Have you ever been sad because of failure? Please remember, for often, achieving what you set out to do is not the most important thing.
A boy decided to dig a deep hole behind his house. As he was working, a couple of older boys stopped by to watch. “What are you doing?” asked one of the visitors. “I want to dig a hole all the way through the earth!” the boy answered excitedly. The older boys began to laugh, telling him that digging a hole all the way through the earth was impossible. After a while, the boy picked up a jar. He showed it to the visitors. It was full of all kinds of stones and insects. Then he said calmly and confidently, “Maybe I can’t finish digging all the way through the earth, but look at what I’ve found during this period!”
The boy’s goal was far too difficult, but it did cause him to go on. And that is what a goal is for — to cause us to move in the direction we have chosen, in other words, to cause us to keep working!
Not every goal will be fully achieved. Not every job will end up with a success. Not every dream will come true. But when you fall short of your aim, maybe you can say, “Yes, but look what I’ve found along the way! There are so many wonderful things having come into my life because I tried to do something!” It is in the digging that life is lived. It is the unexpected joy on the journey that really makes sense.
小题1:The older boys laughed at the boy because he was thought to be .
A．brave
B．impolite
C．foolish
D．warm-hearted小题2:Why did the boy show the jar to the older boys?
A．To drive them away.
B．To show what he had found in digging.
C．To show how beautiful the jar was.
D．To attract them to join him in the work.小题3:What can be learnt from the fourth paragraph of the text?
A．Not dream can come true.
B．All work will end successfully.
C．Goals shouldn't be set too high
D．Goals will make us work harder.小题4:The best title for the text should be .
A．Joy in the Journey
B．A Boy Dug a Hole
C．No Pains, No Gains
D．Failure Is the Mother of Success
小题1:C
小题2:B
小题3:D
小题4:A
设定的目标一定要成功吗？未必!文章给我们讲述的就是这样一个道理。
小题1:推理题。根据第二段第三行The older boys began to laugh, telling him that digging a hole all the way through the earth was impossible.可知他们认为这个男孩在做不可能的事情，一定是愚蠢的。
小题2:细节题。根据第二段最后两行。“Maybe I can’t finish digging all the way through the earth, but look at what I’ve found during this period!”
小题3:段落大意题。根据第四段内容可知有了目标可以让我们 keep working。
小题4:主旨大意题。文章号召我们设定目标，然后为之努力，不一定会成功，但是有了目标可以让我们更加努力认真。