“Mom, I have cancer.” These four words catapulted my son and me on a journey that lasted two years. On that day I felt a wave of paralyzing fear.

Scott was the oldest of my four children. He was 33 years old and a successful assistant principal at SamRayburn Hifht School in Pasadena, Texas. He and his wife Carolyn were busy raising four active children. Scott was 6’2’’, weighed 200 pounds and had never been sick a day in his life.

A few month earlier a mole（痣）on his neck had changed color. “Dr.Warner called,” Scott said that spring morning. “It’s melanoma.（黑素瘤）” I tried to comfort him, naming all the people I knew who had survived skin cancer. Yet, I felt small tentacles of fear begin to wrap around my chest.

Our next stop was MDAnderson, the famous cancer hospital in Houston. Scott had surgery at the end of May and was scheduled for radiation treatments over the summer recess. “There is an 80 percent chance it won’t reoccur,” the doctors said. At the end of summer, all his tests came back negative and Scott was back at school in the fall. However, in December, Scott discovered a lump on his neck. It was examined and the result came back “malignant.（惡性的）” We now realized that Scott fell into the 20 percent category. I could feel the tentacles tightening around my chest. He entered the hospital for an aggressive treatment, a combination of interferon and interleukin.

After five months of treatment, he had radical surgery on his neck. The test results were encouraging, only three of the 33 lymph nodes（淋巴結） removed were malignant. We were very hopeful.

For the next six months, Scott’s follow-up visits went well. Then in October, X-ray revealed a spot on his lung. The spot was removed during surgery and the doctors tried to be optimistic. It was a daily battle to control the fear and panic each setback brought.

In January, he was diagnosed as having had a “disease explosion.” The cancer had spread to his lungs, spine and liver and he was given three to six months to live. There were times during this period when I felt like I was having a heart attack. The bands constricting my chest made breathing difficult.

When you watch your child battle cancer, you experience a roller coaster of emotions. There are moments of hope and optimism but a bad test result or even an unusual pain can bring on dread and panic.

Scott was readmitted to the hospital for one last try with chemotherapy. He died, quite suddenly, just six weeks after his last diagnosis. I was completely destroyed. I had counted on those last few months.

The next morning I was busy notifying people and making funeral arrangements. I remember having this nagging feeling that something was physically wrong with me. It took a moment to realize that the crushing sensation in my chest was gone. The thing every parent fears the most had happened. My son was gone. Of course, the fear had been replaced by unbearable sorrow.

After you lose a child, it is so difficult to go on. The most minimal tasks, combing your hair or taking a shower, becoming monumental. For months I just sat and stared into space. That spring, the trees began to bloom; flowers began to pop up in my garden. Friendswood was coming back to life but I was dead inside.

During those last weeks, Scott and I often spoke about life and death. Fragments of those conversations kept playing over and over in my mind.

“Don’t let this ruin your life, Mom.”

“Make sure Dad re models his workshop.”

“Please, take care of my family.”

I remember wishing I could have just one more conversation with him. I knew what I would say, but what would Scott say? “I know how much you love me, Mom. So just sit on the couch and cry.” No, I knew him better than that. Scott loved life and knew how precious it is. I could almost hear his voice saying, “Get up Mom, Get on with your life. It’s too valuable to waste.”

That was the day I began to move forward. I signed up for a cake decorating class. Soon I was making cakes for holidays and birthdays. My daughter-in-law told me about a writing class in Houston. I hadn’t written in years, but since I was retired I decided it be time to start again. The local college advertised a Life Story Writing class that I joined. There I met women who had also lost their children. The Poet Laureate of Texas was scheduled to speak at our local Barnes and Noble. I attended and joined our local poetry society. I never dreamed that writing essays and poems about Scott could be so therapeutic. Several of those poems have ever been published. In addition, each group brought more and more people into my life..

I don’t believe you ever recover from the loss of a child. Scott is in my heart and mind every day. However, I do believe you can survive.

Scott fought so bravery to live and he never gave up. He taught me that life is a gift that should be cherished, not wasted. It has taken years to become the person I am today. The journey has been a difficult, painful process but certainly worth the effort and I know that my son would be proud.

