B
Delia was a young pianist with a kind, generous nature. Her husband Joe was a young painter who was honest and hard-working. They lived in a small flat after they got married.
Each of them was taking lessons—Joe with a famous Art teacher, and Delia with a great pianist from Germany.
They were the best teachers, so lessons were expensive, more than they could really afford, but... when you love your art, nothing is too much.
And soon the money began to run out, and they couldn’t afford the lessons any more. Then one day, Delia came home and told Joe that she had met a man. The man’s daughter, Sally, wanted to learn the piano, and he was going to pay her 50 dollars an hour.
“Delia,” Joe said, “I’d be much happier if you go on with your lessons.” Delia said that it didn’t matter. She said, “When I’ve earned some money, I’ll start again. When you love your art, nothing is too much.” But Joe decided that he was also going to stop his lessons and paint pictures and try to sell them.
A few days later, Joe came home and proudly took 200 dollars from his pocket. Delia laughed and asked him where he’d got it. “A man from Vermont bought one of my paintings. And he wants to buy more!” So the two of them were happy for a while. They didn’t have to worry about finding the money to buy food and pay the bills. They missed their lessons, but that didn’t seem to matter.
Then, one day, Joe came home and saw that Delia’s hand was covered in a bandage (绷带). He asked her what had happened and if she was all right. “Oh,” said Delia. “My student, Sally, asked me to make some coffee for her. So I did, and I dropped the coffee and burned my hand. But she went straight to the medicine shop and got this bandage for me.”
Joe sat down and told Delia to sit down too. “Delia, what have you been doing the last two weeks?” he asked. She tried not to tell him, but then the tears began. “Oh, Joe, I couldn’t get students, so I got a job as a waitress in a restaurant. And today I burned my hand with hot water. So I can’t work any more. I’m sorry, Joe, but we’ll still have money from the man in Vermont, won’t we?”
Joe looked at her. “There’s no man in Vermont,” he said. “I haven’t sold any paintings. I’ve been working in a medicine shop, and today someone came from the restaurant to buy bandages for a woman who’d burned her hand. So when I saw you—well, I guessed.”
They both laughed. “So we’ve told each other lies,” said Joe. “But when you love your art, ...” Delia put her fingers to his lips. “No, Joe,” she said. “When you love someone, nothing is too much.”
(
) 4. Who does the underlined word “They” in paragraph 2 refer to?
A. The young couple Joe and Delia.
B. The rich man and his daughter Sally.
C. The Art teacher and the German pianist.
D. The man in Vermont and the waitress.
(
) 5. How did Joe feel when he heard Delia’s decision in paragraph 4?
A. Worried.
B. Excited.
C. Interested.
D. Happy.
(
) 6. Which is the CORRECT order of the following events?
a. Joe took painting lessons, and Delia took piano lessons.
b. They decided to stop their lessons and earn some money.
c. Their money ran out, so they couldn’t afford the lessons.
d. Delia and Joe told the truth to each other and laughed happily.
e. Delia and Joe got married and lived in a small flat.
A. e-a-c-b-d
B. a-e-c-b-d
C. a-e-d-b-c
D. e-d-a-c-b
(
) 7. What does the writer want to tell us?
A. The value of art.
B. The power of love.
C. The meaning of work.
D. The importance of money.
