The Turning Point

A handsome, middle aged man walked quietly into the cafe and sat down. Before he  1 , he couldn't help but  2  a group of younger men at the table next to him. It was  3  they were making fun of something about him, and it wasn't until he remembered he was  4  a small pink ribbon on the lapel (翻领) of his suit that he became aware of what the  5 was all about.

The man  6  the reaction as ignorance, but the smirks (嬉笑) began to get to him. He looked one of the  7  men square in the eye, placed his hand beneath the ribbon and asked, "This?"

With that the men all began to laugh out loud. The man he  8  said, as he fought back  9 , "Hey, sorry man, but we were just commenting on how  10  your little ribbon looks against your blue jacket!"

The middle aged man  11  motioned for the joker to come over to his table, and invited him to sit down. As  12  as he was, the guy obliged, not really sure why. In a  13  voice, the middle aged man said, "I wear this ribbon to bring  14  about breast cancer. I wear it in my mother's  15 ."

"Oh, sorry. She died of breast cancer?"

"No, she didn't. She's alive and 16. But her breasts nourished (养育) me as an infant, and were a soft  17  place for my  18 when I was scared or  19  as a little boy. I'm very grateful for my mother's breasts, and her  20 ."

 A. ordered                  B. settled                   C. realized                    D. left

A. notice                       B. meet                      C. glance                       D. catch

A. common                   B. strange                   C. natural                      D. obvious

A. showing                    B. wearing                  C. hanging                     D. fixing

 A. fun                         B. talk                        C. joke                          D. story

A. shut off                     B. took off                 C. put off                      D. brushed off

A. happy                       B. rude                       C. dishonest                   D. selfish

A. addressed B. interrupted                              C. scolded                     D. questioned

A. anger                        B. laughter                 C. tears                         D. words

 A. ugly                        B. small                     C. funny                        D. pretty

A. quickly                     B. calmly                   C. cleverly                     D. carefully

 A. unfortunate             B. uncertain                C. unfair                       D. uncomfortable

 A. high                        B. sharp                     C. soft                           D. loud

A. awareness                 B. promotion              C. changes                     D. lessons

A. name                        B. honor                     C. request                      D. sense

A. suffering                   B. wealthy                  C. lucky                        D. well

A. hiding                       B. healing                   C. resting                      D. sleeping

A. hand                         B. arm                       C. head                         D. mind

A. hungry                      B. lonely                    C. proud                        D. nervous

 A. strength                   B. accompany             C. fame                         D. health

The passengers watched sympathetically as the woman made her way carefully up the steps. She paid the bus driver and   1   the seat which the driver had told her was empty. Then she  2  .

It had been a year since Susan, 34, became blind. Due to a medical misdiagnosis(误诊), she was   3   thrown into a world of darkness, frustration and self-pity. And all she had to stick to was her husband, Mark.

Mark was an air force officer and he loved Susan with all his heart. He was   4   to help his wife gain the strength and   5  . For the first two weeks, Mark   6   Susan to and from work each day. He taught her how to rely on her other   7  , specifically her hearing, to determine where she was and how to   8   to the new environment.   9  , Susan decided that she was ready to try the trip on her own. Monday morning, she said good-bye, and for the first time, they went   10   ways.

On Friday morning, Susan took the bus to work   11 . As she was getting off the bus, the driver said, “Boy, I do   12   you.” Susan had no idea   13   the driver was talking about, and asked, “What do you mean?”

The driver answered, “You know, every morning for the past   14  , a fine looking gentleman in a military uniform has been standing across the corner,   15   you get off the bus and cross the street safely. He watches   16   you enter your office building. You are one   17  lady.”

    Tears of   18   poured down Susan’s cheeks. Mark had given her a gift more   19   than sight, a gift that can bring   20   where there is darkness.

1．A．felt                       B．touched               C．spotted                D．took

3．A．gradually               B．eventually            C．suddenly             D．deliberately

4．A．expected               B．forced                 C．encouraged          D．determined

5．A．patience                B．confidence           C．dependence         D．competence

6．A．advised                 B．accompanied        C．persuaded            D．inspired

7．A．feelings                 B．abilities                C．senses                 D．organs

8．A．move                    B．keep                    C．adapt                  D．lead

9．A．Actually                B．Hopefully             C．surprisingly         D．Finally

10．A．separate              B．similar                 C．opposite              D．private

11．A．as usual               B．at ease                 C．on purpose          D．by chance

12．A．envy                   B．respect                C．adore                  D．appreciate

