A friend of mine, in response to a conversation we were having about the injustices of life, asked me the question, “Who said life was going to be fair, or that it was even meant to be fair?” Her question was a good one. It reminded me of something I was taught as a youngster: life isn’t fair. It’s a disappointment, but it’s absolutely true. One of the mistakes many of us make is that we feel sorry for ourselves, or for others, thinking that life should be fair, or that someday it will be. It’s not and it won’t be.
One of the nice things about surrendering(屈从) to the fact that life isn’t fair is that it keeps us from feeling sorry for ourselves by encouraging us to do the very best we can with what we have. We know it’s not “life’s job” to make everything perfect: it’s our own challenge. Surrendering to this fact also keeps us from feeling sorry for others because we are reminded that everyone is dealt a different hand; everyone has unique strengths and problems in the process of growing up, facing the reality and making decisions; and everyone has those times that they feel unfairly treated.
The fact that life isn’t fair doesn’t mean we shouldn’t do everything in our power to improve our own lives or the world as a whole. To the contrary, it suggests that we should. When we don’t recognize or admit that life isn’t fair, we tend to feel pity for others and for ourselves. Pity, of course, is a self-defeating emotion that does nothing for anyone, except to make everyone feel worse than they already do. When we do recognize that life isn’t fair, however, we feel compassion(热情)for others and for ourselves. And compassion is a heartfelt emotion that delivers loving-kindness to everyone it touches. The next time you find yourself thinking about the injustices of the world, try reminding yourself of this very basic fact. You may be surprised that it can make you out of self-pity and into helpful action. The writer thought of his friend’s question as a good one because .
| A．he also wanted to know who held such an opinion. |
| B．it made him recall something during his childhood. |
| C．many people thought life was fair |
| D．like his friend, he also thought life was unfair. |
The second paragraph of the passage mainly tells us that .
| A．it’s nice to complain about life |
| B．it’s nice to accept the injustice of life |
| C．we should not feel sorry for everything |
| D．everyone should be treated fairly |
From the passage, we can learn that the author’s attitude to life is .
| A．positive | B．negative | C．self-pity | D．indifferent |
Which of the following could be the best title of the text?
| A．A Helpful Action: Try to Feel Compassion |
| B．A bad Question: Why Life Isn’t Fair |
| C．Surrender to the Fact That Life Isn’t Fair |
| D．Do Our Best to Improve Ourselves |
Free On-line Short Stories For Kids: Trevor The Taxi
In this children's story, suited to younger children, we have an adventure with Trevor. He is a taxi. Trevor loves his life:
“Sometimes he takes patients to the nursing home, where they can get better after being ill, and sometimes he takes people home when they have been shopping, and Stan puts all their packages inside Trevor's boot, so they will not get wet or broken.”
The black cab, in this adventure, goes far beyond the call of duty whilst he achieves his wildest dreams! What could this be? Well you will just have to read this short story for yourself!
Free On-line Short Stories For Kids: The Girl Who Believed In Fairies
The fairy queen is upset and the elves just don't know what to do:
“Oh dear, oh dear," sobbed the queen, getting her hankie all wet with her constant crying. For the twelfth time that day, Elgie the chief elf took her hankie and wrung it out on to the carpet of grass that grew all around the palace.”
How will they manage to help the queen? Why was she so unhappy? There is only one person that can help! Can she do it? This is a lovely fairy tale that will glow the embers of your heart - only for young girls!
Free On-line Short Stories For Kids: The Envious Kings
This story is suitable for 6 years and upwards.
Unfolding in the story pages of this recommendation is a children's story about two kings who were competing with each other:
“In spite of the easy life that the two kings had, they were not happy, for each of them kept thinking that the other one had a bigger and better palace, or owned more horses, or had more jewels or even had creamier milk.”
They were both petty and, through their envy, they caused themselves much trouble. Who do you think saved the day? Well, you will just have to read the story to find out!
