Twenty years ago, I drove a taxi for a living. One time I arrived in the middle of the night for a pickup at a building that was
except for a single light in a ground floor window. I walked to the door and knocked.
A small woman in her 80’s opened the door. I took her suitcase to the cab then returned to
her into the cab. She thanked me for my kindness. When we got in the taxi, she gave me a(n)
, then asked, “Could you drive through downtown ?”
“It’s not the
way,” I answered.
“Oh, I don’t mind,” she said. “I’m in no hurry. I’m on my way to a hospice (临终关怀医院).”
I looked in the rear view mirror. Her eyes were glistening.
“The doctor says I don’t have very long.”
I quietly reached over and
the meter (计程器). “What
would you like me to take?” I asked.
For the next two hours, we drove through the city. She showed me the building where she had once worked as an elevator operator. We drove through the neighborhood where she and her husband had lived. Sometimes she’d ask me to
in front of a particular building or corner and would sit staring into the darkness, saying nothing.
As the sun was
, she suddenly said: “I’m tired. Let’s go now.”
We drove in
to the address she had given me. There were people waiting for her and they put her in a wheelchair.
“How much do I have to pay you?” she asked, reaching into her purse.
“Nothing,” I said.
Almost without thinking, I bent and gave her a hug. She held onto me tightly.
“You gave an old woman a little moment of
,” she said.
I squeezed her hand, then walked into the dim morning light. Behind me, a door shut.
I didn’t
any more passengers that shift. I drove aimlessly, lost in thought. We tend to think that our lives revolve around great moments. But great moments often
47 us unconsciously.
| 小题1: | | A．ancient | B．dark | C．dirty | D．remote |
|
| 小题2: | | A．invite | B．watch | C．help | D．receive |
|
| 小题3: | | A．address | B．letter | C．speech | D．present |
|
| 小题4: | | A．wrong | B．funniest | C．safest | D．shortest |
|
| 小题5: | | A．cut out | B．showed off | C．switched off | D．turned on |
|
| 小题6: | | A．direction | B．order | C．role | D．route |
|
| 小题7: | | A．break down | B．get off | C．speed up | D．slow down |
|
| 小题8: | | A．changing | B．moving | C．rising | D．Setting |
|
| 小题9: | | A．darkness | B．noise | C．silence | D．sadness |
|
| 小题10: | | A．joy | B．interest | C．trouble | D．surprise |
|
| 小题11: | | A．talk with | B．call up | C．pick up | D．take away |
|
| 小题12: | | A．catch | B．drive | C．improve | D．puzzle |
|
