My daughter Kelly is a cautious person. She needs to warm up to situations, and is hesitant to try new things. When with close friends, she becomes a leader who laughs loudly and chants, “Girls rule, boys drool.” But when that comfort zone is not around her, she is shy and nervous.
This has been challenging for me at times. “Shy” is not a word that I think has ever been used to describe me. But this bas been a year of firsts for my girl that has filled her with a new sense of confidence. This year she moved to lap lane in swimming where she was preparing for a swim team. This year she learned to ride a bike without training wheels. And this year she completed her first kids’ triathlon (三项全能).
On Saturday, with a thunderstorm coming soon and my son’s birthday party later in the day, we all went out in the dark of the morning for Kelly to participate in her first triathlon. We practiced transitions from swim to bike to run with her, we got all the equipment she'd need, and we kept talking about the race. But as we waited the two hours for the older kids to finish before her turn, she held my leg a little harder and told me she loved me a few too many times. She was nervous but trying to keep it together.
And then it was her turn. From the second she jumped into the water, my heart soared. My daughter transformed into the most confident human being I had ever seen. She dominated that swim, crushed that bike ride and ran to the finish with the biggest smile on her face.
I can honestly say that I never felt so proud of someone in my entire life. It wasn’t because she did a sport or anything like that. It was because she was afraid of something and conquered that fear with confidence and a fire I hadn't seen before.
All day I would find myself just looking over at her and smiling. She might be wearing the finalist medal but I felt like I won that day. I won the chance to see my girl shine.
Shine on, sweet baby.
1.Kelly is nervous when .
A. boys are around her
B. she changes into a leader
C. she is away from her mom
D. situations are new to her
2.We can know from Paragraph 3 .
A. the race began in the early morning
B. the whole family gave Kelly support
C. Kelly was eager for her turn in the race
D. Kelly prepared for her brother’s birthday party
3.Seeing Kelly’s performance in the race, the author felt .
A. excited and proud
B. anxious and uneasy
C. worried and hesitant
D. curious and concerned
4.In Paragraph 5, the underlined word “conquered” probably means .
A. to defeat someone especially in a competition
B. to succeed in dealing with or control something
C. to become very popular or successful in a place
D. to take control of a country or a city and its people by force
5.In the ending paragraphs the author “felt like I won that day” because Kelly .
A. overcame the fear
B. expressed love to her
C. won the gold medal
D. took part in the sport
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1.If you are going to the USA for the man-made attractions, you can drive along ________.
A. Route 1 B. Route 6
C. the Las Vegas Strip D. the California coast
2.Why are the photos of the hotels in US cities and resorts real in www.oyster.com?
A. Because there are qualifications of the authority.
B. Because they are taken by inspectors of the website.
C. Because there are comments of customers on each photo.
D. Because they were taken by customers who once lived there.
3.Travel ideas for a big family with kids and the old are available at ________.
A. www.oyster.com B. http://byways.org
C. www.mousesavers.com D. www.101usaholidays.co.uk
4.What can be inferred from the passage?
A. California’s Napa Valley is famous for its wine.
B. www.mousesavers.com is a newly established website.
C. The National Scenic Byways Program covers all the roads in the USA.
D. Discounted tickets of Walt Disney World are not available for everyone.
5.Where does the text probably come from?
A. A news report. B. A tourist brochure.
C. A culture journal. D. A health column.
Like any good mother, when Karen found out that another baby was on the way, she did what she could to help her three-year-old son, Michael, prepare for a new baby. They found out that it was going to be a girl, and day after day, night after night, Michael _______ to his sister in Mommy’s tummy. He was building a bond of love with his little sister before he even met her.
The pregnancy progressed _______ for Karen. In time, the labor pains came. Soon it was every five minutes ... every minute. But something serious _______ during delivery. Finally, Michael’s little sister was born. But she was in serious _______. With siren (警报) howling in the night, the ambulance _______ the infant (婴儿）to the Intensive Care Unit at St Mary’s Hospital in Knoxville, Tennessee.
_______ inched by. The little girl got worse. The doctors told the parents, “There is very little hope.” Karen and her husband contacted a local cemetery (墓地）about a burial plot. They had _______ a special room in their home for the new baby — now they planned a funeral.
After two weeks in ICU, it looked as if a funeral would come _______ the week was over. Michael, however, kept begging his parents to let him see his sister. “I want to sing to her,” he said. Kids were never _______ in ICU. But Karen made up her mind to take Michael ________ they liked it or not. If he didn’t see his sister now, he may never see her alive.
She ________ him in an oversized suit and ________ him into ICU. He looked like a walking laundry basket, but the head nurse ________ him as a child, “Get that kid out of here now!” The mother rose up strong in Karen, and the usually ________ lady glared steel-eyed right into the head nurse’s face, saying in a ________ tone of voice, “He is not leaving until he sings to his sister!” Karen towed Michael to his sister’s bedside. He gazed at the tiny baby ________ the battle to live. And he began to sing. ________ the pure hearted voice of a 3-year-old, Michael sang:
“You are my sunshine, my only sunshine, you make me happy when skies are gray...” ________ the baby girl responded. The pulse rate began to ________ down and became steady.
“Keep on singing, Michael,” encouraged Karen. “You never know, dear, how much I love you. Please don’t take my sunshine away...”As Michael sang to his sister, the baby’s breath became as smooth as a kitten’s purr.
“Keep on singing, Michael.”“The other night, dear, as I lay sleeping…” Michael’s little sister relaxed as rest, healing rest, seemed to sweep over her.
Funeral plans were ________. The next day — the very next day — the little girl was well enough to go home!
The medical staff just called it a miracle. Karen called it a miracle of God’s love!
1.A. talked B. sang C. played D. whispered
2.A. quietly B. peacefully C. hopefully D. normally
3.A. arose B. raised C. rose D. aroused
4.A. situation B. place C. condition D. position
5.A. took B. sent C. carried D. rushed
6.A. The years B. The months C. The weeks D. The days
7.A. fixed up B. made up C. built up D. set up
8.A. until B. before C. after D. when
9.A. asked B. allowed C. admitted D. acquired
10.A. no matter B. even if C. whether D. as if
11.A. put B. dressed C. wore D. fit
12.A. marched B. forced C. hid D. followed
13.A. required B. replied C. recognized D. regarded
14.A. warm-hearted B. well-managed C. mild-mannered D. cold-blooded
15.A. firm B. strong C. hard D. tough
16.A. losing B. withdrawing C. quitting D. exiting
17.A. In B. On C. At D. Under
18.A. Finally B. Instantly C. Patiently D. Interestingly
19.A. calm B. quiet C. slow D. die
20.A. delayed B. banned C. abandoned D. abolished
more energy to my study instead of being crazy about Interact games, I would be sitting in a comfortable office now.
A. If I devoted B. Had I devoted
C. Would I be devoted D. Should I be devoted
—Why not talk with your parents about your willingness to attend Peking University Summer Camp?
—I tried __________to get them to listen to me.
A. in time B. in vain C. in need D. in case
______ is known to us is that tobacco contains nicotine and other harmful products, so you should give up smoking.
A. As B. It C. What D. Which