1.How old was Scott probably when he died?

A．33               B．35                 C．37           D．40

2.What does the underlined sentence “ The bands constricting my chest made breathing difficult” probably imply?

A．It implies that Scott’s mother was likely to have a heart attack.

B．It implies that there was something wrong with Scott’s mother’s chest.

C．It implies that Scott’s mother was very upset and panic because of Scott’s severe illness.

D．It implies that the cancer had spread to her chest just like her son.

3.Which of the following statements best shows the author’s feeling about Scott’s death?

A．It was a daily battle to control the fear and panic each setback brought.

B．She felt a wave of fear.

C．She felt a feeling of fear begin to wrap around her chest.

D．The fear had been replaced by unbearable sorrow.

4.From Scott and his mother’s conversation, we can know that Scott is ________.

A．considerable      B．humorous         C．determined      D．sensitive

5.The author intends to tell us that___________.

A．it takes a long time to make a person recover from the shock of losing a child

B．Scott is proud of his mother

C．life is full of happiness and sorrow.

D．We’d better make our life count instead of counting your days.

6.What might be the best title of the passage ?

A．Life is valuable                         B．Grieving and Recovery

C．Love and sorrow                        D．Alive or dead

“Mom, I have cancer.” These four words catapulted my son and me on a journey that lasted two years. On that day I felt a wave of paralyzing fear.
Scott was the oldest of my four children. He was 33 years old and a successful assistant principal at SamRayburn Hifht School in Pasadena, Texas. He and his wife Carolyn were busy raising four active children. Scott was 6’2’’, weighed 200 pounds and had never been sick a day in his life.
A few month earlier a mole（痣）on his neck had changed color. “Dr.Warner called,” Scott said that spring morning. “It’s melanoma.（黑素瘤）” I tried to comfort him, naming all the people I knew who had survived skin cancer. Yet, I felt small tentacles of fear begin to wrap around my chest.
Our next stop was MDAnderson, the famous cancer hospital in Houston. Scott had surgery at the end of May and was scheduled for radiation treatments over the summer recess. “There is an 80 percent chance it won’t reoccur,” the doctors said. At the end of summer, all his tests came back negative and Scott was back at school in the fall. However, in December, Scott discovered a lump on his neck. It was examined and the result came back “malignant.（惡性的）” We now realized that Scott fell into the 20 percent category. I could feel the tentacles tightening around my chest. He entered the hospital for an aggressive treatment, a combination of interferon and interleukin.
After five months of treatment, he had radical surgery on his neck. The test results were encouraging, only three of the 33 lymph nodes（淋巴結） removed were malignant. We were very hopeful.
For the next six months, Scott’s follow-up visits went well. Then in October, X-ray revealed a spot on his lung. The spot was removed during surgery and the doctors tried to be optimistic. It was a daily battle to control the fear and panic each setback brought.
In January, he was diagnosed as having had a “disease explosion.” The cancer had spread to his lungs, spine and liver and he was given three to six months to live. There were times during this period when I felt like I was having a heart attack. The bands constricting my chest made breathing difficult.
When you watch your child battle cancer, you experience a roller coaster of emotions. There are moments of hope and optimism but a bad test result or even an unusual pain can bring on dread and panic.
Scott was readmitted to the hospital for one last try with chemotherapy. He died, quite suddenly, just six weeks after his last diagnosis. I was completely destroyed. I had counted on those last few months.
The next morning I was busy notifying people and making funeral arrangements. I remember having this nagging feeling that something was physically wrong with me. It took a moment to realize that the crushing sensation in my chest was gone. The thing every parent fears the most had happened. My son was gone. Of course, the fear had been replaced by unbearable sorrow.
After you lose a child, it is so difficult to go on. The most minimal tasks, combing your hair or taking a shower, becoming monumental. For months I just sat and stared into space. That spring, the trees began to bloom; flowers began to pop up in my garden. Friendswood was coming back to life but I was dead inside.
During those last weeks, Scott and I often spoke about life and death. Fragments of those conversations kept playing over and over in my mind.
“Don’t let this ruin your life, Mom.”
“Make sure Dad re models his workshop.”
“Please, take care of my family.”
I remember wishing I could have just one more conversation with him. I knew what I would say, but what would Scott say? “I know how much you love me, Mom. So just sit on the couch and cry.” No, I knew him better than that. Scott loved life and knew how precious it is. I could almost hear his voice saying, “Get up Mom, Get on with your life. It’s too valuable to waste.”
That was the day I began to move forward. I signed up for a cake decorating class. Soon I was making cakes for holidays and birthdays. My daughter-in-law told me about a writing class in Houston. I hadn’t written in years, but since I was retired I decided it be time to start again. The local college advertised a Life Story Writing class that I joined. There I met women who had also lost their children. The Poet Laureate of Texas was scheduled to speak at our local Barnes and Noble. I attended and joined our local poetry society. I never dreamed that writing essays and poems about Scott could be so therapeutic. Several of those poems have ever been published. In addition, each group brought more and more people into my life..
I don’t believe you ever recover from the loss of a child. Scott is in my heart and mind every day. However, I do believe you can survive.
Scott fought so bravery to live and he never gave up. He taught me that life is a gift that should be cherished, not wasted. It has taken years to become the person I am today. The journey has been a difficult, painful process but certainly worth the effort and I know that my son would be proud

