Patti discovered the meaning of running when she was 23. At that time she was smoking two packs of cigarettes a day and had   36   over 50 pounds. “I decided to   37  ,” she says. She took a clock and started   38   what she did every day, and then she   39   an hour a day as a “be nice to Patti” hour. “I started having bubble（泡沫）baths with a candle   40  , because Cosmopolitan Magazine   41   that this would be good for me. But I got   42   of that soon,” Patti remembers. She wanted to do something really pleasant. She found that the   43   times in her life were times when she was physically active. So she took up   44  .

She decided to start   45   the next day. She ran for an hour,   46   a total of 7 miles on her first run. “I couldn’t walk for 2 weeks   47   I felt painful all over!” Patti recalls. “But I felt so wonderful!” Patti wasn’t crazy about running yet, but she was in   48   with the after effects of it.

Within seven months, Patti had run her first marathon, qualified for the Boston Marathon, and placed 25th in the world for   49   distance runners. Over the next years, she   50   records and set standards for women in the sport. She was the first American woman to run a marathon   51  than 2 hours 30 minutes, and then broke another two records   52   an 8-month period.

Patti believes that, if we can   53   standards for ourselves, we can pull ourselves out of the most difficult   54   and come out on top. “Everybody has to be a/an   55   and everybody has that in them.”

1.A. lost           B. gained               C. earned           D. reduced

2.A. change         B. move                 C. walk            D. cry

3.A. remembering    B. collecting           C. sharing         D. recording

4.A. set out          B. set up             C. set aside        D. set about

5.A. lit              B. swung              C. surrounded       D. burnt

6.A. spoke            B. said              C. wrote            D. went

7.A. afraid         B. fond                 C. tired            D. ashamed

8.A. happiest         B. saddest            C. loneliest        D. luckiest

9.A. smoking          B. bathing            C. dieting          D. running

10.A. only            B. right              C. even             D. again

11.A. overcoming     B. spreading           C. passing          D. covering

12.A. but             B. although           C. since            D. because

13.A. peace           B. line              C. love             D. touch

14.A. men             B. women              C. adult           D. children

15.A. kept            B. held              C. broke            D. cleared

16.A. faster          B. more               C. slower           D. rather

17.A. for             B. over               C. at               D. on

18.A. set             B. follow             C. require          D. seek

19.A. pleasures      B. pities              C. challenges       D. purposes

20.A. expert          B. runner             C. athlete          D. champion

It was a cold winter. The day my husband fell to his death, it started to snow, just 36 any November day. His 37 , when I found it, was lightly covered with snow. It snowed almost every day for the next four months, while I sat on the couch and watched it 38 . One morning, I walked slowly 39 and was surprised to see a snow remover clearing my driveway and the bent back of a woman clearing my walk. I dropped to my knees and crawled back upstairs, 40 those good people would not see me. I was 41 . My first thought was, how would I ever 42 them? I didn’t have the  43 to brush my hair, 44 clear someone’s walk.

Before Jon’s death, I felt proud that I 45 asked for favors. I identified myself by my competence（能力） and 46 . So who was I if I was no longer capable? How could I 47 myself if I just sat on the couch every day and watched the snow fall?

Learning to receive the love and 48 from others wasn’t easy. Friends cooked for me and I cried. Finally, my friend Kathy said, “Mary, cooking for you isn’t a 49 for me; it makes me feel good to be able to do something for you.”

Over and over, I heard 50 words from the people who supported me during those 51 days. One wise man told me, “You aren’t doing nothing because being fully open to your 52 may be the hardest work you will ever do.”

I am not the person I 53 was, but in many ways I have changed for the 54 . I’ve been surprised to learn that there is incredible freedom coming from 55 one’s worst fear and walking away whole. I believe there is strength, for sure, in accepting a dark period of our life.

1.A. on

B. in        

C. like       

D. for

2.A. body        

B. soul        

C. shoe       

D. footprint

3. A. sweep up    

B. drop off    

C. fall down   

D. pile up

4.A. upstairs    

B. downstairs

C. indoors 

D. outdoors

5.A. so        

B. yet        

C. and  

D. for

6.A. delighted   

B. disappointed

C. annoyed 

D. ashamed

7.A. pay        

B. award    

C. reward 

D. treat

8.A. courage    

B. strength    

C. spirit  

D. power

9.A. stand alone

B. leave alone

C. sit alone 

D. let alone

10.A. frequently    

B. gradually    

C. hardly 

D. uncertainly

11.A. intelligence

B. independence

C. excellence 

D. qualification

12. A. achieve    

B. praise

C. respect 

D. promote

13.A. supply    

B. support    

C. contribution

D. similar

14. A. burden    

B. job        

C. business 

D. sorrow

15. A. sensitive    

B. same        

C. considerate

D. similar

16. A. blue        

B. rainy        

C. bright 

D. snowy

17.A. despair    

B. difficulty    

C. pain  

D. regret

18.A. still        

B. once        

C. even  

D. never

19.A. worse    

B. less        

C. more  

D. better

20. A. facing    

B. noticing    

C. managing 

D. expressing

When I was 11, my grandfather began to teach me how to drive. I was a fast learner. At 16, I was already a   1   driver. However, when I passed into adulthood, I began to get speeding tickets. For me, this did not reflect one’s   2   as a driver. So I   3   to drive as fast as I could.

Then in September of 2005, I received a letter   4  my presence to discuss my future   ___5   rights. As I sat down, a man began to unfold my file. I was   6   to see my record was five pages long. The man gave me two   7  . I could turn in my   8   and not drive for three months or continue driving, but without tickets for one year. With two kids and a busy practice, I went with the second choice.

