My father was 44 and knew he wasn’t going to make it to 45. He wrote me a letter and hoped that something in it would help me for the rest of my life.

Since the day I was 12 and first read his letter, some of his words have lived in my heart. Only part always times out. “Right now, you are pretending to be a time-killer. But I know that one day, you will do something great that will set you among the very best.” Knowing that my dad believed in me gave me permission to believe in myself. “You will do something great.” He didn’t know what that would be, and neither did I, but at times in my life when I’ve felt proud of myself, I remember his words and wish he were here so I could ask. “Is this what you were talking about, Dad? Should I keep going?”

A long way from 12 now, I realize he would have been proud when I made any progress. Lately, though , I’ve come to believe he’d want me to move on to what comes next: to be proud of, and believe in, somebody else. It’s time to start writing my own letters to my children. Our children look to us with the same unanswered question we had. Our kids don’t hold back because they’re afraid to fail. They’re only afraid of failing us. They don’t worry about being disappointed. Their fear－as mine was until my father’s letter－is of being a disappointment.

Give your children permission to succeed. They’re writing for you to believe in them. I always knew my parents loved me. But trust me. That belief will be more complete, that love will be more real, and their belief in themselves will be greater if you write the words on their hearts; “Don’t worry; you’ll do something great.” Not having that blessing from their parents may be the only thing holding them back.

We learn from the text that the author _________      

A. lost his father when he was young

B. Worked hard before he read his father's letter

C. Asked his father's permission to believe in himself

D. Knew exactly what great thing his father wanted him to do

What does the author tell us in the 3rd paragraph? 

A. Children need their parents’ letters.    

B. Children are afraid to be disappointed.

C. His children’s fear of failure held them back.

D. His father’s letter removed his fear of failing his parents.

Which of the following is true of the author? 

A. He got no access to success.         B. He wrote back to his father at 12.

C. He was sure his parents loved him.    D. He once asked his father about the letter.

The main purpose of the text is to _______.

A. describe children’s thinking             B. answer some questions children have

C. stress the importance of communication   D. advise parents to encourage their children

My first reaction was annoyance. It was Friday afternoon, and I was within an hour of finishing my work for the week. As I was leaving, a nurse brought me one more patient message. The statement read: "Mm. Jones called to say that she has had blurred vision （视觉模糊） ever since her medical test this morning." I smiled.  Suddenly our tests were causing eye problems.

      This week my patients had questioned everything. My patient with high blood pressure had stopped coming to her treatment on the advice of an Internet chat room. A woman who had a mental problem was substituting （用......代替） St. John’s word for her medication. Now Mrs. Jones was imagining problems. I rolled my eyes.

    My second reaction was worry. As I looked through her record, I tried to figure out why she would have blurred vision, but nothing in her record explained the new problem. She’s probably just anxious, I thought. Still, she wouldn't have called if she had been all right. I picked up the phone.

    What I next felt can only be described as delight. Before I made the call, the nurse ran in: Mrs. Jones called. Her vision is fine. Turns out she picked up the wrong glasses when she left the office. The X-ray technician has been having the same problem. I let out a laugh. Mrs. Jones had been right. Her vision had been blurred. Now we know why.

Finally I felt shame. I came to realize what Mrs. Jones had taught me. I had first known she was wrong, that her anxiety had clouded hex judgment. Instead, my medical training had clouded mine. Now I feel thankful that Mrs. Jones figured it out before I made a mistake about our relationship. Patients come to me for my help. They pay me to listen, diagnose （诊断）, treat and talk. That suggests trust; I must remember that, and trust them too.               

61. The writer smiled while reading the patient message because he knew_____.

       A. Mrs. Jones would ask for more tests

      B. the patient was being unreasonable

   C. the nurse was joking with him

   D. Mrs. Jones would call him

62. What has caused Mrs. Jones’ eye problem? 

      A. Wrong glasses.        B. Medical checkup.

       C. Her own imagination.                   D. Chatting on the Internet.

63. The underlined words "clouded her judgment" in the last paragraph probably mean_______.

       A. made her less trustful toward the doctor

       B. put her in control of her own feelings

      C. made her less able to think clearly

      D. put her in a dangerous situation

My first reaction was annoyance. It was Friday afternoon, and I was within an hour of finishing my work for the week. As I was leaving, a nurse brought me one more patient message. The statement read: "Mm. Jones called to say that she has had blurred vision (视觉模糊) ever since her medical test this morning. " I smiled.  Suddenly our tests were causing eye problems.

      This week my patients had questioned everything. My patient with high blood pressure had stopped coming to her treatment on the advice of an Internet chat room. A woman who had a mental problem was substituting ( 用......代替) St. John' s word for her medication. Now Mrs. Jones was imagining problems. I rolled my eyes.

    My second reaction was worry. As I looked through her record, I tried to figure out why she would have blurred vision, but nothing in her record explained the new problem. She' s probably just anxious, I thought. Still, she wouldn't have called if she had been all right. I picked up the phone.

