B
I can still see myself, aged 8. On a warm early summer evening, I stopped in front of a music store because something caught my eye—a shiny clarinet (单簧管). I begged (乞求) my parents for a whole year, and they finally gave in and let me take lessons.
Week after week, I rode down city streets to the music store, where I took lessons from Mr Markiewicz, an old man who wasn't very child-friendly. It's an especially difficult instrument to play well—something about breath control, managing one's tongue and fingers, and keeping spit (口水) from blocking the instrument.
Getting one moving tone out of a clarinet is a real success. I remember the first time that I got a clear note out of the instrument. It took about five days. I felt so proud when I finally made it. And then I made every effort to practise those basic skills, yet Mr Markiewicz wore a disappointed look and shook his head as I hit one wrong note after another. But I stuck to practising. Other kids who had taken up the clarinet gave it up one by one.
After college, other things took over. But my mind went back to the good times I'd had with the clarinet from time to time. Yes, my dear, we were young and starry-eyed, but weren't those happy days? What happened to us? Where did they go?
I decided to reach out to that long-ago love and ask if
she remembered me, the boy who had many heartfelt musical conversations with her. So I reintroduced myself. To my joy, what came from the clarinet was a clear middle C that sounded so beautiful. It felt like the whole world was listening. I continued to play as long as my mouthpiece would hold out. I lost her once and won't lose her again.
The famous writer Isaac Bashevis Singer once wrote, "In love, as in other matters, the young are just beginners and ... the art of loving matures (成熟) with age and experience."
He must have been a clarinetist.
(
B
) 4. What was the writer's parents' attitude (态度) to his learning clarinet at first?
A. Supportive. B. Unwilling. C. Curious. D. Cold.
(
D
) 5. What can we learn about the writer from his experiences of learning the clarinet?
A. He was confident but practised little. B. He was talented and learned fast.
C. He was down and regretted his choice.
D. He was patient and wouldn't give up easily.
(
C
) 6. What does the underlined word "she" in paragraph 5 refer to?
A. Mrs Markiewicz. B. A lovely song.
C. The clarinet he owned. D. His college friend.
(
D
) 7. How did the writer describe his replaying the clarinet?
A. By telling a romantic personal story. B. By regretting not keeping practising.
C. By thinking of his sweet memory with music.
D. By comparing it to a get-together with someone he once loved.
(
C
) 8. What do Isaac's words imply (说明)?
A. Practice makes perfect. B. Youth is life's greatest gift.
C. Love gets deeper with time D. Memory blinds judgment
