第二节完形填空（共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分） 阅读下面短文，从短文后

问题：

第二节完形填空（共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分） 

阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C、D）中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

My wife and I moved into our home nine years ago. We16 a lot of time and 17  in the yard to get it looking the way it does today. We live on a corner, and the entire side of the yard is surrounded by a professionally built rock wall.

We did the best to cultivate(耕种) it and called this area our rock garden. 18   We had found flowers and plants, Denise or I will plant them, just to bring some 19 to the area.

Last summer I found a tiny little  plant that I could not immediately

20. I was sure that we didn’t plant it. We decided to let it 21 to grow until we could  22  what it was.

Weeks passed, and as I made my way back to the 23  plant, it appeared to be a sunflower. I 24 to nurture(培育) it and weed around it. As I picked up rocks from the area to get to the 25, I noticed something 26 . The sunflower had not started to grow from where I first saw the stalks(茎）appear. 27  it had begun under a big rock and grown under and around it to 28 the sun.

That's when I realized that if a tiny little sunflower wouldn't let a big rock stand in its way when growing up, then we have the29 to do the same.  30 we believe in ourselves, like that little sunflower, we can

31 the type of nourishment(营养）and growth. We need to believe in

32,  knowing that we have the ability to 33 our desires. If you stand all like the sunflower and are 34 of who and what you are, then the environment will begin to 35 you. You will find a way to go under or around your obstacles( 障碍）in order to reach your goals.

16. A. took         B. spent        C. cost         D. pay

17. A. strength     B. energy       C. power        D. force

18. A. However      B. When       C. Whenever     D. Whatever

19. A. weed         B. color        C. water        D. soil

20. A. classify      B. accept       C. clarify      D. identify

21. A. remain       B. prevent      C. continue     D. leave

22. A. figure out    B. hold out      C. stand out    D. try out

23. A. endangered   B. convenient    C. mysterious   D. enormous

24. A. refused      B. decided      C. adapted      D. proposed

25. A. seeds        B. stalks        C. rocks        D. weeds

26. A. unusual      B. common       C. fantastic    D. unnatural

27. A. Casually     B. Basically      C. Actually     D. Strangely

28. A. enlarge      B. expand       C. reach        D. spread

29. A. chance       B. choice       C. power        D. ability

30. A. What if      B. As far as      C. Only if      D. As long as

31. A. inspire      B. attain         C. lose         D. refuse

32. A. ourselves    B. yourselves     C. themselves   D. myself

33. A. preserve     B. comfort        C. achieve      D. suggest

34. A. ashamed      B. pride         C. proud        D. ambitious

35. A. ensure       B. support       C. satisfy      D. protect