Once upon a time, there was a scholar who wanted to gain more knowledge each day even though he had already gained enough knowledge. One day, he came to visit a saint and wanted to be his student. The saint provided some tea. He slowly filled the scholar’s cup: the cup was full, yet he kept pouring and pouring. The scholar burst out, “Stop! You can’t add anything to something that’s already full!” The saint set down the teapot and replied, “Exactly.”
Whether it’s the silence between notes in music, or some open time in your schedule, you need space to act effectively. Yet most of us, myself included, tend to stuff as much as possible into whatever room is available－closets, schedules, budgets, relationships, and even the mind itself.
However, some people know how to avoid overstuffing their life. For example, in Australia, it seemed that most people there operated at about 85% of their capacity（能力），unlike Americans pushing as close to 100% as possible. So when you run into Australians you know in the street, they have time to hang out and talk with you.
Remember the cup: its value is in the space, the emptiness it holds. How to empty your “cup”?
Be mindful of the element of space, openness , and emptiness  in your life. This includes room in a drawer, the volume of air in a kitchen, and open-mindedness in a friend. Sometimes you’re just stuck with a big bucket of tasks yet to do. But at least empty the bucket faster than you fill it with new tasks. Put some space between finishing one thing and staring another. For example, after sending one email, take a breath before replying to another one. Drop the stuff you can no longer afford to lug around. At sea level, you can run with a brick in your backpack, but if you’re hiking on a mountain, that brick has got to go.
【小题1】By pouring water into the cup, the saint most probably wanted the scholar to know that     .

Grandfather was from Italy and was the only one in his family who settled down in the United States. The rest of his family remained in Europe. When World War I broke out, he seemed to have become another man, downhearted. Such obvious change was not born out of his welfare, but out of fear: if his only son, my uncle, had to go to war, it would be cousin fighting against cousin. 
One day in 1918, my Uncle Milton received his draft notice. My grandparents were very upset. But my mother, at the age of 10, felt on top of the world about her soldier brother going off to war. Realizing how he was regarded by his little sister and all of her friends, my uncle brought them all service pins, which meant that they had a loved one in the service. All the little girls were delighted. 
Then the moment came when my uncle and the other soldiers, without any training but all in uniforms, boarded the train. The band played and the crowd cheered. Although no one noticed, I’m sure my grandmother had a tear in her eyes for the only son. The train slowly pulled out, but not about a thousand yards when it suddenly paused. Everyone stared in wonder as the train slowly returned to the station. There was a dead silence before the doors opened and the men started to step out. Someone shouted,“The war is over”. For a moment, nobody moved, but then the people heard someone bark orders at the soldiers. The men lined up in two lines, walked down the steps, and with the band playing, marched down the street, as returning heroes, to be welcomed home. My mother said it was a great day, but she was just a little disappointed that it didn’t last a tiny bit longer. 

1. 1.

   My grandfather most worried about         . 

   1. A.
      the spread of the world war           
   2. B.
      the safety of his living two cousins
   3. C.
      a drop in his living standards         
   4. D.
      his relatives killing each other
2. 2.

   The underlined phrase “draft notice” means “        “

   1. A.
      a letter of rejection                 
   2. B.
      a train ticket for Europe
   3. C.
      an order for army service     
   4. D.
      a note of warning
3. 3.

   What did the “service pins”（in Para. 2）stand for in the eyes of the little girls?

   1. A.
      Honor  
   2. B.
      Courage.  
   3. C.
      Victory.  
   4. D.
      Strength.
4. 4.

   Which of the following words can best describe the ending of the story?

   1. A.
      Disappointing. 
   2. B.
      Inspiring  
   3. C.
      Uncertain. 
   4. D.
      Unexpected.

My grandfather came from Hungary and was the only one in his family who settled down in the United States. The rest of his family remained in Europe. When World War I broke out, he seemed to have become another man, downhearted. Such obvious change was not born out of concern for his welfare, but out of fear: if his only son, my uncle, had to go to war, it would be cousin fighting against cousin.

One day in 1918, my Uncle Milton received his draft notice. My grandparents were very upset. But my mother, at the age of 10, felt on top of the world about her soldier brother going off to war. Realizing how he was regarded by his little sister and all of her friends, my uncle bought them all service pins, which meant that they had a loved one in the service. All the little girls were delighted.

The moment came when my uncle and the other soldiers, without any training but all in uniforms, boarded the train. The band played and the crowd cheered. Although no one noticed. I’m sure my grandmother had a tear in her eye for the only son. The train slowly pulled out, but not about a thousand yards when it suddenly paused. Everyone stared in wonder as the train slowly returned to the station. There was a dead silence before the doors opened and the men started to step out. Someone shouted, “The war is over!” For a moment, nobody moved, but then the people heard someone bark orders at the soldiers. The men lined up in two lines, walked down the steps, and with the band playing, marched down the street, as returning heroes, to be welcomed home. My mother said it was a great day, but she was just a little disappointed that it didn’t last a tiny bit longer.

