Mum's Christmas Surprise

    Molly ran back home from school and dropped her schoolbag on the sofa. Then on the table she saw “Mum's Wish Book” – a mail order catalog（商品目录） from a gift shop. “Mum,” she said excitedly to herself, “this year you'll get the gloves you want!” Molly had walked a dog for a neighbor and saved her 1 all year to buy Mum the gloves.

    She opened “Mum's Wish Book” and hoped that she could find these 2 in it. Teas ran down her face when she saw the gloves in the catalog. Mum wouldn't buy them for herself, because the family had a 3 time on the farm. She once heard Mum say to Dad, “Maybe some day, I'll have the money to get them.”

    Molly ran out by the back door and went straight to the post office. There she carefully filled out the order form torn from the catalog.

    “I need to buy a stamp to 4 the form.” She said to Mr. Smith, the only worker in the post office.

    “Umm, a pair of gloves?” said Mr. Smith, as he passed a stamp to her.

    “Yes, It's a Christmas gift for Mum, but please don't tell her. It's our 5, OK?” Molly didn't realize how white Mr. Smith's beard was until that moment. In face, he reminded her of Santa Claus.

    As Molly walked back home, she decided to tell Dad her secret. “You've got to check the mailbox every day,” said Molly 6 to Dad. He nodded, with a big smile.

    Coming home from school every day, Molly peeked at （偷看） Dad when Mum wasn't 7, but every time he shook his head.

    On Christmas Eve, Dad came back from mailbox, still empty handed. Molly felt 8 when she went to bed, because she didn't have the gloves for Mum.

    Before Christmas dinner, as Mum took the apple pies out of the oven, Molly began 9 the table. Suddenly, they heard someone pulling up the driveway. From the window they saw Mr. Smith making his way to the door, with a box in his hand. Mr. Smith 10 Mum the box, “I believe this is yours.”

    Mum looked from Dad to Molly and opened the box. Her eyes lit up when she saw the gloves. “Oh, who bought these for me?” she asked.

    “Santa did,” said Molly smilingly.

    “Ho! Ho! Ho! Merry Christmas!” Mr. Smith, with a loud laugh.

    It was Christmas that no one would ever forget.

    I was born and grew up in the small town of Pineville, which I left at the age of sixteen. Twenty years 1 I came back on a visit. I went to see my old friend Tom Clark, who, active as ever, was head of a Reading Club. He was 2 getting ready to welcome a famous writer, who had been invited to come to give a talk on novels at the public library that evening. Since I happened to have read a book or two 3 this famous writer, when Tom asked me to go with him, I gladly 4.

    Tom was going to introduce the writer to the f audience. 5we went to the library a little earlier to welcome him. As the writer hadn't arrived yet, I left Tom and went into the reading room. A large number of people had already been there. I was sorry to find that I didn't know 6person. So I found a seat in the corner and sat quietly waiting.

    When it was just about time for the 7 to begin, I saw Tom standing at the door making a sign for 8 to come out. He looked worried about something, so I got up right away and went to him. He said that he had just had a telephone call from the writer. He had 9 his flight and would not be arriving! While we were considering the problem, Tom suddenly asked me if I would mind giving a talk instead of the writer. I never had time to 10 it when all at once I found I was being pushed back into the reading room to speak to the waiting audience.

    Who designed the first helicopter? Who 1 one of the most famous pictures in the world? Who knew more about the human body than most doctors? There is an answer to all these questions-Leonardo da Vinci.

    Leonardo may have been the greatest genius(天才) people have ever known.

    He lived in Italy around the year 1500, but many of his inventions seem still 2 to us today. For example, one of his notebooks has drawings of a helicopter. Of course, he couldn't 3 a helicopter with the things he had. But scientists say his idea would have worked.

    But Leonardo wasn't just an inventor. He was one of the greatest artists of his day. By the time he was twenty years old, he was called a master(大师) painter, and as he got older he became even more 4. Almost everyone knew him. As a painter, he was quite careful. Sometimes he drew a hand in ten different ways 5 he was ready to paint.

    Many of Leonardo's wonderful paintings are still with 6 today. You may know one of his most famous works the smiling woman known as Mona Lisa.