The meaning of the word “volunteer ” may be a little different in different countries, but it usually means “one who offers his or her services.” There are many different ways in which people can volunteer, such as taking care of sick people, working in homes for homeless children, and picking up garbage(垃圾) from beaches and parks. Volunteers may work within their own countries or in other countries. They are often people with a strong wish to help those who are less fortunate than themselves. Volunteers don’t expect any kind of pay.
At the root of volunteering is the idea that one person may have the ability to offer services that can help other people. Tracy, a good friend of mine, however, recently came back from India with a new idea of what being a volunteer means. She worked for two and a half weeks in one of Mother Teresa’s homes in Calcutta. The following is her story.
“I first heard about Mother Teresa in my high school, we watched a video(录像) about her work in India and all over the world. I was so moved by her spirit to help others and her endless love for every human being that after I graduated from high school, I too wanted to try her kind of work. So with two friends I flew to Calcutta for a few weeks.”
“I was asked to work in a home for sick people. I helped wash clothes and sheets, and pass out lunch. I also fed the people who were too weak to feed themselves and tried to cheer them up. I felt it was better to share with them than to think that I have helped them. To be honest, I don’t think I was helping very much. It was then that I realized that I had not really come to help, but to learn about and experience another culture(文化) that helped improve my own understanding of life and the world.”
1.According to the text, a volunteer refers to a person who ______.
A．is willing to help those in need without pay
B．can afford to travel to different places
C．has a strong wish to be successful
D．has made a big fortune in life
2.Tracy started her work as a volunteer _______.
A．after she met Mother Teresa B．after she finished high school
C．when she was touring Calcutta D．when she was working in a hospital
3.Why did Tracy choose to be a volunteer?
A．She liked to work with Mother Teresa.
B．She had already had some experience.
C．She was asked by Mother Teresa’s example.
D．She wanted to follow Mother Teresa’s example.
4.What is Tracy’s “new idea” (Paragraph 2) of being a volunteer?
A．Going abroad to help the sick.
B．Working in Mother Teresa’s home.
C．Doing simple things to help the poor.
D．Improving oneself through helping others.
How I Turned to Be Optimistic
I began to grow up that winter night when my parents and I were returning from my aunt's house, and my mother said that we might soon be leaving for America. We were on the bus then. I was crying, and some people on the bus were turning around to look at me. I remember that I could not bear the thought of never hearing again the radio program for school children to which I listened every morning.
I do not remember myself crying for this reason again. In fact, I think I cried very little when I was saying goodbye to my friends and relatives. When we were leaving I thought about all the places I was going to see-—the strange and magical places I had known only from books and pictures. The country I was leaving never to come back was hardly in my head then.
The four years that followed taught me the importance of optimism, but the idea did not come to me at once. For the first two years in New York I was really lost—having to study in three schools as a result of family moves. I did not quite know what I was or what I should be. Mother remarried, and things became even more complex for me. Some time passed before my stepfather and I got used to each other. I was often sad, and saw no end to "the hard times."
My responsibilities in the family increased a lot since I knew English better than everyone else at home. I wrote letters, filled out forms, translated at interviews with Immigration officers, took my grandparents to the doctor and translated there, and even discussed telephone bills with company representatives.
From my experiences I have learned one important rule: almost all common troubles eventually go away! Something good is certain to happen in the end when you do not give up, and just wait a little! I believe that my life will turn out all right, even though it will not be that easy.
1.How did the author get to know America?
A． From her relatives. B． From her mother.
C． From books and pictures. D． From radio programs.
2.Upon leaving for America the author felt_______.
A. confused B. excited C. worried D amazed
3.For the first two years in New York, the author _________.
A. often lost her way B. did not think about her future
C. studied in three different schools D got on well with her stepfather
4.What can we learn about the author from Paragraph 4?
A. She worked as a translator. B. She attended a lot of job interviews.
C. She paid telephone bills for her family. D She helped her family with her English.
Last week my youngest son and I visited my father at his new home in Tucson, Arizona. He moved there a few years ago, and I was eager to see his now place and meet his friends.
