阅读理解

　　One afternoon, my son came home from school and asked me, “Are all people the same even if their skin color is different?” I thought for a moment, then I said, “I’ll explain．Let’s go to a fruit store first．I have something interesting to show you．”

　　At the store, I told him that we needed to buy apples．And we bought some red apples, green apples and yellow apples．

　　After we got home, I told Adam, “It’s time to answer your question．” I put one of each type of apple on the table：first a red apple, followed by a green apple and then a yellow apple．Then I looked at Adam, who was sitting on the other side of the table．

　　“Adam, people are just like apples．They come in different colors, shapes and sizes．See, some may not even look as delicious as others．” As I was talking, Adam was examining each one carefully．

　　Then, I took each of the apples and peeled them, placing them back on the table, but in a different place．

　　“OK, Adam, tell me which one is the red apple, the green apple and the yellow apple．”

　　He said, “I can’t tell．They all look the same now．”

　　“Take a bite(一口)of each one．See if that helps you tell which one is which．”

　　He took big bites, and then a huge smile came across his face．“People are just like apples! They are all different, but if you take off the outside, they’re pretty much the same on the inside．”

　　“Right,” I agreed．“Just like everyone has their own features but they are nearly the same．”

　　He completely got it．I didn’t need to say or do anything else．

　　Now, when I eat an apple, it tastes a little sweeter than before．What perfect fruit it is!

阅读理解

　　Have successful people ever felt sad? Do they have any “secrets” to success? The answers to these questions can be found in US president Barack Obama’s “back to school” speech．Here is an excerpt(摘录)from his speech．

　　I know that sometimes, you get the sense that you can be rich and successful without any hard work－that your ticket to success is through pop music or basketball or being a TV star, when chances are, you’re not going to be any of those things．

　　But the truth is, being successful is hard．You won’t love every subject you study．Not all the homework will seem rather important to your life right this minute．And you may not succeed at everything the first time you try．

　　That’s OK．Some of the most successful people in the world are the ones who’ve had the most failures(the opposite of success)．JK Rowling’s first Harry Potter book was turned down 12 times before it finally came out．Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team, and he lost hundreds of games and missed thousands of shots(投篮)during his career．But he once said, “I have failed over and over again in my life．And that is why I succeed．”

　　These people succeeded because they understand that you can’t let your failures beat(打败)you－you have to let them teach you．You have to let them show you what to do differently next time．

　　No one’s born being good at things．You become good at things through hard work．

　　Don’t be afraid to ask questions．Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it．I do that every day．Asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness; it’s a sign of strength．It shows you have the courage to tell when you don’t know something, and to learn something new．

　　And even when you’re struggling(奋斗), even when you’re discouraged(泄气), and you feel other people have given up on you－don’t ever give up on yourself．Because when you give up on yourself, you give up on your country．