    What 1 next felt can only be described as delight. Before I made the call, the nurse ran in: Mrs. Jones called. Her vision is fine. Turns out she picked up the wrong glasses when she left the office. The X-ray technician has been having the same problem. I let out a lugh. Mrs. Jones had been right. Her vision had been blurred. Now we know why.

Finally I felt shame. I came to realize what Mrs. Jones had taught me. I had first known she was wrong, that her anxiety had clouded hex judgment. Instead, my medical training had clouded mine. Now I feel thankful that Mrs. Jones figured it out before I made a mistake about our relationship. Patients come to me for my help. They pay me to listen, diagnose (诊断), treat and talk. That suggests trust; I must remember that, and trust them too.               

61. The writer smiled while reading the patient message because he knew_____.

A. Mrs. Jones would ask for more tests

B. the patient was being unreasonable

C. the nurse was joking with him

D. Mrs. Jones would call him

62. What has caused Mrs. Jones' eye problem? 

A. Wrong glasses.                                  B. Medical checkup.

C. Her own imagination.                          D. Chatting on the Internet.

63. The underlined words "clouded her judgment" in the last paragraph probably mean_______.           

A. made her less trustful toward the doctor

B. put her in control of her own feelings

C. made her less able to think clearly

D. put her in a dangerous situation

A fried of mine named Paul received an automobile from his brother as a Christmas present. On Christmas Eve when Paul came out of his office, a naughty street boy was walking around the shiny new car, admiring it. “Is this your car, Mister?” he asked..
Paul nodded, “My brother gave it to me for Christmas.” The boy was surprised. “You mean your brother gave it to you and it didn’t cost you anything? I wish…” He hesitated（犹豫）.
Of course Paul knew what he was going to wish for. He was going to wish he had a brother like that. But what the boy said made Paul think all the way.
“I wish ,” the boy went on, “that I could be a brother like that.”
Paul looked at the boy in surprise, adding, “Would you like to take a ride in my automobile?”
“Yes, I’d love that.” After a short ride, the boy turned and said, “Mister, would you mind driving in front of my house?”
Paul smiled, He thought he knew what the boy wanted. But Paul was wrong again. “Will you stop where those two steps are?” the boy asked.
He ran up the steps. Then in a while Paul heard him coming back, but he didn’t come fast. He was carrying his little crippled（伤残） brother. He pointed to the car and said, “There it is, Buddy, just like I told you up stairs. His brother gave it to him for Christmas. And some day I’m going to give one just like it and then you can see for yourself all the pretty things in the Christmas windows that I’ve been trying tell you about. ”
Paul got out and lifted the boy to the front seat. The shining-eyed older brother climbed in beside him and the three of them began a memorable holiday ride.
That Christmas Eve, Paul learned what “It is more blessed to give” means.
【小题1】The naughty street boy wished to _____________ .

C
When it comes to friends, I desire those who will share my happiness, who possess wings of their own and who will fly with me. I seek friends whose qualities illuminate（照亮）me and train me up for love. It is for these people that I reserve the glowing hours, too good not to share.
When I was in the eighth grade, I had a friend. We were shy and “too serious” about our studies when it was becoming fashionable with our classmates to learn acceptable social behaviors. We said little at school, but she would come to my house and we would sit down with pencils and paper, and one of us would say:“Let’s start with a train whistle today.” We would sit quietly together and write separate poems or stories that grew out of a train whistle. Then we would read them aloud. At the end of that school year, we, too, were changing into social creatures and the stories and poems stopped.
When I lived for a time in London, I had a friend, He was in despair(失望)and I was in despair. But our friendship was based on the idea in each of us that we would be sorry later if we did not explore this great city because we had felt bad at the time. We met every Sunday for five weeks and found many excellent things. We walked until our despairs disappeared and then we parted. We gave London to each other.
For almost four years I have had remarkable friend whose imagination illuminates mine. We write long letters in which we often discover our strangest selves. Each of us appears, sometimes in a funny way, in the other’s dreams. She and I agree that, at certain times, we seem to be parts of the same mind. In my most interesting moments, I often think:“Yes, I must tell….”We have never met.
It is such comforting companions I wish to keep. One bright hour with their kind is worth more to me than the lifetime services of a psychologist（心理学家），who will only fill up the healing（愈合的）silence necessary to those darkest moments in which I would rather be my own best friend.
69. In the eighth grade, what the author did before developing proper social behavior was to ______.
A. become serious about her study
B. go to her friend’s house regularly
C. learn from her classmates at school
D. share poems and stories with her friend
70. In Paragraph 3, “We gave London to each other” probably means ______.
A. our exploration of London was a memorable gift to both of us
B. we were unwilling to tear ourselves away from London
C. our unpleasant feeling about London disappeared
D. we parted with each other in London
71. According to Paragraph 4, the author and her friend _______.
A. call each other regularly
B. have similar personalities
C. enjoy writing to each other
D. dream of meeting each other
72. In the darkest moments, the author would prefer to ______.
A.need professional help       B. be left alone
C. stay with her best friend    D. break the silence