What the grandfather was most worried about was ______.

 A. the spread of the world war                      B. the safety of his two cousins

 C. a drop in his living standards                    D. his relatives killing each other

The underlined phrase “draft notice” means “______”.

 A. order for army service                             B. train ticket for Europe

 C. letter of rejection                                     D. note of warning

What did the “service pins” （in Para. 2） stand for in the eyes of the little girls?

 A. Strength.             B. Courage.               C. Victory.                        D. Honor.

Which of the following words can best describe the ending of the story?

 A. Disappointing.    B. Unexpected.          C. Uncertain.             D. Inspiring.

My grandfather came from Hungary and was the only one in his family who settled down in the United States. The rest of his family remained in Europe. When World War I broke out, he seemed to have become another man , downhearted. Such obvious change was not born out of concern for his welfare, but out of fear: if his only son, my uncle, had to go to war, it would be cousin fighting against cousin.

One day in 1918, my Uncle Milton received his draft notice. My grandparents were very upset. But my mother, at the age of 10, felt on top of the world about her soldier brother going off to war. Realizing how he was regarded by his little sister and all of her friends, my uncle bought them all service pins, which meant that they had a loved one in the service. All the little girls were delighted.

The moment came when my uncle and the other soldiers, without any training but all in uniforms, boarded the train. The band played and the crowd cheered. Although no one noticed. I'm sure my grandmother had a tear in her eye for the only son. The train slowly pulled out, but not about a thousand yards when it suddenly paused. Everyone stared in wonder as the train slowly returned to the station. There was a dead silence before the doors opened and the men started to step out. Someone shouted, "The war is over!" For a moment, nobody moved, but then the people heard someone bark orders at the soldiers. The men lined up in two lines, walked down the steps, and with the band playing, marched down the street, as returning heroes, to be welcomed home. My mother said it was a great day, but she was just a little disappointed that it didn't last a tiny bit longer.

What the grandfather was most worried about was _________ .

A. the spread of the world war             B. the safety of his two cousins

C. a drop in his living standards            D. his relatives killing each other

The underlined phrase "draft notice" means _________ .

A. order for army service                  B. train ticket for Europe

C. letter of rejection                      D. note of warning

What did the "service pins"  (in Para. 2)  stand for in the eyes of the little girls?

A. Strength.         B. Courage.      C. Victory.        D. Honour.

Which of the following words can best describe the ending of the story?

A. Disappointing.  　  B. Unexpected.       C. Uncertain.      D. Inspiring.

Which of the following statements is True according to the passage?

A. The grandfather felt downhearted because he was afraid of receiving a draft notice.

B. The train was traveling fast to the front when the news came that the war was over.

C. Few soldiers on the train had training in advance.

D. Most people including the mother were disappointed that the war didn't last a bit longer.

My grandfather came from Hungary and was the only one in his family who settled down in the United States. The rest of his family remained in Europe. When World War I broke out , he seemed to have become another man, downhearted. Such obvious change was not born out of his welfare, but out of fear if his only son, my uncle, had to go to war, it would be cousin fighting against cousin.

One day in 1918, my Uncle Milton received his draft notice. My grandparents were very upset. But my mother, at the age of 10, felt on top of the world about her soldier brother going off to war. Realizing how he was regarded by his little sister and all of her friends, my uncle bought them all service pins, which meant that they had a loved one in the service. All the little girls were delighted.

The moment came when my uncle and the other soldiers, without any training but all in uniforms, boarded the train. The band played and the crowd cheered. Although no one noticed, I’m sure my grandmother had a tear in her eye for the only son. The train slowly pulled out, but not about a thousand yards when it suddenly paused. Everyone stared in wonder as the train slowly returned to the station. There was a dead silence before the doors opened and the men started to step out. Someone shouted, “The war is over.” For a moment, nobody moved, but then the people heard someone bark orders at the soldiers. The men lined up in two lines, walked down the steps, and with the band playing, marched down the street, as returning heroes, to be welcomed home. My mother said it was a great day, but she was just a little disappointed that it didn’t last a tiny bit longer.

What the grandfather was most worried about was           .

  A. the spread of the world war      B. the safety of his living two cousins

  C. a drop in his living standards     D. his relatives killing each other

The underlined phrase “draft notice” means “        ”.

  A. order for army service          B. train ticket for Europe

  C. letter of rejection              D. note of warring

What did the “service pins”(in Para.2)stand for in the eyes of the little girls?

 A. Strength.       B. Courage.      C. Victory.        D. Honor.

Which of the following words can best describe the ending of the story?

A. Disappointing.   B. Unexpected.    C. Uncertain.     D. Inspiring.