After the meeting, I had lunch with my friend, Nick. He noticed that my eating habits        ___9   my driving habits. Nick told me that my attention was   10   paid to the destination and not the process of getting there. The car gives fun, allowing me to get to my   __11   much faster. However, after reaching it, I was never truly satisfied because I   12_   the messages and lessons of the journey.

After the two   13  , I began to transform myself. I now enjoy driving, often taking the most scenic route. I have also slowed my   14   down, enjoying each bite as I go. Learning   15   is really a big lesson for me.

1. A. lucky         B. skilled           C. careless           D. poor

2. A. interest          B. belief             C. ability               D. character

3. A. stopped       B. wanted            C. began              D. continued

4. A. requesting        B. hoping            C. suggesting         D. planning

    5. A. driving           B. swimming           C. diving                D. living

    6. A. disappointed  B. depressed          C. surprised         D. terrified

    7. A. tickets           B. choices            C. letters           D. pages

    8. A. license           B. money              C. evidence          D. file

    9. A. affected      B. matched            C. suited            D. caused

    10. A. totally          B. partly             C. slowly            D. slightly

    11. A. destination  B. process            C. place             D. journey

    12. A. understood   B. lacked             C. gained            D. ignored

    13. A. surveys      B. events             C. debates           D. arguments

    14. A. working      B. driving            C. walking           D. eating

    15. A. honesty      B. understanding      C. patience          D. carelessness

 My best friend is Cocoa, and I live in a senior-citizen apartment. Cocoa is a ten-year-old dog and I am a sixty-nine-year-old lady, so you can see we both qualify as   1   citizens.

    He is a   2   companion. He does many amusing things that make me   3  , and when that happens, he is so delighted   4   he just keeps it up.

    But one afternoon, Cocoa started acting strangely. I was sitting on the floor playing with him,   5   he started pawing and smelling at the right side of my   6  . He had never done anything like this ever before, and I told him, “No.” To Cocoa, one “no” is usually   7  , but not that day. He stopped briefly, and then   8   ran toward me, throwing his entire weight at the right side of my chest. He crashed into me and I cried in   9  , falling down to the floor. Soon after this, I felt a lump (肿块). I went to my doctors, and after X-rays  10   and lab work were done, they told me I had cancer.

   When cancer starts, a  11   of calcium (钙) builds. Then the lump or cancer attaches itself to this wall. When Cocoa jumped on me, the force of the impact broke the lump away from the wall. This made it possible for me to  12   the lump.

I had a complete mastectomy (乳房切除术) and the cancer has not   13   to any other part of my body. The doctors told me if the cancer had gone undetected even six more months, it would have been too   14  .

    Was Cocoa  15   of just what he was doing? I’ll never really know. What I do know is that Cocoa not only shares his life with me, he has also made sure that I will be around to share my life with him!

1.A. good               B. standard     C. senior           D. great

2. A. wonderful     B. tiring           C. hungry       D. bad

3. A. leave         B. cry          C. laugh            D. jump

4.A. as             B. when             C. and          D. that

5.A. when           B. then         C. though           D. as

6. A. chest         B. body         C. shoulder     D. arm

7. A. right         B. good         C. enough       D. unexpected

8. A. hurriedly         B. rudely           C. slowly   D.suddenly

9. A. pain              B. surprise     C. trouble  D.danger

10. A. experiments      B. researches       C. tests    D.papers

11. A. wall         B. cancer           C. body         D. number

12. A. watch            B. have         C. get          D. notice

13. A. ran              B. kept         C. entered      D. spread

14. A. common       B. late         C. much         D. early

15. A. ashamed      B. aware            C. afraid           D. tired

Today the car is the most popular sort of transportation in all of the United States.It has completely 1 the horse as a 2 of everyday transportation.Americans use their car for 3 90% of all 4 business.Most Americans are able to 5 cars.The average price of a 6 made car was ,050 in 1950, ,470 in 1960 and up to ,750 7 1975.During this period American car manufacturers set about 8 their products and work efficiency.As aresult, the yearly income of the 9 family increased from 1950 to 1975 10 than the price of cars.For this reason 11 a new car takes a smaller 12 of a family?s total earnings today.In 1951 13 it took 8.1 months of an average family?s 14 to buy a new car.In 1962 a new car 15 8.3 of a family?s annual earnings, by 1975 it only took 4.75 16 income.In addition, the 1975 cars were technically 17 to models from previous years.The 18 of automobile extends throughout the economy 19 the car is so important to American.Americans spend more money 20 keeping their cars running than on any other item.

1.A.denied B.reproduced C.replaced D.ridiculed

2.A.means B.mean C.types D.kinds

3.A.hardly B.nearly C.certainly D.somehow

4.A.personal B.personnel C.manual D.artificial

5.A.buy B.sell C.race D.see

6.A.quickly B.regularly C.rapidly D.recently

7.A.on B.in C.before D.after

8.A.raising B.making C.reducing D.improving

9.A.unusual B.smallest C.average D.biggest

10.A.slower B.equal C.faster D.less

11.A.bringing B.obtain C.bought D.purchasing

12.A.part B.half C.number D.quality

13.A.clearly B.proportionally C.percentage D.suddenly

14.A.income B.work C.plans D.debts

15.A.used B.spent C.cost D.needed

16.A.month?s B.year?s C.family D.year

17.A.famous B.superior C.fastest D.better

18.A.running B.notice C.influence D.affect

19.A.then B.as C.so D.which

20.A.to B.in C.of D.for