These days he is feeling o__________ and excited.

It was New Year’s Night. An aged man was standing at a window. He raised his mournful eyes towards the deep blue sky, where the stars were floating like white lilies on the surface of a clear calm lake. Then he cast them on the earth, where few more hopeless people than himself now moved towards their certain goal --- the tomb. He had already passed sixty of the stages leading to it, and he had brought from his journey nothing but errors and remorse. Now his health was poor, his mind vacant, his heart sorrowful, and his old age short of comforts.

The days of his youth appeared like dreams before him, and he recalled the serious moment when his father placed him at the entrance of the two roads --- one leading to a peaceful, sunny place, covered with flowers, fruits and filled with soft, sweet songs; the other leading to a deep, dark cave, which was endless, where poison flowed instead of water and where devils and poisonous snakes hissed and crawled.

He looked towards the sky and cried painfully, “O youth, return! O my father, place me once more at the entrance to life, and I’ll choose the better way!” But both his father and the days of his youth had passed away.

He saw the lights flowing away in the darkness. These were the days of his wasted life; he saw a star fall down from the sky and disappeared, and this was the symbol of himself. His regret, which was like a sharp arrow, struck deeply into his heart. Then he remembered his friends in his childhood, who entered on life together with him. But they had made their way to success and were now honored and happy on this New Year’s Night.

The clock in the high church tower struck and the sound made him remember his parents’ early love for him. They had taught him and prayed to God for his good. But he chose the wrong way. With shame and grief he dared no longer look towards that heaven where his father lived. His darkened eyes were full of tears, and with a despairing effort, he burst out a cry: “Come back, my early days! Come back!”

And his youth did return, for all this was only a dream which he had on New Year’s Night. He was still young though his faults were real; he had not yet entered the deep, dark cave, and he was still free to walk on the road which leads to the peaceful and sunny land.

Those who still wander on the entrance of life, hesitating to choose the bright road, remember that when years are passed and your feet stumble on the dark mountains, you will cry bitterly, but in vain: “O youth, return! Oh give me back my early days!”

1.We can learn from the passage that ____.

A．the man returned from a long journey and regretted what he had done

B．the man didn’t enter the deep, dark cave when he was young

C．the man was deserted by his parents when he was only a child

D．the man found it no use crying over the spilt milk

2.Why does the author set his story on New Year’s Night?

A．He wants to tell people it’s time to recall the past

B．he suggests the aged man will have a bright future

C．He tries to stress the man’s sad feeling

D．He expects people to share the man’s emotion

3.The aged man in the passage can be described as ________.

A．sorrowful, fearful and regretful             B．hopeful, cheerful and peaceful

C．regretful, painful and disappointed          D．disappointed, regretful and hopeful

4.The author writes the passage mainly to ________.

A．encourage young people to take the right road B．help the old man to pick up his confidence

C．describe the old man’s unsuccessful experience   D．show his compassion for the aged man

Do you wake up in the morning dreading the moment that your feet have to hit the floor for you to get ready for work? If that’s the case, join most of Americans. Very few people wake up to that annoying alarm clock and spring out of bed excited about having to go to work.

As if that were not enough, most of us have to fight traffic getting there, usually an hour’s drive. Then, when we get to work, we have to fight with unruly co-workers or a nagging boss. And to make matters worse, you have to fight the same traffic going in the opposite direction just to get back home.

Making dinner, fixing plates, eating and then straightening up afterwards is a job within itself. If that sounds like your life, you probably have a J-O-B. you know what J-O-B stands for? Just Over Broke, that’s what! With a job, most Americans are living paycheck-to-paycheck and hating every minute of it. I know because I was doing the same thing: trading time for money. And, I came to a conclusion that it stinks (糟糕透了)! Big time!

Looking around at my co-workers, friends and relatives, I saw that they were all doing the same thing I was doing. They were complaining about the same things I was complaining about : not having enough time or money. And, I decided that I wanted to do something different.[来源:学*科*

So, I started a home-based business. There are several to choose from. The extra income has done so much for our family. We can vacation more. We have been able to give more. And, we’ve even been able to do something calling save! It’s been amazing.

Therefore, if you’re sick and tired of being sick and tired, it’s time you make a change, too. The definition of insanity (疯狂) is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. I know you aren’t stupid. If you continue to do what everyone else is doing: trading time for money, you’re going to keep getting what everyone else is getting: being broke and not having the time to do what is really important to you.

Do your due diligence. Find a home-based business that works well for you. Go to work, and live the life you’ve always imagined!

According to Paragraph 1, which of the following statements is TRUE about most Americans?

