A MAN planted a rose and watered it   41   . One day as he examined it, he saw a bud that would soon blossom, but he also    42     thorns (刺) on the stem . He thought, "How can a beautiful flower come from a plant with so many sharp thorns?" Saddened by this thought, he     43     to water the rose, and just before it was ready to bloom, it died.

So it is with many people. Within every soul there is a rose. The good    44  planted in us at birth grow amid the thorns of our faults. Many of us look at ourselves and see only the thorns, the defects. We become    45    , thinking that nothing good can possibly come from us. We neglect to water the good within us, and    46   it dies. We never realize our   47    .

Some people do not see the rose within themselves; someone else must show it to them. One of the greatest gifts a person can     48     is to be able to reach past the thorns and find the rose within others.

This is the characteristic of love ― to look at a person, know his faults, recognize the goodness in his soul, and help him realize that he can    49     his faults. If we show him the "rose" within himself, he will conquer the thorns. Only then will they blossom many times over.

Too often we accuse others of not listening, pretending that we ourselves are faultless, yet in our hearts we know that many of the mistakes we make come about because we haven’t listened carefully enough. We get things wrong because we haven’t listened carefully enough. We get things wrong because we haven’t quite understood what someone meant when they were talking to us. Anyone who has ever taken the minutes of a long meeting will know how hard it is to remember-- despite the benefit of notes-- exactly what everyone said. But success depends on getting things right--and that means listening.

Listening is not the same thing as hearing; it is not an effort actively. It demands attention and concentration. It may mean quizzing the speaker for additional information or for clarification------ it is always better to ask than to continue regardless and get things wrong. However, if you allow your mind to wander onto something else, even for a few minutes, you’ll miss what the speaker is saying------ probably at the very moment when he or she is saying something critical. And not having heard, you won’t know you’ve missed anything until it’s too late.

The most common bad habit we have is to start thinking of what we are going to say about the subject long before the other speaker has finished. We then stop listening. Even worse, this often adds rudeness to inattentiveness, as once you have decided what to say there is a fair chance you will interrupt to say it. Good listeners don’t interrupt. In fact it is often worth explaining the main idea of what you have just been told before going on to make your own points. Nobody is offended by this and it shows that you have listened well.

Above all be patient and accept that many people are not very good communicators. It’s helpful to remember that the ways people move and position themselves while they are speaking can reveal a great deal about what they are saying. Equally important you should put yourself in the other person’s place, both intellectually and emotionally; it will help you to understand what they are getting at and form a response. But don’t be too clever. Faced with a know-all, many people keep quiet because they see no point in continuing.

36. Which is the best title for this passage?

A. Don’t be too clever                         B. Be a good listener.

C. Don’t miss anything critical             D. Think of the speaker

37. In the last paragraph, “…… what they are getting at ……” means________ .

A. what they imply                             B. what they like

C. what they attack                                   D. what they achieve

38. What is the writer’s opinion?

A. If you want to be a good listener, you should be very clever and emotional.

B. Speakers won’t continue talking when their listeners explain what they’ve heard.

C. If you don’t want to get things wrong, it’s important to be a good listener,

D. It’s hard to be a good listener because listening tests you on your intelligence.

39. What is the lesson we can learn from this passage?

A. Don’t accuse others of not listening while talking with them.

B. Don’t get anything wrong if you miss what the speaker is saying.

C. Listening inattentively may cost you the loss of your success.

D. Think carefully of what you’re going to say before the speaker finishes.

Too often we accuse others of not listening, pretending that we ourselves are faultless, yet in our hearts we know that many of the mistakes we make come about because we haven’t listened carefully enough.  We get things wrong because we haven’t listened carefully enough.  We get things wrong because we haven’t quite understood what someone meant when they were talking to us.  Anyone who has ever taken the minutes of a long meeting will know how hard it is to remember-- despite the benefit of notes-- exactly what everyone said.  But success depends on getting things right--and that means listening.

Listening is not the same thing as hearing; it is not an effort actively.  It demands attention and concentration.  It may mean quizzing the speaker for additional information or for clarification------ it is always better to ask than to continue regardless and get things wrong.  However, if you allow your mind to wander onto something else, even for a few minutes, you’ll miss what the speaker is saying------ probably at the very moment when he or she is saying something critical.  And not having heard, you won’t know you’ve missed anything until it’s too late.

