I think that the most basic and powerful way to connect to another person is to listen. Just listen. Perhaps the most important thing we ever give each other is our attention and especially if its given from the heart. When people are talking, there’s no need to do anything but receive them. Just take them in. Listen to what they’re saying. Care about it. Most times caring about it is even more important than understanding it.
When we interrupt what someone is saying to let them know that we understand, we move the focus of attention to ourselves. When we listen, they know we care.
I have even learned to respond to someone crying by just listening. In the old days I used to reach for the tissues(纸巾), until I realized that passing a person a tissue may be just another way to shut them down, to take them out of their experience of sadness and pain. Now I just listen. When they have cried all they need to cry, they find me there with them.
This simple thing has not been that easy to learn. It certainly went against everything I had been taught since I was very young at school. I thought people listened only because they were too timid to speak or did not know the answer. A loving silence often has far more power to connect and to heal than the most well-intentioned(善意的)words.When we communicate with others we had better ________________.
| A．listen more | B．understand more |
| C．speak more | D．look here and there |
If we interrupt what someone is saying,________________.
| A．they may think we are too rude to them |
| B．they must be very angry with us |
| C．they may know we dont care about them |
| D．they must stop and listen to us |
Passing a person who is crying a tissue perhaps means_______________
| A．stopping them from crying any more |
| B．Stopping them from saying anything |
| C．advising them to have a rest |
| D．helping them to accept the sadness |
It is very difficult for us to learn to listen because _______________
| A．we may know the answer |
| B．we have an interesting topic |
| C．parents teach us to speak |
| D．it goes against what we have been taught |
What is probably the best title for this article?
| A．Listening and talking |
| B．Listen, just listen |
| C．Listening is not easy to learn |
| D．How to comfort others |
Even a child knows that nodding the head means “Yes”. But some people will probably be puzzled when they first come to India. When they talk to an Indian, he often shakes his head. They might think that the Indian does not like what he said, but on the contrary he is expressing agreement.
The Indians have a habit of shaking their heads slightly when they talk to somebody. It doesn’t mean “No”, but “Yes”.
If a person doesn’t know this, it might cause misunderstanding.
At one time a foreigner in Indian told his driver who was an Indian to take him to his office. The driver shook his head. The foreigner repeated his request and the driver shook his head again. At last, the foreigner shouted angrily, “Drive me to my office at once!” The driver said in a low voice, “Yes, sir,” smiling and shaking his head again at the same time.Generally speaking, nodding the head means _______, and shaking the head means _______.
| A．Yes; No | B．No; Yes | C．Yes; Yes | D．No; No |
Why did the Indian driver shake his head when the foreigner asked him to drive him to his office? Because _________.
| A．the Indian driver had something important to do |
| B．the foreigner promised to give him only a little money |
| C．the driver felt uncomfortable at that time |
| D．in India shaking the head means agreement |
Why did the foreigner become angry? Because _______.
| A．the Indian driver didn’t want to send him to his office |
| B．he misunderstood the meaning of shaking the head in India |
| C．he asked the driver to send him to his office, but the Indian driver didn’t say any words |
| D．the Indian driver asked him for a lot of money |
The underlined phrase “on the contrary” means ________.
| A．just the opposite | B．clear difference between two things |
| C．doing what you want to do | D．on the other hand |
In America, drivers’ education is part of the regular high school curriculum (课程). Every student in his or her second year of high school is required to take a class in driver’s education. However, unlike other courses, it is not given during the regular school year. Instead it is a summer course.
The course is divided up into two parts: class time for learning laws and regulations, and driving time to practice driving. Class time is not unlike any other class. The students study the basic traffic laws from a text to pass the written driving test that is given to anyone who wants to get a driver’s license.
Driving time is a chance for the students to get behind the wheel and practice starting steering, backing up, parking, switching lanes, turning corners, and all the other maneuvers (操作) required to drive a car. Each student is required to drive a total of six hours. The students are divided up into groups of four. The students and the instructor go out driving for two hour blocks of time. Thus, each student gets half an hour driving time per outing. The instructor and “driver” sit in the front seats and the other three students sit in the back.
