I was working with a client who was completely burned out on her career and life and then ready for a career change. As we were talking, she said, “I just wish I had meaningful work. I don’t feel like I am making a difference. I am just wasting my life.” This is the theme I hear most often from clients who have been in the workforce awhile.All of us want to feel like we are making a difference. We want to believe our work means something. The problem comes in defining “meaningful work”. What is it? That answer is different for everyone. For some meaningful work might be helping others organize their office. For others it may mean making a million dollars.
What really matters is how you see it. What is meaningful work to you? Take out a piece of paper and answer these questions. How do you define meaningful work? When do you feel like you are really making a difference? What work have you done so far that feels the most meaningful? Write down whatever comes to mind.
What you want to do is meaningful. It is very easy to start judging yourself as being selfish. Stop! Allow yourself to be honest. The fact is when Picasso painted; he was doing it because he liked to paint. He was not thinking, “Oh, I hope this brings joy to others’ lives.” He painted because he wanted to. When Beethoven composed, he did it because he loved music. Even scientists searching for a cure for cancer are immersed in their work because it fascinates them.
Don’t look down on your work. It is easy to downplay the importance of work that feels meaningful. I remember Tony Robbins told a story of talking with the owner of a major company. The man said to Tony, “I wish I could do what you do because it makes such adifference in people’s lives”. Tony said, “You have got to be kidding! Look at what adifference you make. You provide work, health insurance and security for thousands ofpeople!” Don’t underestimate the value you provide.
Take a look at what you have written about meaningful work. Do you see any themes? How do you wish to contribute to this world? Whatever you choose, remember that the greatest gift you can give is to find work that makes you feel fulfilled and delighted. Respect your preference because giving your gifts to the world, whatever they look like, is the most meaningful action you can ever take.
1.. What does the writer mean by mentioning the famous people?
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A．Famous people are selfish to start work for themselves. |
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B．Doing meaningful work requires our interest in it. |
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C．Interest is the best teacher in learning. |
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D．Honesty makes for the greatest people. |
2.. When you downplay the value of your work, you tend to think it is ______.
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A．quite different |
B．very successful |
C．not meaningful |
D．less important |
3..According to the passage, what meaningful job does the writer advise us to take?
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A．The one which is popular in society. |
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B．The one which brings you profits. |
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C．The one which wins you fame. |
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D．The one which interests you. |
4.. The article is intended to ________.
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A．explain what is the most important in changing one’s job |
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B．advise taking an immediate action to find meaningful work |
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C．suggest we should show confidence and talent in work |
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D．tell us the problem that the author’s client met |
There seems never to have been a civilization without toys, but when and how they developed is unknown. They probably came about just to give children something to do.
In the ancient world, as is today, most boys played with some kinds of toys and most girls with another. In societies where social roles are strictly determined, boys pattern their play after the activities of their fathers and girls after the tasks of their mothers.This is true because boys and girls are being prepared, even in play, to step into the roles and responsibilities of the adult world.
What is remarkable about the history of toys is not so much how they changed over the centuries but how much they have remained the same. The changes have been mostly in terms of skill, mechanics, and technology. It is the universality of toys with regard to their development in all parts of the world and their insistence to the present that is amazing. In Egypt, the US, China,Japan and among the Arctic peoples, generally the same kinds of toys appeared. Variations depended on local customs and ways of life because toys reflect their surroundings.Nearly every civilization had dolls, little weapons, toy soldiers, tiny animals and vehicles.
Because toys can be generally regarded as a kind of art form, they have not been affected by technological quick development that characterize inventions for adult use. The progress from the wheel to the ox-cart to the automobile is a direct line of ahievement. The progress from a rattle(拨浪鼓) used by a baby in 3000 BC to one used by a baby today, however, is not characterized by inventiveness. Each rattle is the product of the artistic tastes of times and subject to the limtations of available materials.
1.. The reason why the toys most boys play with are different from those that girls play with is that_________.
