D

Everyone wants to achieve true happiness in life. But the biggest factor holding most of us back is actually our own selves. The Huffington Post released a list of seven mistakes we need to let go of in order to become happier people. Let’s take a look.

1. Placing too much emphasis on fulfillment (成就感)

Those who put a lot of pressure on themselves to be happy feel more lonely on a daily basis than those who do not, according to research conducted at the University of Denver, US.

2. Keeping it all in

Keeping it all together during tough times can hurt you. Crying is the body’s emotional response to outside triggers (诱因). By suppressing it, you may be damaging your mental and physical health.

3. Looking at your smartphone all the time

Connecting with others may be the key to happiness, but a recent University of Michigan study found that the more time participants spent on social networking sites, the less happy they felt.

4. Not moving

It’s no secret that a healthy lifestyle is a big part of happiness. Something as simple as a walk can help you increase your creativity and expose you to essential vitamins.

5. Not reflecting on the past

In a 2012 study on nostalgia (怀旧) and emotion, participants reported a higher sense of physiological(生理的)comfort when they looked back on the past. Affection for heartwarming memories helps people relate their past experiences to the present in order to create a greater sense of meaning.

6. Resisting change

A study on the psychology of choices shows that the human brain naturally tries to avoid loss — but that resistance can cause stress. Whether it’s fear of the unknown or fear of losing what you currently have, the pressure to hold on to the present can harm your future life satisfaction.

7. Not being mindful

Setting aside time for meditation allows your body to relax, cultivates an attitude of gratitude and lowers your stress level, according to researchers at University of California, Los Angeles, US.

68. What is the main purpose of the article?

A. To inform readers of the benefits of being happy.

B. To explain why our happiness depends on our own actions.

C. To point out the things we do that prevent us from being happy.

D. To discuss some typical characteristics of happy people.

69. The underlined word “suppressing” in the third paragraph is closest in meaning to ______.

A. focusing on     B. holding back     C. thinking about    D. ignoring

70. According to the article, to be a happy person, it is important for us to ______.

A. set goals and achieve as much as we can

B. avoid recalling the past

C. do exercise in our spare time

D. spend more time on social networking sites

71. According to the article, meditation is helpful mainly because ______.

A. it increases our creativity

B. it makes us less afraid of the unknown

C. it helps us relax and thus reduce our stress

D. it allows us to relate our past experiences to the present

E

Tom appeared on the sidewalk with a bucket of whitewash and a long-handled brush. He stopped by the fence in front of the house where he lived with his aunt Polly. He looked at it, and all joy left him. The fence was long and high. He put the brush into the whitewash and moved it along the top of the fence. He repeated the operation. He felt he could not continue and sat down.

He knew that his friends would arrive soon with all kinds of interesting plans for the day. They would walk past him and laugh. They would make jokes about his having to work on a beautiful summer Saturday. The thought burned him like fire.

He put his hand into his pockets and took out all that he owned. Perhaps he could find something to pay someone to do the whitewashing for him. But there was nothing of value in his pockets. So he put the bits of toys back into his pockets and gave up the idea.

At this dark and hopeless moment, a wonderful idea came to him. It filled his mind with a great, bright light. Calmly he picked up the brush and started again to whitewash.

While Tom was working, Ben Rogers appeared. Ben was eating an apple as he walked along the street. When he came close to Tom, he stopped.

Tom went on whitewashing. He did not look at Ben. Ben stared a moment and then said: “Hello! I’m going swimming, but you can’t go, can you?”

No answer. Tom moved his brush carefully along the fence and looked at the result with the eye of an artist. Ben came nearer. Tom’s mouth watered for the apple, but he kept on working.

Ben said, “Hello, old fellow, you’ve got to work, hey?”

Tom turned suddenly and said, “Why, it’s you, Ben! I wasn’t noticing.”

“I’m going swimming. Don’t you wish you could? But of course you’d rather work. You seem to like it very much.”

“Like it? Well, I don’t see why I shouldn’t like it. Does a boy get a chance to whitewash a fence every day?”

Ben stopped eating his apple. Tom moved his brush back and forth, stepped back to look at the result, added a touch here and there, and stepped back again. Ben watched every move and got more and more interested. Soon he said,

“Tom, let me whitewash a little.”

Tom thought for a moment, was about to agree; but he changed his mind.

“No, no, it won’t do, Ben. You see, Aunt Polly wants this fence to be perfect. It has got to be done very carefully. I don’t think there is one boy in a thousand, maybe two thousand, that can do it well enough.”

“No — is that so? Oh come, let me just try. Only just a little.”

“Ben, I’d like to, but if it isn’t done right, I’m afraid Aunt Polly ...”

“Oh, I’ll be careful. Now let me try. I’ll give you half of my apple.”

“Well, here — No, Ben, now don’t. I’m afraid ...”

“I’ll give you all of it.”

