Life is difficult. It is a great truth because once we truly understand and accept it, then life is no longer difficult. Most do not fully see this truth. Instead they complain about their problems and difficulties as if life should be easy. It seems to them that difficulties represent a special kind of suffering especially forced upon them or else upon their families, their class, or even their nations. What makes life difficult is that the process of facing and solving problems is a painful one. Problems, depending on their natures, cause us sadness or loneliness or regret or anger or fear. These are uncomfortable feelings, often as painful as any kind of physical pain. And since life causes endless serious problems, life is always difficult and is full of pain as well as joy. Yes, it is in this whole process of solving problems that life has its meaning. Problems are the serious tests that tell us success from failure. When we desire to encourage the growth of human spirit, we encourage the human ability to solve problems, just as in school we set problems for our children to resolve. It is through the pain of meeting and working out problems that we learn. As Benjamin Franklin said, "Those things that hurt, instruct." It is for this reason that wise people learn not to fear but to welcome the pain of problems.

Why did the man get to sleep so late?

It was the first snow of winter. Up until now, I had been able to dress myself for recess(课间休息) , but today I would need some help. Miss king, my kindergarten teacher, may still remember this one. I managed to get into my snow pants, but I struggled with my jacket because it did not fit well. It was a hand-me-down from my brother. Finally it was time to have Miss King help me with my boots. She said, "By the end of winter, you will be able to put on your own boots." I handed her my boots, and she managed to get the first one into place and then worked the second one on, too. I said, "They are on the wrong feet." She struggled to get the boots off and tried again. Then I said," These aren't my boots, they are my brother's boots and I hate them!" Somehow, she managed to act as though I was not an annoying little girl. She pushed and shoved, less gently this time and the boots were returned to their proper place on my feet. Seeing the end of her struggle with me, she asked, "Now, where are your gloves?" I looked into her eyes and said, "I did not want to lose them, so I put them into the toes of my boots."

Tips for Cooking on a Tight Schedule From my experience, there are three main reasons why people don' t cook more often: ability , money, and time.【B1】______ Money is a topic I'll save for another day. So today I want to give you some wisdom about how to make the most of the time you spend in the kitchen. Here are three tips for great cooking on a tight schedule: 1. Think ahead. The moments when I think cooking is a pain are when I'm already hungry and there' s nothing ready to eat. So think ahead of the coming week. When will you have time to cook? Do you have the right materials already?【B2】______ 2. Make your time worth it. When you do find time to cook a meal, make the most of it and save yourself time later on. Are you making one loaf of bread?【B3】______ It takes around the same amount of time to make more of something. So save yourself the effort for a future meal. 3.【B4】______ This may surprise you, but one of the best tools for making cooking worth your time is experimentation. It gives you the chance to hit upon new ideas and recipes that can work well with your appetite and schedule. The more you learn and the more you try, the more ability you have to take control of your food and your schedule. Hopefully that gives you a good start.【B5】______ And don' t let a busy schedule discourage you from making some great changes in the way you eat and live![A] Try new things.[B] Ability is easily improved.[C] Make three or four instead.[D] Understand your food better.[E] Cooking is a burden for many people.[F] Let cooking and living simply be a joy rather than a burden.[G] A little time planning ahead can save a lot of work later on.

Eric has been fortunate to find a job he loves and, ________, he gets well paid for it.

Almost every family buys at least one copy of a newspaper every day. Some people subscribe (订阅) to as many as two or three newspapers. But why do people read newspapers? Five hundred years ago, news of important happenings—battles lost and won, kings or rulers overthrown (推翻) or killed—took months and even years to travel from one country to another. The news passed by word of mouth and was never accurate. Today we can read in our newspapers of important events that occur in far away countries on the same day they happen. Apart from supplying news from all over the world, newspapers give us a lot of other useful information. There are weather reports, radios, television and film guides, book reviews, stories and, of course, advertisements. The bigger ones are put in by large companies to bring attention to their products. They pay the newspapers thousands of dollars for the advertising space, but it is worth the money, for news of their products goes into almost every home in the country. For those who produce newspapers, advertisements are also very important. Money earned from advertisements makes it possible for them to sell their newspapers at a low price and still make a profit. Newspapers often have information on gardening, cooking and fashion as well as a small but very popular section on jokes and cartoons (漫画).

Ella has been complaining about the traffic________her awake at night.

Do you remember the Millennium (千禧年) Goals? When world leaders celebrated the year 2000 with a serious promise to reduce poverty (贫穷) and hunger, check the spread of AIDS, get boys and girls into school, and improve public health, all by 2015? Well, three years down the road, and the UNDP's yearly collection of facts and figures already shows that if we carry on as we are, the only goal likely to be met is that for reducing poverty by a half, and that is entirely due to the success of one country—China. It is so vast that the fast-growing economy in China lifts millions of people above the poverty line, even though in Africa, Latin America and the former Soviet Union, people have actually been getting poorer. Otherwise, progress is good only in parts. East Asia should meet its goal of reducing hunger by a half by 2015, and Latin America and the Caribbean are not far behind, but at the present speed of progress, Africa and South Asia won't get there for another hundred years. The good news is that it can be done—there are success stories. Ghana—an economic basket case in the eighties and early nineties—has managed to find a way out of its difficulties and it's now comfortably in the middle range of countries, way ahead of the much more naturally wealthy Nigeria. For Congo, Cambodia or Iraq, ruined by war, or every southern African country damaged by AIDS, there is a Mauritius or a South Korea steadily working its way up the league table towards a better life for its people.