After the student has passed the driver’s education course and reached the appropriate age to drive (this age differs in every state but in most cases the person must be 16 years old),they can go to a designated (指定的) state office to take their driver’s test, which is made up of an eye examination, a written test, and a road test. The person must pass all three tests in order to be given a driver’s license. If the person did well in his or her driver’s education class, he or she will pass the test with flying colors and get a driver’s license.We can infer that the students are required to ____ in their whole driving practice.
| A．spend at least six hours driving |
| B．get half an hour driving |
| C．drive for two hour blocks of time |
| D．go out driving for twelve times |
Which of the following is Not True for the students wanting to get their driver’s license?
| A．They must have their eyes examined. |
| B．They must be 16 years of age. |
| C．They should go to have their driver’s test. |
| D．They ought to do well in their driver’s course. |
In the last sentence, “with flying colors” means______.
| A．happily | B．quickly | C．colorfully | D．successfully |
December 2
Sharon called about four times today. At least it shows she’s trying to explain something to me. I feel a little better.
December 3
This morning Sharon said she had only told one person and didn’t know why everyone seemed to know. Yes, I am an adopted (收养的) daughter. But she had promised to keep it a secret for ever!
December 5
I wish I had a friend I could really trust all of the time. I thought I found that friend, but I haven’t and it’s making me miserable (痛苦的)! It’s wrong to tell her all about it. She gains my trust, and then loses it.
December 7
I have a nice room, beautiful house and everything I’ve ever wanted. My adoptive parents will give me all the things I’ve ever dreamed of. Yet all the money in the world can’t buy what I want now. I want for Sharon to be my best friend again.
December 10
Sharon just called. She said she thought it might help if we spent more time together. She worried that I would switch schools (转学). She is the best friend I’ve ever had. When I’m with Sharon, I can be myself. I need Sharon’s friendship. I need it more than I’ve ever known.
December 16
I just had the most fantastic two days of my life! This was the best time I’ve had for a long, long while. Yesterday, we walked five times around the park and today we walked along the river for twenty minutes. We talked so much. Sharon, Sharon, no brick wall between us now.What is the author mainly worried about?
| A．How she was adopted. | B．Why she switched schools. |
| C．Her family life. | D．Her friendship with Sharon. |
Sharon lost the author’s trust because she ________.
| A．didn’t keep the author’s secret |
| B．didn’t like the author any more |
| C．told the author’s past life to everyone |
| D．often refused to help the author |
The underlined word “fantastic” in the last paragraph probably means ________.
| A．funny | B．wonderful | C．sad | D．lucky |
It can be inferred that in the end the author and Sharon ________.
| A．were not friends anymore |
| B．became good friends again |
| C．would switch to another school together |
| D．could hardly understand each other |
One day, when old Jacob and little Jacoble were walking home, the sun began to go down. Old Jacob was thinking of his house and little Jacoble didn’t know what to think. Then he thought of a wonderful idea, and he cried, “Jacob! Do you know what I saw yesterday? I saw a green rabbit. It was flying in the air and it was so big, even bigger than an elephant!”
“You saw that with your own eyes?” asked old Jacob. “Of course I did,” said Jacoble proudly. “It’s a good thing that you really saw that big, flying, green rabbit,” said old Jacob, “because that old bridge we are going to walk over is a very strange one. As soon as anyone who hasn’t told the truth comes on it, the bridge breaks in two.” They continued walking.
“Jacob,” said Jacoble a little later, “you know that big, green, flying rabbit I saw yesterday ... Well, it wasn’t really flying, and ... it wasn’t quite as big as an elephant ... but it was very big, about the size of a horse!” “Big as a horse?” asked Jacob as they got closer to the bridge and little Jacoble began not to feel so well.
“Jacob,” said Jacoble. “That big, green rabbit I saw yesterday, well, I had something in my eye and so I couldn’t see that well. It wasn’t a very big rabbit but it was green. Yes, that’s what it was — all green!”
