just                   D. still

11.A. sympathy       B. support         C. sorrow            D. respect

12.A. relaxed        B. awkward        C. fragile            D. satisfied

13.A. leave          B. pour            C. try               D. find

14.A. However             B. Otherwise       C. Instead            D. Besides

15.A. emotion        B. patience        C. experience              D. preference

One cold rainy evening last October, as a medical student, I was in a hospital, gathering data
for my graduation paper.
Holding a patient questionnaire1some simple yes-or-no questions, I walked towards a 43-year-old patient who lay in bed alone. I was worried whether she would approve of my demands at such a late hour.2, she treated it with consideration. Soon I finished and prepared to leave.3I could stand up, she spoke up in a weak voice asking where I was from and why I was working so late in the evening.
Then she started talking about herself as well as her4, "My husband died about a year ago,5me the only breadwinner of my family. My pay as a cleaner is6enough for me and my three kids. I don't know what my children would be if something bad happened to me."
I didn't know what to say. I desperately tried to remember the lessons from a communication skills class I had taken years earlier, but my mind was7.
Without realizing it, I had begun8her hand. Now that I didn't have anything to say, I just sat quietly while she talked. That's when it occurred to me that she was not expecting any 9from me. She10wanted me to listen. All 1 did was nod my head as a way of showing my11.
The conversation went on for about 20 minutes. Finally, she stopped talking. "I'm very sorry for keeping you here to listen to my problems, but I feel12now. I had no one to13out my problems to. Thank you so much, doctor."
Sometimes patients do not need expensive medicine or advanced technology.14, they just need someone with the15to lend an ear and spare a little of their time. For me, that is one of the best things a doctor can do for a patient, doesn't it?

1. 1.
   1. A.
      made up of
   2. B.
      fed up with
   3. C.
      put up with
   4. D.
      come up with
2. 2.
   1. A.
      Calmly
   2. B.
      Excitedly
   3. C.
      Gladly
   4. D.
      Eagerly
3. 3.
   1. A.
      When
   2. B.
      Before
   3. C.
      As
   4. D.
      After
4. 4.
   1. A.
      job
   2. B.
      illness
   3. C.
      family
   4. D.
      children
5. 5.
   1. A.
      causing
   2. B.
      getting
   3. C.
      forcing
   4. D.
      leaving
6. 6.
   1. A.
      extremely
   2. B.
      exactly
   3. C.
      especially
   4. D.
      absolutely
7. 7.
   1. A.
      casual
   2. B.
      clear
   3. C.
      steady
   4. D.
      blank
8. 8.
   1. A.
      holding
   2. B.
      shaking
   3. C.
      carrying
   4. D.
      treating
9. 9.
   1. A.
      thanks
   2. B.
      praise
   3. C.
      warmth
   4. D.
      reply
10. 10.
    1. A.
       even
    2. B.
       ever
    3. C.
       just
    4. D.
       still
11. 11.
    1. A.
       sympathy
    2. B.
       support
    3. C.
       sorrow
    4. D.
       respect
12. 12.
    1. A.
       relaxed
    2. B.
       awkward
    3. C.
       fragile
    4. D.
       satisfied
13. 13.
    1. A.
       leave
    2. B.
       pour
    3. C.
       try
    4. D.
       find
14. 14.
    1. A.
       However
    2. B.
       Otherwise
    3. C.
       Instead
    4. D.
       Besides
15. 15.
    1. A.
       emotion
    2. B.
       patience
    3. C.
       experience
    4. D.
       preference

