Forty-three years seems like a long time to remember the name of a mere acquaintance. I have forgotten the name of an old lady who was a customer on my paper route. Yet it seems like just yesterday that she taught me a lesson in forgiveness.

    On a Saturday afternoon, a friend and I were throwing rocks onto the roof of the old lady's house. The object of our play was to observe how the rocks changed to missiles （导弹）as they rolled to the roof's edge and shot out into the yard like comets （彗星）falling from the sky. I found myself a perfectly smooth rock and sent it for a ride. However, it slipped from my hand as I let it go and headed straight for a small window. At the sound of crashed glass, we knew we were in trouble and ran away.

    A few days later, when I was sure that I hadn't been discovered, I started to feel guilty for her misfortune. She still greeted me with a smile each day when I gave her the paper, but I was no longer able to act comfortably in her presence. I made up my mind to save my paper delivery money, and in three weeks I had the seven dollars that I calculated would cover the cost of her window. I put the money in an envelope with a note, and put the envelope through the letter slot in her door.

    The next day, I handed the old lady her paper and was able to return the warm smile that I was receiving from her. She thanked me for the paper and said, “Here, I have something for you.” It was a bag of cookies. I thanked her and began to eat the cookies as I continued my route.

    After several cookies, I felt an envelope and pulled it out of the bag. When I opened the envelope, I was surprised. Inside were the seven dollars and a short note that said, “I'm proud of you.”

    After retirement, Michael Kennedy could have chosen to take walks around his seaside home. Instead, the former mechanical engineer engaged himself in the toughest task of his life - keeping the thundering waves of the Norfolk coast.

    The 73-year-old has spent the past 14 years building his own sea wall at Hunstanton, piling up rocks picked from the sandy beach to slow the erosion （侵蚀）of the soft limestone （石灰岩）and chalk cliffs. It's estimated that Michael has shifted 200 tons of stone in the last 14 years.

    “It's a real labour of love because I come down here whatever the weather, in spring, summer, autumn and winter,” said the divorced father of two. “It keeps me fit and I love it.”

    Mr Kennedy moved to the area after retiring from the London Underground. Nicknamed Fred Flintstone by locals, he tries to move at least 40 pounds of rocks in two-hour sessions which he finishes by 2 pm.

    Everything he collects is placed into piles at the foot of the cliffs. Larger rocks go at the bottom to provide the main line of defence and smaller ones are placed at the top. He also picks up rubbish and prides himself on having created a spotless, stone-free sandy beach for holidaymakers to enjoy.

    The work goes on six days a week. Saturdays are his day off so that the Chelsea “fanatic” can watch football and other sports. However, there are signs that he is becoming a victim of his own success, as the number of stones has dwindled significantly in recent months.

    “It's confusing, Mr Kennedy said. “Usually every year the stones just come in with the sea but this year we haven't had any.” He added, “I hope to still be doing it when I'm 100 but perhaps just four days a week instead of six.”

    Town mayor Peter Mallam said Mr Kennedy had become “quite a local legend”. “It's fascinating. Everyone knows of the old guy who collects the stones. He's done a sterling effort.”

    A court battle between German and Israeli archives （档案馆） over Kafka's manuscripts （手稿）raised literary, not just legal, questions. At the time of his death, Kafka hardly seemed like a candidate for world fame. He had a minor reputation in German literary circles. He published a few stories in magazines, but they received little attention.

    After he died in 1924, his friend Max Brod collected, edited and published his works - despite Kafka's own instructions in his will ordering the manuscripts to be destroyed - thus making Kafka a household name after his death. When the Nazis invaded Prague, Brod escaped to Israel, bringing the manuscripts with him. When he died in 1968, his manuscripts, together with those of Kafka, were transferred to his secretary Esther Hoffe.

    Even though Brod asked in his will that the manuscripts be given to a public archive, Hoffe sold some of them abroad for a great deal of money. Many of them eventually made it to the German Literature Archive. In 2007, she died and left her properties to her daughters. Then the case about the manuscripts started after the death of one of her daughters. The court said Hoffe had no rights, and could not have any such rights for the documents Brod took from Kafka's apartment after his death.

    Ironically, Kafka's stubborn homelessness and non-belonging in his works were accurately what ensured his place at the center of 20^th-century literature. W. H. Auden proposed that Kafka was to the cold, absurd 20^th century what Dante or Shakespeare had been to their times - the writer who captured the spirit of the age. That is why, in the end, it hardly matters whether Kafka's manuscripts stay in Germany or Israel. What counts is that we are all living in Kafka's world.

Prepare to Succeed

    People are always thinking about success.  This thought isn't one that brings them closer, however, because thinking, dreaming or wishing just doesn't get it done.

    You may ask, “Why is preparation necessary?”

    The easiest answer to this question is to say that if you are not ready to move forward, then you may just as well keep doing what you have always done.

    Success doesn't come easy.  Success requires you to be prepared to sacrifice leisure time, or time spent watching television or going out with friends, at every opportunity. Success means you are prepared to do whatever it takes to constantly move the yardsticks （码尺）forward day after day.

