（一）

“I Went Skydiving at 84!”

As a young girl growing up in the 1930s, I always wanted to fly a plane, but back then it was almost unheard of for a woman to do that. I got a taste of that dream in 2011, when my husband arranged for me to ride in a hot air balloon for my birthday. But the experience turned out to be very dull. Around that time, I told my husband that I wanted to skydive. So when our retirement community(社区)announced that they were having an essay competition and the topic was an experience of a lifetime that you wanted to have, I decided to write about my dream.

In the essay, I wrote about my desire to skydive, stating George Brush Sr. did it at age 80. Why not me? I was just 84 and in pretty good health. A year went by and I heard nothing. But then at a community party in late April 2009, they announced that I was one of the winners. I just couldn’t believe it. Inspired by this, I decided to realize my dream, even though some of my family members and my doctor were against it.

On June 11, 2009, nearly 40 of my family and friends gathered in the area close to where I would land while I headed up in the airplane. My instructor, Jay, guided me through the experience. The plane was the noisiest one I had ever been in, but I wasn’t frightened—I was really just looking forward to the experience. When we reached 13,000 feet, Jay instructed me to throw myself out of the plane. When we first hit the air, the wind was so strong that I could hardly breathe. For a second I thought, “What have I gotten myself into?” But then everything got calmer. We were in a free fall for about a minute before Jay opened the parachute(降落伞), then we just floated downward for about five minutes. Being up in the clouds and looking at the view below was unlike anything I have ever felt—much better than the hot air balloon. I was just enjoying it.

Skydiving was really one of the greatest experiences of my life. I hope other people will look at me and realize that you don’t stop living just because you are 84 years old. If there’s something you want to experience, look into it. If it’s something that is possible, make it happen.

1. What happened to the author in 2001?

A. She flew an airplane

B. She entered a competition

C. She went on a hot air balloon ride

D. She moved into a retirement community

2. The author mentioned George Bush Sr. in her essay to _______.

A. build up her own reputation

B. show her admiration for him

C. compare their health condition

D. make her argument persuasive

3. How did the author feel immediately after she jumped out of the plane?

A. Excited B. Scared C. Nervous D. Regretful

4. What did the author enjoy most when she was skydiving?

A. The beautiful clouds B. The wonderful view

C. The company of Jay D. The one-minute free fall

【答案】

1.C

2.D

3.D

4.B

（二）

My father was Chief engineer of a merchant ship, which was sunk in Word War II. The book Night of the U-boats told the story.

Memories

In September, 1940, my mother, sister and I went to Swansea, where my father’s ship was getting ready to sail. We brought him a family photograph to be kept with him at all times and keep him sale.

Then I remember my mother lying face down, sobbing. She had heard from a friend that the ship had been sunk by a torpedo(鱼雷).

I can remember the arrival of the telegram(电报),Which in those days always brought had new. My grandmother opened it. It read, “Safe, Love Ted.”

My most vivid memory is being woken and brought down to sit on my father’s knee, his arm in a bandage.

He was judged unfit to return to sea and took a shore job in Glasgow for the rest of the war. For as long as I can remember, he had a weak heart. Mother said it was caused by the torpedoes. He said it was because of the cigarettes. Whichever, he died suddenly in his early 50s.

Ten years later I read Night of the U-bouts and was able to complete the story.

Torpedo

One torpedo struck the ship. Father was in the engine room, where the third engineer was killed. He shut down the engines to slow the ship making it easier for it to be abandoned.

By the time he got on deck (甲板) he was alone. Every lifeboat was gone except one which had stuck fast. When he tried to cut it free it swung against the ship, injuring his hand and arm. He had no choice but to jump—still with the photograph in his pocket.

Three days later, he and other survivors were safe in Glasgow. All 23 with him signed the back of the photograph.

A Toast

In my room is the book and the photograph. Often, glass in hand, I have wondered how I would have dealt with an explosion, a sinking ship, a jump into a vast ocean rind a wait for rescue? Lest(以免)we forget, I have some more whisky and toast the heroes of the war.

1. We can infer that the mother and children went to Swansea ________.

A. to meet a friend

B. to see the father off

C. to take a family photo

D. to enjoy the sailing of the ship

2. What did the author learn about the father from the telegram?

A. he was still alive.

B. His knee was broken.

C. His ship had been sunk.

D. He had arrived in Glasgow.

3. The underlined word “it” in Paragraph 6 refers to the father’s ________.

A. weak heart

B. taking a shore job

C. failure to return to sea

D. injury caused by a torpedo

4. What can we know about the author’s father after his ship was attacked?

A. He lost his arm

B. He repaired the engines.

C. He managed to take a lifeboat.

D. He was the last to leave the ship.

5. What is the passage mainly about?

A. A group of forgotten heroes

B. A book describing a terrifying battle.

C. A ship engineer’s wartime experience.

D. A merchant’s memories of a sea rescue.

B 记叙文：父亲经历的沉船事件

1. S定位，找到Memories下面第一段，讲到父亲会从S起航，我们带给他family photograph目的是be kept with him和keep him safe，推断出我们是去给父亲送行

2. telegram定位，找到Memories下面第三段，电报内容：safe，确定A

3. 父亲说it是由cigarettes引起，母亲说it由torpedoes引起，it 只代前文的week heart

4. after his ship was attack 定位， 找到Torpedo部分，第二段首句he was alone确定D

5. 全文主旨，C。其它选项错误原因：A，forgotten heroes在文中都没有涉及;B，terrible battle没有提;D, merchant’s memories应该是作者(merchant’s child 的mermories)