6、Dream in Heart
On the first day of school our professor introduced a new classmate—a wrinkled little old lady—to us. Her name was Rose, and she was eighty-seven years old.
After class Rose and I walked to the Student Union Building and shared a chocolate milk-shake. She told me she always dreamed of having a college education and now she was getting one. We became instant friends. Every day for the following months, we would leave class together and talk nonstop. I was always attracted, listening to this “ time machine” as she shared her wisdom and experience with me.
Rose became famous and easily made friends wherever she went. She tended to be highly motivated,responsible, and deeply involved in class participation. In spare time she had someone hang out or go to bars with. She even participated in some form of athletic activity. She said that extra-curricular activities can form a vital part of her experience, creating unique chances for friendship and learning.
At the end of the term we invited Rose to speak at our football meal. A little embarrassed, she leaned into the microphone and simply said, “ I’ m sorry I’ m so nervous.” As we laughed, she cleared her throat and began, “ We do not stop playing because we are old; we grow old because we stop playing. There is a huge difference between growing older and growing up. If you’ re nineteen years old and lie in bed for one full year, you will turn twenty. If I’ m eighty-seven years old and stay in bed for a year, I will turn eighty-eight. Anybody can grow older. It’ s non-optional but that doesn’ t take any talent or ability. The idea is to grow up by always finding the chance in change. In this way the elderly don’ t have regrets for what they did, but rather for things they did not do.” Rose concluded her speech by courageously singing “ The Rose” . She challenged us to study the words of the song and lived them out in daily lives.
At the year’ s end Rose finished the college degree she had begun all those years ago. One week after graduation Rose died peacefully in her sleep. Over two thousand college students attended her funeral in honor of the wonderful woman who taught by example that it’ s never too late to be all you can possibly be.
1.Why does the author compare Rose to “ time machine” in Paragraph 2? A.To stress her old age and knowledge of life.
B.To describe the close friendship between them. C.To show that she always enjoyed her active life. D.To explain why she took on a challenge in college.
2.Rose was invited to speak at the football meal most probably because ______. A.she was a great football fan B.she was the smartest student C.she tried hard to achieve her dream D.she became more educated than the others
3.We can learn that Rose agreed with the idea that ______. A.growing older means growing up B.it takes talent and ability to grow up
C.receiving high education helps to be courageous D.one grows older at the same time when he grows up 4.The passage is intended to ______. A.provide an example for the elderly B.discuss how to grow up quickly C.tell the importance of attending college D.inspire the readers to live up to lives
7、 Jane Austen, a famous English writer, was born at Steventon, Hampshire, on December 16, 1775, and died on July 18, 1817. She began writing early in life, although the prejudices of her times forced her to have her books published anonymously ( 匿名 ).
But Jane Austen is perhaps the best known and best loved of Bath's many famous local people and visitors. She paid two long visits here during the last five years of the eighteenth century and from 1801 to 1806, Bath was her home. Her deep knowledge of the city is fully seen in two of her novels, Northanger Abbey and Persuasion, which are largely set in Bath. The city is still very much as Jane Austen knew it, keeping in its streets and public buildings the well-ordered world that she described so well in her novels. Now the pleasure of learning Jane Austen's Bath can be enhanced (增强)by visiting the Jane Austen Centre in Gay Street. Here, in a Georgian town house
in the heart of the city, you can find out more about Bath in Jane Austen's time and the importance of Bath in her life and work.
The Centre has been set up with the help and guidance of members of the Jane Austen Society. After your visit to the Centre, you can look round the attractive shop, which offers a huge collection of Jane Austen related books, cards and many specially designed gifts. Jane Austen quizzes are offered to keep the children busy.
You can also have walking tours of Jane Austen's Bath, which is a great way to find out more about Jane Austen and discover the wonderful Georgian city of Bath. The tour lasts about one and a half hours. The experienced guides will take you to the places where Jane lived, walked and shopped.
1.Jane Austen paid two long visits to Bath________. A.in her early twenties B.in her early teens C.in her late twenties D.in her late teens
2.What can we learn about Bath from the passage? A.Bath has greatly changed since Jane Austen's death. B.The city has changed as much as Jane Austen knew it. C.Bath remains almost the same as in Jane Austen's time. D.No changes have taken place in Bath since Jane Austen's time. 3.The author writes this passage in order to________. A.attract readers to visit the city of Bath B.ask readers to buy Austen's books C.tell readers about Jane Austen's experience D.give a brief introduction to the Jane Austen Society 4.It takes you about one and a half hours________. A.to get to the Jane Austen Centre in Gay Street B.to buy Jane Austen related books, cards and gifts C.to find a guide to take you to the Centre D.to look around the city of Bath on foot
8、 Greg Woodburn, a student at the University of Southern California, spends a lot of time cleaning sneakers he collected. But soon the shoes will be sent to poor children in the United States and 20 other countries,thanks to Woodburn's Share Our Soles (S.O.S.) charity.
A high school track star in the town of Ventura, California,Woodburn was treated in hospital for months with knee and hip injuries.
“I started thinking about the health benefits, the friendship and the confidence I got from running,” he says,“And I realized there are children who don’t even have shoes.\
Woodburn gathered up his old sneakers, then asked his friends to donate. His goal was to have 100 pairs by Christmas that year.When he collected more than 500 pairs, he decided to turn the shoe drive into a year-round endeavor.
Back then, the sneakers came from donation boxes at the YMCA and the local sporting goods store and from door-to-door pickups. Woodburn has now set up collection boxes at two high schools, a city gym and a recreation centre. He has started accepting adult sizes and sandals. So far, S. O. S has collected and donated more than 3,000 pairs.
Woodburn has cleaned all the shoes. After sorting the shoes by size, Woodburn selects the good shoes for the washing machine and the worn-out ones for recycling.
To ship the footwear,Woodburn teamed with Sports Gift, a nonprofit organization that provides soccer and baseball equipment to children around the world. Keven Baxter, founder and president, says, “We’d send kids balls and shoes. I've heard that for many of these kids,these old sneakers are the only shoes they had. They wear them to school and to do sports.So Greg's running shoes were a nice addition for us.”
For many recipients, the shoes represent opportunity. Two young hoys in Southern California attended school on alternate days because they shared a pair of shoes. They were too big for one boy and too small for the other. Thanks to S. O. S., each brother received his own pair of shoes. The boys now attend school daily and enjoy their learning. When they graduate, they say, they will help a stranger, just as Woodburn helped them.
1.What caused Greg Woodburn to donate old shoes for poor children? A.The benefits from playing sports. B.News about some poor children.
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