题目内容
I tried to grow a gardenia (梔子花).I had tried everything my mother taught me about caring for houseplants—more light, less water, spraying, even replanting, but _1_ seemed to work.
I _2_ Mom were here now.Mother’s Day was coming up, the second one since her death, and the pain of losing her was still so fresh.There is a Mother’s Day _3_ I follow.One wears a red flower if one’s mother is _4_ and a white one if she is not.I had hoped that planting a white gardenia, Mom’s favorite flower, would help me through the sorrow of her _5.
Mom had a way with all things _6_.My sister and I always joked, “Mom could _7_ a telephone pole grow leaves and bear fruit.”
Why can’t I? I thought.Still, I couldn’t stand throwing the dead plant away.Instead, I placed it into a dark corner of our bathroom.I didn’t even water it.I just left it there _8_ I could deal with it.
My husband asked me if I was going to wear a white flower to church that Mother’s Day.“Yes,” I told him, “but I need a _9_ gardenia.” I added silently.
Sunday morning I woke up early to get dressed and made for the _10_.Still _11_, I walked to the bathroom.Suddenly I was woken up by a pleasant scent (香味).I pushed the door open and stepped into the bathroom.That morning I knew I would be ready to wear a small white flower for Mom.In that dark corner, _12_ as if it had a light of its own, bloomed a perfect white gardenia!
1.A.everything B.nothing C.anything D.something
2.A.feel B.believe C.wish D.think
3.A.way B.method C.habit D.tradition
4.A.alive B.healthy C.dead D.ill
5.A.passing B.getting C.giving D.dying
6.A.white B.blue C.green D.yellow
7.A.cause B.make C.use D.allow
8.A.when B.until C.while D.if
9.A.red B.plastic C.paper D.fresh
10.A.market B.school C.church D.office
11.A.excited B.angry C.happy D.sleepy
12.A.bright B.dark C.large D.small
1.B
2.C
3.D
4.A
5.A
6.C
7.B
8.B
9.D
10.C
11.D
12.A
My teenage son Karl became withdraw after his father died. As a single parent, I tried to do my best to talk to him. But the more I tried, the more he pulled away. When his report card arrived during his junior year, it said that he had been absent 95 times from classes and had six falling grades for the year. At this rate he would never graduate. I sent him to the school adviser, and I even begged him. Nothing worked.
One night I felt so powerless that I got down on my knees and pleaded for help. “Please God, I can’t do anything more for my son. I’m at the end of my rope. I’m giving the whole thing up to you.”
I was at work when I got a phone call. A man introduced himself as the headmaster. “I want to talk to you about Karl’s absences.” Before he could say another word, I choked up and all my disappointment and sadness over Karl came pouring out into the ears of this stranger. “I love my son but I just don’t know what to do. I’ve tried everything to get Karl to go back to school and nothing has worked. It’s out of my hands.” For a moment there was silence on the other end of the line. The headmaster seriously said, “thank you for your time”, and hung up.
Karl’s next report card showed a marked improvement in his grades. Finally, he even made the honor roll. In his fourth year, I attended a parent-teacher meeting with Karl. I noticed that his teachers were astonished at the way he had turned himself around. On our way home, he said, “Mum, remember that call from the headmaster last year?” I nodded. “That was I. I thought I’d play a joke but when I heard what you said, it really hit me how much I was hurting you. That’s when I knew I had to make you proud.”
【小题1】By saying “Karl became withdrawn”, the author means that the boy changed entirely and _____.
| A.preferred to stay alone at home | B.often escaped school |
| C.refused to talk to others | D.began to dislike his mother |
| A.the speaker was too moved to say anything to the mother |
| B.the speaker waited for the mother to finish speaking |
| C.the speaker didn’t want the mother to recognize his voice |
| D.the speaker was unable to interrupt the mother |
| A.Children in single-parent families often have mental problems. |
| B.Mother’s love plays an important role in teenagers’ life. |
| C.Being understood by parents is very important to teenagers. |
| D.School education doesn’t work without full support from parents. |