    Here is just one quote, from Calvin Coolidge, the 30^th president of the United States, that expresses what preparation is about: “ It is rather the vital necessity of action today to ensure our strength tomorrow.” This quote can be interpreted to mean that you may have strength or confidence to start on your way right now to move toward your final goal. However, it is also critical that committed action each day builds to help you keep going when obstacles arise or when you just don't feel like you have the interest or energy to stay focused.

    That shows you what steps or actions to take, when to take them or what to do if issues, obstacles or other life issues get in the way.

    The bottom line is actually quite clear: You are either willing, able and committed to achieve what you want, or you are simply dreaming or wishing that success finds you.

A. There are no shortcuts （捷径）.

B. Success is getting what you want.

C. Our real problem is not our strength today.

D. Preparation also means that you have a plan or a goal.

E. The best preparation for tomorrow is doing your best today.

F. It is in their brains as they go about daily routines looking for something better.

G. One of the most important parts of personal or professional success is preparation.

    Seven years ago, our daughter, Alle Shea, was born. All of our family were excited with the new arrival. After she was given to me by a nurse from the delivery room, I 1 her cautiously, wondering how 2 life was.

    However, our joy 3 for just several seconds. We noticed that she was crying weakly and refused to 4. We went to have the doctor check on her health. After the 5 , the doctor told us our daughter was 6 with the rare bone disease called Osteogenesis Imperfecta （成骨不全症）. At birth Alle Shea's skull looked like a(n) 7 egg on the x-rays.

    Watching my daughter 8 was the greatest pain. After being terribly tortured （折磨）for a long time, my wife and I 9 take our five-week-old daughter off life support, by far the most 10 decision of our life. The day Alle was leaving us, we were able to take her outside on the hospital deck and hold her in our arms until she 11 .

    We had two 12 that day: we could have let the sadness overtake us, or we could turn it into a 13 Since that day, my wife and I have worked 14 volunteering our time hosting special events, and talking to others about OI. We even 15 hospitals to join us - and this is the battle we are still 16 . Over the seven years, we have 17 thousands of hours. In February of 2015 we18.

    OI Care for You program. Ever since, we have been sending stuffed animals to children with OI. Each present brings them a smile and 19 . Many OI families thank us for doing what we do and giving them another way to show 20 for a family member with OI.

    Recently researchers went through some survey information about the health and habits of men and women in Scotland,  (hope) to determine how much exercise is needed to keep the Scots  feeling depressed. The answer: a mere 20 minutes a week of any physical exercise, whether sports, walking, gardening  even housecleaning. The researchers found that more exercise brought more mental-health benefits. But their overall conclusion was that being active for 20 minutes a week  (be) enough, if your goal is mental health.

    How much exercise is enough? This is a question difficult to answer,  (part) because the amount of exercise needed depends on the benefits you hope to gain. Twenty minutes a week of housecleaning or other  (activity) may, according to the Scottish study, increase your satisfaction, but it certainly won't do much for your physical fitness and is unlikely  (reduce) your risks for diseases. It also won't help much with weight loss.

    Interestingly, they did not find that exercise beyond a certain point would bring additional health benefits. According to the report, “It  (estimate) that people who are physically active for about seven hours a week have a 40 percent  (low) risk of dying early than those  are active for less than 30 minutes a week.”

1）消息来源； 2）加入理由；    3）预期收获。

意：

1）词数80字左右；

2）可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。

    Bobby was getting cold sitting out in his backyard in the snow. Bobby didn't wear boots; or rather, he didn't own any. The thin sneakers he wore had a few holes in them and they did a poor job of keeping out the cold.

    Bobby had been in his backyard for about an hour already. Try as he might, he could not come up with an idea for his mother's Christmas gift. He shook his head as he thought, “This is useless. Even if I do come up with an idea, I don't have any money for a gift.”

    Wiping tears from his eyes, Bobby started walking down to the street where the shops were. It wasn't easy being six without a father, particularly when he needed a man to talk to.

    Bobby walked from shop to shop, looking into each decorated window. Everything seemed so beautiful but so out of reach. It was starting to get dark and Bobby reluctantly turned to walk home when suddenly his eyes caught the glimmer （激光）of the setting sun's rays reflecting on something on the roadside. He reached down and discovered a shiny dime （一角硬币）.

    Never before has anyone felt as wealthy as Bobby did at that moment. As lie held his newly-found treasure, warmth spread throughout his entire body and he walked into the first store. His excitement quickly turned cold when salesperson after salesperson told him that he could not buy anything with only a dime.

    He saw a flower shop and went inside to wait in line. When the shop owner asked if he could help him, Bobby presented the dime and asked if he could buy one flower for his mother's Christmas gift. The shop owner looked at Bobby and his one dime offering. Then he put his hand on Bobby's shoulder, saying, “You just wait here and I'll see what I can do for you.” As Bobby waited, he looked at the beautiful flowers and even though he was a boy, he could see why mothers and girls loved flowers.

注意：

1）所续写短文的词数应为150左右；

2）应使用5个以上短文中标有下划线的关键词语；

3）续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语己为你写好；

4）续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。

Paragraph1:

    A few minutes later, the shop owner came out.   

Paragraph2:

With the bunch of roses in his hands, Bobby walked out of the door and then broke into a run.