"I’ve changed my mind. I wanted to have a telescope, but now I want my dad back." Lucien Lawence’s letter to Father Christmas written after his father had been knifed to death outside his school gate, must have touched every heart. Lucien went on to say that without his father he couldn’t see the stars in the sky. When those whom we love depart from us, we cannot see the stars for a while.

But Lucien, the stars are still there, and one day, when you are older and your tears have gone, you will see them again. And, in a strange way, I expect that you will find your father is there too, in your mind and in your heart. I find that my parents, long dead now, still figure in many of my dreams and that I think of them perhaps more than I ever did when they were alive. I still live to please them and I’m still surprised by their reactions. I remember that when I became a professor, I was so proud, or rather so pleased with myself, that I couldn’t wait to cable my parents. The reply was a long time in coming, but when it did, all mother said was, "I hope this means that now you will have more time for the children.” I haven’t forgotten. The values of my parents still live on.

It makes me pause and think about how I will live on in the hearts and minds of my children and of those for whom I care. Would I have been as ready as Philip Lawrence have been to face the aggressors (挑衅者),and to lay down my life for those in my care? How many people would want me back for Christmas? It’s a serious thought, one to give me pause.

I pray silently, sometimes, in the dead of night, that ancient cry of a poet "Deliver my soul from the sword, and my darling from the power of the dog." Yet I know the death comes to us all, and sometimes comes suddenly. We must therefore plan to live forever, but live as if we will die tomor??row. We live on, in the lives of those we loved, and therefore we ought to have a care for what they will remember and what they will treasure. If more parents knew this in their hearts to be true, there might be fewer knives on our streets today.

according to the whole text we can see that the first paragraph ________.

A. puts forward the subject of the text

B. shows the author’s pity on the kid

C. acts as an introduction to the discussion

D. makes a clear statement of the author’s views

In the second paragraph the author mainly wants to explain to us ________.

A. how much he misses his parents now

B. why his parents often appear in his dreams

C. when Lucien will get over all his sadness

D. how proud he was when he succeeded in life

What feeling did the author’s mother express in her reply?

A. Proud.     B. Happy.     C. Disappointed.    D. Worried.

In the author’s opinion, the value of a person’s life is ________.

A. to leave behind a precious memory to the people related

B. to have a high sense of duty to the whole society

C. to care what others will remember and treasure

D. to share happiness and sadness with his family

What does the writer mean by the sentence taken from an old poem?

A. Call on criminals and murderers to lay down their guns.

B. Advise parents stay with their children safely at home.

C. Spend every day meaningfully in memory of the death.

D. Try to keep violence and murder far away from society.

I stood outside New York’s Madison Square Garden and just stared, almost speechless. I was a farm boy from County Kilkenny, a child who some thought would never walk, let alone go as far as I had in the world.

From the day I was born, there was a problem. The doctors at the Dublin hospital told my parents I had phocomelia, a deformity that affected both legs below the knee, which were outward and shorter than normal and each foot had just three toes.

Life was tough. I couldn’t stand, much less walk. I rarely left the farmhouse—and then only in someone’s arms. Mom bundled me up whenever she took me to town, no matter the season.

“The world will see him when he can walk,” she told Dad. “And he will walk.”

Mom devoted herself to helping me. She tried everything to get me on my feet. When I was three, she and Dad took me to a clinic in Dublin.

A few weeks later we returned to Dublin with my artificial limbs (肢). Back home I practiced walking with my new limbs.

“There’s nothing anyone can do but you can’t,” Mom said. “You and I are going to walk through town.”

The next day Mom dressed me in my finest clothes. She wore a summer dress and fixed her hair and makeup. Dad drove us to the church. We stepped out of the car. Mom took my hand. “Hold your head up high, now, Ronan,” she said.

We walked 300 meters to the post office. It was the farthest I’d walked, and I was sweating from the effort. Then we left the post office and continued down the street, Mom's eyes shining with a mother's pride.

That night, back on our farm, I lay exhausted on my bed. It meant nothing, though, compared to what I’d done on my walk.

Then I began to pursue my dream of singing. And at every step Mom's words came back to me—Ronan, you can do anything anyone else can do—and the faith she had in God, who would help me do it.

