“BANG!” the door caused a reverberation (回聲). It was just standing there, with father standing on one side, and I was on the other side. We were both in great anger. “Never set foot in this house again!” stormed father. I rushed out of the flat and ran along the street. The street lights were shining, causing rather a sad feeling.

A young father who held a child in his arms walked past me. I felt as if I saw my childhood from another space: happy and carefree. But now … I don’t know whether it is because I have grown up or because dad is getting old. We differ in our ways of thinking. He always put his opinions and codes of behavior on me. Whenever I do something wrong, he never admits it. We are just like two people coming from two different worlds. I wandered in the streets, until I had only the street lights to keep me company. When I finally reached the high-rise apartment block in which I lived ,I saw that the light was still on.

I thought to myself: “Is father waiting for me, or is he still angry with me?”

All the lights were off except father’s. Dad was always like this. Maybe he didn’t know how to express himself. After an argument he has the habit of creeping up(悄悄地來到) in my sleep. This was how he always was．He has been a leader for so long that telling everyone else what to do has become his second nature. With the key in hand, I was as nervous as I had ever been. At last, I decided to open the door. As soon as I opened the door tears ran down my cheeks. I suddenly realized that the iron(鐵的) door that I had imagined between us did not exist at all. Love—it’s second to none. 

1.Decide which is the best order of the following according to what happened in the passage.

a. I opened the door and entered the house.

b. Sadly I ran out into the street.

c. I reached the place where I lived and saw my house still brightly lit.

d. I thought of my father’s kindness towards me.

e. I walked about in the street without any aim.

A. b, e, d, c, a        B. b, e, c, d, a             C. b, e, a, c, d        D. b, e, c, a, d

2.What made the writer think of his childhood ?

A. The sight of the street lights.???????????????  

B. The sight of the empty street.

C. The sight of a father with a child in his arms.??

D. The sight of light in his own house.

3. Why do you think the father often shouts at his son?

A. perhaps the father is getting older and older. 

B. perhaps the son has already grown up.

C. perhaps they never agree with each other. 

D. perhaps the father has got used to doing that.

4. According to the passage what does “Love—it’s second to none” mean ?

A. 愛并沒有什么??? B. 愛是第二位的???

C.? 愛是至高無上的??? D. 愛就是沒什么

5.What conclusion can you come to after reading the passage?

A. The father treats his son in an unfair way. 

B. The father is actually kind to his son.

C. The father is neither kind nor cruel to his son. 

D. The father is always finding fault with his son.

“BANG!” the door caused a reverberation (回聲). It was just standing there, with father standing on one side, and I on the other side.
We were both in great anger. “Never set foot in this house again!” stormed father. With tears welling up in my eyes, I rushed out of the flat and ran along the street.The street lights were shining, causing rather sad-feeling. I walked around aimlessly.
A young father who held a child in his arms walked past me. I felt as if I saw my childhood from another space: happy and carefree.
But now … I don’t know whether it is because I have grown up or because dad is getting old. We differ in our ways of thinking. He always put his opinions of behavior on me. Whenever I do something wrong, he never admits(容許) it. We are just like two people coming from two different worlds. It feels like there is an iron door between us that can never be opened.
I wandered the streets, without a destination in mind. My heart was frozen on this hot summer night. As I walked on there were fewer and fewer people on the streets, until I had only the street lights to keep me company. When I finally reached the high-rise apartment block in which I lived, I saw that the light was still on.
I thought to myself: “Is father waiting for me, or is he still angry with me?”
In fact, it was nothing. Perhaps, dad was throwing away some of his old stamps. Perhaps he thought they were useless. I never had the courage to tell him that I liked collecting stamps.      
All the lights were off except father’s.
Dad was always like this. Maybe he didn’t know how to express himself. After shouting at me, he never showed any moments of regret. However, after an argument he has the habit of tucking me underneath the covers (掖被子) while I am sleeping.
This was how he always was．He has been a leader for so long that telling everyone else what to do has become his second nature.
The light was still on. “Am I wrong?” I whispered, maybe… With the key in hand, I was as nervous as I had ever been. At last, I decided to open the door. As soon as I opened the door tears ran down my face. I suddenly realized that the iron door that I had imagined between us did not exist at all. Love—it’s second to none!

1. 1.

   Decide which is the best order of the following according to what happened in the passage.
   a. I opened the door and entered the house.
   b. Sadly I ran out into the street.
   c. I reached the place where I lived and saw my house still brightly lit.
   d. I thought of my father’s kindness towards me.
   e. I walked about in the street without any aim

   1. A.
      b-e-d-c-a
   2. B.
      b-e-c-d-a
   3. C.
      b-e-a-c-d
   4. D.
      b-e-c-a-d
2. 2.

   What made the writer think of his childhood?

