It was time to break free．
I needed to run away and the Bloomsburg Fair was the best place to go．
I don’t know if you can call it running away when it was only an hour away from my home．But once I entered the fair grounds, I crossed over into another world．The loudspeaker offered background music over the sounds of people talking, bargaining and food sellers yelling for your attention．
I belonged here．I didn’t know if I had it in my blood or not, but I always wanted to have a small food stand and travel in my off season from fair to fair selling goodies．Perhaps one day．It certainly wasn’t a priority(优先考虑的事)in my life , Perhaps it should be．
After I was there a while, I needed to get away to a quiet spot．Most of the time, I could find that anywhere the farm animals were kept． They needed the quiet．So I went there to find peace with the cows, goats, horses, pigs and yes, the turkeys．You'd think being this close to "Thanksgiving", they'd be a little scared, but they were not．
It was in the dairy barn（仓库）where I found peace this time．I so admired the young folks who tended to farm animals．I thought they had a greater appreciation for life．They participated in it firsthand．I once watched a young farmer help bring a baby cow into the world．
My favorite scene was to come across a young cowboy lying in the hay asleep among the cows that had settled down for a rest．There, with his heads in a small soft spot alongside his favorite cow, I had seen him in a much deserved sleep．Perhaps better at rest there than in his own bed．
I had the pleasure of speaking with a young teenage farm girl that day．
"You look so comfortable," I said to her．
"Oh I am," she said．"Life makes it comfortable for me．"
“You mean being a farm girl?"
"No, Life! That's the name of my cow," she said, smiling as she gently patted the cow's side．
"I thought they called cows Betsy and Elsie．Why did you call her Life?"
“I discovered life again here．It was the only meaningful name that came to mind．I had been raised in the big city and really hated it．Then we moved to the country, running away from it．I think my parents called it a mid-life crisis," she said, laughing．
"Oh, I can understand that．I've been in one since birth," I said．
"It was on the farm that I learned to love life again．I was there when Life was born．It was so exciting．My whole outlook on the world changed．So I named her Life．Now, I can say I really love 'Life'," she said．
"How amazing! I write stories and J am always trying to get people to enjoy life, to wake up each day expecting the best from it．But they all too often go to bed with so much bad stuff in their soul, and on their mind, that they wake up feeling bad and expect it to only get worse from there． All too often it does, just because that's all they choose to see in that otherwise perfectly beautiful day," I told her．
"That's too bad．They need to see a cow born, a chicken hatch．I guess they need to wake up early and hug Life!" she said, laughing．
"When was the last time you hugged Life" she asked me．
"I am sorry to say even I have had trouble doing that lately," I said．
"Come here!" she said．
Then standing up and stepping aside, she said, "Go ahead…hug Life!"
I paused for a moment and dropping all thoughts of looking silly, I did．I hugged a cow．
1.The writer went to the Bloomsburg Fair probably in order to ．
A．have fun B．get ideas for writing
C．do shopping D．escape something he disliked
2.The following things happened in the Bloomsbury Fair except ．
A．food sellers' shouting
B．the writer's selling goodies
C．people's bargaining and talking
D．the loudspeaker's broadcasting music
3.What can we learn from Paragraphs 5, 6 and 7?
A．The writer tended to farm animals firsthand．
B．The cowboy was lazy and fell asleep among the cows．
C．The writer found peace where farm animals were kept．
D．The turkeys got into panic with "Thanksgiving" approaching
4.The underlined word "it" refers to ．
A．the city B．the country
C．the barn D．the fair
5.The writer was surprised at the farm girl's words and he thought people often______
A．expected to get the best things
B．enjoyed perfectly beautiful days
C．ignored the bright side of each day
D．felt really bad due to poor sleep at night
6.What can be the best title for the passage?
A．Farm Life and Happiness B．Hugging Life
C．A Farm Girl and Her Cow D．Enjoying Freedom
Findings from a new study were presented at a recent meeting of the American Psychosomatic (身心的) Society. Researchers in the United States studied 100,000 women during an eight-year period, beginning in 1994. All of the women were fifty or older. The study was part of the Women’s Health Initiative organized by the National Institutes of Health.
The women were asked questions measuring their beliefs or ideas about the future. The researchers attempted to identify each woman’s personality eight years after gathering the information.
The study found that hopeful individuals were 14% less likely than other woman to have died from any cause. The hopeful women were also 30 less likely to have died from heart disease after the eight years, Hilary Tinkle from the University of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania was the lead author of the report. She said the study confirmed earlier research that linked optimistic feelings to longer life.
The researchers also gathered information about people’s education, financial earnings, physical activity and use of alcohol or cigarettes. Independent of those things, the findings still showed that optimists had less of a chance of dying during the eight-year period.
Some women who answered the questions were found to be hostile (敌意的), or highly untrusting of others. These women were 16% more likely to die than the others. They also were 23% more likely to die of cancer.
The study also found women who were not optimistic were more likely to smoke and have high blood pressure or diabetes. They were also more likely mot to exercise.