I’ve sung from the grandest stages in Europe, to music played by the world’s finest musicians. That night, I stood at the Madison Square Garden, with Mom’s words chiming in my ears. Then I began singing. I couldn't feel the pulse of the music in my feet, but I felt it deep in my heart, the same place where Mom’s promise lived. 

What was the problem with the author as a baby?

A. He was expected unable to walk.                                 B. He was born outward in character.

C. He had a problem with listening.                                 D. He was shorter than a normal baby.

The underlined word “deformity” in the second paragraph most probably means _________.

A. shortcoming           B. disadvantage                 C. disability                D. delay

Why did Mom dress him and herself in finest clothes?

A. To hide their depressed feeling.                             B. To indicate it an unusual day.

C. To show off their clothes.                                 D. To celebrate his successful operation.

From the story we may conclude that his mother was __________.

A. determined            B. stubborn                       C. generous                D. distinguished

According to the writer, what mattered most in his success?

A. His consistent effort.                                   B. His talent for music.

C. His countless failures.                                  D. His mother’s promise.

My sister and I grew up in a little village in England. Our father was a struggling  36  , but I always knew he was  37   . He never criticized us, but used  38    to bring out our best. He’d say, “If you pour water on flowers, they flourish. If you don’t give them water, they die. ” I  39   as a child I said something   40   about somebody, and my father said, “   41   time you say something unpleasant about somebody else, it’s a reflection of you. ” He explained that if I looked for the best  42   people, I would get the best  43  . From then on I’ve always tried to  44    the principle in my life and later in running my company.

Dad’s also always been very  45  . At 15, I started a magazine. It was  46  a great deal of my time, and the headmaster of my school gave me a  47 : stay in school or leave to work on my magazine.

I decided to leave, and Dad tried to prevent me from my decision,  48   any good father would. When he realized I had made up my mind, he said, “Richard, when I was 23, my dad  49  me to go into law. And I’ve  50   regretted it. I wanted to be a biologist,   51  I didn’t pursue my  52  . You know what you want. Go fulfill it. ”

As  53   turned out, my little publication went on to become Student, a national  54   for young people in the U. K. .My wife and I have two children, and I’d like to think we are bringing them up in the same way Dad  55  me.

	A. biologist	B. manager	C. lawyer	D. gardener
	A. strict	B. honest	C. special	D. learned
	A. praise	B. courage	C. power	D. warmth
	A. think	B. imagine	C. remember	D. guess
	A. unnecessary	B. unkind	C. unimportant	D. unusual
	A. Another	B. Some	C. Any	D. Other
	A. on	B. in	C. at	D. about
	A. in case	B. by turns	C. by chance	D. in return
	A. revise	B. set	C. review	D. follow
	A. understanding	B. experienced	C. serious	D. demanding
	A. taking up	B. making up	C. picking up	D. keeping up
	A. suggestion	B. decision	C. notice	D. choice
	A. and	B. as	C. even if	D. as if
	A. helped	B. allowed	C. persuaded	D. suggested
	A. always	B. never	C. seldom	D. almost
	A. rather	B. but	C. for	D. therefore
	A. promise	B. task	C. belief	D. dream
	A. this	B. he	C. it	D. that
	A. newspaper	B. magazine	C. program	D. project
	A. controlled	B. comforted	C. reminded	D. raised

完形填空（共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分）阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从1—20题各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。

While attending a conference, I returned to my hotel room late one evening. The overhead light outside my door was burned out and I had  1  finding the keyhole. When I  2  to open the door, I  3  around the wall for a light switch. I found a plate where a switch was  4  installed... but no switch! 

Not discouraged easily, I remembered  5  a lamp by the bed when I deposited my luggage  6  in the day. I found the bed in the  7  and then the lamp, but when I switched it on, nothing  8 ! I thought that perhaps if I opened the curtains I might be able to use whatever light comes in from the  9  to find another lamp. So I  10  my way slowly across the room to the curtains and... no drawstring! I finally stumbled（跌跌撞撞地走）around  11  I found a desk lamp which actually  12 !

That evening I discovered in a whole new way just how dark the world  13  be and how   necessary light is! But even more necessary than  14  light is the light that shines from people --the light of  15  and faith. Because, for many people, the world is a dark and  16  place. For someone today just may be stumbling in discouragement or sadness or fear and in  17   of some light. So let your light shine. Whatever light you  18  may be a beacon of hope and encouragement. And if you feel that your light is  19  a candle in a forest remember -- there isn’t enough darkness in all the world to  20  the light of one small candle.

