Question

As a young boy, I sometimes traveled the country roads with my dad. He was a rural mail carrier, and on Saturdays he would ask me to go with him. Driving through the countryside was always an adventure: There were animals to see, people to visit, and chocolate cookies if you knew where to stop, and Dad did.

In the spring, Dad delivered boxes full of baby chickens, and when I was a boy it was such fun to stick your fingers through one of the holes of the boxes and let the baby birds peck on your fingers.

On Dad's final day of work, it took him well into the evening to complete his rounds because at least one member from each family was waiting at their mailbox to thank him for his friendship and his years of service. "Two hundred and nineteen mailboxes on my route," he used to say, “and a story at every one." One lady had no mailbox, so Dad took the mail in to her every day because she was nearly blind. Once inside, he read her mail and helped her pay her bills.

Mailboxes were sometimes used for things other than mail. One note left in a mailbox read, "Nat, take these eggs to Marian; she's baking a cake and doesn't have any eggs." Mailboxes might be buried in the snow, or broken, or lying on the ground, but the mail was always delivered. On cold days Dad might find one of his customers(顧客) waiting for him with a cup of hot chocolate. A young girl wrote letters but had no stamps, so she left a few buttons（紐扣）on the envelope in the mailbox; Dad paid for the stamps. One businessman used to leave large amounts of cash（現金）in his mailbox for Dad to take to the bank. Once, the amount came to $ 32,000.

Ten years ago, when I traveled back to my hometown on the sad occasion of Dad's death, the mailboxes along the way reminded（回想） me of some of his stories. I thought I knew them all, but that wasn't the ease.

As I drove home, I noticed two lamp poles(桿), one on each side of the street. When my dad was around, those poles supported wooden boxes about four feet off the ground. One box was painted green, and the other was red, and each had a long narrow hole at the top with white lettering: SANTA CLAUS, NORTH POLE. For years children had dropped letters to Santa through those holes.

I made a turn at the comer and drove past the post office and across the railroad tracks to our house. Mom and I were sitting at the kitchen table when I heard footsteps. There, at the door, stood Frank Townsend, Dad's postmaster and great friend for many years. So we all sat down at the table and began to tell stories.

At one point Frank looked at me with tears in his eyes. "What are we going to do about the letters this Christmas?" he asked.

"The letters?"

"I guess you never knew."

"Knew what?"

"Remember, when you were a kid and you used to put your letters to Santa in those green and red boxes on Main Street? It was your dad who answered all those letters every year. "

I just sat there with tears in my eyes. It wasn't hard for me to imagine Dad sitting at the old oak table in our basement reading those letters and answering each one. I have since spoken with several of the people who received Christmas letters during their childhood, and they told me how amazed they were that Santa had known so much about their homes and families.

For me, just knowing that story about my father was the gift of a lifetime.

1.It can be inferred from the passage that the writer considered his travels with Dad as .

A. great chances to help other people

B. happy occasions to play with baby chickens

C. exciting experiences with a lot of fun

D. good opportunities to enjoy chocolate cookies

2.The writer provides the detail about the businessman to show that .

A. Dad had a strong sense of duty

B. Dad was an honest and reliable man

C. Dad had a strong sense of honor

D. Dad was a kind and generous man

3.According to the passage, which of the following impressed the writer most?

A. Dad read letters for a blind lady for years.

B. Dad paid for the stamps for a young girl.

C. Dad delivered some eggs to Marian.

D. Dad answered children's Christmas letters every year.

4.What surprised the children most when they received letters in reply( 回復) from Santa Claus every year?

A. Santa Claus lived alone in the cold North Pole.

B. Santa Claus answered all their letters every year.

C. Santa Claus had unique mailboxes for the children.

D. Santa Claus had so much information about their families.

5.Which of the following is the best title for the passage?

A. The Mail B. Christmas Letters

C. Special Mailboxes D. Memorable Travels

Answer 1

1.C

2.B

3.D

4.D

5.A

【解析】

試題分析：本文講述了一個感人至深的故事：作者的父親是位普通的郵遞員，簡單充實郵遞生活給童年的他留下深刻的印象。但他不知道的是：是父親每年裝作圣誕老人堅持給孩子們回復郵件，給孩子們帶來莫大的驚喜和滿足。

1.C推理判斷題 根據文章第一段的“Driving through the countryside was always an adventure”及后面兩段所經歷的見聞可知，和父親一起運送郵件充滿了樂趣，C項表述符合文意，故選C。

2.B推理判斷題 根據第四段的最后兩句“One businessman used to leave large amounts of cash（現金）in his mailbox for Dad to take to the bank. Once, the amount came to $ 32,000”可知，商人把那么多錢放在郵箱里托付給父親存入銀行，可見父親是誠實、可以信賴的。故選Ｂ。

3.D 推理判斷題 根據第五段的“I thought I knew them all, but that wasn't the ease.”和第八段的“At one point Frank looked at me with tears in his eyes.”及最后幾段回憶父親裝成圣誕老人給孩子們回信的事情，可以推斷出D項的描述讓作者印象最深刻。故選D。

4.D 細節理解題 根據倒數第二段最后一句“and they told me how amazed they were that Santa had known so much about their homes and families”可知，讓孩子們最驚奇的是，圣誕老人知道這么多有關家人的信息。D項表述符合文意，故選D。

5.5】A 標題歸納題 通讀全文可知，作者以mail 為主線，回憶了郵遞員父親簡單充實的郵遞生活，Ａ項符合文意；B、C、D涉及的是文章的細節，不能作為標題。故選A。

考點：考查日常生活類短文閱讀