Optimism and pessimism are both powerful forces. Each of us must choose which we want to our future and our expectations. We can choose to laugh or cry, bless or . It’s our decision: From which perspective do we want to view life? Will we look up in or down in desperation? I believe in the upward look. I choose to the positive and skip right over the negative.
An optimistic attitude is not a luxury; it’s a(n) . The way you look at life will determine how you feel, how you perform, and how well you will get along with other people. , negative thoughts, attitudes, and expectations themselves; they become a self-fulfilling prophecy (预言). Pessimism creates a dark place where no one wants to live.
Years ago, I drove into a service station to get some gas. It was a beautiful day, and I was feeling great. As I walked into the station to pay for the gas, the attendant said to me, “How do you feel?” That seemed like a(n) question, but I felt fine and told him so. “You don’t look well,” he replied. This me completely by surprise. A little confidently, I told him that I had felt better. Without hesitation, he continued to tell me how bad I looked and that my skin appeared yellow.
By the time I left the service station, I was feeling a little . About a block away, I over to the side of the road to look at my face in the mirror. How did I feel? Was I affected with jaundice(黄疸)? Was everything all right? By the time I got home, I was beginning to feel a little nauseous(恶心). Did I have a bad liver? Had I some rare disease?
On another beautiful day, when I went into that gas station, feeling again, I figured out what had happened. The place had recently been painted a bright, distasteful , and the light reflecting the walls made everyone inside look as though they had hepatitis（肝炎）! I wondered how many other folks had the way I did. I had let one short conversation with a total change my attitude for an entire day. He told me I looked sick, and before long, I was actually feeling sick. That single observation had a great effect on the way I felt and acted.
The only thing more powerful than negativism is a word of optimism and hope. When a whole culture adopts an upward look, incredible things can be accomplished.
1.A. shapeB. decide C. preview D. transform
2.A. forgiveB. curseC. praise D. regret
3.A. vainB. angerC. action D. hope
4.A. highlightB. analyzeC. evaluate D. introduce
5.A. necessity B. opportunity C. quality D. identity
6.A. Actually B. ConsequentlyC. Accordingly D. Contrarily
7.A. rely on B. feed on C. go on D. take on
8.A. familiar B. ordinary C. odd D. easy
9.A. got B. took C. stopped D. made
10.A. more B. less C. quite D. too
11.A. never B. ever C. once D. always
12.A. uneasy B. unconcerned C. unsatisfied D. unaffected
13.A. got B. came C. took D. pulled
14.A. come up B. brought up C. picked up D. put up
15.A. fine B. upset C. sick D. calm
16.A. gray B. blue C. yellow D. red
17.A. in B. over C. off D. through
18.A. quit B. adapted C. answered D. reacted
19.A. liar B. onlooker C. attendant D. stranger
20.A. positive B. negative C. careful D. rigid
— You shouldn’t have told everybody my secret.
— Wait a minute! I didn’t tell anyone... I swear!
— Oh, ________! You big mouth！
A. I don’t buy it B. I mean it
C. You don’t forget it D. You got it
When the questions got personal during the talk show, the actress ________ in tears as she opened up about the wounds she suffered.
A. broke upB. broke downC. broke outD. broke through
In today’s fast changing and competitive world, to be able to learn faster and more effectively is not merely desirable; it is ________.
A. essentialB. worthwhileC. challengingD. sufficient
—What a pity! Their experiment is a failure.
—They ________ better under more favorable conditions.
A. should have doneB. could have done C. must have doneD. may have done
—Life is hard these days.
—At least we have some money left. That's ________, isn't it?
A. everythingB. nothingC. somethingD. anything