Jessamine is a calligrapher(书法家) and she has, over the years, printed out the history of her town by printing up wedding and death announcements, invitations and menus. Now she has another ability—she finds herself forced to print out such calligraphy of events before they happen. She knows this is a precious and dangerous gift. She persuades a man in town to accept the love affair between his daughter and a young man whom he dislikes because Jessamine has already printed the wedding announcement. Her relationship with Callie, that young woman, is a wonderful inter-generational friendship. When Jessamine prints her own death notice, she deals with it as wisely as she has dealt with all the rest. The story of Jessamine is only 51 pages long and, as such, there isn't much difficulty for less able readers. Meanwhile, the idea that one can use a magic(魔法) power to do good secretly is such an intriguing idea that more able readers will also be drawn to the book. Readers might be willing to read the book closely to see how DeFelice, the writer of the story, managed to describe such a complex(复杂的) person in so few pages and do it so skilfully. There are times when the passages come close to poetry and students might like to read particular selections aloud. For example, when Jessamine learns that Callie will not win the scholarship which could give her a fresh start in life, the way she gives Callie the strength to accept the disappointment and yet gain self-respect is worth examining.

Daniel: Good morning, madam. I' m Daniel. I' m applying for the position of manager.Madam: Sit down, please.【K1】______ did you learn about our company?Daniel: I got to know【K2】______ company through such famous brands as LUX, LIPTOS and WALLS. Your products impressed me deeply.Madam: Well, please tell me【K3】______ about your past work achievement.Daniel: All right, Madam. When【K4】______ (work) for my previous company, I succeeded in raising the yearly sales volume (销售额)【K5】______ 25% .Madam; Oh, that is quite an achievement! Why have you decided to change jobs?Daniel: I hope to change【K6】______ I am looking for a more challenging position. There are no more【K7】______ (opportunity) for me to grow in my current job.Madam: OK, I understand. But why have you made the【K8】______ (choose) to work for us?Daniel: I have【K9】______ (careful) studied the information about your company on the Internet and I have checked your company' s homepage. The working conditions are so excellent here. I【K10】______ (sincere) hope to be a member of your company.Madam: That's fine. Thanks for coming to see us. I will let you know about the job within the week.

—Shall we eat Italian food tonight?—______.

Where did Mary go?

A thief dropped a winning lottery ticket(彩票) at the scene of his crime, but he has been given a lesson in【C1】______ . The man whom he robbed(抢劫)【C2】______ the ticket and won the ￡25,000 prize, but he managed to find the thief, and handed over the【C3】______ . The robbery happened when Professor Sabbatuccci was changing a tyre(轮胎) on a highway. Another motorist, who stopped 'to【C4】______ ' , stole a suitcase from his car and drove off. The professor found the【C5】______ ticket and put it in his pocket before【C6】______ home. Next day, the professor saw the lottery【C7】______ on TV and realized it was a winner. He【C8】______ the ￡25,000 prize. Then began a【C9】______ with his conscience(良心). In the end, he decided he could not keep the money【C10】______ he had been robbed. He then put a【C11】______ in newspapers and made an announcement on the radio,【C12】______ : 'I'm trying to find the man who robbed me. I have ￡25,000 for him—a lottery【C13】______ . Please meet me. ' The professor received hundreds of【C14】______ from people who were hoping to【C15】______ him into handing them the cash. But there was one voice he【C16】______ —and he arranged to meet the man in a park. The robber gave back the【C17】______ and burst into tears. He could not【C18】______ what was happening. 'Why didn't you【C19】______ the money?' he asked. The professor replied: ' I couldn't because it's not mine. ' Then he walked off, turning down the thief's【C20】______ to share the prize.

Eating Etiquette What should you do or not do when you are eating in Britain? The British generally pay a lot of attention to good table manners (举止). Even young children are expected to eat properly with knives and forks. We eat most of our food with cutlery . The foods we don' t eat with a knife, fork or spoon include sandwiches and fruit. Things you should do: If you cannot eat a certain type of food or have some special needs, tell your host several days before the dinner party. If you are a guest, it is polite to wait until your host starts eating or invites you to do so. It shows consideration. Always chew (咀嚼) and swallow (吞咽) all the food in your mouth before taking more or taking a drink. Always say thank you when served something. It shows your gratefulness. You may eat things like chicken with your fingers if you are having a picnic with friends or in very informal settings. Otherwise always use a knife and fork. When eating bread rolls, break off a piece before buttering. Eating it whole shows poor taste. On formal dining occasions(场合) it is good manners to take some butter from the butter dish with your bread knife and put it on your side plate. Then butter pieces of the roll using this butter. This prevents the butter in the dish getting full of small pieces of bread as it is passed around. In a restaurant, it is normal to pay for your food by putting your money on the plate the bill comes on.

