6、Old age，I decided，is a gift．The other day a young person asked me how l felt about being old．I was taken aback．for I do not think of myself as old．Upon seeing my reaction．he was immediately embarrassed（尴尬的），but I explained that it was an interesting question，and I would think it over，and let him know．

      Old age is a gift．I am now，probably for the first time in my life，the person I have always wanted to be．As I’ve aged．I’ve become kinder to myself, and less critical of myself．I don’t scold myself for eating that extra cookie，or for not making my bed…I am entitled to overeat，to be messy．I have seen too many dear friends leave this world too soon before they understood the great freedom that comes with aging．

      I will walk along the beach in a swimming suit that is stretched over my fat body．and will dive into the waves freely if I choose to，in spite of the pitying glances from the bikini sets．They，too，will get old．

      Sure，over the years my heart has been broken．How can your heart not break when you lose a loved one，or when a child suffers，or even when a beloved pet is hit by a car? But broken hearts are what give us strength，understanding and sympathy．A heart never broken will never know the joy of being imperfect．

      So，to answer your question, I like being old．It has set me flee．I like the person I have become．I am not going to live forever．but while I am still here．1 will not waste time feeling sorry for what could have been，or worrying about what will be．And I shall eat dessert every single day．

1．Which of the following may be the title of the text?

      A．The Aged．                                            B．Old age is a gift．

      C．Are you getting older?                                 D．Don’t be afraid of aging．

2．Why did the author like being old?

      A．Because he is actually not old．

      B．Because he becomes the person he really wanted to be．

      C．Because he can do everything now．

      D．Because being old can make him enjoy many special rights．

3．According to the text，he likes to do the following except __________．

      A．eat extra cookie if he likes                         B．dive into the waves freely

      C．leave things as he likes                                D．do what others like him to do

4．According to the text，we know that ___________．

      A．imperfection is never a good thing

      B．being forgetful will always cause trouble

      C．becoming aging is miserable

      D．aging sometimes means freedom

5．What does the underlined phrase refer to in the third paragraph?

    A．beautiful swimming suits                          B．short clothes used for swimming

    C．some younger persons                                D．couples of swimming lovers