It’s not easy to be an astronaut’s son. Everybody expects you to be special or perfect. I often wonder how my father ever had a son like me. I mean he’s so special and so good at everything he does. Even in middle school he was class president and captain of the football team.
　　Well, to be honest, I often dream about being some kind of hero or doing something special—like saving a child from a burning building or discovering a new star. I was daydreaming at school one morning when my teacher said there would be a Father’s Day writing competition for the whole school. “I hope we have a winner right here in my class.”
　　When I got home, I started to think about what to write. My father is an astronaut. N0, I wouldn’t start like that. That was the way others saw him. How did I see my father? Hmm.
　　I saw him sitting with me in the dark when I had a terrible dream. I remembered how he hugged me for hours when my dog Spotty was killed by a car. Yes, these were the things I was going to write. To me, he wasn’t just a world-famous astronaut. He was my dad.
　　My parents and I went to school on Thursday night．There were so many people in the big hall! My dad looked at me, and I shrugged(聳肩)．
　　The third prize was announced and it was not me. I was relieved(釋然)and disappointed at the same time. The second prize was announced. It was me.
　　1 went up to the stage and read what I had written, “My father’s son”. When I finished, the people stood up and cheered. I saw my father blowing his nose. Tears were running down my mother's face. Dad cleared his throat and put his hand on my shoulder. “Son, this is the proudest moment of my life.’’
　　It was the proudest moment of my life, too. Maybe I’ll never be a great hero or win a Nobel Prize, but it was enough just to be my father’s son

1. 1.

   The writer felt it_________ to be the son of a famous person．

   1. A.
      1ucky
   2. B.
      natural
   3. C.
      hard
   4. D.
      pleasant
2. 2.

   In order to_________ the writer would like to save a child from a burning building．

   1. A.
      become astronaut
   2. B.
      become a great hero
   3. C.
      be made school team captain
   4. D.
      be made class president
3. 3.

   What did the boy probably write in his composition?

   1. A.
      A lot of special things he had done．
   2. B.
      The story of his father as an astronaut．
   3. C.
      The unforgettable time he spent with his father．
   4. D.
      The experiences his father had in middle school．
4. 4.

   What is the best title for the passage?

   1. A.
      My daydream
   2. B.
      My father’s son
   3. C.
      My famous father
   4. D.
      My happy family

Ben
When I left school five years ago, I said to myself, “That’s that! No more learning for me．Now I can enjoy myself in the evening．” But about a year ago the boss said, “We’re going to get a computer in the near future．” What does he mean? I simply don’t know．Anyway, I decided to go to evening classes．I’m quite an expert(專家) on computers now and you know, I actually enjoy studying．
Eve
I haven’t much interest in studying．To be honest, I don’t like reading very much, except for magazines and that sort of thing．Just reading, that is, to kill the time．But I do enjoy watching TV．Not that I watch everything．In fact, I choose my programmes very carefully．I’m particularly interested in current affairs(時事)．In some ways I think I learn more in this way than I did at school．
Ted
I’m a very different sort of person－I simply love doing things．That’s why I enjoy sports so much．I mean, actually playing．I hardly ever watch it on TV, but I do read quite a bit about it．I’m even interested in the history of sports．I don’t have much time for anything else, except that I quite like dancing．Some people say I’m not very good at it, though．
Joan
I should say I have great interest in studying．I’d rather do this than anything else．Since I left school．I’ve taken courses in all sorts of things．I go to the city library once a week, but I much prefer evening classes because it’s more fun that way．My latest “craze（狂熱）”－if you can call it that －is foreign languages．I’m learning two, not one!
【小題1】According to what they say, which of the following is NOT TRUE?

When I left school five years ago, I said to myself, “That’s that! No more learning for me．Now I can enjoy myself in the evening．” But about a year ago the boss said, “We’re going to get a computer in the near future．” What does he mean? I simply don’t know．Anyway, I decided to go to evening classes．I’m quite an expert(專家) on computers now and you know, I actually enjoy studying．
Eve
I haven’t much interest in studying．To be honest, I don’t like reading very much, except for magazines and that sort of thing．Just reading, that is, to kill the time．But I do enjoy watching TV．Not that I watch everything．In fact, I choose my programmes very carefully．I’m particularly interested in current affairs(時事)．In some ways I think I learn more in this way than I did at school．
Ted
I’m a very different sort of person-I simply love doing things．That’s why I enjoy sports so much．I mean, actually playing．I hardly ever watch it on TV, but I do read quite a bit about it．I’m even interested in the history of sports．I don’t have much time for anything else, except that I quite like dancing．Some people say I’m not very good at it, though．
Joan
I should say I have great interest in studying．I’d rather do this than anything else．Since I left school．I’ve taken courses in all sorts of things．I go to the city library once a week, but I much prefer evening classes because it’s more fun that way．My latest “craze（狂熱）”-if you can call it that -is foreign languages．I’m learning two, not one!

1. 1.

   According to what they say, which of the following is NOT TRUE?

   1. A.
      Ben was pleased to leave school．
   2. B.
      Eve does not spend much time in reading．
   3. C.
      Ted spends a lot of time watching his favorite sport on TV．
   4. D.
      Joan is learning languages in the evening school．
2. 2.

   Among the four people, _____ are considered to have made good use of time in studying．

   1. A.
      Ben and Eve
   2. B.
      Eve and Ted
   3. C.
      Ted and Joan
   4. D.
      Ben and Joan
3. 3.

   In the future, we can infer(推斷) that ________．

   1. A.
      Joan may speak one of foreign languages well．
   2. B.
      Eve will study computers
   3. C.
      Ben is interested in current affairs．
   4. D.
      Joan prefers going to the city libraries．
4. 4.

   The sentence “That’s that!” means ________．

   1. A.
      Ben thinks he never need to learn
   2. B.
      Ben wants to learn that
   3. C.
      Ben would like to go on studying
   4. D.
      Ben will learn from others

I never saw my father home from work late or ill, nor did I ever see my father take a “night out with the boys”. He had no bobbies but just took care of his family.
For 22 years, since I left home for college, my father called me every Sunday at 9:00 am. He was always interested in my life-how my family was doing. The calls even came when he and my mother were in Australia, England or Florida.
Nine years ago when I bought me first house, my father, 67 years old, spent eight hours a day for three days, painting my house. He would not allow me to pay someone to have it done. All he asked, was a glass of iced tea, and that I hold a paintbrush for him and talk to him. But I was too busy, for I had a law practice to run, and I could not take the time to hold the paintbrush, or talk to my father.
Five years ago, my 71-year-old father spent five hours putting together a swing set（秋千）for my daughter. Again, all he asked was that I get him a glass of iced tea, and talk to him, But again, I had laundry to do, and the house to clean.
The morning on Sunday, January 16, 1995, my father telephoned me as usual, this time he had seemed to have forgotten some things we had discussed the week before. I had to get to church, and I cut the conversation short.
The call came at 4:40 am. That day my father was sent to hospital in Florida. I got on a plane immediately, and I vowed（發誓）that when I arrived, I would make up for the lost time, and have a nice long talk with him ad really get to know him.
I arrived in Florida at 1:00 am, but my father had passed away at 9:12 pm. This time it was he who did not have time to talk, or time to wait for me.
In the years since his death I have learnt much about my father, and even more about every single day.
【小題1】 We know from the reading that the father_____.