Hope in my arms

Last year, I was invited to participate in a carnival for Tuesday’s Child, an organization that helps children with AIDS.

All the children that had gathered at one particular room could   36  a square on a piece of cloth. Later the squares would be sewn(縫) together to  37  a quilt. The quilt would be  38  to a man who had devoted his life to the  39  and would soon be   40 .

The kids were given paints in bright colors and asked to paint something that would make the quilt  41 . As I looked around at all the squares, I saw pink hearts, blue clouds, orange sunrises and red flowers. The pictures were all bright and  42 . All   43  one.

One boy was painting a heart, but it was dark and lifeless. It  44  the bright colors that his fellow artists had used.I asked why. He told me that he was very   45  and so was his mom. He said that his sickness was not ever going to get better and neither was his mom’s. He looked   46  into my eyes and said, “There is no hope in my life.”

I told him I was sorry and I could understand why he had made his heart a dark color. I told him that   47  we couldn’t make him better, we can give  48 , which can really help when you are feeling sad. I told him that if he would like, I would be   49  to give him one so he could see what I meant.  50 , he crawled into my lap. I thought my own heart would burst for this sweet little boy.

He sat there for a long time. Finally he  51  down to finish his coloring.

As I was getting ready to  52  home, I felt a tug (猛拽) on my jacket. Standing there was the little boy,  53 . He said, “My heart is changing  54 . It is getting brighter. I think those hugs really do  55 .”

On my way home I felt my own heart. It too had changed to a brighter color.

1.                A．find           B．paint           C．cut  D．draw

2.                A．fold           B．become        C．spread   D．make

3.                A．presented       B．sold            C．lent  D．thrown

4.                A．education       B．country         C．organization   D．neighborhood

5.                A．dying          B．coming         C．visiting   D．retiring

6.                A．beautiful        B．strong          C．new D．comfortable

7.                A．empty          B．puzzling         C．confusing D．inspiring

8.                A．without         B．besides         C．except   D．beside

9.                A．needed        B．lacked          C．contained D．showed

10.               A．curious         B．disappointed    C．a(chǎn)ngry D．sick

11.               A．forward        B．still            C．straight    D．even

12.               A．so that         B．a(chǎn)s long as       C．even though    D．a(chǎn)s though

13.               A．hugs           B．smiles          C．prizes D．lessons

14.               A．sorry          B．happy          C．eager D．relaxed

15.               A．Suddenly       B．Quickly         C．Unwillingly D．Slowly

16.               A．slowed         B．jumped         C．slipped    D．fell

17.               A．leave          B．stay           C．head D．a(chǎn)rrive

18.               A．smiling         B．crying          C．dancing   D．glaring

19.               A．shape          B．color          C．weight    D．form

20.               A．fit             B．hurt           C．fail   D．work

“We’ve been good friends for so many years. And I don’t think you meant to do that ...” I said to myself， looking at Jack， my friend who was running across the  　36　  field.

How I wish I could join them！ But it was impossible because of the pain in my left foot， caused by Jack.

I first met Jack in a football match in the elementary school. When my team looked as if we were 　37　 ， Jack， who was watching， volunteered to join us. He was so confident and skilled that we won. From then on， Jack and I often played together and became best friends.

But something happened before an important football match between Class Six and my class. My class had so many good players that we had to  　38　  the best ones. Jack and I were in  the same  team. The match was close in the first half. I saw my chance and was ready to score a goal. Suddenly， Jack  　39　  me. He slid to stop the ball， but collided  with my left foot. I knew I had lost the chance to score and was  　40　  the field. But what really hurt me was that Jack didn’t say sorry.  And when some of my teammates said he did it on purpose to  　41　  me from scoring， I felt even  　42　.

Now I stand here， with tears in my eyes. I don’t want to  　43　  those words but I don’t know how to persuade myself they are  　44　 . Then everything changes when Jack scores and wins！ How excited I am！

 While I am still  　45　  in excitement， someone pats my shoulder. It is Jack， with a smile on his face. “I’m sorry that you can not join in because of my  　46　  . But you see， Jason， we beat them！ No matter whether you joined in or not， you’ve made a contribution. Come on， let’s celebrate！” Suddenly， I am  　47　  by the players. The sunshine is so bright that I close my eyes. Riding high above my teammates， I feel so happy. And I know the  friendship  between Jack and me will last forever.