1. 1.

   How old was Scott probably when he died?

   1. A.
      33
   2. B.
      35
   3. C.
      37
   4. D.
      40
2. 2.

   What does the underlined sentence “ The bands constricting my chest made breathing difficult” probably imply?

   1. A.
      It implies that Scott’s mother was likely to have a heart attack
   2. B.
      It implies that there was something wrong with Scott’s mother’s chest
   3. C.
      It implies that Scott’s mother was very upset and panic because of Scott’s severe illness
   4. D.
      It implies that the cancer had spread to her chest just like her son
3. 3.

   Which of the following statements best shows the author’s feeling about Scott’s death?

   1. A.
      It was a daily battle to control the fear and panic each setback brought
   2. B.
      She felt a wave of fear
   3. C.
      She felt a feeling of fear begin to wrap around her chest
   4. D.
      The fear had been replaced by unbearable sorrow
4. 4.

   From Scott and his mother’s conversation, we can know that Scott is ________

   1. A.
      considerable
   2. B.
      humorous
   3. C.
      determined
   4. D.
      sensitive
5. 5.

   The author intends to tell us that___________

   1. A.
      it takes a long time to make a person recover from the shock of losing a child
   2. B.
      Scott is proud of his mother
   3. C.
      life is full of happiness and sorrow
   4. D.
      We’d better make our life count instead of counting your days
6. 6.

   What might be the best title of the passage ?

   1. A.
      Life is valuable
   2. B.
      Grieving and Recovery
   3. C.
      Love and sorrow
   4. D.
      Alive or dead

_________ difficult the task may be, we must finish it on time, because we can’t meet such a precious opportunity _______ we have expected.

Michelle Obama is the first lady of American fashion, appearing on the cover of the March issue of Vogue.

Every first lady since Lou Hoover—except Bess Truman—has been appeared in the high-fashion magazine, but Mrs. Obama is only the second to appear on the cover. She appears wearing a silk dress by Jason Wu.

Vogue’s editor Andre Leon Tally recalled his interviews with Mrs. Obama ahead of US president Barack Obama’s swearing-in ceremony（就職典禮）. “One of the best experiences of my life .” “She is so easily reached, natural and normal.” he said.

Mrs. Obama described her role as “Mom in chief” to 10-year-old Malia and 7-year-old Sasha. “I’m going to try to take them to school every morning, as much as I can,” she said. “But there’s also a measure of freedom. And clearly there will be time I won’t be able to drop them off at all. I like to appear in my kids’ school. I want to know the teachers; I want to know the other parents.”