Old Jacob didn’t say a word. He just walked over the bridge. But Jacoble didn’t go after him because he was afraid and he knew why he was afraid. He stood at the bridge and said, “Oh, Jacob! You know that rabbit I saw yesterday. It wasn’t green. No. It was just a little, brown rabbit.”
Then he was not afraid of anything any more and he ran happily over the bridge.We know from the text that the story happened ______.
| A．in the morning | B．in the afternoon | C．at dusk (黄昏) | D．at midnight |
Jacob considered Jacoble’s story ______.
| A．humorous | B．interesting | C．frightening | D．unbelievable |
Why did little Jacoble change his story again and again?
| A．Because he was afraid of falling into the river. |
| B．Because he tried to persuade Jacob to believe it. |
| C．Because he wanted to frighten Jacob. |
| D．Because he didn’t remember the story clearly. |
What lesson can we learn from the text?
| A．A lie will never be known. |
| B．True friends don’t cheat each other. |
| C．Telling lies makes one suffer from fears. |
| D．Making up a story is lying. |
When I was a child of seven years old, my friends, on a holiday, filled my pocket with coppers. I went at once to a shop where they sold toys for children. Being charmed with the sound of a whistle that I had seen by the way, in the hands of another boy, I handed over all my money for one. I then came home, and went whistling all over the house, much pleased with my whistle, but disturbing all the family. My brothers and sisters and cousins, when I told of the bargain I had made, said I had given four times as much as the whistle was worth. They put me in mind of what good things I might have bought with the rest of the money, and laughed at me so much for my folly that I cried with vexation(烦恼). Thinking about the matter gave me more chargrin than the whistle gave me pleasure.
This, however, was afterwards of use to me, for the impression continued on my mind, so that often, when I was tempted to buy something I did not need, I said to myself, “Don’t give too much for the whistle, ” and I saved my money. As I grew up, came into the world, and observed the actions of men, I thought I met with many, very many, who “gave too much for the whistle.” When I saw some men too eager for court favor, wasting his time at court gatherings, giving up his rest, his liberty, his virtue, and perhaps his friends, for royal favor, I said to myself---“This man gives too much for the whistle.” When I saw another fond of popularity, constantly taking part in political affairs, neglecting his own business, and ruining it by neglect, “He says, indeed,” said I, “too dear for his whistle.”
If I knew a miser（守财奴） who gave up every kind of comfortable living, all the pleasure of doing good to others, all the esteem of his fellow citizens and the joys of friendship, for the sake of gathering and keeping wealth--- “Poor man,” said I, “ you pay too dear for your whistle.” When I met a man of pleasure, who did not try to improve his mind or his fortune but merely devoted himself to having a good time, perhaps neglecting his health, “ Mistaken man, you are providing pain for yourself, instead of pleasure; you are paying too dear for your whistle.” If I saw someone fond of appearance who has fine clothes, fine houses, fine furniture, fine earrings, all above his fortune, and for which he had run into debt, and ends his career in a prison. “Alas,” said I, “he has paid dear, very dear, for his whistle.” In short the miseries of mankind are largely due to their puffing a false value on things --- to giving “too much for their whistle.”How did the author get the whistle?
| A．He bought it in a toy shop for children. |
| B．He got it as a birthday present. |
| C．He exchanged all his coppers for it from another boy. |
| D．He got it from his brothers, sisters and cousins. |
When the author recalled(回忆) the whistle, he felt______________.
| A．pleased | B．charmed | C．chagrin | D．worth |
Which situation would not the author say “ too dear for the whistle?”
| A．People were tempted to buy something they did not need. |
| B．Men were too eager for court favor, wasting his time. |
| C．People were fond of popularity, constantly taking part in political affairs. |
| D．People were devoted to a career he loved so much. |
Which Chinese equivalent can best describe “ too dear for the whistle”?
| A．得不偿失 | B．皆大欢喜 | C．物超所值 | D．名副其实 |
What’s the best title of the passage?
| A．A story in my childhood. |
| B．Too dear for whistle. |
| C．A lesson from a whistle. |
| D．We should have a right attitude towards temptation（诱惑）. |
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