D

Ben walked quietly. He wanted to surprise the hunter. But then, what would he do?

Suddenly he heard a bird’s wings beating the dry grass. Ben moved quickly toward the sound.

He saw a colored head ... the head of a beautiful bird. The bird did not move until Ben came close. Then it tried to fly away, but one wing was broken.

Ben lifted the bird and held it close against his body. The bird fought to escape, but soon lay quietly in Ben’s arms.

Ben decided to take the bird home and fix its broken wings so that it could fly again.

He was almost out of the woods when he heard the hunter behind him.

“You just found that bird?” the hunter asked.

“Yes,” Ben answered.

“It is mine!”

Ben was afraid and tried to answer, but his mouth was too dry to speak. Nevertheless, he wetted his lips and said, “No.”

“I shot him and I say he is mine!”

“But he is not dead yet,” Ben answered, “and besides, anything on my land belongs to me.”

The hunter looked down at the little man and smiled. “Say, who are you?”

Ben’s voice shook with both fear and anger. “I own this land. There are signs everywhere that say, ‘No hunting’.”

“No need to get angry, mister,” the hunter said. “Control yourself.”

There was something threatening in the man’s cool quiet voice. And he had a gun. His arms were free and Ben’s were not.

The hunter stepped closer and said, “Give me that bird!”

Ben was white with anger. “No!” he answered. His eye glasses became wet and he had to look over the top of them to see the other man.

“Give me the bird and I will go away,” the hunter said.

“You get off my land,” Ben told him. “Get off right now...you do not belong here!”

The man’s face got red. “Mister,” he said, “I have been hunting here all my life. I grew up here.”

“That is a thing of the past,” Ben said. “I do not know who you are and I do not care. I own this place now and I am telling you to leave. You go back through the woods and get off my land!”

“Now look, mister,” the hunter said, “be reasonable.”

The hunter raised his gun.

A cold wind blew across Ben’s face. He looked into the hunter’s gray eyes. Ben was frightened. It was not too late, he thought. He could still give the bird to the hunter and return safely home...that would end this whole ugly business.

The bird struggled weakly and made a wild, strange noise.

Then Ben knew he could never give this bird to the hunter. This feeling gave Ben great strength, and he was no longer afraid.

“I will never let you kill this bird,” he said. “Get away from here. If you try to take this bird, I will fight...you have a gun and you are bigger, but that does not worry me. You will never get this bird...you will have to kill me first.”

The two men looked at each other. Ben’s fear returned. His knees began to shake and he felt sick. Yet he stood straight, wondering what would happen next.

They stood close to each other for a long time. The woods were strangely quiet. Then the hunter’s rough voice broke the silence.

“You are a fool.” And then to Ben’s surprise, he slowly walked away.

Ben watched until he was gone. His arms hurt, his body felt wet and cold.

67. Why did the hunter smile when saying “Say, who are you”?

A. He wanted to confirm Ben’s identity in a friendly way.

B. He was amused at Ben’s reply and interested in him.

C. He looked down on Ben and thought his reply ridiculous.

D. He meant to be friendly enough to get the bird from Ben.

68. What strengthened Ben’s determination never to give the bird to the hunter?

A. His strong dislike of the hunter.     B. His firm confidence in himself.

C. His ownership of this piece of land.   D. His concern and sympathy for the bird.

69. Why did the hunter remark that Ben was a fool at the end of the story?

A. Ben tried to protect a bird at all costs.

B. Ben pretended to be fearless although scared.

C. Ben stood close to him saying nothing for long.

D. Ben insisted on him leaving the land.

70. Which of the following best describes Ben’s state of mind in the incident?

A. Ben was willing to compromise.                    B. Ben never thought of giving in.

C. Ben held out to the end.                                D. Ben was sure about his victory.

She had been shopping with her Mom in Wal-Mart．She must have been 6 years old, this beautiful brown haired, freckle-faced image of innocence．Outside, it was pouring so heavily．
We all stood there just inside the door of the Wal-Mart．We waited, some patiently, others annoyed because nature messed up their hurried day．I got lost in the sound and sight of the heavens washing away the dirt and dust of the world．
Her voice was so sweet as it broke the hypnotic trance （昏昏欲睡） we were all caught in．"Mom, let's run through the rain," she said．
"No, honey．We'll wait until it slows down a bit," Mom replied．
This young child waited about another minute and repeated: "Mom, let's run through the rain．"
" We'll get wet totally if we do," Mom said．
"No, we won't, Mom．That's not what you said this morning," the young girl said as she tore at her Mom's arm．
"This morning? When did I say we could run through the rain and not get wet?"
"Don't you remember? When you were talking to Daddy about his cancer, you said, If God can get us through this, he can get us through anything!"
The entire crowd stopped dead silent．I dare say you couldn't hear anything but the rain．We all stood silently. No one came or left in. the next few minutes,Mom paused and thought for a moment about what she would say．
Now some would laugh it off and scold her for being silly．Some might even ignore what was said. But this was a moment of affirmation in a young child's lifetime when innocent trust can be developed so that it will bloom into faith．"Honey, you are absolutely right．Let's run through the rain．If get wet, well maybe we just need washing," Mom said．Then off they ran.
We all stood watching, smiling and laughing as they rushed past the cars and they held their shopping bags over their heads just in case．They got soaked．But they were followed by a few who screamed and laughed like children all the way to their cars．And yes, I did．I ran．I got wet．I needed washing．
You may lose your material possessions, your money and even your health, but no one can ever take away your precious memories．So don't forget to make time and take the opportunities to make memories．

