I always had a dream. In it, I was a little girl again, rushing about, trying to get _______for school. Deep inside I knew _______it came from. It was some unfinished_______in my life.
As a kid I loved school. Most of all I_______to receive my diploma. That seemed more_______even than getting married. But at 15, I had to _______because my parents couldn’t afford my _______. Pretty soon, I married and had three children. I thought, “There goes my diploma.” _______, I wanted my children to be educated. But Linda, the youngest, had a serious heart disease, which made it impossible for her to_________in a normal classroom.
One day, I saw an ad for evening courses. “That’s the __________. Linda always feels better in the evening, so I’ll just __________ her up for night school.”
Linda was busy filling forms when the school__________ said: “Mrs. Schantz, why don’t you come back to school?”
I laughed: “There’s no __________! I’m 55!”
But he __________me and I attended class with Linda. Surprisingly, both Linda and I felt great there and my__________ steadily improved.
It was exciting, going to school again, but it was no __________. Sitting in a class full of kids was__________, even if most of them were respectful. Whenever I was down, Linda encouraged me. “Mom, you can’t __________now!” Together we made it__________.
Finally, I got my diploma with Linda and realized my __________of years.
1.A. started B. concerned C. finished D. prepared
2.A. when B. where C. how D. why
3.A. homework B. diploma C. accident D. business
4.A. required B. managed C. longed D. struggled
5.A. annoying B. incredible C. appealing D. ridiculous
6.A. drop out B. give in C. break up D. turn away
7.A. living B. teaching C. working D. schooling
8.A. As usual B. Until then C. Even so D. In fact
9.A. recover B. function C. benefit D. arrive
10.A. problem B. answer C. deal D. result
11.A. sign B. put C. call D. pick
12.A. secretary B. colleague C. employer D. referee
13.A. rush B. time C. way D. class
14.A. urged B. demanded C. persuaded D. informed
15.A. grades B. attitude C. health D. moods
16.A. fun B. game C. good D. wonder
17.A. available B. awkward C. awesome D. awful
18.A. miss B. reject C. resign D. quit
19.A. up B. out C. off D. through
20.A. dream B. ambition C. plan D. thought
Of all the things that can be stolen from you your possessions, your youth, your health, your words, your rights—what no one can ever take from you is…
●How you feel about yourself.
It takes a long time to learn how to NOT judge yourself through someone else’s eyes. 1.
●Your attitude towards life.
The last of your freedoms is to choose your attitude in any given circumstance.
Choose to be happy and positive. It is not always easy to find happiness in ourselves, but it is always impossible to find it elsewhere. 2.
●3.
The measure of your life will not be in what you accumulate, but in what you give away. And 99 percent of the time you get what you put in, so give freely. If you want to be happy ,make those around you happy.
●Your knowledge and life experiences.
Character and wisdom are sculpted over time. 4. Your best stories will come from overcoming your greatest struggles. So keep standing, keep learning, and keep living.
●Your choice to move on enthusiastically.
5. Don’t let someone or something that didn’t make it in your life continue to hurt you. Learn the lesson, forget the pain , and move on.
A. Your attitude towards yourself.
B. Your ability to spread love and kindness.
C. They come with loss, lessons, and successes.
D. But once you do, the world is yours for the taking.
E. So smile all the way and walk away from negative people.
F. Don’t let past relationships and old mistakes ruin your future.
G. Holding your uniqueness in high regard is necessary to success.
For many people, being on the job might just sound like a picnic compared to a day at home filled with housework, meals and childcare. Even for those with a happy family life, home can sometimes feel more taxing than work.
In a new study, researchers at Penn State University found significantly and consistently lower levels of cortisol(皮质醇) released in response to stress, in a majority of subjects when they were at work compared to when they were at home. This was true for both men and women, and parents and people without children.
Both men and women showed less stress at work. But women were more likely to report feeling happier there. Men were more likely to feel happier at home. Experts say there are other reasons why work is less stressful than home for many. “Paid work is more valued in society,” says Sarah Damaske, the lead researcher on the study. “Household work is boring and not particularly rewarding.”
We get better at our job with time and the increased competence means less stress and more rewards. Yet none of us, no matter how long we’ve been doing it, ever truly feels like an expert at parenting or even at marriage.
The support and friendship of co-workers also offer stress relief. At home, meanwhile, stress spreads and accumulates quickly. “That’s the reason why most housewives wish they were the bread earners,” Dr. Damaske says.
Much of the advice to families and couples include the warning to “leave work stress at the office” and even to change our mind-set from work to home, for example, a walk around the block. The recent findings, though, suggest our home life, not our attitude, might be due for some change.
1.Which of the following can replace the underlined word “taxing”?
A. stressful. B. cheerful. C. worthwhile. D. rewarding.
2.What did the research in the second paragraph prove?
A. Men felt better at home.
B. Women felt they had less time.
C. Women were easier to feel happier.
D. Most people felt more stress at home.
3.What do most people think of work at office?
A. It is competitive. B. It improves ability.
C. It can’t relieve stress. D. It doesn’t always pay off.
4.According to the recent findings, what should we change to solve the problem mentioned?
A. Our attitude. B. Our mind-set.
C. Our home life. D. Our working style.
Whenever we see a button, we want to press it because we know that something will happen. This is true in most cases, for example, on a doorbell. But some buttons are actually fake(假的), like the “close” button on a lift.
Many people are in the habit of pressing the “close” button because they don’t have the patience to wait for the lift doors to shut. But lifts’ “close” buttons are a complete trick, at least in the US － the doors will not close any faster no matter how hard you press.