Free On-line Short Stories For Kids: The Wise Old Woman
This story is probably suited to the 8 years old age range and upwards, although would appeal to adults, alike.
Here I introduce you to one of my kids on-line stories listed on the writing and literature section of Hubpages. In this parable you will find a magical world of wisdom involving trees, people and someone very special.
“As she stood and watched, the knowledge melted into her and the sapling grew...The magical transition took her breath away and as she watched on with ore, she noticed something strange.”
So, what was this strangeness and magical transition? Let me leave you with wonderment ... and a click of the link!
Free On-line Short Stories For Kids: Unusual Stories - Faffenburger's Odyssey
This story is probably more suited to the older child. So who is Faffenburger? Well with one of these free on-line short stories for kids, we enter into a different realm. A world of nonsense as Faffenburger moves within alpha and omega. This is a rather unusual story as you will find out!
“My friend, Henry Faffenburger stomped down the long lane on his short stumpy legs, moonlight glancing off his bald-spot, which was a little surprising as there was no moon that night. As he rounded the bend, he saw a pair of headlights coming toward him. They drew level, and stopped. A small man with yellow eyes emerged from the darkness behind the lights, and enquired if Faffenburger would like a lift.
"Where are you going ?" asked my friend. "Wherever you want to go", replied the owner of the yellow eyes.”
So, the adventure begins! Where will they go? Alpha, Omega or just the middle? After all, it was a long summer - especially the middle! Take a closer look at this - you might find something a little more strange and a little more hidden that you have noticed before. Intrigued? Well you should be with Faffenburger's Odyssey!Which story is more well-received by young girls?
| A．Trevor The Taxi | B．Faffenburger's Odyssey |
| C．The Wise Old Woman | D．The Girl Who Believed In Fairys |
You can find the description of a night scene in _______?
| A．The Envious Kings | B．The Girl Who Believed In Fairies |
| C．The Wise Old Woman | D．Faffenburger's Odyssey |
According to the passage, the kings in “The Envious Kings” can be described as_______?
| A．Jealous | B．powerful | C．rude | D．ugly |
Who will most probably find the passage useful?
| A．parents with children | B．children who love to surf the Internet |
| C．teachers in high school | D．experts who concern children |
What separates me from everyone else? The difference is not what clothes I wear or the music I listen to, but what I feel inside.
Ever since I was young, I have loved professional wrestling（摔跤）. I woke up every Saturday to watch my favorite "Superstars." As I grew older, I got a lot of flak for watching this "fake" sport. My peers（同龄人） would laugh at me for following what was called a "man's soap opera." So, I put my love for wrestling on the shelf. Like everyone else, I wanted to be associated with the cool clique. I yearned to be invited to the parties of the in-crowd and hang out with the popular kids. I became pretty successful. Although my Friday evenings were busy with parties, I would still wake up early Saturdays to watch wrestling. It wasn't until freshman year that I realized I wasn't being myself.
That year, I tried many new things and activities and made new friends. In my town, football was the sport, so I decided to play football, thinking it might give me a head start in popularity. The team started with 48 athletes. At the end, there were 14 of us left. I stuck it out not because I liked it, but because I am not a quitter. That long season taught me a lesson: I wasn't a football player. More importantly, it taught me to be myself.
After that season, I went back to being a wrestling fan. I watched it religiously, no matter what insults were thrown my way. I came across a quote: "Don't Dream It, Be It." When I read this, my friend Dan had the same idea I had.
"What if we build a wrestling ring（拳击场）?" we asked. We acquired the necessary wood and equipment for its construction. The following weekend, we met at his house. We saw our dream in a pile in his backyard. We worked from dawn to dusk to build our great establishment. By Sunday night, our mission was complete. Our hard work (combined with a little creativity) had paid off. We had a real ring. We decided to hold an "event." We practiced for hours, trying to improve every aspect of our wrestling ability. The date was May 24th. Our show had a start time of 9: 00 p.m. To our surprise, about one hundred family, friends and fans showed up to support us. It was the most important night of my life and a complete success. Since that time, we have held five shows with as many as two hundred and fifty people turning out. We continue to live this dream. We accomplished what we set out to do. We are now well known throughout school. When I walk down the halls, I am respected by my peers. Some are the same peers who ridiculed me for watching wrestling when I was younger. When they approach me, they often say, "Good match, Chris." I humbly say, "Thank you," knowing I did something I believed in.