Tom gave up the brush with unwillingness on his face, but joy in his heart. And while Ben worked at the fence in the hot sun, Tom sat under a tree, eating the apple, and planning how to get more help. There were enough boys. Each one came to laugh, but remained to whitewash. And when the middle of the afternoon came, Tom had won many treasures. The fence had been whitewashed three times. If he hadn’t run out of whitewash, Tom would have owned everything belonging to his friends.

He had discovered a great law of human action that in order to make a man or a boy want a thing, it is only necessary to make the thing difficult to get.

72. Why did Tom take all his bits of toys out of his pockets?

A. Because he was tired and wanted to play with his toys.

B. Because he wanted to exchange his toys with his friends.

C. Because he wanted to give his toys to his friends.

D. Because he wanted to know if he could buy help with his toys.

73. Tom was about to agree to let Ben whitewash when he changed his mind because

______.

A. Tom wanted to do the whitewashing himself

B. Tom planned to make Ben give up his apple first

C. Tom was unwilling to let Ben do the whitewashing

D. Tom was afraid Ben couldn’t do the whitewashing well.

74. We can learn from the passage that ______.

A. Tom was fond of whitewashing the fence

B. Tom had a lot of friends who were ready to help him

C. Tom managed to let other boys do the whitewashing for him

D. Tom was better at whitewashing the fence than others

75. Which of the following is the most suitable title for this passage?

A. The Happy Whitewasher       B. Tom And His Fellows

C. Whitewashing A Fence          D. How To Make Things Difficult To Get

第二卷

第一节 短文填词(共10题;每题0.5分，满分5分)

阅读下列短文，根据以下提示：(1)汉语提示(2)首字母提示(3)语境提示，在每个空格内填入一个适当的英语单词，并将该词完整地写在右边相对应的横线上。

I am a Senior 3 student. I often quarrel with my mother

over ______ or not I can watch TV after school. My mother  76.

holds the view that students in Senior 3 are ______ busy to spare  77.

any time to watch TV. It s         to her that once I am allowed   78.

to do that I will not be able to control ______ and forget all              79.

about my study. She also thinks that it is bad for my e        .      80.

But I really can’t accept her ideas. I think it is ______ (放松的)   81.

to watch TV after a day’s hard work. B        , it can broaden   82.

my horizons. Now we have r       an agreement that I can      83.

only watch  TV ______ weekends, and the programs should       84.

be ______ (限制) to news and programs of education or sports.    85.

第二节 完成句子(共10题;每题1分，满分10分)

1. The donkey can carry a heavy b             .

2. They were pleased to meet after such a long _______________.(分开)

3. His fame was bought at the _____________ of health and happiness.(代价)

4. This kind of dress is now __________ ___________.(流行)

5. When you __________ _________ _________ a woman, you should offer an engagement ring.(向某人求婚)

6. I _________ _________ go to bed earlier during the winter. (往往会)

7. Luckily when I felt I could walk no further, a black taxi driver _________ us _________ _________.(让…搭便车)

8. Cordelia’s devotion to Your Majesty is __________ __________.(毫无疑问)

9. Shackleton never ________ ________ _________ disappointment, even when the ship sank.(向…让步)

10. John is not good at sports, but ________ ________ _________ ________ physics, he is the best in the class.(当谈到…)

第三节 书面表达(满分20分)

随着生活节奏的加快，人们很少有时间坐下来读书。但是书是我们的良师益友，给我们带来无穷的乐趣，因此我们还是鼓励人们多读书。请以Reading—A Bright Way to A Better Life为题写一篇英语作文，要点需包括下列信息：

1、 读书的好处;

2、 正确选择阅读材料和安排阅读时间;

3、 你的做法。

注意：1. 词数120左右。

2. 短文标题与开头已给出,不计入总词数;

Reading—A Bright Way to A Better Life

With the rapid pace of modern life, people seldom sit down and read. ________                 ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

`

短文填词(5分)

76. whether  77. too  8. seems  79. myself  80. eyes/eyesight

81. relaxing  82. Besides  83. reached  84. on/at  85. limited

完成句子(10分)

1. burden  2. separation  3. expense/cost  4. in fashion  5. propose marriage to

6. tend to  7. offered/gave…a lift  8. beyond/without question  9. gave way to

10. when it comes to

书面表达(20分)

Reading—A Bright Way to A Better Life

With the rapid pace of modern life, people seldom sit down and read. In fact, reading is of great benefit to us all.

To begin with, it is the most flexible way of getting information. Many people think it not only helps them better understand society, but also broadens their horizon. Additionally, reading is of great benefit to interpersonal communication. It can also enrich our life and bring people pleasure.

However, not every book is worth reading. Some may mislead readers. So keep in mind that choosing a good book is like making a good friend. Besides, reading is supposed to be done in our spare time, thus not disturbing our study. As long as we insist on reading, we can get improved gradually.

Personally, I appreciate reading classical literature in my spare time, which provides me with a thorough understanding of life and society. Through practicing reading, I find my comprehension ability improved.

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