Being in Vogue, though, the chat finally turns to clothes. “I’m not going to pretend that I don’t care about it,” she said. “But I also have to be very practical. Someone will always not like what you wear---people just have different tastes. ”

Most cover models have their clothes chosen for them by Vogue, or at least editors work as advisers. Not this time. “She doesn’t need any help. She loves fashion and knows what works for her,” Talley said. “She has never had a talk with me about, ‘What do you think?’ or ‘How does this like?’ And I’m glad for that.”

45. From the underlined sentence in Paragraph 2 we know____.

A. every first lady has appeared on the cover of Vogue

B. only Bess Truman has appeared on the cover of Vogue

C. only two first ladies have appeared on the cover of Vogue

D. only Mrs. Obama has appeared on the cover of Vogue

46. From the forth paragraph we know Mrs. Obama ____.

A. loves their daughters very much

B. likes to do housework very much

C. likes to do all for her husband

D. has nothing to do after daughters go to school

47. From the last paragraph we know Mrs. Obama ____.

A. is a woman of kindness

B. has her own sense of beauty and idea

C. herself is a clothes designer and model

D. doesn’t like to be watched changing clothes

48. Which of the following is the best title?

A. First ladies of Vogue Cover Model

B. First Lady Michelle Obama Read Vogue Too

C. First Ladies Like to be Vogue Cover Model

D. First Lady Michelle Obama Is Vogue Cover Model

第二節完形填空（共20小題；每小題1.5分，滿分30分）

閱讀下面短文，掌握其大意，然后從36～55各題所給A、B、C、D四個選項中，選出最佳選項，并在答題卡上將該項涂黑。

The western world has always been divided into two types of people—the cool and the uncool．It is a division that___36___ in school．The cool kids are good at _37____ ．They are ______38 with the opposite sex ．They are good-looking and people want to  __39___ their style．They can do their homework but they don’t make a big effort．That would __40______ be cool．

The uncool kids are in the other corner of the playground．They are very bright ,but they don’t have great___41___skills and they are ____42____ at sports ．When they are not programming computers or doing calculus（微積分）in their heads ,they are reading comic books and watching shows like the “X Files” ．They are __43____ as the geeks（古怪的人）．

Here’s the news．The geeks are _44_____．Make friends with them now or they will put virus in your computer and__45_____ your maths homework to ruin．Geeks might not be popular at school, yet they do pass their examinations, and they might not be too popular at university, but  ______46____ good degrees．

The most important___47____ of the 21st century, computers and IT, has been at least partly created by geeks ．Geek heroes like Bill Gates___48_____ others to follow their example ．Being a geek is a way of earning good money ．And the creation of the Internet gave them a___49_____ of their own to work and play in, making them a global___50_____．Besides ,the effect of the geeks ___51_______ popular culture has started a new trend．It is now cool to be ___52____ ．Geek culture is becoming an important part of general popular culture, in which what you know is more important than___53______ you look like．

But there are also_54_____ ．Geeks were often bullied or laughed at in school．Now a geek may be your boss ．Perhaps it is time for __55___ ．

36．A．continues                B．makes       C．remains                 D．starts

37．A．computers             B．study     C．sports                 D．maths

38．A．pleasant               B．popular   C．crazy               D．average

39．A．copy                         B．advance    C．take                      D．act

40．A．not                       B．indeed    C．perhaps                 D．actually

41．A．speaking               B．operating        C．social                    D．experimental

42．A．speechless             B．sharp     C．active                   D．hopeless

43．A．known             B．referred    C．thought                 D．admired

44．A． taking on            B．taking up  C．taking over         D．taking in

45．A．put                       B．cause   C．bring                    D．serve

46．A．win              B．take      C．wish                D．finish

47．A．industry           B．discovery  C．progress           D．development

48．A．promise                B．discourage       C．demand                 D．excite

49．A．chance             B．space     C．world              D．career

50．A．force                    B．company       C．organization        D．department

51．A．of                         B．on         C．in                       D．for 

52．A．rich                      B．attractive       C．handsome           D．uncool

53．A．how                     B．that          C．what                D．how much

54．A．opportunities           B．dangers     C．possibility           D．question

55．A．punishment           B．argument C．competition         D．employment