A. basketball        B. volleyball      C. badminton      D .football

A. lost                     B .winning         C. leading       D. beaten

A. replace         B. award            C. decide on         D. call in

A. ran into          B. ran to          C .ran across        D. ran away

A. sent away            B. carried off       C. stuck to        D. hold on

A. break               B. interrupt       C. make              D. keep

A. amused             B. comfortable     C. depressed         D. scared

A. believe         B. say               C. deny           D. hear

A. right                B. false                C. true                D. bad

A. lost                     B. fallen              C. caught         D. drawn

A. score               B. pride               C. reason          D. carelessness

A. raised up          B. pulled away    C. picked up        D. pushed off

Last Christmas was a very difficult time for me. My family and all of my close friends were back home in Florida, and I was all alone in a rather cold California. I was working too many hours and became very sick.

I was working a double shift at the Southwest Airlines ticket counter, it was about 9:00 PM on Christmas Eve, and I was feeling really miserable inside. There were a few of us working and very few customers waiting to be helped. When it was time for me to call the next person to the counter, I looked out to see the sweetest-looking old man standing with a cane. He walked very slowly over to the counter and in the faintest voice told me that he had to go to New Orleans. I tried to explain to him that there were no more flights that night and that he would have to go in the morning. He looked so confused and very worried. I tried to find out more information by asking if he had a reservation or if he remembered when he was supposed to travel, but he seemed to become more confused with each question. He just kept saying, “She said I have to go to New Orleans.”

After much time, I was able to at least find out that this old man had been dropped off at the curb on Christmas Eve by his sister-in-law and told to go to New Orleans, where he had family. She had given him some cash and told him just to go inside and buy a ticket. When I asked if he could come back tomorrow, he said that she was gone and that he had no place to stay. He then said he would wait at the airport until tomorrow. Naturally, I felt a little ashamed. Here I was feeling very sorry for myself about being alone on Christmas, when this angel named Clarence MacDonald was sent to me to remind me of what being alone really meant. It broke my heart.

Immediately, I told him we would get it all straightened out, and our Customer Service agent helped to book him a seat for the earliest flight the next morning. We gave him the senior citizen’s fare, which gave him some extra money for travelling. About this time he started to look very tired, and when I stepped around the counter to ask him if he was all right, I saw that his leg was wrapped in a bandage. He had been standing on it that whole time, holding a plastic bag full of clothes.

I called for a wheelchair. When the wheelchair came, we all stepped around to help him in, and I noticed a small amount of blood on his bandage. I asked how he hurt his leg, and he said that he had just had bypass surgery and an artery was taken from his leg. Can you imagine? This man had had heart surgery, and then shortly afterward, was dropped off at the curb to buy a ticket with no reservation to fly to New Orleans, alone!

I never really had a situation like this, and I wasn’t sure what I could do. I went back to ask my supervisors if we could find a place for him to stay. They both said yes, and they obtained a hotel voucher for Mr. MacDonald for one night and a meal ticket for dinner and breakfast. When I came back out, we got his plastic bag of clothes and cane together and gave the porter a tip to take him downstairs to wait for the airport shuttle. I bent down to explain the hotel, food and itinerary (行程) again to Mr. MacDonald, and then patted him on the arm and told him everything would be just fine.

As he left he said, “Thank you,” bent his head and started to cry. I cried too. When I went back to thank my supervisor, she just smiled and said, “I love stories like that. He is your Christmas Man.”

1.Last Christmas the writer had a miserable time because ______.

A．there were more customers than usual waiting to be helped

B．it was freezing cold in California at Christmas time

C．she was working all alone at the ticket counter

D．she was far away from her family and friends

2.The writer’s first impression of the old man was that he was ______.

A．gentle-looking and weak                  B．tired out and worried

C．confused and very sick                   D．sad and anxious

3.The old man wanted to fly to New Orleans to ______.

