Once there was a piano player in a bar. People came just to hear him play. But one night, a lady asked him to sing a song.
“I don’t sing,” said the man.
But the lady told the waiter, “I’m tired of listening to the piano. I want the player to sing!”
The waiter shouted across the room, “Hey, friend! If you want to get paid, sing a song!”
So he did. He had never sung in pubic before. Now he was singing for the very first time! Nobody had ever heard the song Mona Lisa sung so beautifully!
He had talent(天赋)he was sitting on! He may have lived the rest of his life as a no-name piano player in a no-name bar. But once he found, by accident, that he could sing well, he went on working hard and became one of the best-known singers in the US. His name was Nat King Cole.
You, too，have skills and abilities. You may not feel that your talent is great, but it may be better than you think. With hard work, most skills can be improved. Besides, you may have no success at all if you just sit on your talent.
1.The lady asked the player to sing a song because .
A. she had paid him for this
B. she knew him very well
C. she wanted to have a change
D. she enjoyed his singing
2.Nat King Cole succeeded because .
A. the lady helped him a lot
B. he caught the chance
C. he continued to play in the bar
D. he stopped playing the piano
3.The words “sit on” in the passage probably mean .
A. fail to realize B. forget to use
C. try to develop D. manage to show
4.From the story we know if you have some talent, you should .[
A. hide it and wait
B. ask others for help
C. pay no attention to it
D. work hard to improve yourself
5.Which could be the best title for the passage?
A. Sing in the BarB. Achieve Success in Life
C. Never Lose HeartD. Find Your Hidden Talent
An old man lived in a nice house with a large garden. He took care of his all the time, watering and fertilizing施肥them.
One day a young man went by the . He looked at the beautiful flowers, imagining how happy he could be if he lived in such a beautiful place. Then, suddenly he found the old gardener was . He was very surprised about this and asked, “You can’t see these flowers. Why are you busy taking care of them every day?”
The old man smiled and said,” I can tell you four . First, I was a gardener when I was young, and I really like this job. , although I can’t see these flowers, I can touch them. Third, I can smell the sweetness of them. As to the last one, that’s .”
“ Me? But you don’t know me,” said the young man.
“Yeah, it’s that I don’t know you. But I know that flowers are angels that everybody knows. We enjoy the happiness these flowers have brought us.”
The blind man’s work opened our eyes and our hearts, which also made his life happier. It was just like Beethoven, who became deaf in his later life and wrote many great musical works. Beethoven himself couldn’t his wonderful music, but his music has millions of people to face their difficulties bravely. Isn’t it one kind of happiness?
1.A. flowers B. trees C. vegetablesD. grass
2.A. studyB. gardenC. kitchen D. balcony
3.A. blind B. famous C. smart D. friendly
4.A. storiesB. reasons C. excuses D. conclusions
5.A. And B. But C. Second D. Third
6.A. me B. you C. my motherD. my son
7.A. true B. hard C. cool D. fair
8.A. broke B. hurt C. pleasedD. treated
9.A. write B. hear C. playD. believe
10.A. changed B. discovered C. encouragedD. made
I think Bob is the suitable person to take the job because he can do the work well with __________ money and __________people.
A. less; less B. less; more
C. more; fewer D. less; fewer
– How do you learn English words?
– _________ making flashcards .
A. To B. By C. For D. With
We can’t work out the physics problem. Can you tell us _________?
A. how to do B. what to do it
C. how to do it D. what should to do
I’m now in New York with my friend Jenny. We _________ by plane on Monday.
A. arrive B. arrived
C. are arriving D. will arrive
