My sister and I grew up in a small village in England. Our father was a struggling 1 , but I always knew he was 2 . He never criticized us, but used 3 to bring out our best. Hed say, “If you pour water on flowers, they flourish (茁壯成長). If you dont give them water, they die.” I 4 as a child I said something 5 about somebody, and my father said, “Sometimes you say something 6 about somebody else, its a reflection of you.” He explained that if I looked for the best 7 people, I would get the best 8 . From then on Ive always tried to 9 the principle in my life and later in running my company.

Dads also always been very 10 . At 15, I started a magazine. It was 11 a great deal of my time, and the headmaster of my school gave me a 12 : stay in school or leave to work on my magazine.

I decided to leave, and dad tried to sway (動(dòng)搖) me from my decision, 13 any good father would. When he realized I had made up my mind, he said, “Richard, when I was 23, my dad 14 me to go into law. And Ive 15 regretted it. I wanted to be a biologist, 16 I didnt pursue my 17 . You know what you want. Go fulfill it.”

As 18 turned out, my little publication went on to become Student, a national 19 for young people in the UK. My wife and I have two children, and Id like to think we are bringing them up in the same way dad 20 me.

1. A. biologist B. manager C. lawyer D. gardener

2. A. strict B. honest C. special D. learned

3. A. praise B. courage C. power D. warmth

4. A. think B. imagine C. remember D. guess

5. A. unnecessary B. unkind C. unimportant D. unusual

6. A. interesting B. unpleasant C. surprising D. exciting

7. A. on B. in C. at D. about

8. A. in case B. by turns C. by chance D. in return

9. A. revise B. set C. review D. follow

10. A. understanding B. experienced C. serious D. demanding

11. A. taking up B. making up C. picking up D. keeping up

12. A. suggestion B. decision C. notice D. choice

13. A. and B. as C. even if D. as if

14. A. helped B. allowed C. persuaded D. suggested

15. A. always B. never C. seldom D. almost

16. A. rather B. but C. for D. therefore

17. A. promise B. task C. belief D. dream

18. A. this B. he C. it D. that

19. A. newspaper B. magazine C. program D. project

20. A. controlled B. comforted C. reminded D. raised