1. 1.

   Which of the following is the closest in meaning to the underlined word "affirmation"?

   1. A.
      happiness
   2. B.
      approval
   3. C.
      disagreement
   4. D.
      love
2. 2.

   What do we know about the mother in the story?

   1. A.
      Her husband was cured of his cancer．
   2. B.
      She was strong-willed and considerate．
   3. C.
      She was in despair and pretended to forget what she said．
   4. D.
      Her daughter completely understood the situation her family was in．
3. 3.

   Which of the following may the author agree with?

   1. A.
      The mother should not tell her child about the family misfortune．
   2. B.
      Parents should act more bravely than their children．
   3. C.
      Parents should grasp every opportunity to influence their children to grow well．
   4. D.
      Children should learn to show gratitude and understanding to their parents．
4. 4.

   The best title for the passage might be _____．

   1. A.
      Run Through the Rain
   2. B.
      Be a Determined Mother
   3. C.
      Wait in the Rain
   4. D.
      Have a Wonderful Experience

D
Ben walked quietly. He wanted to surprise the hunter. But then, what would he do?
Suddenly he heard a bird’s wings beating the dry grass. Ben moved quickly toward the sound.
He saw a colored head ... the head of a beautiful bird. The bird did not move until Ben came close. Then it tried to fly away, but one wing was broken.
Ben lifted the bird and held it close against his body. The bird fought to escape, but soon lay quietly in Ben’s arms.
Ben decided to take the bird home and fix its broken wings so that it could fly again.
He was almost out of the woods when he heard the hunter behind him.
“You just found that bird?” the hunter asked.
“Yes,” Ben answered.
“It is mine!”
Ben was afraid and tried to answer, but his mouth was too dry to speak. Nevertheless, he wetted his lips and said, “No.”
“I shot him and I say he is mine!”
“But he is not dead yet,” Ben answered, “and besides, anything on my land belongs to me.”
The hunter looked down at the little man and smiled. “Say, who are you?”
Ben’s voice shook with both fear and anger. “I own this land. There are signs everywhere that say, ‘No hunting’.”
“No need to get angry, mister,” the hunter said. “Control yourself.”
There was something threatening in the man’s cool quiet voice. And he had a gun. His arms were free and Ben’s were not.
The hunter stepped closer and said, “Give me that bird!”
Ben was white with anger. “No!” he answered. His eye glasses became wet and he had to look over the top of them to see the other man.
“Give me the bird and I will go away,” the hunter said.
“You get off my land,” Ben told him. “Get off right now...you do not belong here!”
The man’s face got red. “Mister,” he said, “I have been hunting here all my life. I grew up here.”
“That is a thing of the past,” Ben said. “I do not know who you are and I do not care. I own this place now and I am telling you to leave. You go back through the woods and get off my land!”
“Now look, mister,” the hunter said, “be reasonable.”
The hunter raised his gun.
A cold wind blew across Ben’s face. He looked into the hunter’s gray eyes. Ben was frightened. It was not too late, he thought. He could still give the bird to the hunter and return safely home...that would end this whole ugly business.
The bird struggled weakly and made a wild, strange noise.
Then Ben knew he could never give this bird to the hunter. This feeling gave Ben great strength, and he was no longer afraid.
“I will never let you kill this bird,” he said. “Get away from here. If you try to take this bird, I will fight...you have a gun and you are bigger, but that does not worry me. You will never get this bird...you will have to kill me first.”
The two men looked at each other. Ben’s fear returned. His knees began to shake and he felt sick. Yet he stood straight, wondering what would happen next.
They stood close to each other for a long time. The woods were strangely quiet. Then the hunter’s rough voice broke the silence.
“You are a fool.” And then to Ben’s surprise, he slowly walked away.
Ben watched until he was gone. His arms hurt, his body felt wet and cold.
67. Why did the hunter smile when saying “Say, who are you”?
A. He wanted to confirm Ben’s identity in a friendly way.
B. He was amused at Ben’s reply and interested in him.
C. He looked down on Ben and thought his reply ridiculous.
D. He meant to be friendly enough to get the bird from Ben.
68. What strengthened Ben’s determination never to give the bird to the hunter?
A. His strong dislike of the hunter.     B. His firm confidence in himself.
C. His ownership of this piece of land.   D. His concern and sympathy for the bird.
69. Why did the hunter remark that Ben was a fool at the end of the story?
A. Ben tried to protect a bird at all costs.
B. Ben pretended to be fearless although scared.
C. Ben stood close to him saying nothing for long.
D. Ben insisted on him leaving the land.
70. Which of the following best describes Ben’s state of mind in the incident?
A. Ben was willing to compromise.                    B. Ben never thought of giving in.
C. Ben held out to the end.                                D. Ben was sure about his victory.

