It was a cold winter. The day my husband fell to his death, it started to snow, just
36 any November day. His
37 , when I found it, was lightly covered with snow. It snowed almost every day for the next four months, while I sat on the couch and watched it
38 . One morning, I walked slowly
39 and was surprised to see a snow remover clearing my driveway and the bent back of a woman clearing my walk. I dropped to my knees and crawled back upstairs,
40 those good people would not see me. I was
41 . My first thought was, how would I ever
42 them? I didn’t have the
43 to brush my hair,
44 clear someone’s walk.
Before Jon’s death, I felt proud that I
45 asked for favors. I identified myself by my competence（能力） and
46 . So who was I if I was no longer capable? How could I
47 myself if I just sat on the couch every day and watched the snow fall?
Learning to receive the love and
48 from others wasn’t easy. Friends cooked for me and I cried. Finally, my friend Kathy said, “Mary, cooking for you isn’t a
49 for me; it makes me feel good to be able to do something for you.”
Over and over, I heard
50 words from the people who supported me during those
51 days. One wise man told me, “You aren’t doing nothing because being fully open to your
52 may be the hardest work you will ever do.”
I am not the person I
53 was, but in many ways I have changed for the
54 . I’ve been surprised to learn that there is incredible freedom coming from
55 one’s worst fear and walking away whole. I believe there is strength, for sure, in accepting a dark period of our life.
| 小题2: | | A．body | B．soul | C．shoe | D．footprint |
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| 小题3: | | A．sweep up | B．drop off | C．fall down | D．pile up |
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| 小题4: | | A．upstairs | B．downstairs | C．indoors | D．outdoors |
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| 小题6: | | A．delighted | B．disappointed | C．annoyed | D．ashamed |
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| 小题7: | | A．pay | B．award | C．reward | D．treat |
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| 小题8: | | A．courage | B．strength | C．spirit | D．power |
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| 小题9: | | A．stand alone | B．leave alone | C．sit alone | D．let alone |
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| 小题10: | | A．frequently | B．gradually | C．hardly | D．uncertainly |
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| 小题11: | | A．intelligence | B．independence | C．excellence | D．qualification |
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| 小题12: | | A．achieve | B．praise | C．respect | D．promote |
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| 小题13: | | A．supply | B．support | C．contribution | D．similar |
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| 小题14: | | A．burden | B．job | C．business | D．sorrow |
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| 小题15: | | A．sensitive | B．same | C．considerate | D．similar |
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| 小题16: | | A．blue | B．rainy | C．bright | D．snowy |
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| 小题17: | | A．despair | B．difficulty | C．pain | D．regret |
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| 小题18: | | A．still | B．once | C．even | D．never |
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| 小题19: | | A．worse | B．less | C．more | D．better |
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| 小题20: | | A．facing | B．noticing | C．managing | D．expressing |
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