山西 樊靈龍

Debra Ferrell got the standard well wishes on Facebook on her 53rd birthday,but she got some unusual messages too.One was about a family in Minnesota who had just lost their fouryear-old son to cancer.His older brother,autistic and non-verbal,was especially grief-stricken(悲痛欲絕的).Could Ferrell help?

That message and the 30 or so others like it were exactly what Ferrell was looking for.To celebrate her 53rd birthday,the longtime social service professional and certified sweetie had published a call on her Facebook page.She wanted to commit 53 random acts of kindness by the end of her birth month,and she needed information on people who could use one.When she got the note about the Minnesota family,she sent a wind chime with the message“Listen to the wind and know that I am near”inscribed on the clapper （鈴舌）.It now hangs in the fouryear-old's bedroom,where his brother can go to listen to it whenever he wants.

This is not the first time that Ferrell decided to give gifts for her birthday.For her 47th birthday,she founded Love with Skin On,an organization dedicated to doing good deeds near her home in Roanoke,Virginia,and beyond.Its motto is simple:Be Love;Do Stuff.

Over the years,Ferrell has reached out and touched well over 100 strangers,some found via Facebook call-outs（上門服務）,others with the help from her grandkids.In another act of giving,she shares her favorite inexpensive and creative gift ideas on Pinterest for others to use.

Ferrell pays for everything herself:gift cards,fresh flowers,toys,balloons and care packages.Her family often gives her some extra birthday cash with a serious warning not to spend it on anyone else,which she naturally ignores.“I got a couple of Amazon gift cards for my birthday this year and was like ‘YESSS! ’”It's Ferrell's party,and she'll give if she wants to.

1.Why does Debra Ferrell give gifts for her birthday?

A.She wanted to celebrate her birthday.

B.She wanted to get great reputation.

C.She wanted to help others in need.

D.She wanted to make herself famous.

2.What do the underlined words “dedicated to”in paragraph 3 probably mean?

A.Devoted to. B.Familiar with.

C.Accustomed to. D.Dealing with.

3.How did Debra Ferrell plan to celebrate her 53rd birthday?

A.She wanted to go out for a travel.

B.She wanted to do 53 small acts of kindness.

C.She wanted to buy herself a lot of presents.

D.She wanted to donate her money to a charity on her 53rd birthday.

4.Which of the following can best describe Debra Ferrell?

A.Helpful and adaptable.

B.Kind and generous.

C.Negative but hospitable.

D.Hopeful but anxious.

Difficult sentences in the text

1.When she got the note about the Minnesota family,she sent a wind chime with the message“Listen to the wind and know that I am near”inscribed on the clapper.當她收到有關明尼蘇達州那一家人的消息時，她送出了一個鈴舌上附有“聽到風聲就知道我在附近”的信息的風鈴。

【點石成金】句中的with the message“Listen to the wind and know that I am near”inscribed on the clapper為with的復合結構，修飾a wind chime；其中Listen to the wind and know that I am near是message的同位語，inscribed on the clapper作賓語the message的補足語。

2.Her family often gives her some extra birthday cash with a serious warning not to spend it on anyone else,which she naturally ignores.她的家人經(jīng)常在她生日時給她一些額外的現(xiàn)金，并嚴肅地警告她不要把它花在別人身上，她很自然地忽視這一點。

【點石成金】本句是一個復合句，句中的gives her some extra birthday cash是一個give接雙賓語的結構，后面的which引導非限制性定語從句，which在從句中作ignore的賓語。