As my senior year winds down, I'll remember all of my high school memories. But what will stick out most is the memory that I did something I loved, despite what everyone said or thought. I accomplished my goal. I lived my dream. What makes the writer different from the others is __________.
| A．the different sports he loves |
| B．the different clothes he wears and the different music he listens to |
| C．that he is younger than the others. |
| D．the different ideas he has |
What does the underlined sentence in Paragraph 2 mean?
| A．I practiced wrestling secretly in my spare time. |
| B．I put the clothes for wrestling on the shelf. |
| C．I decided to quit following wrestling. |
| D．I began not to watch wrestling on TV. |
When the writer was a freshman, he ___________.
| A．knew he couldn’t be a good football player | B．realized he was being himself |
| C．was still sociable | D．built a wrestling ring |
The writer built the wrestling ring in order to ________.
| A．play football there | B．make his dream realized |
| C．be a professional player | D．have parties there. |
What is the writer’s attitude towards his experience in high school?
| A．Optimistic | B．Pessimistic | C．Doubtful | D．Surprised |
A. Be brave in your requests
B. You get what you tolerate
C. Don’t feel guilty of your requests
D. Don’t think others are mind readers
E. Don’t make a “no” mean more than it does
F. Be specific about what you want and when you want it
Be Bold: Ask for What You Really Want!
Have you ever been in a situation that is causing you to feel annoyed, frustrated, or unappreciated? We all experience them, but often we don’t have the courage to change them or ask for what we really want. Complaining about your problems never solves them. Only when you get clear about what you want, and are willing to ask for it, will you experience not only a lot less stress in your life, but greater success in your relationship, career and life. Here are five tips to help you on your way.________________
We often think our bosses, colleagues and even our friends can understand our thought even without being told. So when they don’t act as we’d like, we feel hurt and upset. For any relationship to develop, both parties have to communicate their needs. Whether it’s how you’d like your colleague to communicate with you about a work project, or how you’d like your boss to assess your work, it’s necessary to convey what you want.________________
When asking for what you really want, you will seldom, if ever, be given more than what you have the courage to ask for. So don’t weaken your requests to avoid being turned down. Think about what your ideal outcome would be and then confidently, courageously, ask for it. While you may not always get as much as you asked for, you will get more than you would have otherwise.________________
In the workplace, the biggest reason for unmet expectations is a lack of understanding of exactly what is expected. A request that holds water needs to make clear not just what you want, but also the time limit within which you want it. That is, both a clear “what” and “when”. For example, “Could you please get the monthly sales report to me by midday Friday?________________
Whether it’s asking your friend to show up on time, or asking your colleague to stop making jokes in your presence, every day, through what you say and do, you teach others how to treat you. Letting others know what you will （and will not）put up with and what you expect from them, is important to your wellbeing and success—at home and work.________________
In reality you won’t always get what you ask for. Your boss won’t always give you the pay raise you’d like and your parents may not agree to mind your three kids every second weekend. When people say no, you can take it really personally and decide never to speak to them again—or you can accept it graciously and move on. At least now you know where you stand and can plan accordingly.
Asking for less than you really want—from yourself, from others and from life—doesn’t serve anyone. Remember that fortune favors the bold. So make bigger, better, bolder requests, and ask for what you really want. Who knows…you might just get it!
It was eleven o'clock that night when Mr. Pontellier returned from his night out. He was in an excellent humor, in high spirits, and very talkative. His entrance awoke his wife, who was in bed and fast asleep when he came in. He talked to her while he undressed, telling her anecdotes and bits of news and gossip that he had gathered during the day. She was overcome with sleep, and answered him with little half utterances.
