It was 8:35 am. My girls and I were rushing through the front door of the school as I yelled, "Hurry up! The bell was about to..." RIIIIIIIING! The girls froze and their eyes widened. My shoulders sagged . We were too late. We were often late for school last year, and every time we ran breathlessly into the attendance I heard myself making silly excuses to Beth, the long-suffering secretary: our alarm didn't go off; there was so much traffic; it was my husband's fault; the dog...I didn't know-something about the dog! As time passed by, my lying became a habit, and it raised a red flag for me. Lying - even in the form of "harmless" excuses - means we're ashamed. Shame is different from guilt. Healthy guilt is fair and helpful. But shame can be dangerous. Nothing ruins the connection between two people more quickly than shame and lies do. Anyone trying to live a healthy and honest life must avoid shame at any cost. I was trying to live a healthy and honest life, but my excuses were keeping me from reaching my goal. So I vowed to do something different . The next time we were late, I went to the attendance office. When Beth asked me to fill in a form with the reason for being late, I told the truth. "These days, we are very tired and disorganized," I wrote. Beth looked down at that form, and the slowly looked up at me. She gave us a warm and big smile and her blue eyes twinkled. She started laughing. So did my kids and I. We're all imperfect human beings. We make mistakes. Everyone does make mistakes. However, it's OK to tell the truth about them. It's OK to forgive ourselves and promise to try again. We learn that as time went by, the author _ . A) found that other people liked lying to her B) realized the harm of lying and wanted to change C) found that shame had a positive effect on her life D) realized that she could no longer live a healthy life
B
(Question)
Two girls living next door to each other-a seemingly plain scene that has two very different life .stories behind it. Chi Zhen, an 18-year-old student in Seville, Spain, used his camera to tell the story of two lives, which went widespread online. Comments on the photos indicate that they have inspired many, to believe that the future is in their own hands. Chi has seen many youths living life without a goal, wasting their time and blaming bad luck for it. Feeling regret for them, he took a series of photos of his friends Veronica and Anna Maria, both freshmen at the University of Seville in Spain. They live completely different life styles and are getting opposite results. Chi hopes the photos will inspire those who have let go of their own fate . In the photos, Anna Maria, a Spanish girl, can be seen watching a TV programme . She spends most of her time in front of her laptop. She rarely goes out, because she thinks she's not attractive and doesn't know what to say in social situations. "'I'm not as lucky as Veronica," she often says. But she doesn't know that while she's wasting time watching TV, -Veronica, the "lucky" girl next door,has taught herself four foreign languages and traveled to many places. She goes to the library frequently and her extensive knowledge and experience allow her to take part in any conversation and become the center of attention. Chi thinks that Anna Maria resembles many of his Chinese .friends who study abroad. They are trapped to their little circles, never trying to change their fate./'They say 'maybe I'll do it in my next life', but they are in their 20s, their best time. How can they give up hope and accept this as their life?" Chi says. The influence of the photos has gone far beyond what Chi expected. One user commented on his photos on Renren.com, saying, "A wall separates two worlds, and the life we have depends on what we do." Another is determined to make a change right away. "I'm turning off my laptop and not watching TV anymore," he wrote. Many of Chi's Chinese friends who study abroad _ A) determine to make a change right away B) like to travel to different places of interest C) believe they will do better in next life D) are more willing to live in little circles
(Answer)
D
Question: People think what I do is so wonderful because I interview stars. And I have to admit that when I first started working at Sassy in 1987 I was excited about that part of my job for the first couple of months,anyway. Then I noticed how stars would fool me around for months. I could never get enough time with a star to find out anything interesting, and some acted just simply rudely. I started hating the way I was treated, and I was really disappointed to see that these people I had worshipped before were pretty ordinary. So I decided I would just tell the truth instead of keeping up their myths .If the star was a bad guy, I would say so. If I thought anyone was stupid, I did not hold back that information. I thought readers would appreciate that kind of honesty. Surprisingly, many of them hated me for it. I have gotten so many attacks on my character. In their eyes,being famous is everything, even more desirable than being truly creative and talented Why do we need stars? In fact, the media created stars to satisfy our basic need for gossip .Over time, talking about people we have never met and we are never likely to meet has become what we are crazy about. Thus, some people are more interested in the personal lives of the stars than in the lives of their own family and their own friends. That is why it is so ridiculous when a star wants to discuss only his or her work in an interview -as we care. We want the dirt on their personal lives. There is another reason we worship stars. As a whole, our society is not as religious as it once was. It seems that people need something to fulfill them the way religion once did. Star worship exists as an unfulfilling desire for true heroes. We make them stars, but then their reputation makes us feel unimportant, and we truly feel better about ourselves when they die. I am part of this whole process. No wonder I feel soiled at the end of workday. What is the main purpose of the author writing the passage? A) To show the disadvantages of working with stars. B) To remind us not to worship famous stars blindly. C) To laugh at the failures of stars he has interviewed. D) To talk about the reasons why we worship stars.
Answer:
B