A．see his friends there

B．spend the Christmas with his family

C．visit his sister-in-law

D．undergo heart surgery

4.On hearing the old man say that he would wait at the airport the whole night, the writer felt a bit ashamed. This is because ______.

A．she felt sorry that she couldn’t do the old man a favor

B．she realized that someone was even more miserable than she felt

C．it took her a long time to find out how helpless the old man was

D．the old man was like an angel in the writer’s eyes

5.The writer called for a wheelchair for the old man because ______.

A．the old man had broken his leg when he was dropped off at the curb

B．the old man could spend the whole night on it at the airport

C．the old man was carrying a whole lot of clothes

D．the old man had had surgery just before and was very weak by then

6. By calling the old man the writer’s Christmas Man, the writer’s supervisor implied that ______.

A．the old man had told the writer a love story on Christmas

B．the old man had caused a lot of trouble for the writer on Christmas

C．the old man was the best gift the writer could have received on Christmas

D．the old man was the only customer the writer had served on Christmas

Sometimes I really doubt whether there is love between my parents. Every day they are very busy trying to   36  in order to pay the high tuition for my brother and me. They don’t act in the   37  ways that I read in books or I see on TV. In their opinion, “I love you” is too   38   for them to say. Sending flowers to each other on Valentine’s Day is even more out of 39   .
One day, my mother was sewing a quilt. I sat down beside her. “Mom, I have a question to ask you. Is there    40   between you and Dad?” I asked her in a very low voice. She didn’t answer immediately. She    41   her head and continued to sew the quilt.
I was very worried because I thought I had  42   her. I was    43   and I didn’t know what I should do. But at last I heard my mother say the following words:
“Susan,” she said thoughtfully, “Look at this thread．Sometimes it   44  , but most of it disappears in the quilt. The thread really makes the quilt   45  . If life is a quilt, then love should be a thread．It can hardly be seen    46  , but it’s really there. Love is    47  .”
I listened carefully but I    48    her until the next spring. At that time, my father suddenly    49   seriously. My mother had to stay with him in the hospital for a month. When they returned from the hospital, they both looked   50   . It seemed both of them had had a serious illness. After they were back, every day in the morning and dusk, my mother helped my father   51   on the country road．
“Dad, how are you feeling now?” I asked him one day.
“Susan, don’t    52   me.” he said gently. “To tell you the truth, I just like walking with your mom.”   53    his eyes, I know he loves my mother deeply.
Once I thought love meant flowers, gifts and     54   . But from this experience, I understand that love is just    55   in the quilt of our life. Love is inside, making life strong and warm.

Diana Velez does everything with maximum effort-and at maximum speed. That 36  learning a new language, completing two certificates and opening a store.
When arriving in Canada in 2008, she had one   37 :to have what she had back home in Colombia. “I didn’t want to  38 what I do ,like so many who come to a new country .” she said , “I  39  to open a store here in Canada but knew I had to  40 myself properly.”
Diana quickly realized that making her dream of shop ownership in Canada a   41  meant going to school to get the   42  education and certification, “My experience of owning a shop and working as a designer in Colombia gave me  43 in my abilities but I couldn’t speak the language and I had to  44 how to do things in Canada. It was like having to  45 all over again ,” said Diana.
  46  , she found just the help she needed for her relaunch (重新開(kāi)張)    47 continuing education at George Brown College. She began taking   48 for both the Essential Skills in Fashion Certificate and the Images Consulting Certificate in May 2009.   49  Diana met with the language barrier, she was always going    50  while at college.
By the end of October 2009, she had completed all certificate requirements. Within two years after her    51  in Canada, Diana at last achieved her    52  goal when her new store opened its doors in Toronto’s Sheppard Centre. She was on the fast-track to   53 .
Looking back, Diana, a fashion (時(shí)裝) designer,   54  her achievements to the goal she set, the education she received from the college, and   55  ,the efforts she made. Now Diana is very happy doing what she is doing.
【小題1】 

A．notes

B．responsibilities

C．chances

D．courses