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A

Pearl opened her eyes when Ezra turned a page of his magazine. She pulled off her quilt. “Ezra，” she said. “If I could just have some water，” she told him.

He poured it from the waterpot. She heard no ice cubes clinking（叮当声）； they must have melted. Yet it seemed just minutes ago that hed brought in a whole new supply. He raised her head， rested it on his shoulder， and tipped the glass to her lips. Yes， half-heated not that she minded. She drank gratefully， keeping her eyes closed. His shoulder felt steady and comfortable. He laid her back down on the pillow.

“Dr Vincents coming at ten，” he told her.

“What time is it now？”

“Eight thirty.”

“Eight thirty in the morning？”

“Yes.”

“Have you been here all night？” she asked.

“I slept a little.”

“Sleep now. I wont be needing you.”

“Well， maybe after the doctor comes.”

It was important to Pearl that she cheated the doctor. She didnt want to go to the hospital. She had lung disease， and she was almost certain； she guessed it from a past experience. She recognized the way it settled into her back. If Dr Vincent found out， he would take her out of her own bed， her own house， and send her off to Union Memorial.

“Maybe you should cancel the doctor altogether，” she told Ezra. “Im improved very much， I believe.”

“Let him decide that.”

“Well， I know how my own self feels， Ezra.”

“We wont argue about it just now，” said he.

She sighed and smoothed her quilt. Wasnt it supposed to be the daughter who came and nursed you？ She knew she should send him away but she couldnt make herself do it. “I guess you want to get back to that restaurant，” she told him.

“No， no.”

“Youre like a mother who chatters about that place，” she said unhappily.

1. It can be inferred from the dialogue that Pearl had spent the night ___ .

A. staying in her bed

B. thinking about her illness

C. talking to Ezra about the past

D. making plans to go to the hospital

2. What could Ezra most probably do if Pearl was really ill？

A. Hed agree to let her stay home.

B. Hed make sure she would recover.

C. Hed insist on sending her to hospital.

D. Hed ask another doctor to make sure.

3. What does the underlined sentence suggest？

A. Pearl wanted to sleep.

B. Pearl wished Ezra to leave her alone.

C. Pearl was seriously ill and missed her daughter.

D. Pearl gave up persuading Ezra to cancel the doctor.

B

From now on， never spend your time thinking of reasons for your failures and shortcomings. Instead， realize that the seeds of success were planted within you when you were born. The seeds， and the power to grow them， are contained in the most wonderful machine ever made： the human mind. Success is a choice and not a chance. You can be a success only if you make the right choice.

You cannot be successful without first developing your self-esteem（自尊）. Your level of self-esteem is always based on the degree of control that you are able to exercise over yourself， and thus over your life. People with low self-esteem are those who do not believe that they have any power or responsibility for their lives. They are the lasting victims. They are leaves moved from side to side by the winds of chance and blown about with any sudden change in the weather.

You can exercise control over your life only to the degree that you believe that you are responsible for everything that happens in your life. Failures think that everything happens by accident and chance. Successful people realize that they are responsible.

Everything happens as a result of something. If we can find out the cause， we can control the effect. We are responsible for what we choose to think and believe. One generally rises to the level that one expects. We are responsible for setting our expectations. Our success is dependent upon our level of confidence.

If you get along with positive-thinking people， you are definitely going to achieve success. On the contrary， the opposite happens.

In short， in all areas of your life， whether they are financial， physical， emotional or spiritual， you are responsible. Once you recognize this， accept it and firmly believe it， you are on the road to success.

4. The author compares people with low self-esteem to leaves because he thinks ___ .

A. they are free to change their minds

B. they are easily changed by windy weather

C. they cant exercise control over themselves

D. they dont have the power to face their future

5. According to the author losers would think that ___ .

A. life is equal

B. working hard will lead to success

C. their failure is because of bad luck

D. they may succeed without making efforts

6. It can be inferred from Paragraph 4 that ___ .

A. whether we will succeed depends on our attitudes

B. developing confidence is the key to further success

C. thoughts and beliefs are the results of active mind

D. setting expectations is important before taking action