Do you and your brother_________ each other?

Sometimes I really doubt (怀疑) whether there is love between my parents. Every day they are busy trying to make money in order to pay for my brother's education and mine. They don't act in the romantic ways that I read in books or I see on TV. For them, “I love you” is too difficult to say. Even sending flowers to each other on some special days is hardly ever seen.

One day, my mother was repairing a quilt. I silently sat beside her and looked at her. “Mom, may I ask you a question?” I said. “What?” she replied, still doing her work. “Is there love between you and Dad?” I asked her in a very low voice. My mother stopped her work and looked at me in surprise. She didn't answer my question at once. Then, she bowed her head and continued to do her work.

I was afraid that I had hurt her feelings. I felt so embarrassed that I didn't know what to do. But at last I heard my mother say the following words:

“ Look at this thread (线). Sometimes it appears, but most of the time, it hides in the quilt. The thread really makes the quilt strong and durable. If life is a quilt, then love should be a thread. It can hardly be seen anywhere or anytime, but it's really there."

I couldn't understand her until the next spring. At that time, my father suddenly got sick seriously. My mother had to stay with him in the hospital for a month. When they returned from the hospital, they both looked very pale. After they were back, every day in the morning and dusk, my mother helped my father walk slowly on the country road. My father had never been so gentle. The doctor had said my father would recover in two months. But after two months he still couldn't walk by himself. All of us were worried about him. "Dad, how are you feeling now?" I asked him one day. "Susan, don't worry about me." he said gently. "To tell you the truth, I just like walking with your mom. I like this kind of life." Reading his eyes, I know he loves my mother deeply.

Once I thought love meant flowers, gifts and sweet kisses. But from this experience, I understand that love is just a thread in the quilt of our life. Love is inside, making life strong and warm.

1.Why does the writer doubt the love of her parents?

A. Because they hardly meet each other.

B. Because they hardly speak to each other.

C. Because they often argue with each other.

D. Because they hardly express their love.

2.How did the writer feel after she asked her mom the question?

A. Embarrassed.B. Excited. C. Angry. D. Bored.

3.What does the underlined word "durable" mean in Chinese?

A. 好看的B. 廉价的 C. 耐用的D. .昂贵的

4.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A. The writer understood her mum’s words at once.

B. After two months from the hospital, Susan’s father could walk by himself.

C. The writer’s parents didn’t love each other.

D. Love is there, no matter whether you say it or not

5.What's the best title for the passage?

A. My Parents B. Love is Just a Thread

C. How to Find Love D. Where to Find Love

Dear Reader,
Imagine an 11-year old girl whose days are often spent washing clothes, looking after a baby, working hard in the field.
Imagine a little girl who knows there will not be enough food for dinner, who can’t fill her stomach with water because it’s polluted, and who has watched life slip away from her father, little brother and sister because the family is too poor to see a doctor.
Is it hard to believe? For Maria Pastora, these are the real life.
Maria would gladly walk miles to school, but her mother, now alone, needs her badly at home. If Maria grows up without any schooling, what will be her future?
But for just 52 pennies a day, you can sponsor a child like Maria. Through “Save the Children”, you can help Maria’s mother get the tools and ways she needs to turn their poor food into a good dinner and the money she needs to buy clothes and school things for Maria.
To help Maria most, your money is put together with that of other sponsors, so hard-working people can help themselves. Build a school, a hospital…bring in clean water. This is what “Save the Children” has been about since 1932.
For you there are many rewards. Have the chance to write to or hear from your sponsored child. Receive photos or progress reports. Know you are reaching out to another person. Not with a handout(施舍物), but a “handup”. That’s how “Save the Children” works. But without you, it can’t work. Please take a moment now to fill in and post the form below to help a child like Maria and her village.
It can make such a difference in her life and yours.
【小题1】We can most probably read the letter in __________.

Dear Reader,
Imagine an 11-year old girl whose days are often spent washing clothes, looking after a baby, working hard in the field.
Imagine a little girl who knows there will not be enough food for dinner, who can’t fill her stomach with water because it’s polluted, and who has watched life slip away from her father, little brother and sister because the family is too poor to see a doctor.
Is it hard to believe? For Maria Pastora, these are the real life.
Maria would gladly walk miles to school, but her mother, now alone, needs her badly at home. If Maria grows up without any schooling, what will be her future?
But for just 52 pennies a day, you can sponsor a child like Maria. Through “Save the Children”, you can help Maria’s mother get the tools and ways she needs to turn their poor food into a good dinner and the money she needs to buy clothes and school things for Maria.
To help Maria most, your money is put together with that of other sponsors, so hard-working people can help themselves. Build a school, a hospital…bring in clean water. This is what “Save the Children” has been about since 1932.
For you there are many rewards. Have the chance to write to or hear from your sponsored child. Receive photos or progress reports. Know you are reaching out to another person. Not with a handout(施舍物), but a “handup”. That’s how “Save the Children” works. But without you, it can’t work. Please take a moment now to fill in and post the form below to help a child like Maria and her village.
It can make such a difference in her life and yours.
【小题1】We can most probably read the letter in __________.