Group 2

Passage 11

浙江卷

During the war, my husband was stationed at an army camp in a desert in California. I went to live there in order to be　 1 　him. I hated the place. I had never　 2 　been so unhappy. My husband was ordered out on a long-term duty, and I was left in a tiny shack（棚屋）alone. The heat was　 3 　—almost 125℉even in the shade of a cactus（仙人掌）.　 4 　a soul to talk to. The wind blew non-stop, and all the food I ate, and the every air I breathed, were　 5 　with sand, sand, sand!

I was so sorry for myself that I wrote to my parents. I told them I was　 6 　and coming back home. I said I couldn’t stand it one minute longer. I　 7 　be in prison!My father answered my　 8 　with just two lines—two lines that will always sing in my　 9 　—two lines that completely changed my life:

Two men looked out from prison bars,One saw the mud, the other saw the stars.

I read those two lines　 10 　. I was ashamed of myself. I made up my mind I would find out what was good in my present　 11 　; I would look for the stars.

I made friends with the natives, and their　 12 　amazed me. They gave me presents of their favorite artworks which they had　 13 　to sell to tourists. I studied the delightful forms of the cactus. I watched for the desert sunsets, and　 14 　for seashells that had been left there millions of years ago when the desert had been an ocean　 15 　.

What brought about this　 16 　change in me? The desert hadn’t changed,　 17 　I had. I had changed my　 18 　. And by doing so, I changed an unhappy experience into the most amazing　 19 　of my life. I was excited by this new world that I had discovered. I had looked out of my self-created prison and　 20 　the stars.

1. A. off　B. behind　C. near　D. beyond

2. A. before　B. already　C. then　D. still

3. A. inflexible　B. incomprehensible　C. uncontrollable　D. unbearable

4. A Only　B. Not　C. Many　D. Such

5. A. covered　B. filled　C. buried　D. charged

6. A. catching up　B. keeping up　C. giving up　D. getting up

7. A. ought to　B. might well　C. would rather　D. had better

8. A. request　B. call　C. question　D. letter

9. A. comparison　B. imagination　C. consideration　D. memory

10. A. over and over　B. by and by　C. up and down　D. now and then

11. A. company　B. occupation　C. situation　D. relationship

12. A. movement　B. reaction　C. guidance　D. purpose

13. A. refused　B. failed　C. managed　D. happened

14. A. asked　B. hunted　C. waited　D. headed

15. A. floor　B. surface　C. rock　D. level

16. A. shocking　B. challenging　C. puzzling　D. astonishing

17. A. as　B. but　C. for　D. or

18. A. attitude　B. principle　C. identity　D. standard

19. A. vacation　B. operation　C. affair　D. adventure

20. A. sought　B. counted　C. found　D. reached