   1. A.
      The sight of the street lights
   2. B.
      The sight of the empty street
   3. C.
      The sight of a father with a child in his arms
   4. D.
      The sight of light in his own house
3. 3.

   What can we infer about the reason why the father often shouts at his son?

   1. A.
      The father is getting older and older
   2. B.
      The son has more fashionable opinions than his father
   3. C.
      They usually disagree with each other
   4. D.
      The father has got used to being a leader for long
4. 4.

   What conclusion（結(jié)論）can be drawn after reading the passage?

   1. A.
      The father treats his son in an unfair way
   2. B.
      The father is actually kind to his son
   3. C.
      The father is neither kind nor cruel to his son
   4. D.
      The father is always finding mistakes with his son
5. 5.

   Which of the following would be the best title for this passage?

   1. A.
      The Generation Gap
   2. B.
      ASleepless Summer Night
   3. C.
      An Iron Doorinside
   4. D.
      Father’s Love

For years I wanted a garden．I’d spend hours thinking of different things I could plant that would look nice together．
But then we had Matthew, and Marvin, and the twins Alisa and Alan, and then Helen．I was too busy raising them to grow a garden．
Money was not enough．Neither was time．Often when my children were little,
one of them would want something that cost too much, and I’d have to say, “Do you see a money tree outside? Money doesn't grow on trees, you know．”
Finally, all the children got through high school and college and were off on their own．I started thinking again about a garden．
Then, one spring morning, on Mother’s Day, I was working in my kitchen．Suddenly, I looked out of the window and there was a new tree, planted right in my yard．There were things blowing around on it．       Then I put my glasses on—and I couldn’t believe what I saw．
There was a money tree in my yard!
I went outside to look．It was true! There were dollar bills(帳單), one hundred of them, hanging all over that tree．There was also a note among them, “Thank you for your time, Mom．We love you!”
Later, my children bought me tools, ornaments, a sunflower stepping stone and gardening books．A new page started in my life．
That was three years ago．My garden’s now very pretty, just like I wanted．When I go out and take care of my flowers, I don’t seem to miss my children as much as I once did．It feels like they’re right there with me．Now every year when winter comes, I look out of my window and think of the flowers I’ll see next spring in my little garden．I think about what my children did for me, and I get tears in my eyes—every time．
I’m still not sure that money grows on trees．But I know love does!
【小題1】How many children did the writer have?

For years I wanted a garden．I’d spend hours thinking of different things I could plant that would look nice together．

But then we had Matthew, and Marvin, and the twins Alisa and Alan, and then Helen．I was too busy raising them to grow a garden．

Money was not enough．Neither was time．Often when my children were little,

one of them would want something that cost too much, and I’d have to say, “Do you see a money tree outside? Money doesn't grow on trees, you know．”

Finally, all the children got through high school and college and were off on their own．I started thinking again about a garden．

Then, one spring morning, on Mother’s Day, I was working in my kitchen．Suddenly, I looked out of the window and there was a new tree, planted right in my yard．There were things blowing around on it．       Then I put my glasses on—and I couldn’t believe what I saw．

There was a money tree in my yard!

I went outside to look．It was true! There were dollar bills(帳單), one hundred of them, hanging all over that tree．There was also a note among them, “Thank you for your time, Mom．We love you!”

Later, my children bought me tools, ornaments, a sunflower stepping stone and gardening books．A new page started in my life．

That was three years ago．My garden’s now very pretty, just like I wanted．When I go out and take care of my flowers, I don’t seem to miss my children as much as I once did．It feels like they’re right there with me．Now every year when winter comes, I look out of my window and think of the flowers I’ll see next spring in my little garden．I think about what my children did for me, and I get tears in my eyes—every time．

I’m still not sure that money grows on trees．But I know love does!

1.How many children did the writer have?

A．Three            B．Four             C．Five              D．Six

2.What did the mother mean when she said “Money doesn’t grow on trees”?

A．She was too busy to plant a money tree at that time．

B．She had to save money so that she could have a garden．

C．It wasn’t easy for her to make money to raise all the children．

D．They didn’t have much money because the mother lost her job．

3.The “money tree” appeared in the writer’s yard _________．

A．before her children were born

B．one spring morning when the children were little

C．a(chǎn)fter the children went to school

D．on a Mother’s Day after the children left her

4.The children planted a money tree in their mother’s yard because _________．

A．their mother needed money badly

B．they wanted to show their love to their mother

C．it was time for them to give the money back to her

D．they wanted to live together with their mother forever