He thought it very discouraging that his wife, who was the sole object of his existence, showed so little interest in things which concerned him and valued so little his conversation.
Mr. Pontellier had forgotten the candies and peanuts that he had promised the boys. Still, he loved them very much and went into the room where they slept to take a look at them and make sure that they were resting comfortably. The result of his investigation was far from satisfactory. He turned and shifted the youngsters about in bed. One of them began to kick and talk about a basket full of crabs.
Mr. Pontellier returned to his wife with the information that Raoul had a high fever and needed looking after. Then he lit his cigar and went and sat near the open door to smoke it.
Mrs. Pontellier was quite sure Raoul had no fever. He had gone to bed perfectly well, she said, and nothing had made him sick. Mr. Pontellier was too well familiar with fever symptoms to be mistaken. He assured her the child was burning with fever at that moment in the next room.
He reproached his wife with her inattention, her habitual neglect of the children. If it was not a mother's place to look after children, whose on earth was it? He himself had his hands full with his business. He could not be in two places at once; making a living for his family on the street, and staying home to see that no harm done to them. He talked in a dull, repeated and insistent way.
Mrs. Pontellier sprang out of bed and went into the next room. She soon came back and sat on the edge of the bed, leaning her head down on the pillow. She said nothing, and refused to answer her husband when he questioned her. When his cigar was smoked out, he went to bed, and in half a minute was fast asleep.
Mrs. Pontellier was by that time thoroughly awake. She began to cry a little, and wiped her eyes on the sleeve of her nightdress. She went out on the porch, where she sat down and began to rock herself in the chair.
It was then past midnight. The cottages were all dark. There was no sound except the hooting of an old owl and the everlasting voice of the sea, which broke like a mournful lullaby (催眠曲) upon the night.
The tears came so fast to Mrs. Pontellier's eyes that the damp sleeve of her nightdress no longer served to dry them. She went on crying there, not caring any longer to dry her face, her eyes, her arms.
She could not have told why she was crying. Such experiences as had just happened were not uncommon in her married life. They seemed never before to have weighed much against theabundance (充足) of her husband's kindness and a uniform devotion which had come to be self-understood.
An indescribable oppression, which seemed to generate in some unfamiliar part of her consciousness, filled her whole being with vague pain. It was like a shadow, like a mist passing across her soul's summer day. It was strange and unfamiliar; it was a mood. She did not sit there inwardly scolding her husband, expressing sadness about Fate, which had directed her footsteps to the path which they had taken. She was just having a good cry all to herself.
The mosquitoes succeeded in driving away a mood which might have held her there in the darkness half a night longer.
The following morning Mr. Pontellier was up in good time to take the carriage which was to convey him to the ship. He was returning to the city to his business, and they would not see him again at the Island till the coming Saturday. He had regained his calmness, which seemed to have been somewhatweakened the night before. He was eager to be gone, as he looked forward to a lively week in the financial center.Mr.Pontellier comes back home from his night out in a/an ______state of mind.
| A．excited | B．confused | C．depressed | D．disappointed |
Mr. Pontellier criticizes his wife because ______.
| A．she is not wholly devoted to her children |
| B．she does little housework but sleep |
| C．she knows nothing about fever symptoms |
| D．she fails to take her son to hospital |
The writer would most likely describe Mr. Pontellier’s conduct during the evening as ______.
| A．impatient and generous | B．enthusiastic and responsible |
| C．concerned and gentle | D．inconsiderate and self-centered |
The underlined sentence suggests that Mr. Pontellier's complaints to his wife are ______.
| A．hesitant and confused | B．not as urgent as he claims |
| C．angry and uncertain | D．too complex to make sense |
In paragraphs 8 to 13, Mrs. Pontellier’s reactions to her husband’s behavior suggest that ______.
