Question

It was an autumn morning shortly after my husband and I moved into our first house. Our children were upstairs unpacking, and I was looking out of the window at my father moving around mysteriously on the front lawn. My parents lived nearby, and Dad had visited us several times already. “What are you doing out there?” I called to him.

He looked up, smiling. “I’m making you a surprise.” Knowing my father, I thought it could be just about anything. A self-employed jobber, he was always building things out of odds and ends. When we were kids, he always created something surprising for us.

Today, however, Dad would say no more, and caught ups in the busyness of our new life, I eventually forgot about his surprise.

Until one gloomy day the following March when I glanced out of the window. Any yet… I saw a dot of blue across the yard. I headed outside for a closer look. They were crocuses (番红花), throughout the front lawn. Lavender, blue, yellow and my favorite pink --- little faces moved up and down in the cold wind.

Dad! I smiled, remembering the things he had secretly planted last autumn. He knew how the darkness and dullness of winter always got me down. What could have been more perfectly timely to my needs?

My father’s crocuses bloomed each spring for the next four or five seasons, bringing the same assurance every time they arrived: hard times was almost over. Hold on, keep going, light is coming soon.

Then a spring came with only half the usual blooms. The next spring there were none. I missed the crocuses. I would ask Dad to come over and plant new bulbs. But I never did.

He died suddenly one October day. My family was in deep sorrow, leaning on our faith. I missed him terribly.

Four years passed, and on a dismal spring afternoon I was driving back when I found myself feeling depressed. “You’ve got the winter depression again and you get them every year.” I told myself.

It was Dad’s birthday, and I found myself thinking about him. This was not unusual --- my family often talked about him, remembering how he lived his faith. Once I saw him give his coat to a homeless man.

Suddenly I slowed as I turned into our driveway. I stopped and stared at the lawn. And there on the muddy grass and small gray piles of melting snow, bravely waving in the wind, was one pink crocus.

How could a flower bloom from a bulb more than 18 years old, one that had not blossomed in over a decade? But there was the crocus. Tears filled my eyes as I realized its significance.

Hold on, keep going, light is coming soon. The pink crocus bloomed for only a day. But it built my faith for a lifetime.

1. According to the first three paragraphs, we learn that _________.

A. the writer was unpacking when her father was making the surprise

B. the writer knew what the surprise was because she knew her father

C. it was not the first time that the writer’s father had made a surprise

D. it kept bothering the writer not knowing what the surprise was

2. Which of the following would most probably be the worst time of the year as seen by the writer?

A. Spring.         B. Summer.

C. Autumn.         D. Winter.

3. The writer’s father should be best described as_________.

A. a full-time gardener with skillful hands

B. a part-time jobber who loved flowers

C. a kind-hearted man who lived with faith

D. an ordinary man with doubts in his life

4. At the end of the passage, crocus was viewed as the symbol of _________ by the writer.

A. belief B. family C. love D. friendship

Answer

1.C

2.D

3.C

4.A

【解析】

试题分析：本文通过对父亲的回忆，表现对父亲的爱与怀念，还有父亲留给我坚定的生活信念。

1.；根据第二段最后一句When we were kids, he always created something surprising for us.当我们是小孩子的时候，他总是制造各种惊喜给我们，推断这不是他第一次制造惊喜了。 故选C

2.；根据第五段第二句He knew how the darkness and dullness of winter always got me down.父亲知道冬天的黑暗和肃杀总是让我沮丧，可知我觉得冬天最糟糕。故选D

3.；根据第十段第三句my family often talked about him, remembering how he lived his faith. Once I saw him give his coat to a homeless man.我的家人经常谈起父亲，记得他这样带着信念生活。有一次我看到他把他的外套给了一个无家可归的人，推断父亲是一个有信念的热心肠的人，故选C

4.；根据最后一段Hold on, keep going, light is coming soon. The pink crocus bloomed for only a day. But it built my faith for a lifetime.坚持住，继续前进，光明就要来临。粉色的番红花只绽放了一天。但是它却坚定了我一生的信念。整段都在讲父亲虽然逝世了，可是他种的番红花就像同样有信仰的父亲一样坚定了我一生的信念。故选A

考点：考查记叙文阅读