Every street had a story, every building a memory. Those blessed with wonderful childhoods can drive the streets of their hometowns and happily roll back the years. The rest are pulled home by duty and leave as soon as possible. After Ray Atlee had been in Clanton (his hometown) for fifteen minutes he was anxious to get out.
The town had changed, but then it hadn't. On the highways leading in, the cheap metal buildings and mobile homes were gathering as tightly as possible next to the roads for maximum visibility. This town had no zoning whatsoever. A landowner could build anything with no permit, no inspection, no notice to adjoining landowners, nothing. Only hog farms and nuclear reactors required approvals and paperwork. The result was a slash-and-build clutter that got uglier by the year.
But in the older sections, nearer the square, the town had not changed at all. The long shaded streets were as clean and neat as when Ray roamed them on his bike. Most of the houses were still owned by people he knew, or if those folks had passed on the new owners kept the lawns clipped and the shutters painted. Only a few were being neglected. A handful had been abandoned.
This deep in Bible country, it was still an unwritten rule in the town that little was done on Sundays except go to church, sit on porches, visit neighbors, rest and relax the way God intended.
It was cloudy, quite cool for May, and as he toured his old turf, killing time until the appointed hour for the family meeting, he tried to dwell on the good memories from Clanton. There was Dizzy Dean Park where he had played little League for the Pirates, and there was the public pool he'd swum in every summer except 1969 when the city closed it rather than admit black children. There were the churches—Baptist, Methodist, and Presbyterian—facing each other at the intersection of Second and Elm like wary sentries, their steeples competing for height. They were empty now, but in an hour or so the more faithful would gather for evening services.
The square was as lifeless as the streets leading to it. With eight thousand people, Clanton was just large enough to have attracted the discount stores that had wiped out so many small towns. But here the people had been faithful to their downtown merchants, and there wasn't a single empty or boarded-up building around the square—no small miracle. The retail shops were mixed in with the banks and law offices and cafes, all closed for the Sabbath.
He inched through the cemetery and surveyed the Atlee section in the old part, where the tombstones were grander. Some of his ancestors had built monuments for their dead. Ray had always assumed that the family money he'd never seen must have been buried in those graves. He parked and walked to his mother's grave, something he hadn't done in years. She was buried among the Atlees, at the far edge of the family plot because she had barely belonged.
Soon, in less than an hour, he would be sitting in his father's study, sipping bad instant tea and receiving instructions on exactly how his father would be laid to rest. Many orders were about to be given, many decrees and directions, because his father (who used to be a judge) was a great man and cared deeply about how he was to be remembered.
Moving again, Ray passed the water tower he'd climbed twice, the second time with the police waiting below. He grimaced at his old high school, a place he'd never visited since he'd left it. Behind it was the football field where his brother Forrest had romped over opponents and almost became famous before getting bounced off the team.
It was twenty minutes before five, Sunday, May 7.Time for the family meeting.
From the first paragraph, we get the impression that ______.
A．Ray cherished his childhood memories.
B．Ray had something urgent to take care of.
C．Ray may not have a happy childhood.
D．Ray cannot remember his childhood days.
A friend of mine named Paul received an automobile from his brother as a Christmas present. On Christmas Eve when Paul came out of his office, a street urchin was walking around the shiny new car, admiring it. “Is this your car, Mister？” he asked.
Paul nodded. “My brother gave it to me for Christmas.” The boy was astounded. “You mean your brother gave it to you and it didn’t cost you nothing？ Boy, I wish….” He hesitated. Of course Paul knew what he was going to wish for. He was going to wish he had a brother like that. But what the lad said jarred Paul all the way down to his heels.
“I wish,” the boy went on, “that I could be a brother like that.”
Paul looked at the boy in astonishment, then impulsively he added, “Would you like to take a ride in my automobile？”
“Oh yes, I’d love that.”
After a short ride, the boy turned and with his eyes aglow, said, “Mister, would you mind driving in front of my house？”
Paul smiled a little. He thought he knew what the lad wante d. He wanted to show his neighbors that he could ride home in a big automobile. But Paul was wrong again. “Will you stop where those two steps are？” the boy asked.
He ran up the steps. Then in a little while Paul heard him coming back, but he was not coming fast. He was carrying his little crippled brother. He sat him down on the bottom step, then sort of squeezed up against him and pointed to the car.
“There she is, Buddy, just like I told you upstairs. His brother gave it to him for Christmas and it didn’t cost him a cent. And some day I’m gonna give you one just like it…, then you can see for yourself all the pretty things in the Christmas windows that I’ve been trying to tell you about.”
Paul got out and lifted the lad to the front seat of his car. The shining-eyed older brother climbed in beside him and the three of them began a memorable holiday ride. That Christmas Eve, Paul learned what Jesus meant when he had said: “It is more blessed to give….”
