It is no ______ arguing with Bill because he will never change his mind.

1. A.
   use
2. B.
   help
3. C.
   time
4. D.
   way

Recently I was invited to attend a party that helps children seriously injured in the big earthquake that happened this May. I went because I 1.
At the party, all the children were given paints in bright, beautiful colors. After a short time, as I2, I saw blue clouds, orange sunrises and purple flowers. The3were all bright.
The boy sitting next to me was painting a heart, but it was 4and lifeless. It lacked (缺乏) the bright colors that his fellow (同伴) “5” had used.
I thought maybe he took the only paint that was 6and it just happened to be dark. But when I asked him about it, he said his 7was that color. I asked him why and he told me that he was very8. He looked straight into my eyes and said, “There is 9anyone can do that will help.”
I certainly 10why he was sad. I said, “It isn’t 11that there is nothing anyone can do to help. Other people may not be 12to make you recover better…but we can do things 13giving bear hugs (拥抱), which will 14when you are feeling sad.” I also told him that I’d be happy to give him one 15he could see what I meant. He immediately gave me a huge hug and I thought my own heart would burst with the 16I felt for this sweet boy.
As the day was coming to an end, I was getting ready to 17home. I turned around and found that standing there with 18on his face was the little boy. He said, “My heart is 19colors. It is getting brighter. Those 20really do work.” On my way home I felt my own heart had changed to a brighter color, too.

1. 1.
   1. A.
      moved
   2. B.
      touched
   3. C.
      hated
   4. D.
      cared
2. 2.
   1. A.
      looked up
   2. B.
      looked down
   3. C.
      looked over
   4. D.
      looked around
3. 3.
   1. A.
      pictures
   2. B.
      walls
   3. C.
      pencils
   4. D.
      lights
4. 4.
   1. A.
      bright
   2. B.
      dark
   3. C.
      active
   4. D.
      brave
5. 5.
   1. A.
      artists
   2. B.
      writers
   3. C.
      teachers
   4. D.
      visitors
6. 6.
   1. A.
      used
   2. B.
      chosen
   3. C.
      allowed
   4. D.
      left
7. 7.
   1. A.
      hand
   2. B.
      heart
   3. C.
      skin
   4. D.
      memory
8. 8.
   1. A.
      wise
   2. B.
      silly
   3. C.
      sick
   4. D.
      healthy
9. 9.
   1. A.
      anything
   2. B.
      something
   3. C.
      everything
   4. D.
      nothing
10. 10.
    1. A.
       understood
    2. B.
       doubted
    3. C.
       noticed
    4. D.
       liked
11. 11.
    1. A.
       wrong
    2. B.
       true
    3. C.
       reasonable
    4. D.
       clear
12. 12.
    1. A.
       happy
    2. B.
       anxious
    3. C.
       able
    4. D.
       willing
13. 13.
    1. A.
       to
    2. B.
       after
    3. C.
       like
    4. D.
       for
14. 14.
    1. A.
       use
    2. B.
       help
    3. C.
       cheer
    4. D.
       enjoy
15. 15.
    1. A.
       so that
    2. B.
       as if
    3. C.
       even if
    4. D.
       in case
16. 16.
    1. A.
       feeling
    2. B.
       love
    3. C.
       sense
    4. D.
       impression
17. 17.
    1. A.
       reach
    2. B.
       be
    3. C.
       settle
    4. D.
       go
18. 18.
    1. A.
       a surprise
    2. B.
       anger
    3. C.
       a smile
    4. D.
       fear
19. 19.
    1. A.
       changing
    2. B.
       having
    3. C.
       developing
    4. D.
       drawing
20. 20.
    1. A.
       words
    2. B.
       smiles
    3. C.
       hugs
    4. D.
       photos

Have you ever regretted doing something you shouldn't have done or something you didn't do which you should have? At one time or another we probably all have.There's no 1lin getting depressed about it now—it's no 2crying overspilt(溢出的)milk.However,there may be some gain in thinking about exactly what happened and why3 we might be able to draw some conclusions for the future.
One thing we all do now and again is to lose our 4with a friend or close relative.The odd thing is that we more often display great 5towards someone we are fond of than towards 6.The explanation may be that we see friends and relatives as a kind of safety net, an opportunity to 7a bit of steam in a safe environment,while the consequences (后果)of8 a stranger could be far more serious.
Being honest is usually thought of as a virtue (美德) and undoubtedly this is the9 .On the other hand,we have all experienced occasions when we have spoken our minds to someone,telling them exactly what we feel,and then have found ourselves filled with feelings of 10.Perhaps we should have kept our mouths shut?