Tindle says the study did not confirm whether optimism leads to healthier choices, or if it actually affects a person’s physical health. She also says the study does not prove that negative emotions or distrust lead to bad health effects and shorter life. Yet there does appear to be a link that calls for more research.
1.In which part of a newspaper can you read the above passage?
A. Nation. B. Opinion.
C. Business. D. Science.
2.Researchers carry out the study to .
A. decide who is more likely to enjoy a happier life.
B. gather information for the National Institutes of Health.
C. find out the link between personality and health.
D. compare each woman’s personality changes.
3.What can be inferred from the passage?
A. Negative emotions cause a shorter life indeed.
B. The more optimistic you are, the longer life you may enjoy.
C. It’s uncertain whether optimism affects one’s health.
D. There may be some link between personality.
4.Who is more likely to die of cancer according to the passage?
A. A woman who doesn’t exercise.
B. woman who always doubts what others say.
C. A woman with high blood pressure.
D. A woman with poor physical health.
5.What’s Hilary Tindle’s opinion of the study?
A. Necessary. B. Useless.
C. Unfair. D. meaningless.
I received a call today asking if I would be willing to bring food to a family in need. The mother was having a major operation and would be lying down for several weeks. Of course, I responded with an immediate “Yes!”. As I planned the meal in my head, I reflected on how many times over the years I had been asked to prepare food. I have done so countless times with a very open heart.
But the truly amazing thing is that I have received double over the course of my life. When my mother passed away, our house was filled with fresh dinners for weeks. A woman from the church of our community stopped by each evening with some food. The gift of food was her small way of trying to ease our pain.
Later in my life, when I was on bed rest during my pregnancy with twins, women of the church again stepped in to help. They arranged babysitting for my two-year-old daughter, and brought lovely dinners to our house. Even when I was put in the hospital, my husband would bring cooked meals to my hospital room. How we relied on these dinners to feed my tired husband and young daughter.
Food is all about comfort. It feeds our bodies, but it can also feed our souls. When you hear people talking about their favorite holidays, it usually includes their feelings connected with sharing food. I know that I will have many more opportunities in my lifetime to prepare food for others. It is truly a gift I want to prepare and deliver to someone in need.
1.The author has given lots of food to others because .
A. she is poor at cooking.
B. she is a church member.
C. she is friendly to others.
D. she has received others’ food.
2.We can learn from the first paragraph that the author .
A. had to stay in bed for several weeks.
B. knew the family in need very well.
C. was glad to be able to lend a hand.
D. was tired of preparing food.
3.Which of the following is TRUE about the author?
A. Her mother died when she was in hospital.
B. She didn’t get enough food during her pregnancy.
C. She received food as well as comfort in her hard times.
D. She thinks offering food is the best way to show love.
4.According to the passage, which of the following conclusion can we get?
A. A good beginning makes a good ending.
B. One good turn deserves another.
C. Actions speak louder than words.
D. Every man has his faults.
Body language is the quiet, secret and most powerful language of all! It speaks than words. According to specialists, our bodies send out more than we realize. In fact, nonverbal communication (非言语交际) takes up about 50% of what we really . And body language is particularly when we attempt to communicate across cultures (文化). Indeed, what is called body language is so a part of us that it’s actually often unnoticed. And misunderstandings occur as a result of it. , different societies treat the between people differently. Northern Europeans usually do not like having contact (接触) even with friends, and certainly not with . People from Latin American countries, , touch each other quite a lot. Therefore, it’s possible that in , it may look like a Latino is a Norwegian all over the room. The Latino, trying to express friendship, will keep moving . The Norwegian, very probably seeing this as pushiness, will keep ---which the Latino will in return regard as .
Clearly, a great deal is going on when people . And only a part of it is in the words themselves. And when parties are from cultures, there’s a strong possibility of . But whatever the situation, the best is to obey the Golden Rule; treat others as you would like to be .
1.A. less B. louder C. harder D. further
2.A. sounds B. invitations C. feelings D. messages
3.A. hope B. receive C. forget D. mean
4.A. immediate B. misleading C. important D. difficult
5.A. well B. far C. much D. long
6.A. For example B. Thus C. However D. In short
7.A. trade B. distance C. support D. response
8.A. eye B. verbal C. bodily D. telephone
9.A. strangers B. relatives C. neighbors D. enemies
10.A. in other words B. on the other handC. in a similar wayD. by all means
11.A. trouble B. conversation C. silence D. experiment
12.A. disturbing B. helping C. guiding D. following
13.A. closer B. faster C. in D. away
14.A. stepping forward B. going on C. backing away D. coming out
15.A. weakness B. carelessness C. friendliness D. coldness
16.A. talk B. travel C. laugh D. think
17.A. different B. European C. Latino D. rich
18.A. curiosity B. excitement C. misunderstanding D. nervousness
19.A. chance B. time C. result D. advice
20.A. noticed B. treated C. respected D. pleased
—Don’t be a slave to work. Ralph! You must take it easy sometimes.
—I can’t help it. .
A. Easier said than done
B. No thing is easier than fault-finding
C. Easy come, easy go
D. Easy does it
They dislike when people do not look at the cards, so remember not to just put them in your pocket without looking.
A. that B. this C. it D. you