| A．she accepts unquestioningly her role of taking care of the children |
| B．this is one of the first times she has acknowledged her unhappiness with her husband |
| C．her relationship with her husband is not what has made her depressed |
| D．she is angry about something that happened before her husband left |
The passage shows Mr. Pontellier is happiest when he ______.
| A．sits near the open door smoking a cigar and talking |
| B．makes up with his wife after a heated argument |
| C．has been away from home or is about to leave home |
| D．has given his children gifts of candies and peanuts |
You hear the comment all the time: the U.S. economy looks good by figures, but it doesn’t feel good. Why doesn’t ever-greater wealth promote ever-greater happiness? It is a question that dates at least to the appearance in 1958 of The Wealthy Society by John Kenneth Galbraith, who died recently at 97.
The Wealthy Society is a modern classic because it helped describe a new moment in the human condition. For most of history, “hunger, sickness, and cold” threatened nearly everyone, Galbraith wrote. “Poverty was found everywhere in that world. Obviously it is not of ours.” After World War II, the fear of another Great Depression gave way to an economic growth. By the 1930s unemployment had averaged 18.2 percent; in the 1950s it was 4.5 percent.
To Galbraith, materialism had gone mad and would cause discontent. Through advertising, companies conditioned consumers to buy things they didn’t really want or need. Because so much spending was artificial, it would be unsatisfying. Meanwhile, government spending that would make everyone better off was being cut down because people wrongly considered government only as “a necessary bad.”
It’s often said that only the rich are getting ahead; everyone else is standing still or falling behind. Well, there are many undeserving rich — overpaid chief managers, for instance. But over any meaningful period, most people’s incomes are increasing. From 1995 to 2004, people feel “squeezed” because their rising incomes often don’t satisfy their rising wants — for bigger homes, more health care, more education, and faster Internet connections.
The other great disappointment is that it has not got rid of insecurity. People regard job stability as part of their standard of living. As company unemployment increased, that part has gradually become weaker. More workers fear they’ve become “the disposable American,” as Louis Uchitelle puts it in his book by the same name.
Because so much previous suffering and social conflict resulted from poverty, the arrival of widespread wealth suggested utopian (乌托邦式的) possibilities. Up to a point, wealth succeeds. There is much less physical suffering than before. People are better off. Unfortunately, wealth also creates new complaints.
Advanced societies need economic growth to satisfy the multiplying wants of their citizens. But the search for growth cause new anxieties and economic conflicts that disturb the social order. Wealth sets free the individual, promising that everyone can choose a unique way to self-accomplishment. But the promise is so unreasonable that it leads to many disappointments and sometimes inspires choices that have anti-social consequences, including family breakdown. Figures indicate that happiness has not risen with incomes.
Should we be surprised? Not really. We’ve simply confirmed an old truth: the seeking of wealth does not always end with happiness.The Wealthy Society is a book ______.
| A．about previous suffering and social conflict in the past |
| B．written by Louis Uchitelle who died recently at 97 |
| C．indicating that people are becoming worse off |
| D．about why happiness does not rise with wealth |
According to Galbraith, people feel discontented because ______.
| A．materialism has run wild in modern society |
| B．they are in fear of another Great Depression |
| C．public spending hasn’t been cut down as expected |
| D．the government has proved to be necessary but ugly |
Why do people feel“squeezed”when their average income rises considerably?
| A．They think there are too many overpaid rich. |
| B．There is more unemployment in modern society. |
| C．Their material demands go faster than their earnings. |
| D．Health care and educational cost have somehow gone out of control. |
What does Louis Uchitelle mean by “the disposable American” ?
| A．People with a stable job. |
| B．Workers who no longer have secure jobs. |
| C．Those who see job stability as part of their living standard. |
| D．People who have a sense of security because of their rising incomes. |
What has wealth brought to American society?
| A．Stability and security. |
| B．Materialism and content. |
| C．A sense of self-accomplishment. |
| D．New anxiety, conflicts and complaints. |
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