My earliest memories of my father are a tall, handsome, successful man devoted to his work and family but uncomfortable with his children. As a child I loved him; as a school girl and young adult(成年人)I feared him and felt bitter about him. He seemed unhappy with me unless I got straight A’s and unhappy with my boy friends if their fathers were not as “successful” as he was. Whenever I went out with him on weekends, I used to struggle to think up things to say, feeling on guard.
On the first day of my visit, we went out with one of my father’s friends for lunch at an outdoor cafe. We walked along that afternoon, did some shopping, ate on the street table, and laughed over my son’s funny facial expressions. Gone was my father’s critical(挑剔的)air and strict rules. Who was this person I knew as my father, who seemed so friendly and interesting to be around? What had held him back before?
The next day my dad pulled out his childhood pictures and told me quite a few stories about his own childhood. Although our times together became easier over the years, I never felt closer to him at that moment. After so many years, I’m at last seeing another side of my father. And in so doing, I’m delighted with my new friend. My dad, in his new home in Arizona, is back to me from where he was.
1.Why did the author feel bitter about her father as a young adult?
A．He was silent most of the time B．He was too proud of himself
C．He did not love his children D．He expected too much of her
2.When the author went out with her father on weekends, she would feel .
A．nervous B．sorry C．tired D．safe
3.What does the author think of her father after her visit to Tucson?
A．More critical B．More talkative
C．Gentle and friendly D．Strict and hard-working
4.The underlined words “my new friend” in the last paragraph refer to .
A．the author’s son B．the author’s father
C．the friend of the author’s father D．the cafe owner
From the time each of my children started school, I packed their lunches. And in each lunch, I 11 a note. Often written on a napkin (餐巾), it might be a thank-you for a 12 moment, a reminder of something we were happily expecting, or a bit of 13 for the coming test or sporting event.
In early grade school they 14 their notes. But as children grow older they becomes self-conscious(有自我意识的), and 15 he reached high school, my older son, Marc, informed me he no longer 16 my daily notes. Telling him that he no longer needed to 17 them but I still needed to write them, I 18 until the day he graduated.
Six years after high school graduation, Marc called and asked if he could move 19 for a couple of months. He had spent those years well, graduating from college, 20 two internship (实习) in Washington, D.C., and 21 , becoming a technical assistant in Sacramento, 22 short vacation visits, however, he had lived away from home. With his younger sister leaving for college, I was 23 happy to have Marc back. Since I was 24 making lunch for his younger brother, I 25 one for Marc, too. Imagine my 26 when I got a call from my 24-year-old son, 27 his lunch.
“Did I do something 28 ? Don’t you love me 29 ,Mom?” were just a few of the questions he threw at me as I 30 asked him what was wrong. “My note, Mom,” he answered. “Where’s my note?”
1. A．carried B．found C．included D．held
2. A．difficult B．special C．comfortable D．separate
3. A．congratulation B．improvement C．explanation D．encouragement
4. A．loved B．answered C．wrote D．examined
5. A．lately B．by the way C．by the time D．gradually
6. A．received B．understood C．enjoyed D．collected
7. A．copy B．read C．take D．send
8. A．held up B．gave up C．followed D．continued
9. A．out B．home C．to college D．to Sacramento
10. A．organizing B．planning C．comparing D．completing
11. A．hopefully B．finally C．particularly D．certainly
12. A．Because of B．Instead of C．Except for D．As for
13. A．especially B．immediately C．equally D．generally
14. A．once B．again C．still D．even
15. A．packed B．fetched C．bought D．filled
16. A．fear B．surprise C．anger D．disappointment
17. A．waiting for B．worrying about C．caring for D．asking about
18. A．wrong B．funny C．strange D．smart
19. A．any more B．enough C．once more D．better
20. A．interestingly B．bitterly C．politely D．laughingly
The boy was so ______ in reading that he didn’t hear his father knocking at the door.
A．drawn B．absorbed C．valued D．talented
If you are travelling _______the customs are really foreign to your own, please do as the Romans do.
A．in which B．what C．when D．where