David’s Haircut
When David steps out of the front door he is blinded for a moment by the white, strong sunlight and reaches for his dad’s hand automatically. It’s the first really warm day of the year, an unexpected heat that bridges the gap between spring and summer. Father and son are on their way to the barbershop, something they have always done together.
Always, the routine is the same. “It’s about time we got that mop of yours cut,” David’s dad will say, pointing at him with two fingers, a cigarette caught between them. “Perhaps I should do it. Where are those scissors, Janet?” Sometimes his dad runs after him round the living room, pretending to cut off his ears. When he was young, David used to get too excited and start crying, scared that maybe he really would lose his ears, but he has long since grown out of that.
Mr Samuels’ barbershop is in a long room above the chip shop, reached by a steep and worn flight of stairs. David follows his father. He loves the barbershop — it’s like nowhere else he goes. It smells of cigarettes and men and hair oil. Sometimes the smell of chips will climb the stairs along with a customer and when the door opens the waiting men lift their noses together. Black and white photographs of men with various out-of-fashion hairstyles hang above a picture rail at the end of the room, where two barber’s chairs are fixed to the floor. They are heavy, old-fashioned chairs with foot pumps that screams as Mr Samuels adjusts the height of the seat. In front of the chairs are deep sinks with a showerhead and long metal pipe attached to the taps, not that anyone seems to use them. Behind the sinks are mirrors and on either side of these, shelves overflowing with all types of plastic combs, shaving mugs, scissors, cut throat razors, hair brushes and, 10 bright red bottles of Brylcreem(男士发油), piled neatly in a pyramid. At the back of the room sit the customers, silent for most of the time, except when Mr Samuels breaks off from cutting and smoke his cigarette, sending a stream of grey-blue smoke like the tail of kite twisting into the air.
When it is David’s turn for a cut, Mr Samuels places a wooden board covered with a piece of red leather across the arms of the chair, so that the barber doesn’t have to bend to cut the boy’s hair. David scrambles up onto the bench.
“Hey, young man, you’re shooting up, you won’t need this soon, you’ll be able to sit in the chair,” the barber says.
“Wow,” says David, turning round to look at his dad, forgetting that he can see him through the mirror. “Dad, Mr Samuels said I could be sitting in the chair soon, not just on the board!”
“So I hear,” his father replies, not looking up from the paper. “I expect Mr Samuels will start charging me more for your hair then.”
“At least double the price,” said Mr Samuels, winking at David.
Finally David’s dad looks up from his newspaper and glances into the mirror, seeing his son looking back at him. He smiles.
“Wasn’t so long ago when I had to lift you onto that board because you couldn’t climb up there yourself,” he says.
“They don’t stay young for long do they, kids”, Mr Samuels declares. All the men in the shop nod in agreement. David nods too.
In the mirror he sees a little head sticking out of a long nylon cape. Occasionally he steals glances at the barber as he works. He smells a mixture of smelly sweat and aftershave as the barber moves around him, combing and cutting, combing and cutting.
David feels like he is in another world, noiseless except for the sound of the barber’s shoes rubbing on the plastic carpet and the click of his scissors. In the reflection from the window he could see through the window, a few small clouds moved slowly through the frame, moving to the sound of the scissors’ click.
Sleepily, his eyes dropping to the front of the cape where his hair falls softly as snow and he imagines sitting in the chair just like the men and older boys, the special bench left leaning against the wall in the corner. He thinks about the picture book of Bible stories his aunt gave him for Christmas, the one of Samson having his hair cut by Delilah. David wonders if his strength will go like Samson’s.
When Mr Samuels has finished, David hops down from the seat, rubbing the itchy hair from his face. Looking down he sees his own thick, blonde hair mixed among the browns, greys and blacks of the men who have sat in the chair before him. For a moment he wants to reach down and gather up the broken blonde hair, to separate them from the others, but he does not have time.
They reach the pavement outside the shop. “I tell you what, boy, let’s get some fish and chips to take home, save your mum from cooking tea,” says David’s dad and turns up the street.
The youngster is excited and catches his dad’s hand. The thick-skinned fingers close gently around his and David is surprised to find, warming in his father’s palm, a handful of his own hair

1. 1.

   How old is David most probably age according to the context?

   1. A.
      2
   2. B.
      4
   3. C.
      10
   4. D.
      17
2. 2.

   Why does the author describe the barbershop detailedly in David’s eyes in Paragraph 3?

   1. A.
      Because David is not familiar with this place and tries to remember it
   2. B.
      Because David develops great friendfish with the shop owner
   3. C.
      Because the barbershop is a place that attracts him greatly
   4. D.
      Because the barbershop is very traditional and David can see one nowhere else
3. 3.

   Saying “I expect Mr Samuels will start charging me more for your hair then”, David’s dad is ________

   1. A.
      showing his proudness of his son’s growth
   2. B.
      complaining about the price of the haircut
   3. C.
      expressing his thanks to the shopowner’s kindness
   4. D.
      counting his expense on his son’s haircut
4. 4.

   The underlined sentence sugests that David ________

   1. A.
      looks down upon those old, grey-haired men
   2. B.
      feels extremely excited about becoming a bigger boy
   3. C.
      thinks blond hair is much more precious than other color
   4. D.
      is quite curious about his broken blonde hair
5. 5.

   Which detail from the story best shows the deep love that father gives son?

   1. A.
      Dad runs after his son round the living room
   2. B.
      Dad buys his son some fish and chips
   3. C.
      Dad sees his son through the mirror
   4. D.
      Dad holds some of his son’s hair in his palm
6. 6.

   What is the author’s tone of writing this passage?

   1. A.
      serious
   2. B.
      light-hearted
   3. C.
      critical
   4. D.
      persuasive