During the war, my husband was stationed at an army camp in a desert in California. I went to live there in order to be 21 him. I hated the place. I had never 22 been so unhappy. My husband was ordered out on a long-term duty, and I was left in a tiny shack(棚屋) alone. The heat was 23 -almost 125 degrees even in the shade of a cactus(仙人掌). 24 a soul to talk to. The wind blew non-stop, and all the food I ate, and the very air I breathed, were 25 with sand, sand, sand!
I was so sorry for myself that I wrote to my parents. I told them I was 26 and coming back home. I said I couldn’t stand it one minute longer. I 27 be in prison! My father answered my 28 with just two lines-two lines that will always sing in my 29 - two lines that completely changed my life:
Two men looked out from prison bars,
One saw the mud, the other saw the stars.
I read those two lines 30 . I was ashamed of myself. I made up my mind I would find out what was good in my present 31 ; I would look for the stars.
I made friends with the natives, and their 32 amazed me. They gave me presents of their favorite artworks which they had 33 to sell to tourists. I studied the delightful forms of the cactus . I watched for the desert sunsets, and 34 for seashells that had been left there millions of years ago when the desert had been an ocean 35 .
What brought about this 36 change in me? The desert hadn’t changed, 37 I had . I had changed my 38 . And by doing so, I changed an unhappy experience into the most amazing 39 of my life. I was excited by this new world that I had discovered. I had looked out of my self-created prison and 40 the stars.
21.A. off B. behind C. near D. beyond
22.A. before B. already C. then D. still
23. A. inflexible B. incomprehensible C. uncontrollable D. unbearable
24.A. Only B. Not C. Many D. Such
25.A. covered B. filled C. buried D. charged
26.A. catching up B. keeping up C. giving up D. getting up
27.A. ought to B. might well C. would rather D. had better
28. A. request B. call C. question D. letter
29. A. comparison B. imagination C. consideration D. memory
30.A. over and over B. by and by C. up and down D. now and then
31.A. company B. occupation C. situation D. relationship
32.A. movement B. reaction C. guidance D. purpose
33.A. refused B. failed C. managed D. happened
34.A. asked B. hunted C. waited D. headed
35.A. floor B. surface C. rock D. level
36.A. frightening B. challenging C. puzzling D. astonishing
37.A. as B. but C. for D. or
38.A. attitude B. principle C. identity D. standard
39. A. vacation B. operation C. affair D. adventure
40.A. sought B. counted C. found D. reached