The most common bad habit we have is to start thinking of what we are going to say about the subject long before the other speaker has finished.  We then stop listening.  Even worse, this often adds rudeness to inattentiveness, as once you have decided what to say there is a fair chance you will interrupt to say it.  Good listeners don’t interrupt.  In fact it is often worth explaining the main idea of what you have just been told before going on to make your own points.  Nobody is offended by this and it shows that you have listened well.

Above all be patient and accept that many people are not very good communicators.  It’s helpful to remember that the ways people move and position themselves while they are speaking can reveal a great deal about what they are saying.  Equally important you should put yourself in the other person’s place, both intellectually and emotionally; it will help you to understand what they are getting at and form a response.  But don’t be too clever.  Faced with a know-all, many people keep quiet because they see no point in continuing.

36.  Which is the best title for this passage?

A.  Don’t be too clever                      B.  Be a good listener.

C.  Don’t miss anything critical          D.  Think of the speaker

37.  In the last paragraph, “…… what they are getting at ……” means________ .

A.  what they imply                                  B.  what they like

C.  what they attack                                 D.  what they achieve

38.  What is the writer’s opinion?

A.  If you want to be a good listener, you should be very clever and emotional.

B.  Speakers won’t continue talking when their listeners explain what they’ve heard.

C.  If you don’t want to get things wrong, it’s important to be a good listener,

D.  It’s hard to be a good listener because listening tests you on your intelligence.

39.  What is the lesson we can learn from this passage?

A.  Don’t accuse others of not listening while talking with them.

B.  Don’t get anything wrong if you miss what the speaker is saying.

C.  Listening inattentively may cost you the loss of your success.

D.  Think carefully of what you’re going to say before the speaker finishes.

Too often we accuse others of not listening, pretending that we ourselves are faultless, yet in our hearts we know that many of the mistakes we make come about because we haven’t listened carefully enough. We get things wrong because we haven’t listened carefully enough. We get things wrong because we haven’t quite understood what someone meant when they were talking to us. Anyone who has ever taken the minutes of a long meeting will know how hard it is to remember-- despite the benefit of notes-- exactly what everyone said. But success depends on getting things right--and that means listening.

Listening is not the same thing as hearing; it is not an effort actively. It demands attention and concentration. It may mean quizzing the speaker for additional information or for clarification------ it is always better to ask than to continue regardless and get things wrong. However, if you allow your mind to wander onto something else, even for a few minutes, you’ll miss what the speaker is saying------ probably at the very moment when he or she is saying something critical. And not having heard, you won’t know you’ve missed anything until it’s too late.

The most common bad habit we have is to start thinking of what we are going to say about the subject long before the other speaker has finished. We then stop listening. Even worse, this often adds rudeness to inattentiveness, as once you have decided what to say there is a fair chance you will interrupt to say it. Good listeners don’t interrupt. In fact it is often worth explaining the main idea of what you have just been told before going on to make your own points. Nobody is offended by this and it shows that you have listened well.

Above all be patient and accept that many people are not very good communicators. It’s helpful to remember that the ways people move and position themselves while they are speaking can reveal a great deal about what they are saying. Equally important you should put yourself in the other person’s place, both intellectually and emotionally; it will help you to understand what they are getting at and form a response. But don’t be too clever. Faced with a know-all, many people keep quiet because they see no point in continuing.

56. Which is the best title for this passage?

A. Don’t be too clever                  B. Be a good listener.

C. Don’t miss anything critical            D. Think of the speaker

57. In the last paragraph, “…… what they are getting at ……” means________ .

A. what they imply                             B. what they like

C. what they attack                             D. what they achieve

58. What is the writer’s opinion?

A. If you want to be a good listener, you should be very clever and emotional.

B. Speakers won’t continue talking when their listeners explain what they’ve heard.

C. If you don’t want to get things wrong, it’s important to be a good listener,

D. It’s hard to be a good listener because listening tests you on your intelligence.

59. What is the lesson we can learn from this passage?

A. Don’t accuse others of not listening while talking with them.

B. Don’t get anything wrong if you miss what the speaker is saying.

C. Listening inattentively may cost you the loss of your success.

D. Think carefully of what you’re going to say before the speaker finishes.