Ben walked quietly. He wanted to surprise the hunter. But then, what would he do?

Suddenly he heard a bird’s wings beating the dry grass. Ben moved quickly toward the sound.

He saw a colored head ... the head of a beautiful bird. The bird did not move until Ben came close. Then it tried to fly away, but one wing was broken.

Ben lifted the bird and held it close against his body. The bird fought to escape, but soon lay quietly in Ben’s arms.

Ben decided to take the bird home and fix its broken wings so that it could fly again.

He was almost out of the woods when he heard the hunter behind him.

“You just found that bird?” the hunter asked.

“Yes,” Ben answered.

“It is mine!”

Ben was afraid and tried to answer, but his mouth was too dry to speak. Nevertheless, he wetted his lips and said, “No.”

“I shot him and I say he is mine!”

“But he is not dead yet,” Ben answered, “and besides, anything on my land belongs to me.”

The hunter looked down at the little man and smiled. “Say, who are you?”

Ben’s voice shook with both fear and anger. “I own this land. There are signs everywhere that say, ‘No hunting’.”

“No need to get angry, mister,” the hunter said. “Control yourself.”

There was something threatening in the man’s cool quiet voice. And he had a gun. His arms were free and Ben’s were not.

The hunter stepped closer and said, “Give me that bird!”

Ben was white with anger. “No!” he answered. His eye glasses became wet and he had to look over the top of them to see the other man.

“Give me the bird and I will go away,” the hunter said.

“You get off my land,” Ben told him. “Get off right now...you do not belong here!”

The man’s face got red. “Mister,” he said, “I have been hunting here all my life. I grew up here.”

“That is a thing of the past,” Ben said. “I do not know who you are and I do not care. I own this place now and I am telling you to leave. You go back through the woods and get off my land!”

“Now look, mister,” the hunter said, “be reasonable.”

The hunter raised his gun.

A cold wind blew across Ben’s face. He looked into the hunter’s gray eyes. Ben was frightened. It was not too late, he thought. He could still give the bird to the hunter and return safely home...that would end this whole ugly business.

The bird struggled weakly and made a wild, strange noise.

Then Ben knew he could never give this bird to the hunter. This feeling gave Ben great strength, and he was no longer afraid.

“I will never let you kill this bird,” he said. “Get away from here. If you try to take this bird, I will fight...you have a gun and you are bigger, but that does not worry me. You will never get this bird...you will have to kill me first.”

The two men looked at each other. Ben’s fear returned. His knees began to shake and he felt sick. Yet he stood straight, wondering what would happen next.

They stood close to each other for a long time. The woods were strangely quiet. Then the hunter’s rough voice broke the silence.

“You are a fool.” And then to Ben’s surprise, he slowly walked away.

Ben watched until he was gone. His arms hurt, his body felt wet and cold.

67. Why did the hunter smile when saying “Say, who are you”?

A. He wanted to confirm Ben’s identity in a friendly way.

B. He was amused at Ben’s reply and interested in him.

C. He looked down on Ben and thought his reply ridiculous.

D. He meant to be friendly enough to get the bird from Ben.

68. What strengthened Ben’s determination never to give the bird to the hunter?

A. His strong dislike of the hunter.     B. His firm confidence in himself.

C. His ownership of this piece of land.   D. His concern and sympathy for the bird.

69. Why did the hunter remark that Ben was a fool at the end of the story?

A. Ben tried to protect a bird at all costs.

B. Ben pretended to be fearless although scared.

C. Ben stood close to him saying nothing for long.

D. Ben insisted on him leaving the land.

70. Which of the following best describes Ben’s state of mind in the incident?

A. Ben was willing to compromise.                    B. Ben never thought of giving in.

C. Ben held out to the end.                                D. Ben was sure about his victory.