Born to Win

Each human being is born as something unique, something that never existed before. Each person is born with what he needs to win at life. A normal person can see, hear, touch, taste, and think for himself. Each has his own unique potentials---his capabilities and limitations. Each can be an important, thinking, aware, and creatively productive person in his own right---a winner.

The words "winner" and "loser" have many meanings. When we refer to a person as a winner, we do not mean one who defeats the other person by dominating and making him lose. Instead a winner is one who responds honestly by being trustworthy and responsive, both as an individual and as a member of a society. A loser is one who fails to respond honestly.

A winner is not afraid to do his own thinking and to use his own knowledge. He can separate facts from opinion and doesn’t pretend to have all the answers. He listens to others, evaluates what they say, but comes to his own conclusions.

A winner is flexible. He does not have to respond in known, rigid ways. He can change his plans when the situation calls for it. A winner has a love for life. He enjoys work, play, food, other people, and the world of nature. Without guilt he enjoys his own accomplishments. Without envy he enjoys the accomplishments of others.

A winner cares about the world and its people. He is not separated from the general problems of society. He tries to improve the quality of life. Even in the face of national and international difficulty, he does not see himself as helpless. He does what he can to make the world a better place.

Although people are born to win, they are also born totally dependent on their environment. Winners successfully make the change from dependence to independence, losers do not. Somewhere along the line losers begin to avoid becoming independent. This usually begins in childhood. Poor nutrition, cruelty, unhappy relationships, disease, continuing disappointments, and inadequate physical care are among the many experiences that contribute to making people losers.

A loser is held back by his low capacity to appropriately express himself through a full range of possible behavior. He may be unaware of other choices for his life if the path he chooses goes nowhere. He is afraid to try new things. He repeats not only his own mistakes and often repeats those of his family and culture.

A loser has difficulty giving and receiving love. He does not enter into close, honest, direct relationships with others. Instead, he tries to manipulate them into living up to his expectations and channels his energies into living up to their expectations.

D
Dear Michelle,
My mother is not a good example for me and my sister. She smokes, stays out late, and she curses(骂人).I love her but I am ashamed of her.I do not want to bring my friends home because she does not act like any of the other mothers. She says I am a loser because I sit at home and study. I wish I could live in another family that was normal,but it will be 5 years before I am 18 and legal. What am I supposed to do until then?
Prisoner of a Crazy House
Dear 7th Grader,
I am glad that you love your mother because the rest of your feeings about her may change as you get older and mature(成熟).
While it is true that your mother’s smoking, partying and cursing bring you shame, the fact that you want to stay separate from her doings is notable and very smart. It shows that you are a winner,not a loser.
I am guessing, therefore, that you do not bring shame to yourself, and that is a good thing, So,keep it that way and keep away from your mother’s habits.
At the same time,try to get the best grades and join clubs and school activities. Offer social service on weekends and visit your friends at their homes.
Unfortunately, you are not alone.Many teens live in homes with immature,misguided, selfish parents. Those kids often feel lonely and separate from the rest of their friends because of their parents’ terrible deeds.
But they develop good friendships with nice kids, do well in school,and often find a teacher or guidance advisor who makes all the difference!
Do it, Miss Winning 13 years old, and keep looking forward to your own fine future.Maybe by then your mother may even see the light and realize how surprising you really are.
Best luck!
Michelle
64.The kid asks for advice on how to___________.
A.make her mother change                                B.deal with her situation
C.get along well with her mother                       D.start a new family
65.Michelle doesn’t address her letter receiver as“Prisoner of a Crazy House”possibly because she
__________.
A.tries to be polite                                       B.doesn’t write to the kid alone
C.knows that’s a girl in Grade 7                         D.wants to cheer the kid up
66.According to the passage, Michelle advises the girl to_________.
A.try talking to her mother for her future
B.stick to her attitude towards her mother’s some habits
C.understand her mother’s habits and get used to them
D.try to keep away from her mother
67.What does Michelle mainly express by writing the last four paragraphs?
A.Don’t worry too much about the problem.
B.Many parents act terribly.
C.Parents manners make little difference.
D.The girl is not speaking for herself.

At one point or 36 in life, we are all 37 to make a speech to an audience on different occasions, for example, in the classroom to share successful 38 with classmates or on a wedding to send your best wishes in honor of the newly-weds. No matter 39 the audience seems to be, we are in public speaking. 40, most of us don’t do a very satisfactory job. We get nervous. We forget what to say, we 41 unnecessary words, and we 42 the audience. We feel awful, feeling like completely a loser, and wish we would never have to speak  again.

Cheer up! You are not alone and things are not 43 bad. Here are a few44 for you to 45 the pain. First, be clear about the purpose of your speech. What is the 46? Why are you speaking? Then, gather as much information 47 you can think of on your subject. It is advised that onespend plenty of your time doing some research and organizing your material so that your speech is clear and crystal. 48 many examples, pictures, charts, and graphs if possible. Most importantly, never forget your audience. Don’t talk over their heads, and don’t 49 them. Treat them with 50.During the course, let your 51 come through so that they feel as if you make person-to-person communication with them. They will surely 52 your thoughtfulness and find your speech enjoyable.

