When I was growing up, I had an old neighbor named Doctor Gibbs. He didn't look like any doctor I'd ever known. He never yelled at us for playing in his yard, but was always very kind.
When Doctor Gibbs wasn't saving lives, he was planting trees. He had some interesting theories about planting trees. He believed in the principle: "No pains, no gains". He hardly watered his new trees, which flew in the face of conventional wisdom. Once I asked why and he told me that watering plants spoiled them because it made them grow weaker. He said you had to make things tough for the trees so that only the strongest could survive. He talked about how watering trees made them develop shallow roots and how, if they were not watered, trees would grow deep roots in search of water. So, instead of watering his trees every morning, he'd beat them with a rolled-up newspaper. I asked him why he did that, and he said it was to get the tree's attention.
Doctor Gibbs died a couple of years after I left home. Every now and then, I walked by his house and looked at the trees that I'd watched him plant some twenty five years ago. They were all tall and strong.
I planted a couple of trees myself a few years ago. Two years of attending these trees meant they grew up weak. Whenever a cold wind blew, their branches trembled. Adversity(逆境) seemed to benefit Doctor Gibb's trees in ways comfort and ease never could.
Every night before I go to bed, I check on my two sons. I often pray that their lives will be easy. But lately I've been thinking that it's time to change my prayer. I know my children are going to meet with hardship. There's always a cold wind blowing somewhere. What we need to do is to pray for deep roots, so when the rains fall and the winds blow, we won't be torn apart.
【小题1】With the trees planted, Doctor Gibbs often __________.
| A．paid little attention to them |
| B．kept watering them every morning |
| C．talked to them to get their attention |
| D．beat them to make them grow deep roots |
【小题2】What does the author think of the way Doctor Gibbs planted trees?
| A．Strange and harmful. |
| B．Interesting and funny. |
| C．Cruel and unacceptable. |
| D．Original and reasonable. |
【小题3】Which prayer does the author wish for his sons?
| A．Meet people like Dr Gibbs in the future. |
| B．Be able to stand the rain and wind in their lives. |
| C．Have an easy life, without too much to worry about. |
| D．Have good luck, encountering less hardship in their life. |
【小题4】Which of the following can be the best title of the passage?
| A．Prayers for my sons |
| B．Doctor Gibbs and his trees |
| C．Growing roots |
| D．Watering trees |