1、The boy was astounded.
A、He was very surprised
B、He was so surprised that he was shocked
C、He was extremely surprised
D、The car was so beautiful that he felt excited
2、Paul looked at the boy…, then impulsively he added, “….”
A、 he did this without planning and thinking
B、he did this with careful thinking
C、he was impelled by his brother to do this
D、he was forced by his mother to do this
3、The boy was not coming fast because ().
A、he was coming down the steps
B、he wanted to sit down on the steps
C、he wanted to see the car clearly
D、he was carrying his crippled brother
4、He…squeezed up against him and pointed to the car.
A、moved closer and touched him
B、held him tightly in his arms
C、pushed him nearer to the car
D、pulled him closer and supported him
5、…the three of them began a memorable holiday ride.
A、easy to remember
B、likely to be noticeable
C、worth remembering
D、likely to be seen
Tianjin Ancient Culture Street with 600 years’ history, standing by the key section of the Haihe River, is located in Nankai District of Tianjin.As a cultural area Tianjin Ancient Culture Street is well known to both domestic and overseas tourists.Yu Huang Ge and Tian Hou Temple are the two historic cultural relics on the list of municipal government protection.
Tianjin Ancient Culture Street, rebuilt in the 1980’s, is a great success.The whole block is still conserved the existing urban pattern and traditional Chinese style.The lanes and houses in the street are almost preserved in a good condition with Tianjin local features.In the past, wheneverthe day of 23rd of March in the lunar calendar was coming, which is said to be the birthday of Tian Hou (the Heaven Mother), a great ceremony would be held there.On the ceremony, many Chinese traditional performances were shown, such as Shiziwu (dancing playing as a lion), Huahanchuan (dancing with a ship-like dressing), Caigaoqiao (dancing standing on stilts) and so on.
As the result of expanding Tian Hou Temple, renovating the Yu Huang Ge building and renewing the Haihe Lou, this street with fine landscape and distinctive architectural style. has become a flourishing cultural and tourist attraction.
()41.In which district is Tianjin Ancient Culture Street located？
A.Xiqing.B.Hexi.C.Hongqiao.D.Nankai.
()42.What are the historic and cultural relics preserved in Ancient Culture Street？
A.Yu Huang Ge and Tian Hou Temple.
B.The passage doesn’t mention them.
C.The old houses along the street.
D.The old lanes and houses.
() 43.What was damaged in rebuilding the whole block？
A.The existing urban pattern.
B.The lanes and houses in the street.
C.The traditional Chinese architectural style.
D.None of the above.
()44.What happened on the day of 23rd of March in the lunar calendar in the past？
A.A big feast was given for all the people in the street.
B.Heaven Mother’s birthday was celebrated.
C.A cooking competition was held.
D.Chinese and foreign magicians gave joint performance.
()45.After reconstruction, the cultural street has become____.
A.a business center
C.a leisure and pleasure land.
B.a walking street
D.a tourist attraction.
One silly question I simply can't stand is "How do you feel？". Usually the question is asked of a man in action --- a man on the go, walking along the street, or busily working at his desk. So what do you expect him to say？ He'll probably say, "Fine, I'm all right," but "you've put a bug in his ear" -- maybe now he's not sure. If you are a good friend, you may have seen something in his face, or his walk, that he overlooked that morning. It starts him worrying a little. First thing you know, he looks in a mirror to see if everything is all right, while you go merrily on your way asking someone else, "How do you feel？"
Every question has its time and place. It's perfectly acceptable, for instance, to ask "How do you feel？" if you're visiting a close friend in the hospital, But if the fellow is walking on both legs, hurrying to make a train, or sitting at his desk working, it's no time to ask him that silly question.When George Bernard Shaw, the famous writer of plays was in his eighties, someone asked him "How do you feel？" Shaw put him in his place. "When you reach my age," he said, "either you feel all right or you're dead."
1.According to the writer, greetings, such as "How do you feel？" ____.
A、show one's consideration for others
B、are a good way to make friends
C、are proper to ask a man in action
D、generally make one feel uneasy
2.The question "How do you feel？" seems to be correct and suitable when asked of ____.
A、a man working at his desk
B、a person having lost a close friend
C、a stranger who looks somewhat worried
D、a friend who is ill
3.The writer seems to feel that a busy man should ____.
A、be praised for his efforts
B、never be asked any question
C、not be bothered
D、be discouraged from working so hard
4.George Bernard Shaw's reply in the passage shows his ____.
A、cheerfulness
B、cleverness
C、ability
D、politeness
5.“You've put a bug in his ear ”means that you've ____.
A、made him laugh
B、shown concern for him
C、made fun of him
D、given him some kind of warning
