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何高伦

暑期的一份工作，让本文中的主人公明白了成长的意义。

My dad， George， only had an eighth grade education. He was a quiet man and he didnt understand my world of school activities. From age 14， he worked. And his dad， Albert， took the money my dad earned and used it to pay family expenses.

I didnt really understand his world either. He was a livestock trucker， and I thought that I would surpass（超过） anything he had accomplished by the time I walked across the stage at high school graduation.

The summer before my eighth grade， I was one of a group of boys that a neighboring farmer hired to work in his field. He explained our basic task， the tractor fired up and we were off， riding down the field looking for weeds to spray with chemicals. After a short way， the farmer stopped and pointed at a weed which we missed. Then we began again. It was tiring work， but I looked forward to the pay， even though I wasnt sure how much it would amount to.

At home， my dad said， “A job is a big step to growing up. Im glad you will be contributing to

the household.” My dads words made me realize that my earnings might not be mine as I wished. My labors lasted about two weeks， and the farmer said there might be more work， but I wasnt interested. I thought it was not fair that I had to contribute my money.

The pay arrived at last. Although the job was very tiring， I was very happy in my heart for I got something from my work. The toil （勞累的工作） of labor was forgotten for the time being. “How much money have you earned？” Dad asked. I was surprised， reluctant to say my income. The next morning， my dads livestock truck started running. I saw my fathers hard-working figure and thought of his words “A job is a big step to growing up”.

I understood immediately that my labor was very hard， but my growth and our whole family had been depending on the hard work of my parents！ Dad never complained about unfairness and he has worked for so many years！ In the evening， Dad came back. I proudly took out my own money and handed it to Dad.

[Reading][Check]

1. What can we know about the authors father？

A. He lived a rich life.

B. He was well-educated.

C. He was an outgoing man.

D. He worked at a young age.

2. What was the author hired to do by a neighboring farmer？

A. Distinguish different chemicals.

B. Deal with harmful weeds.

C. Wash tractors.

D. Watch the field.

3. What does the underlined word “reluctant” mean in paragraph 5？

A. Delighted.

B. Content.

C. Unwilling.

D. Proud.

[Language][Study]

Complete the following sentences using the proper forms of the given words in the box.

1. She must                 a lot of money.

2. My knowledge of French is pretty              .

3. The garden was transformed at great                .

4. Many adults still                 on their parents greatly.

5. It was one of his greatest               .

6. The hospital says shes out of                 danger.