Just remember: Be prepared. Know your subject, the occasion, and the audience . If you follow these steps, you will see you don’t have to be 53.   54, you may find you more than enjoy the period and that you 55 to make more and long speeches. But don’t hog the podium and steal the show!

When something goes wrong，it can be very satisfying to say，“Well, it’s so-and-so’s fault.” or “I know I’m late，but it’s not my fault；the car broke down.” It is probably not your fault，but once you form the habit of blaming somebody or something else for a bad situation，you are a loser. You have no power and could do nothing that helps change the situation. However, you can have great power over what happens to you if you stop focusing on whom to blame and start focusing on how to remedy the situation. This is the winner’s key to success.

Winners are great at overcoming problems. For example, if you were late because your car broke down, maybe you need to have your car examined more regularly. Or, you might start to carry along with you the useful phone numbers, so you could call for help when in need. For another example, if your colleague causes you problems on the job for lack of responsibility or ability, find ways of dealing with his irresponsibility or inability rather than simply blame the person. Ask to work with a different person, or don’t rely on this person. You should accept that the person is not reliable and find creative ways to work successfully regardless of how your colleague fails to do his job well.

This is what being a winner is all about—creatively using your skills and talents so that you are successful no matter what happens. Winners don’t have fewer problems in their lives; they have just as many difficult situations to face as anybody else. They are just better at seeing those problems as challenges and opportunities to develop their own talents. So, stop focusing on “whose fault it is.” Once you are confident about your power over bad situations, problems are just stepping stop on for success.

1.According to the passage, winners        .

A. deal with problems rather than blame others

B. meet with fewer difficulties in their lives

C. have responsible and able colleagues

D. blame themselves rather that others

2.When your colleague brings about a problem, you should         .

A. ask a more able colleague for help

B. blame him for his lack of responsibility

C. tell him to find the cause of the problem

D. find a better way to handle the problem

3.When problems occur, winners take them as         .

A. excuses for their failures                    B. barriers to greater power

C. challenges to their colleagues                D. chances for self-development

4.Which of the following is the best title for the passage?

A. A Winner’s Problem.                                     B. A Winner’s Secret.

C. A Winner’s Opportunity.                                     D. A Winner’s Achievement.

Twenty–six years after a terrible bicycle accident which left her in a coma(昏迷) for two months and with permanent brain injuries, Barbara Buchan performs many actions more slowly than others. But on September 10 in Beijing, Buchan, at 52, the oldest member of the United States Paralympic team, broke the record and won the gold medal for her disability class in the individual 3,000–meter cycling pursuit.
“You can be very upset at the world and have everyone take care of you.” Buchan said by telephone from Beijing, “or get back on your feet again.”
Buchan first dreamed of Olympic gold at age 15 while watching the 1972 Munich Games. She became a top American cyclist by July 1982, when a terrible road–race crash injured her brain and left doctors doubtful about whether she would survive. She was wearing only a soft leather helmet at the time; her accident made the rule put into practice that cyclists wear the hard–shell helmets that are now common.
Buchan recovered enough of her athletic ability to run track in the 1988 Paralympics in Seoul, where she won a silver medal in the 800 meters. Women’s cycling was not included in the Paralympics yet, so Buchan trained to the point where she raced against men in the 2000 Paralympics in Sydney, Australia-she finished 9th and 10th in two races-and then successfully fought for a separate women’s cycling program beginning in 2004 in Athens, where she did not get a medal.
Even though she was approaching her 50s, Buchan kept racing and again made the United States Paralympic team for Beijing-where she is twice the age of most of her teammates and competitors.
“Barbara’s almost the leader of our team-she’s been through it all,” said Craig Griffin, the United States cycling coach. “She’s never tired. She’s never let her body go and then come back. I don’t think age is as big of a deal as people make it out to be.”
64. According to the text, after the accident,         .
A．Buchan asked her friends to take care of her
B．cyclists started to wear helmets in competition
C．Buchan could not answer questions correctly
D．doctors doubted whether Buchan could come back to life
65. What’s the right order of the events related to Buchan?
a. She won a gold medal in Beijing.
b. She became a top American cyclist.
c. She won a silver medal in the 800 meters.
d. She suffered a terrible bicycle accident.
e. She took part in a cycling program in Athens.
A．c-d-b-a-e               B．b-c-d-a-e 
C．b-d-e-c-a         D．c-b-d-e-a
66. What does the underlined phrase “get back on your feet” in the second paragraph mean?
A．rise to your feet              B．walk on your way
C．go beyond yourself  D．depend on yourself
67. Which of the following can be the best title for this passage?
A．The Making of a Hero     B．From a Loser to a Winner
C．All Roads Lead to Rome  D．Health is Better than Wealth