It started in the 1990s when the Americans with Disabilities Act was passed in the US, making sure that all lifts stayed open long enough so that people with disabilities could enter. Only US firefighters and repairmen can use the buttons to speed up the door-closing process if they have a code or special keys.
But to normal lift riders, the buttons aren’t completely useless. According to psychologists, fake buttons can actually make you feel better by offering you a sense of control.
“A sense of control is very important. It reduces stress and increases well-being,” said Ellen J. Langer, a psychology professor at Harvard University. Experts also added that a lot of buttons that don’t do anything exist in our lives for this same purpose.
For example, pedestrian crosswalk buttons don’t live up to their names either. Pressing them used to help make the traffic signals change faster, but that was before computer controlled traffic signals were introduced.
But psychologists found it interesting that even when people are aware of these little “white lies”, they still continue to push fake buttons because as long as the doors eventually close, it is considered to be worth the effort.
1.What is the author’s purpose in writing the text?
A. To explore the functions of fake buttons.
B. To describe different fake buttons.
C. To analyze various habits of pushing buttons.
D. To explain the disadvantages of fake buttons.
2.What can we learn about the “close” buttons on a lift in America?
A. They work when people press them hard.
B. They were designed for a sense of control.
C. They never speed up the door-closing process.
D. They take the safety of the disabled into account.
3.What can we infer about pedestrian crosswalk buttons?
A. They can make people feel better.
B. They help computers work faster.
C. They can control the traffic signals.
D. They help pedestrians cross safely.
4.Which may be the best title for the passage?
A. Buttons in the USA. B. Buttons Always Lie
C. Buttons May not Work D. “Close” Buttons on Lifts
When Paula Grzelak-Schultz spotted a piece of paper tucked under her windshield(挡风玻璃) wipers, she thought she was getting fined for leaving her car in a bar parking lot overnight. With a heavy sigh, Grzelak-Schultz removed the paper and unlocked her car.
Hardly had she unfolded the paper when she got shocked. It was a letter from the manager of Original Joe’s Restaurant & Bar in Sherwood Park, Canada.
“Just wanted to thank you for leaving your car parked overnight,” Jay McLean, managing partner at Original Joe’s, wrote. “I’m not sure if you had consumed alcohol at our restaurant or not, but we wanted to thank you for not drinking and driving.”
Inside it,, Grzelak-Schultz also found a voucher（代金券） for 1 pound of chicken wings.
“Please accept this as a thank you for being responsible,” McLean wrote. “Life is valuable, have a great weekend.”
Grzelak-Schultz was touched.
“I was sure it was going to be a ticket or a scolding from someone for leaving my vehicle there for so long,” Grzelak-Schultz told CBS News. “I was truly surprised and so pleased that the manager took the time to acknowledge my good judgment.”
She decided to share the man’s good deed on Facebook.
“Wow! I’m so impressed. Definitely going back,” Grzelak-Schultz wrote in a Facebook post on Tuesday that has since gone widespread with nearly 8,500 shares. “Not just because of the voucher, but also because of how well this guy treats his regular customers.”
Exactly a week later, Grzelak-Schultz returned to the restaurant to thank McLean for his kindness, and discovered that she’s not the only customer to receive this leter.
“He’s been doing it for over a year, with no expectations.” She explained. “Just being a good guy.”
1.At first sight of the paper, Paul thought it was .
A. a ticket B. a voucher C. a letter D. a thank-you card
2.What truly surprised Grzelak-Schultz?
A. She was not fined by the police.
B. She was not scolded for parking.
C. She was considered as responsible.
D. She got a voucher for chicken wings.
3.What can we learn about Jay Mclean?
A. He simply meant to be good.
B. He hoped to attract more customers.
C. He wanted to be popular on the Internet.
D. He intended to please regular customers.
4.Which can best describe the change of the author’s feelings?
A. sad—excited—surprised—relieved
B. sad—surprised—pleased—impressed
C. surprised—sad—disappointed—pleased
D. disappointed—surprised—excited—delighted
We humans are superstitious, believing that Friday the 13th is bad luck and finding a penny is good luck. Here, then, are three of the most common superstitions.
Careful with that mirror
According to folktales, breaking a mirror is sure to bring yourself seven years of bad luck. The superstition seems to arise from the belief that mirrors don’t just reflect your image; they hold bits of your soul. That belief led old American Southerners to cover mirrors in a house when someone died, for fear that their soul might be trapped inside.
Like the number three, the number seven is often associated with luck. Seven years is a long time to be unlucky, so people have come up with solutions after breaking a mirror. These include touching a piece of the broken mirror to a tombstone or powdering the broken mirror.
Knock on wood
This phrase is designed to break away from bad luck: “Breaking that mirror didn’t bring me any trouble. Knock on wood.” The phrase may come from old tales about good spirits in trees or from an association with the Christian cross.
No umbrellas inside
…And not just because you’ll hurt someone’s eyes. Opening an umbrella indoors is supposed to bring bad luck. The origins of this belief vary from a story of an ancient woman who happened to have opened her umbrella moments before her house fell to the tale of a British prince who accepted two umbrellas from a visiting king and died within months.
1.What may bring good luck?
A. Dating on Friday the 13th. B. Knocking on wood.
C. Opening an umbrella inside. D. Breaking a mirror.
2.What should you do to drive bad luck away after breaking a mirror?
A. Hide the pieces for seven years. B. Put the pieces in a tombstone.
C. Cover the other mirrors in a house. D. Make the pieces into powder.
3.Which phrase may originate(起源) from religion?
A. Careful with that mirror. B. Knock on wood.
C. No umbrellas inside. D. Lucky number seven.