   A. Most Americans are excited to go to work every day.

   B. Most Americans are used to sleeping in the morning.

   C. Most Americans are tired of having to go to work every morning.

   D. Most Americans have alarm clocks to wake them up in the morning.

By writing the first three paragraphs, what feeling does the writer express?

   A. Regret.               B. Joy.                  C. Pride.               D. Dissatisfaction

What does “something different” in Paragraph 4 refer to?

   A. To set up a business at home.            B. To complain about life and work.

   C. To spend more time on holidays.              D. To resign from the former job and get a new one.

根据短文内容，从下框的A-F选项中选出能概括每一段主题的最佳选项。选项中有一项为多余项。(注意：答案E涂AB，F涂BC)

1.People have expressed themselves through the movements, steps, and rhythms of dance since the beginning of time. They have prayed and celebrated their victories through dance. People have mourned their dead and healed their sick through dance, the language of the body.

2.Today there are many kinds of dancing. For example, there is folk dancing, ballet dancing, and modern dancing. Modern dance, which began in the early 1900s, is a very expressionistic dance. Modern dancers follow no set pattern. Rather, they create their own movements to match the feeling they are trying to express. But modern dance means more than just self-expression.

3.Martha Graham is one of the world’s greatest modern dancers. As a young dancer, she studied with some of the founders of the modern dance movement. Influenced by many different kinds of dancing, Martha Graham developed her own personal dance style. She later formed her own dance company and school in the New York City. The following are some of her feelings about her art.

4.The modern dancer’s costume is an important part of his or her dance. There is always some reason why a dance costume should be a certain color or an outfit cut in a certain way. The reason comes out of the dance itself. Unlike a ballet costume, a modern dance costume is left of the dancers’ art except the pictures and the memories.

5.Dances come from something deep within a person. That something cannot be expressed with words--- it must be told through movement. Because dance expresses emotions, it affects the mind and the body. Dance should not be taken apart interpreted-dance must be experienced.

The sun shone in through the dining room window，lighting up the hardwood floor. We had been talking there for nearly two hours．The phone of the“Nightline”rang yet again and Morrie asked his helper．Connie，to get it .She had been taking down the callers’names in Morrie’s small black appointment book .It was clear 1 was not the only one interested in visiting my old professor—the“Nightline”appearance had made him something of a big figure—but I was impressed with．perhaps even a bit envious of，all the friends that Morrie seemed to have
“You know．Mitch，now that I'm dying，I've become much more interesting to people．I’m on the last great journey here——and people want me to tell them what to pack．”
The phone rang again．
“Morrie，can you talk?”Connie asked .
“I’m visiting with my old friend now，”he announced．“Let them call back．”
I cannot tell you why he received me so warmly．I was hardly the promising student who had left him sixteen years earlier．Had it not been for“Nightline，”Morrie might have died without ever seeing me again．
What happened to me?
The eighties happened .The nineties happened．Death and sickness and getting fat and going bald happened．I traded lots of dreams for a bigger paycheck，and I never even realized I was doing it .Yet here was Morrie talking with the wonder of our college years，as if I'd simply been on a long vacation
“Have you found someone to share your heart with?” he asked .
“Are you at peace with yourself?”
“Are you trying to be as human as you can be?”
I felt ashamed，wanting to show I had been trying hard to work out such questions．What
happened to me? I once promised myself I would never work for money，that I would join the
Peace Corps，and that 1 would w*w^w.k&s#5@u.c~o*mlive in beautiful，inspirational places．
Instead, I had been in Detroit for ten years，at the same workplace，using the same bank，visiting the same barber .I was thirty-seven，more mature than in college，tied to computers and modems and cell phones．I was no longer young，nor did I walk around in gray sweatshirts with unlit cigarettes in my mouth．I did not have long discussions over egg salad sandwiches about the meaning of life．
My days were full，yet I remained，much of the time，unsatisfied .
What happened to me?
56．When did the author graduate from Morrie’s college?
A．In the eighties．                             B．In the nineties．
C．When he was sixteen                          D．When he was twenty-one．
57．What do we know about the“Nightline”?
A．Morrie started it by himself          B．It helped Morrie earn a fame．
C．The author helped Morrie start it．           D．It was only operated at night．
58．What can we infer from the passage?
A．Both the author and Morrie liked travelling.
B．Morrie liked helping people pack things for their journeys.
C．The author envied Morrie’s friends the help they got from him.
D．The author earned a lot of money at the cost of his dreams.
59．What’s the author’s feeling when he writes this passage?
A．Regretful.      B．Enthusiastic.      C．Sympathetic.       D．Humorous.