阅读下面的对话，根据其内容写一篇有关the British Museum的说明文。要求：1．所写短文应与对话相关内容意义相符，涵盖其要点。2．用你自己的语言来表达，可以改写对话中的句子，但不可以照抄原句。注意：词数在80词左右。Ann: James! So you are back from your trip to the U. K. !James: Yes, we flew back from London last night. What a trip!Ann: Did you enjoy it?James: Very much. It is certainly most unique for me as someone who's deeply interested in history and culture. I especially like the British Museum. Ann: Oh, the famous British Museum. I heard that it's one of the largest museums in the world. James: Yes, you are right; it has 13 million pieces of collections, imagine that! And it's one of the oldest, too. Ann: How old is it? James: It was founded in 1753. It grew from a personal collection to include objects from all continents, until it becomes the universal museum it is today, with objects from the ancient world as well as the modern. Ann: Did you see all the collections? James: No, we went there for two days while we were staying in London. I was particularly fond of the department of Greece and Rome. The beautiful statues, vases and jewelry are marvelous. We also visited some other departments, such as the department Egypt and Sudan, department of paintings and drawings and so on. You should see it someday. Ann: Sure.

Nipponex Electrics Tokyo, Japan 27 August, 2014Amperlite Ltd 146 O'Leary St Dublin, Ireland Dear Sirs, Improved ways of production make us able to offer you our change of Drilite batteries (电池) at a reduced price for large quantities. Further information of the new prices for your market are sent to you together with the letter, and you will see that the price has already reduced 5 percent. As c. i. f (成本、保险加运费) to Dublin is included in our prices, you will agree that they are clearly lower than those of producers of the same batteries, both here in Japan and elsewhere. The quality of our products remains the same—only the finest chemicals are used. The new prices are for the least orders of 1,000 pounds and will begin from January 1. Immediate sending off is sure because enough can be made whenever you require it. We appreciate your past dealing and cooperation (合作) with us, and look forward to supplying you in the new year at the new prices. Yours truly, Nipponex Electrics

Dick only had some Coke at the party, because he always________asleep after drinking wine.

Parents might say "honesty is the best policy," but when it comes to talking with their own children, mom and dad lie surprisingly often, finds a new study carried out by researchers in the University of Toronto, Canada. Almost every parent in the study admits having come up with some tales to influence a child' s actions and feelings. For example, a parent is annoyed by a child's crying and says, "The police will come to get you if you don't stop crying now. " In another example, an uncle has just died and the child is told that he has become a star to watch over the child. Whether parents lie to benefit themselves or to protect the child, researchers suggest such talltales could give children mixed messages at a time when they are trying to figure out how to deal with the social world. Lies could also harm the parent-child relationship. It could even keep children from learning certain rules. "If I am always lying to the child in order to get the child to do X, Y, or Z, then they have never learned why they should do X, Y , or Z." Heyman, one of the researchers, said. Heyman also said, "It is common for parents to try out various ways, including lying, to guide a child, but most parents never think about how it will influence their child. I think parents should figure it out in advance what their general beliefs are, so when it comes to the situation you're working with your beliefs rather than what comes into your head at the moment."

I became interested in writing at an early age. So when my fourth-grade teacher told me about a【C1】______ writer' s conference where students my age could【C2】______ published writers, I decided to go. I began thinking about the writers whose stories I【C3】______ —Judy Blume, Beverly Cleary, Shell Silverstein and【C4】______ if they would be at this conference. Well, I went to the conference, but I was a little【C5】______ . None of them were there. But the conference was well【C6】______ , and every half hour we would move on to hear a new writer speak. Soon the【C7】______ period of the day came. A man introduced himself and gave the same little speech we had heard since that morning.【C8】______ , he threw in a twist(转折). "【C9】______ are more than just words thrown together," he said. " Words are more than just【C10】______ thrown together. You must also【C11】______ the mood or the tone(语气) of your ideas. " He let that idea sink in and then【C12】______ us about the difference between a house and a home. We all thought that was a【C13】______ question, and made some wild guesses at it. "Class," he【C14】______ , "the difference between a house and a home is in the mood or the tone. A house is the【C15】______ —the wood, the bricks, the lighting, the refrigerator. A home is the love and warmth and comfort you【C16】______ as you walk through the【C17】______ . " I've kept that【C18】______ in my memory ever since that day. Writing is more than just filling up a blank page with【C19】______ ; it' s about expressing your ideas with clarity(清晰) and the mood. And that' s why I【C20】______ it.

It didn' t come as a big surprise________the flight was going to be delayed.