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A．their social roles are strictly determined |
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B．most boys would like to follow their fathers’ professions |
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C．boys like to play with their fathers while girls with their mothers |
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D．they like challenging activities |
2.. Which of the following is the author’s view on the historical development of toys？
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A．The making skills in toys has remained essentially unchanged. |
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B．Toys have remained basically the same all through the centuries. |
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C．The toy industry has witnessed great improvement in technology in recent years. |
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D．Toys are playing an increasingly important role in shaping a child’s character. |
3.. Regarded as a kind of art form, toys________.
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A．follow a direct line of achievement |
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B．also appeal greatly to adults |
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C．are not characterized by technological progress |
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D．reflect the pace of social progress |
4.. The author uses the example of a rattle to show that________.
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A．in toy-making there is a continuity in the use of materials |
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B．even the simplest toys can reflect the progress of technology |
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C．it often takes a long time to introduce new technology into toy-making |
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D．even a simple toy can mirror the artistic tastes of the time |
In only two decades Asian Americans have become the fastest-growing US minority. As their children began moving up through the nation’s schools, it became clear that a new class of academic achievers was forming. Their achievements are reflected in the nation’s best universities, where mathematics, science and engineering departments have taken on a decidedly Asian character. This special liking for mathematics and science is partly explained by the fact that Asian-American students who began their educations abroad arrived in the US with a solid grounding in mathematics but little or no knowledge of English.They are also influenced by the promises of a good job after college. Asians feel there will be less unfair treatment in areas like mathematics and science because they will be judged more objectively. And the return on the investment in education is more immediate in something like engineering than with an arts degree.
Most Asian-American students owe their success to the influence of parents who are determined that their children take full advantage of what the American educational system has to offer. An effective measure of parental attention is homework. Asian parents spend more time with their children than American parents do, and it helps. Many researchers also believe there is something in Asian culture that causes success, such as ideals that stress family values and emphasize education.
Both explanations for academic success worry Asian Americans because of fears that they feed a typical racial image. Many can remember when Chinese, Japanese and Filipino immigrants were the victims of social separation. Indeed, it was not until 1952 that laws were laid down giving all Asian immigrants the right to citizenship.
1.. While making great achievements at college, Asian-American students ________.
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A．feel they are mistreated because of limited knowledge of English |
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B．are afraid that their academic successes bear a strong Asian character |
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C．still worry about unfair treatment in academic areas |
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D．generally feel it a shame to have to depend on their parents |
2.. What are the major factors that determine the success of Asian Americans?
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A．Solid foundation in basic mathematics and Asian culture. |
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B．Hard work and intelligence. |
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C．Hard work and a limited knowledge of English. |
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D．Asian culture and the American educational system. |
3..Few Asian-American students major in human sciences mainly because_________.
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A．their English is not good enough |
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B．they are afraid they might meet with unfair judgment in these areas |
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C．there is a wide difference between Asian and Western cultures |
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D．they know little about American culture and society |
4.. The author’s tone in this passage is __________.
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A．sympathetic |
B．doubtful |
C．critical |
D．objective |
The small coastal town of Broome, in northwest Australia, is a remote village in the vast countryside.
There are no traffic jams and hardly any roads. There is only the massive Australian wild land, where some houses are 500 miles apart and some driveways are 50 miles long.
There seem to be only two main sources of entertainment out here: the sunset at the beach and Sun Pictures.
Sun Pictures is a very different movie theater：The seats are park benches and deck chairs, but you’re also welcome to sit on the grass.
It is the world’s oldest outdoor movie garden. Sun Pictures was built in 1916 on the other side of the globe from Hollywood. All the big films were shipped here and the lonely country was amazed.
Broome resident Pearl Hamaguchi has never traveled far from home. But in the Sun Pictures chairs, under the deep blue night sky, she has been almost everywhere.
“And we came back excited about Gregory Peck,” she recalled.
This is one of the few places left in the world where you can see two sets of stars at the same time-----one set in the sky, the other in the film.
Each night, dozens of people from around the world line up at the old wooden stand, with no computer in sight, and buy their tickets to the latest films.
Sun Pictures is also a museum, exhibiting projectors(放映机) that date back to the silent films, a portrait gallery of the famous people who never knew about this place---- even though they came here all the time.
