When I was little, my mother sold flowers at Camden Market in London, She couldn't leave me at home on my own, so I had to go to the market with her. As I grew older, I began to give my mom a hand and I really enjoyed it.

Things changed when I was 14. My grandma gave me a book for Christmas, which was all about making candles . I loved it so much that I spent all my free time making candles of all shapes and sizes. I made hundreds of them.

One day, my mother was ill so I had to go to the market on my own. I decided to take some candles with me and see if I could sell them. To my surprise, they were sold out in 20 minutes! The next week, my mom gave me some money to buy some wax (蜡) to make more candles. They sold out really quickly, too.

Nine months later, we decided to stop selling flowers. My mom and I couldn't make enough candles during the week, so some of my school friends started to help us. I paid them one pound for every candle, and we used to sell them for three or four times that. It was fun. and my friends worked with me in the market.

When I was 22, my uncle lent me some money and I opened my first shop on Portobello Road. Since then, I've never looked back, even in difficult times. At the first store, we only sold candles, but now we sell everything from designing furniture to paintings.

小题1:The sentence "I began to give my mom a hand" means"          ".

A．I began to give my mom some gifts

B．I began to help my mom sell flowers

C．I began to wash my hands before working

D．I began to get along better with my morn小题2:What did the writer do in her free time when she was 14？

A．She talked with her mother at the market.

B．She played with her school friends at home.

C．She read all kinds of books about Christmas

D．She made candles of different shapes and sizes.小题3:The right order of the following things is

a. The writer's morn stopped selling flowers.

b. The writer went to the market with some candles.

c. The writer bought candles from her friends and sold them well.

d. The writer's morn fell ill.

e. The writer's candles sold well.

A．bdeac

B．bedac

C．adbec

D．dbeac小题4:The writer’s uncle helped her open a shop by         when she was 22.

A．buying her a shop

B．teaching her basic skills

C．lending her some money

D．working together with her小题5:From the passage you can learn that you should        .

A．spend all your free time on developing your interests

B．have your own idea and work hard to make it succeed

C．get as much support as you can from your family

D．hold on to your dreams and never give up

III.  Reading Comprehension

Section A

Directions: For each blank in the following passages there are four words or phrases marked A, B, C and D. Fill in each blank with the word or phrase that best fits the context.

People with a positive attitude toward aging can adjust very well when individual circumstances change. Their positive outlook allows them to   50   to the inevitable physical and biochemical changes of the body that are associated with the natural   51   of aging. With a healthy outlook on the golden years, even unpredictable setbacks and disabilities can be managed   52  .

Individual genetic makeup (基因构造) explains the great   53   in the aging rate. Some seniors experience more challenges than others of the same age, and some seniors continue to function better than many younger people. But genetics only   54   about 30 percent of aging. Most of the changes we associate with age   55   factors such as diet and exercise habits; lifestyle issues, including over   56   of alcohol and tobacco, and psychological traits.

We can make healthy lifestyle choices by staying   57   both physically and mentally and by   58   a healthy diet. Some of the setbacks associated with advancing age such as   59   eyesight, loss of hearing, forgetfulness, weakness can be forestalled with some active intervention（干预）.

Growing older does not always mean you see poorly. Many older people have   60   good eyesight well into their eighties and beyond. However, the single greatest contributor to vision loss is a lifetime of   61   to damaging ultraviolet (紫外线) radiation in sunlight.

Carotenoids（类胡萝卜素）, a nutrient found in brightly colored vegetables and fruits, are powerful protectors against free-radical damage. Research shows that simply eating leafy greens and other foods rich in these protective nutrients can   62   vision loss.

Problems with hearing can create   63   and insecurity in later years. One of the major causes of age-related hearing loss is damage to the hair cells in the inner ear that transmit sounds to the brain. These hair cells and their nerve endings can be damaged by infections, genetic diseases, or treatment with certain drugs. The most common cause,   64  , is loud noise.

50.   A. stick                B. devote               C. adapt                D. lead

51.   A. progress            B. process              C. program            D. project

52.   A. successfully       B. purposefully      C. unwillingly        D. carefully

53.   A. surprise             B. variation           C. increase             D. possibility

54.   A. relies on            B. accounts for       C. results from              D. lies in

55.   A. involve in         B. relate to            C. combine with     D. substitute for

56.   A. reputation         B. enjoyment               C. consumption      D. encouragement

57.   A. active               B. calm                 C. efficient            D. diligent

58.   A. maintaining              B. feeding             C. surviving           D. controlling

59.   A. keen                B. failing               C. sharp                D. remote

60.   A. generally           B. frequently         C. relatively           D. occasionally

61.   A. contribution      B. introduction       C. explanation        D. exposure

62.   A. cure                  B. relieve                     C. reduce               D. suffer

63.   A. communication  B. isolation            C. competition              D. occupation

64.   A. therefore           B. otherwise          C. moreover          D. however