Question

    A few years back I worked in a university building that also housed a department full of psychologists, all of whom seemed to see us as perfect guinea pigs（豚鼠） for their latest theories. If an eager graduate student showed up in my office bearing desserts and asked me to pick one, I'd cast a careful glance and ask “Why?” before grabbing the apple pie.

So one day, when someone from the Psychology Department posted instructions in the bathroom persuading all of us to “Think about five things for which you're grateful every day for a week!”, my response was frankly doubtful. I did the math. Five things a day for seven days is a lot of brainpower to expend without so much as the promise of an apple pie.

I wandered into the office of Heidi Zetzer, the director of our school's Psychological Services Clinic.“What's with the gratitude thing?”I asked. You don't ask an academic question－even a simple one unless you're prepared for a long answer. Heidi came alive, and I sat down. That's when I first heard the term “positive psychology”. The gratitude thing, as I had called it, was but one small and simple element of the practice. “Kind of like training the brain to focus on joy,” my friend Heidi explained. “It's only a week,” she urged. “Try it.” I did. And guess what? It worked.

Every day for a week, I found five distinct things for which I was thankful. They had to be different every day. I couldn't get away with just being grateful for my wonderful husband. But I could, suggested Collie Conoley, another positive psychologist, express my gratitude for specific aspects of a certain person each day. He's a great cook. He always puts our family first.

Life will never be perfect. I still see new stories that annoy me. The traffic in my city is maddening. I wish I could speed up my recovery. But with just one simple exercise, I'm rediscovering the peace of that old saying: accepting the things I can't change, working without complaint to change what I can, and being wise enough to know the difference.

And all it took was a little gratitude.

1.What's the author's attitude toward the student with desserts?

A.Cautious. B.Respectful.

C.Indifferent. D.Supportive.

2.Why was the author doubtful about the instructions?

A.Because she thought it wasn't worth the effort.

B.Because she didn't like expressing thanks often.

C.Because she needed to ask her friend to do it first.

D.Because she could do five things every day easily.

3.What does Collie Conoley suggest the author should do?

A.Be grateful to her wonderful husband.

B.Be thankful for things but not people.

C.Be a great cook and put her family first.

D.Be specific about what she's thankful for.

Answer

1.A

2.A

3.D

【解析】

本文是夹叙夹议文。在一个星期的时间里，作者坚持每天都能发现五件她特别感激的事情，而且每天都有所不同。生活永远不会完美。但通过这么一个简单的练习，作者重新发现了那句老话的平和：接受我不能改变的事情，毫无怨言地去改变我能改变的，并且足够明智地知道两者的区别。这只需要一点感激之情。

1.

推理判断题。根据第一段最后一句If an eager graduate student showed up in my office bearing desserts and asked me to pick one, I'd cast a careful glance and ask “Why?” before grabbing the apple pie.（如果一个心急的研究生拿着甜点出现在我的办公室，让我挑选一种，在抓苹果派之前，我会仔细地看一眼，然后问“为什么?”）可知，作者在抓苹果派之前，会仔细地看一眼，然后问“为什么?”。由此可知，作者对带甜点的学生持有谨慎的态度。故选A。

2.

推理判断题。根据第二段中的my response was frankly doubtful. I did the math. Five things a day for seven days is a lot of brainpower to expend without so much as the promise of an apple pie.（我的反应坦率地说是怀疑的。我算了算。连续7天每天做5件事，甚至连吃苹果派的承诺都没有，那就太费脑力了）可推知，作者认为对“连续7天每天做5件事”的要求充满怀疑，认为太费脑力、不值得去做。故选A。

3.

细节理解题。根据第四段中的But I could, suggested Collie Conoley, another positive psychologist, express my gratitude for specific aspects of a certain person each day. He's a great cook. He always puts our family first.（但是另一位积极心理学家柯利·康诺利建议道，我可以每天对一个人的某些方面表达我的感激之情。他是个很棒的厨师。他总是把我们的家庭放在第一位）可知，柯利·康诺利建议作者每天对一个人的某些方面表达感激之情。由此可知，柯利·康诺利建议作者具体说明她感激什么。故选D。