Every once in a while, I’m told, you might find a non-ticket holder in your seat. That’s why it’s always a good idea to shake out your chair to make sure there are no spiders or scorpions.
“We’ve only had a couple of scorpion incidents but no one’s been stung yet,” said Aaron Mestemaker, a tourist visiting from Michigan.
Sun Pictures is a holy hall of movie history and a reminder that air conditioning and carpet are no match for grass and fresh air---even when the lizards steal the scene.
1.. The first two paragraphs want to show that__________.
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A．living in Broome is inconvenient |
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B．the life in Broome is boring |
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C．few people like to live in Broome |
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D．Broome is simple but vast |
2..Sun Pictures is different from other theaters because _________.
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A．it is the most historical outdoor theater in the world |
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B．the audience can either sit on chairs or on the grass |
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C．it was built by some constructor from Hollywood |
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D．all the films were imported here from Hollywood |
3.. Gregory Peck is most probably the name of_________.
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A．a place |
B．a film |
C．a movie star |
D．a country fellow |
4.. It can be inferred that the tourists in Broome are most attracted by ________.
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A．its peacefulness |
B．its beautiful sunset |
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C．the Sun Pictures |
D．the gallery of movie stars |
Twelve years ago yesterday, my mother gave birth to the most beautiful girl. 31 , we were later given the 32 that this little girl, who was three and a half months old, would only have 14 days on the earth. It’s hard to understand what kind of 33 you have when you find out that you’re 34 something that you don’t even know.
As time went on, the number of days kept growing, which gave us 35 . When the doctors said that we could take her home, that was 36 reality hit. We had no 37 .
I am from a small town with 38 hospitals, but when you don’t have money, you just don’t have it. My mother tried for days to get the money, but nothing 39 each time. A caseworker(社会工作者) was even doing her best. It’s 40 that it almost felt as if we had to 41 a baby from the hospital.
One day the caseworker walked into her boss’s office to 42 again. As she walked out, 43 down yet again, out of nowhere a man walked up to her. He 44 her a handful of money and said, “Please give this to the lady in 45 , so she can take her daughter home.” She looked down at her hand with tears in her eyes. As she looked back up to thank him, he was 46 . They searched all over that hospital and he was no where to be 47 .
Thanks to the guy that I will 48 know, we could take home that 49 baby girl that was only given 14 days to live, and celebrated her 12th birthday yesterday. I am grateful to this man and feel that his act of 50 should be shared with everyone.
1..
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A．Besides |
B．Otherwise |
C．However |
D．Therefore |
2..
|
A．idea |
B．news |
C．order |
D．point |
3..
|
A．character |
B．friendship |
C．habit |
D．feeling |
4..
|
A．losing |
B．wasting |
C．explaining |
D．gaining |
5..
|
A．hope |
B．freedom |
C．trouble |
D．information |
6..
|
A．how |
B．where |
C．when |
D．whether |
7..
|
A．car |
B．knowledge |
C．shelter |
D．money |
8..
|
A．modern |
B．small |
C．large |
D．good |
9..
|
A．came up |
B．set up |
C．made up |
D．gave up |
10..
|
A．interesting |
B．necessary |
C．impossible |
D．sad |
11..
|
A．save |
B．buy |
C．visit |
D．protect |
12..
|
A．apologize |
B．research |
C．try |
D．interview |
13..
|
A．let |
B．moved |
C．knelt |
D．fell |
14..
|
A．took |
B．paid |
C．handed |
D．lent |
15..
|
A．danger |
B．need |
C．reward |
D．advance |
16..
|
A．gone |
B．shy |
C．disppointed |
D．proud |
17..
|
A．avoided |
B．found |
C．persuaded |
D．stopped |
18..
|
A．even |
B．still |
C．almost |
D．never |
19..
|
A．beautiful |
B．naughty |
C．nervous |
D．dangerous |
The U.S. official said North Korea --- and Iran --- should follow in the steps of Libya, which last December said it would work__________ to allow international weapons inspectors to do their work.
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A．unconditionally |
B．unwillingly |
C．unfortunately |
D．uncomfortably |
