The lost ring

陕西 吕 品

当保拉失去一枚20 周年纪念戒指时，她感到非常失落，然而热心人的帮助却给了她惊喜……

主题语境：生活 篇幅：358词 建议用时：7分钟

1Paula was living a happy life without a concern for financial or social problems.Married for almost 30 years,Paula had everything set for herself, and she knew that her life in Somers Point, New Jersey was going to be a thrilling one.

2Paula was in the bathroom cleaning everything up.She wanted to keep her family's home clean and beautiful.She had her ring on that her husband,Michael,bought for their 20th anniversary.As soon as Paula finished washing the bath tub, something fell off, but she couldn't think of what it was.She noticed that her left ring finger felt a bit lighter.She was horrified to see that the ring was gone.Paula said,“It had been a little big on my finger,because it was winter time and my hands were smaller.I felt so bad about it.”

3She couldn't believe that she just let thousands of dollars go down the drain.She told her husband everything that happened.Michael was quiet through the entire explanation,and his face didn't show any anger.Paula was completely shocked by Michael's reaction to the situation.After Paula finished her explanation, Michael decided to buy her another ring,exactly like the one she lost.

4As suddenly as the ring disappeared, an identical ring suddenly reappeared on her finger as if she never lost one in the first place.However, the guilt of Paula's mistake was still with her.Fast forward seven years, her hopes of finding it were still high.Determined to rediscover it, Paula contacted Ted, the chief of the city's public works crew.Ted and his crew went into a sewer (下水道) tunnel about 400 feet from Paula's house.When doing maintenance (维 护), Ted saw something shiny under the waste.After grabbing it and rubbing the muck off,he realized it was a ring.

5Ted got in touch with Paula and gave the long-lost ring to her.Paula's eyes immediately picked out the features.This was her ring.Needless to say, it was a miracle that nobody was expecting.After seven years,Paula finally feels complete again.

Reading Check

Detail1.What did Paula do after realizing that her ring was missing?

A.She immediately started looking for it in her house.

B.She felt bad and told it to her husband.

C.She laughed it off and didn't tell anyone.

D.She bought herself another ring at once.

Detail2.How did Michael react when Paula told him about losing the ring?

A.He got angry and scolded her.

B.He immediately went to search for the ring.

C.He was quiet and didn't take it seriously.

D.He asked Paula to help search for the ring in the sewer tunnel.

Vocabulary3.Which word can replace the underlined word“muck”in paragraph 4?

A.Waste.B.Water.C.Tunnel.D.Diamond.

Detail4.How did Paula feel after receiving her lost ring?

A.She felt guilty about losing the ring in the first place.

B.She thought it was normal to find the ring.

C.She didn't care much and thought it was just a ring.

D.She felt relieved and complete again.

Language Study

Ⅰ.日积月累

concernn.忧虑

financialadj.财务的

socialadj.社交的；社会的

thrillingadj.激动人心的

anniversaryn.周年纪念日

horrifiedadj.惊恐的；惊骇的

explanationn.解释；说明

shockedadj.震惊的；吃惊的

reactionn.反应；回应

identicaladj.相同的

guiltn.内疚；罪责

grabv.抓住

miraclen.奇迹

completeadj.完整的；完全的

Ⅱ.语法填空

Paula,1.________(live)a happy and worry-free life in Somers Point,New Jersey,had a shocking experience when she 2.________(realize) her expensive ring was missing.Despite feeling 3.________(guilt), she told her husband Michael all about it.However,Michael chose to 4.________(surprising) her with another ring, exactly like the one she lost.After seven 5.________(year), the unexpected thing happened 6.________a sewer worker named Ted found the lost ring during maintenance, bringing a miracle for Paula.7.________(final) reunited with her cherished ring after so many years, Paula felt complete again.This heartwarming story highlights the importance of hope,8.________(determine),and the power of unexpected miracles.