I was tired and hungry after a long day of work. When I walked into the living room my 12-year-old son looked 1 at me and said, “I love you.” I didn't know what to say. 2 several seconds all I could do was to stand there and 3 down at him. My first thought was that he must need 4 with his homework or he was trying to prepare me for some news.

    Finally I asked, “What was that all about?” “Nothing,” he said. “My teacher said we should 5 our parents that we love them and see what they say. It’s an 6 .”

    The next day I called his teacher to find out more about this “experiment” and how the other parents had reacted(反应).

    “Basically, most of the fathers had the 7 reaction as you did,” the teacher said, “ When I first 8 we try this, I asked the children what they thought their parents would say. Some of them thought their parents would have heart trouble(心脏病发作). The point is,” the teacher explained, “feeling loved is an important part of 9 . It’s something all human beings 10 . What I’m trying to tell the children is that it’s too 11 we don’t all express those feelings. A boy should be 12 to tell his dad that he loves him.”

    The teacher, a middle-aged man, understand how 13 it is for us to say the things that would be good for us to say.

    When my son came to me that evening, I held on to him for an extra second. And just 14 he pulled away(离开). I said in my deepest, most manly voice, “Hey, I love you, too.”

    I don’t know if saying that made either of us healthier but it did feel pretty good. Maybe next time one of my children says “I love you”, it would not take me a whole 15 to think of the right answer.

1．

[　　]

A．happy 　　B．sad

C．quite 　　D．up

2．

[　　]

A．After　 B．For

C．At　　　D．On

3．

[　　]

A．sit 　　B．glare

C．stare 　D．watch

4．

[　　]

A．me 　　B．money

C．help 　D．paper

5．

[　　]

A．help 　　B．tell

C．ask　　　D．speak to

6．

[　　]

A．exercise 　　B．experiment

C．interest 　　D．honour

7．

[　　]

A．same 　　B．different

C．good 　　D．fast

8．

[　　]

A．suggested 　　B．agreed

C．allowed 　　　D．planned

9．

[　　]

A．body 　　B．health

C．life 　　D．hope

10．

[　　]

A．have 　　B．know

C．take　　 D．require

11．

[　　]

A．bad　　　B．sorry

C．hard 　　D．good

12．

[　　]

A．kind 　　　B．anxious

C．always 　　D．able

13．

[　　]

A．easy　  　B．much

C．often　　 D．difficult

14．

[　　]

A．before  　　B．after

C．becasue 　　D．during

15．

[　　]

A．day 　　　　　B．week

C．afternoon 　　D．night

Sarah came running in saying, "Look what l found. " Over the top of the paper I was reading I saw a long object that made me jump. It was a piece of snakeskin that had been shed （脱皮)  by one of our garden snakes.

'Isn't it beautiful?" said my wide-eyed 7~year-old daughter. I stared at the organic wrapper and thought to myself that it really was not that beautiful, but I did not want to disappoint Sarah.  Everything children see for the first time is elementary to their sense of beauty and creativity. They see only merit (忧点) and excellence in the world.

"Why does it do this?" Sarah asked. I like to teach my children that there is something else going on besides what they see in front of them. "Snakes shed their skin because they need to renew themselves," I explained.

"Why do they need to renew themselves?" Sarah asked. "We often need to shed our skins, those coatings that we cover ourselves with," I said to my now absorbed daughter. "We outgrow some things and find other stuff unnecessary. This snake no longer needs this skin.  It is probably too old, and the snake probably doesn't think it looks as smart in the skin as it once did.  Like buying a new suit. "

Of course, I'm sure this explanation won't suit naturalists. But Sarah got the point. As we talked, I knew that she began to understand that renewal is part of progress; that we need to take a good look at ourselves, and rooms and schoolwork and creativity, and she began to see what we need to keep and what need to cast off.  I was careful to point out that this is a natural process, not one to be forced.

"Snakes don't peel off their skin when they feel like it," I explained.  "lt happens as part of their growth. "

"I see, Dad. " said Sarah.  She then jumped off my lap, grabbed the snakeskin, and ran off.

I hoped she would remember this. Often, in order to find our real selves underneath the layers of community and culture we are cloaked (掩饰) in year after year, we need to start examining these layers. We need to gently peel some away, as we recognize them to be worthless, unnecessary, or flawed (有缺陷的);  or at best,  remember the things we discard（丢掉）to teach us how we can improve.

1.When Sarah asked the author whether the snakeskin was beautiful,___________

A．he was shocked and jumped

B．he tried to understand her point of view

C．he thought that telling the truth was a merit

D．he decided to teach her something about the garden

2.How did Sarah feel about the author's explanation?

A．Confused.         B．Boreci            C．Satisfied.          D．Excited.

3.Which of the following would the author agree with?

A．By reflecting on ourselves, we can better ourselves.

B．It is necessary to force others to remove some things.

C．The community and culture force us to change.

D．It is natural to keep some old clothes.

4.From the text, we can conclude that the author___________.

A．does not like nature much

B．takes the chilcl's feelings lightly

C．is both a logical and thoughtful person

D．loves to see his daughter excited about animals

5.Which of the following could be the best title for the article?

A．The things we should cast off              B．A shed snakeskin in Sarah's eyes

C．A natural part of our growth               D．Renewal for snakes and us

One of my most unforgettable experiences is the day I finished my tough rowing and keep myself free of loneliness.
As the youngest female ever to row alone across the Atlantic Ocean, I was often asked the same question: How did you, a only 20-year old youngster row a 18-foot boat for 70 days through those strong winds and violent waves and survive?
Frankly speaking, for me, the physical challenge was not the greatest one. Before I made my mind to row across the Atlantic, I had already cycled 3,300 miles, run all by myself across the Mojave Desert, and swum the 325-mile length of the Allegheny River. No, the hardest part would be mental: How would I cope with the terrible loneliness and the boredom on the vast sea for such a long time?
I set out on January 1 and my first object was to swim past the quarter-way mark, which would take about 20 days. I made it on January 20, a gray and cloudy day. I had thought to do something to celebrate my first goal such as treating myself to a chocolate bar or something else. But I didn’t. I was suffering from unbearable boredom and loneliness of the long sea journey. I hadn’t seen any landing at least more than two weeks. It seemed to feel the same every day. Eating, rowing, sleeping, staring at the sky, watching the ocean.
Then that day came! It was around dusk, I noticed something move on the horizon. Yes, some dolphins! They approached me and circled my boat. Suddenly I felt so blessed. They had arrived to accompany me and helped to celebrate, just when I needed them so badly! For the next 15 minutes, I did row at full speed with all my strength with those lovely dolphins around. By the time they were to leave me and we went our separate ways, I was no longer lonely.
After 70 days and five hours at sea, I finally reached my final destination. I was proud that I made it, all 2,817 miles, which helped to raise $70,000 for the Blue Planet Run Foundation, an organization for funding drinking water. I’ve been told some athletes struggled to get through just by imagining the end during the whole process. But for me, what makes miracle is to focus your mind on the moment, where you experience the personal growth—those moments of awareness of being connected to the sun, the weather, and the waves. And, on the best day of my life, I had to admit those dolphins really freed myself from terrible loneliness.
【小题1】Which of the following belongs to part of preparation for the row?