“We started as a group of friends with the same problem: difficulty in our personal life to manage our time, being always in a hurry.” This thought was recently offered by Bruno to explain the origin of The Art of Living Slowly, an organization that he founded two years ago, with his wife, Ella.
Bruno and Ella said they decided to draw more people’s attention to the overlooked idea that “time is wealth.” On February 19th last year, they created a new holiday, the first Global Day of Slow Living. Despite its ambitious name, the event was limited almost entirely to Italy, where the couple arranged a number of events: a reverse bicycle race in which the last rider was declared the winner; an afternoon of grandfathers reading poetry to children etc.
One Monday in late February, 2008, the couple staged a New York version (版本) of the Day of Slow Living. “It has to be a Monday, the worst day to try to slow down.” Bruno explained. Bruno was wearing a police cap, mirrored sunglasses, and a sandwich board stating, “Watch out! Speed-walking camera is in action!” He flagged down passers-by and handed them postcards printed with fourteen “slowmandments.” For example, No. 4: Write your text message on your cell phone with no symbols and get in the habit of starting with “Dear …” No 7: Avoid being so busy that you don’t have time for yourself. Bruno told the passers-by to read them once a day and keep the doctor away.
Many said, “I can’t do this. New York is too fast.” Bruno admitted. But many stopped, they read and said. “This one is good for me, because trying to slow down is like trying to stop smoking.”
When asked about their plans for the future. Bruno and Ella looked at each other and chanted the name of the city they have chosen for next year’s Global Day of Slow Living, “Tokyo!”
68. The Art of Living Slowly was founded to help people .
A．understand the truth of life. B．know the difficulty in managing time
C．avoid being in a hurry all the time D．make friends with the same problem
69. What did Bruno do in New York?
A．He advertised his idea on a sandwich board.
B．He stopped passers-by and delivered postcards.
C．He served as a policeman to prevent accidents.
D．He took photos for the people who walked fast.
70. Which statement may be included in the fourteen “slowmandments” in paragraph 3?
A．Wake up five minutes earlier. B．Do two things at the same time.
C．Make a habit of writing letters. D．Don’t work on weekends and relax.
71. What can be inferred from the passage?
A．The new holiday is usually celebrated on a fixed day.
B．Italian grandfathers enjoy reading poetry to children.
C．The couple tend to choose busy cities to promote the idea.
D．New Yorkers have a negative attitude towards slow living.