1. A. confidence  B. respect            C. adimiration       D. difficulty 

2. A. managed             B. failed               C. wished            D. meant

3. A. touched               B. felt                  C. sensed             D. looked  

4. A. already                B. never               C. still                  D. once 

5. A. equiping              B. producing        C. spotting           D. removing

6. A. later                   B. earlier              C. lower              D. upper

7. A. light            B. dark                C. room               D. corner 

8. A. happened             B. operated          C. fired                 D. developed

9. A. machine              B. street               C. room              D. car

10. A. wound              B. forced             C. made               D. lost

11. A. after                   B. until          C. while                D. since

12. A. helped               B. affected                 C. worked            D. inspired 

13. A. can                   B. shall                C. will                D. must

14. A. mental               B. psychological     C. electrical         D. physical  

15. A. existence           B. love                 C. truth                D. wisdom

16. A. lonely                 B. colourful           C. friendly            D. complex

17. A. short                 B. favour             C. face                       D. need   

18. A. make                 B. offer                C. take                 D. contribute

19. A. not more than    B. other than        C. no more than    D. rather than 

20. A. put out              B. give out           C. get over                 D. set up

完型填空（共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分）

阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从36—55各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

When Alice started to cycle home from Jenny’s house, she was certainly not afraid of the dark.   36  , it was only a 15 – minute ride home. But halfway there, she began to wish she hadn’t been so   37  .

As she rounded a sharp bend, it suddenly   38  cold – very cold. Alice’s breath became puffs of white cloud and her legs were so cold that it was hard for her to ride.

With her heart beating fast, she struggled so hard to move __39__ that she didn’t hear the car which suddenly appeared beside her. She stopped by the road. The big black car also __40__. Slowly, the passenger-window began to slide down. Alice held her breath. In the soft light inside the car, something __41__. Then, the light brightened and Alice was staring at a sweet, grey-haired old lady. “Hello, dear,” said the old lady. “I need __42__. I’m afraid I’m lost. I need to find the nearest airport. I must be there in the next five minutes.”

“Airport? You __43__ are lost,” Alice said. “You need to go back five kilometers __44__ you reach the T-junction. Turn left and __45__ for about another 10 kilometers to the main highway. From there, just follow the __46__ to the airport. But I’m afraid there’s no __47__ you’ll get there in five minutes!”

“Thank you very much, dear,” replied the old lady. “Don’t worry — I’ll __48__ in time.”

The __49__ moved up and the car started off. A little way ahead, it __50__ and with headlights flashing, it drove past Alice. But then, something __51__ happened. The car began changing. First, its color __52__from black to silvery-grey. Then, the wheels began disappearing, but the car continued to move forward, __53__ just above the ground. As the car __54__ into the dark sky, the big red tail-lights grew larger and larger and glowed more and more brightly. With a faint(微弱的) whistling __55__, the car was gone in seconds, leaving Alice shaking her head in disbelief…

36．A．However        B．Besides              C．Therefore      D．Otherwise

37．A．brave          B．excited           C．curious              D．certain

38．A．fell                B．seemed             C．proved             D．grew

39．A．aside               B．around              C．forward      D．backward

40．A．arrived             B．stopped             C．stayed               D．started

41．A．gathered             B．existed              C．dropped             D．moved

42．A．help           B．gas             C．rest                D．water

43．A．necessarily           B．normally            C．basically            D．certainly

44．A．if             B．until             C．unless              D．as

45．A．drive              B．walk               C．follow              D．march

46．A．address              B．signs                C．notices              D．guidance

47．A．doubt          B room             C．time                D．way

48．A．have it              B．get it        C．make it             D．finish it

49．A．door               B．window            C．headlight            D．wheel

50．A．passed              B．rushed              C．turned              D．continued

51．A．strange             B．sensitive       C．imaginable          D．terrible

52．A．developed           B．appeared            C．spread              D．faded (become paler)

53．A．rolling              B．floating      C．drawing             D．flashing

54．A．pointed             B．returned             C．broke               D．rose

55．A．tune           B．voice            C．sound              D．tone