1. 1.
   1. A.
      reason
   2. B.
      purpose
   3. C.
      point
   4. D.
      result
2. 2.
   1. A.
      use
   2. B.
      help
   3. C.
      value
   4. D.
      benefit
3. 3.
   1. A.
      so
   2. B.
      because
   3. C.
      but
   4. D.
      though
4. 4.
   1. A.
      mind
   2. B.
      memory
   3. C.
      manner
   4. D.
      temper
5. 5.
   1. A.
      anger
   2. B.
      interest
   3. C.
      love
   4. D.
      respect
6. 6.
   1. A.
      strangers
   2. B.
      friends
   3. C.
      relatives
   4. D.
      colleagues
7. 7.
   1. A.
      run through
   2. B.
      throw away
   3. C.
      give up
   4. D.
      let off
8. 8.
   1. A.
      inviting
   2. B.
      insulting
   3. C.
      speaking to
   4. D.
      believing in
9. 9.
   1. A.
      issue
   2. B.
      case
   3. C.
      event
   4. D.
      factor
10. 10.
    1. A.
       excitement
    2. B.
       happiness
    3. C.
       pride
    4. D.
       guilt

Growing up, I wanted to be just like my mom. She was kind. People always seemed to feel comfortable in her presence. For years, she was a volunteer in our community. I loved going to the local nursing home with her where she taught a ceramic class.
On one summer day, Mama told me to get changed and meet her at the car.
I had planned to spend the day at the lake with friends. Why did she have to ruin everything? I imagined the cool lake water. Irritated, I climbed into the car and slammed the door shut. We sat in silence. I was too upset to make conversation.
“Tasha, would you like to know where we are going?” Mama asked calmly.
“No,” I said.
“We are going to volunteer at a children’s shelter today. I have been there before and I think it would benefit you,” she explained.
When we reached the shelter, Mama rang the doorbell. Moments later, we were greeted by a woman. She led us to the front room where all of the children were playing. I noticed a baby whose body was scarred with iron marks. I was told it was because she wouldn’t stop crying. The majority of the children had noticeable physical scars. Others hid their emotional wounds.
As I took in my surroundings, I felt a gentle tug on my shirt. I looked down to see a little girl looking up at me. “Hi. You want to play dolls with me?” she asked. I looked over at Mama for reinforcement. She smiled and nodded. I turned back and said, “Sure.” Her tiny hand reached up and held mine, as if to comfort me.
My mom taught me a valuable lesson that summer. I returned to the shelter with her several times. During those visits, some of the children shared their troubled pasts with me and I learned to be grateful for what I had. Today as I strive to instill (逐渐灌输) these values in my own child, I reflect back to that experience. It was a time that I will never forget.
【小题1】The author admired her mom for ________.

      American society is on the go. There are two elements in life that Americans do regard much: ―   31   and labor.
　 Americans are "   32   to nothing but the clock ", it has been said. Time is   33    as if it were the most valuable thing. In American language, there are words  34    with time. Such as: time can be budgeted, saved, wasted, stolen, killed, and cut. Americans also   35   for time, as " the time is the money ". So time is really   36  to them. Many people have a rather acute (敏锐的) sense of the   37   of their lifetime. Their belief is that once " the sands have run out of a person's hourglass ", they can not be replaced. Americans want every minute to   38   .
　 Since people value time highly, they dislike someone else "     39   " it beyond a certain acceptable limit. This affects the matter of patience. In the American system of   40   , patience is not a high quality. Many of them have what   41   be called " a short fuse ". They begin to move   42   restlessly if they feel time is slipping away   43   any return.
　 Most Americans live in period of time by engagement calendars, which might be  44   periods as short as fifteen minutes. While in the business world, Americans are not likely to receive their visitors in homelike   45   over long but small talk; let  46   take them out for dinner. Once they are in business,   47   to most of them is not so important. They'd like to seek out assurance of past actual performance   48  evaluate a business partner through present    49  contact. Thus, they start dealing with business very quickly as they   50   have other appointments following hard on the heels. Time is therefore keeping ticking in their inner ear.