13．A．which                 B．what                   C．that                     D．why

14．A．month                 B．week                   C．day                     D．year

15．A．noticing               B．observing            C．watching             D．discovering

16．A．as                       B．unless                 C．once                   D．until

17．A．attractive             B．lucky                  C．wealthy               D．unique

18．A．anxiety                B．excitement           C．gratitude              D．satisfaction

19．A．significant           B．touching              C．beneficial             D．powerful

20．A．light            B．warmth           C．courage          D．comfort

At the 1924 Olympic Games in Paris, the sport of canoe（赛艇）racing was added to the list of　 international competitions. The favorite team in the four-man canoe 1  was the United States team. One member of that team was a young man named Bill Havens.

    As the 2 for the Olympics neared, it became clear that Bill’s wife would give 3  to their first child at about the same time, so Bill  4  himself in a dilemma（左右为难的困境）．Should he go to Paris or should he stay at home with his family and  5  about the Olympics? After all, competing in the Olympics was one of his lifelong  6 .

Bill, after a great deal of thinking, decided to withdraw from the competition.

     7  it turned out, the United States four-man canoe team won the gold medal in Paris, and Bill’s wife was  8  in giving birth to their child. She was  9  late, in fact, that Bill could have  10  in the event and returned home in time.

    It was a shame, but Bill said that he had no  11 . Bill knew what was most important to him and he  12  what he believed was best. Not everybody has the  13  of character to say no to something that he or she  14  wants in order to say yes to something that truly  15 .

    There was a（n） 16  end to Bill’s story. The child  17  born to Bill and his wife was a boy whom they  18  Frank. Twenty-eight years later, in 1952, Bill  19  a telegram from Frank. It was sent from Helsinki, Finland, where the 1952 Olympics were being held. The telegram  20 :“Dad, I won. I’m bringing home the gold medal you lost the chance to win while waiting for me to be born.”

1．A．contest                 B．race                     C．sports                D．game

2．A．year                     B．deadline                 C．time                   D．chance

3．A．birth                    B．baby                     C．help                   D．hand

4．A．found                   B．put                       C．thought              D．trapped

5．A．expect                  B．compete                C．comment            D．forget

6．A．promises              B．dreams                  C．journeys             D．businesses

7．A．What                   B．As                        C．So                     D．That

8．A．early                    B．lucky                    C．late                    D．miserable

9．A．very                     B．too                       C．so                      D．much

10．A．taken                  B．finished                 C．fought                D．competed

11．A．regrets                B．advantages            C．disappointments  D．choices

12．A．did                     B．paid                      C．made                 D．lost

13．A．origin                 B．strength                C．reason                D．energy

14．A．apparently           B．truly                     C．finally                D．seemingly

15．A．wants                 B．needs                    C．values                D．matters

16．A．expected             B．annoying               C．interesting          D．disappointing

17．A．eventually           B．fortunately             C．actually              D．initially

18．A．named                B．marked                 C．expected            D．indicated

19．A．sent                   B．accepted               C．mailed                D．received

20．A．showed         B．read             C．told             D．noted

A little boy was visiting his grandparents on their farm. He was given a slingshot(弹弓）to   21 in the woods. He practiced and practiced but could never   22  the target. Becoming somewhat   23 , he headed back for dinner.
As he was returning, he saw Grandma’s   24 duck. Without thinking, he shot his slingshot, hit the duck right   25 the head and killed it. He was shocked and sad. Quickly, he   26 the dead duck in the wood pile, only to see his   27 watching. Sally had seen it all, but she said nothing.
After   28 that day, Grandma said, “Sally, you wash the dishes.” But Sally said, “Grandma, Johnny told me that he wanted to   29 in the kitchen today, didn't you, Johnny?” And then she   30 to him, “Remember, the duck?” Then Johnny did the dishes.
Later, Grandpa asked if the children wanted to __31__ fishing, and Grandma said, “I’m sorry but I __32__ Sally to help me make supper.” But Sally smiled and said, “Well, that’s all right. Johnny told me he wanted to __33__.” And she whispered again, “Remember, the   34  ?” So Sally went fishing and Johnny   35 at home.
After several days, Johnny finally couldn't   36 it any longer. He went to Grandma and   37 that he had killed her pet duck and asked for her   38 .
Hearing this, Grandma knelt down, gave him a hug, and said, “Sweetheart, I know. You see, I was standing at the   39 and saw the whole thing from the house. And because I   40 you, I forgive you, but I was just wondering how long you would let Sally make you her slave.”