閱讀理解

Lie in bed， by an open window， and listen. “No air conditioning， how can you sleep?” a friend asks， horrified. I tell her my family has decided to shut the air conditioner off and reduce our electric bill. On this first night of our cost-cutting plan， it’s only 85 degrees. We’re going to suffer， but the three kids complain anyway.

They’ve grown up in 72-degree comfort， protected from the world outside. “It’s too hot to sleep，” my 13-year-old daughter complains. “I’m about to die from this heat，” her brother complains down the hall. “Just try it tonight，” I tell them. In truth I’m too tired to turn for long. My face is sweaty， but I lie quietly listening to the cricket choirs（合唱）outside that remind me of my childhood.

The neighbor’s dog howls. Probably a passing squirrel （松鼠）. It’s been years since I took the time to really listen to the night.

I think about grandma， who lived to 92 and still helped with my mom’s gardening until just a few weeks before she died. And then， I’m back there at her house in the summer heat of my childhood. I moved my pillow to the foot of grandma’s bed and turned my face towards the open window. I turned the pillow， hunting for the cooler side. Grandma saw me turn over and over. “If you just watch for the breeze，” she said， “you’ll cool off and fall asleep.”

I stare at the filmy white curtain， willing it to move. Lying still， waiting， I suddenly notice the life outside the window. The bug chorus. Neighbors， sitting late on the porch（門廊）， speak in unclear words that calm me.

“Mom， did you hear that?” my seven-year-old son cries. “I think it was an owl（貓頭鷹）family.”

“Probably，” I tell him. “Just keep listening.”

Without the working air conditioner， the house is peaceful， and the natural night noises seem close enough to touch. I hope I’m awake tonight when the first breeze comes in.

1. On the first night of the writer’s cost-cutting plan， her children ＿＿＿ .

A. feel unhappy

B. suffer from great pain

C. are about to die from the heat

D. are protected from the world outside

2. The author talks about her grandmother and her childhood to say that ＿＿＿ .

A. people used to live a hard life

B. people in the past were hardworking

C. it’s OK for people to live a simple life

D. she has learned a great deal from her grandma

3. In the writer’s eyes， her children are ＿＿＿ .

A. dependent because of parents’ love

B. lacking in real test of hardship in life

C. full of dissatisfaction with life

D. free from parents’ protection

4. What would be the best title for the passage?

A. Waiting for the Breeze

B. An Interesting Experience

C. Life at Present and Life in the Past

D. Different Times， Different Children

完形填空

Some myths are stories told since ancient times to explain the causes of natural happenings. The Greek myth that explains why there are changes of 1 is about Demeter， the goddess of the harvest. She had a daughter， Persephone， whom she loved very much. Hades， god of the underworld， fell in love with Persephone， and he 2 Zeus， the ruler of the gods， to give Persephone to him as his 3 . Zeus did not want either to disappoint Hades or to upset Demeter， so he said he would not agree to the marriage， but neither would he 4 it. Hades， therefore， decided to take the girl without 5 . When Persephone was picking flowers in the garden， he seized her and took her to the underworld. When Demeter 6 what happened to Persephone， she became so 7 that she caused all plants to 8 growing. People were in danger of 9 . But Demeter was determined not to let crops grow 10 her daughter， Persephone， was returned to her. 11 ， still not wanting to disappoint Hades， decided upon a condition for Persephone’s

12 . She could go back to her mother if she had not 13 any-thing while she was in the underworld. Demeter 14 it because she did not know that Persephone had eaten several pomegranate（石榴）seeds in the underworld. When Zeus 15 this， he agreed that Persephone could spend part of the year with her 16 ， but he added that since she had eaten the seeds， she must spend part of the year in the underworld. And so it 17 that when Persephone is in the underworld， Demeter is sad and therefore will not let the 18 grow. That is 19 we have winter when plants do not grow. When Persephone returns， Demeter is 20 ， it is spring， and plants begin to grow again.

1. A. periodsB. seasonsC. timeD. history

2. A. advisedB. askedC. thoughtD. ordered

3. A. wifeB. loverC. partnerD. assistant

4. A. forbidB. forgiveC. admitD. accept

5. A. arrangementB. warningC. reasonD. permission

6. A. recognizedB. sawC. consideredD. knew

7. A. excitedB. tiredC. angryD. serious

8. A. finishB. delayC. stopD. avoid

9. A. starvingB. disappearingC. freezingD. fighting

10. A. sinceB. untilC. afterD. when

11. A. PersephoneB. ZeusC. DemeterD. Hades

12. A. returnB. changeC. marriageD. journey

13. A. stolenB. foundC. eatenD. heard

14. A. allowedB. refusedC. doubtedD. accepted

15. A. discoveredB. studiedC. forgotD. prepared

16. A. daughter B. motherC. godD. husband

17. A. worksB. remainsC. happensD. begins

18. A. seedsB. peopleC. flowersD. crops

19. A. whereB. becauseC. whyD. how

20. A. movedB. friendlyC. surprisedD. happy