During my free time one day, I wandered down a lonely path into the woods and sat against a tree.
Then I saw one of the camp counselors approaching me. "Oh great," I thought, since counselors were
always trying to cheer you up or make you laugh.
"Hey," he said, "mind if I have a seat?" I shrugged(耸肩). I wasn't going to encourage him, but I couldn't exactly stop him, either. He sat down alongside me and extended a hand. "I'm Gary," he said, "and
you're Erica, right?" I nodded. "You don't exactly look like you're having a good time," he began.
I crossed my arms and gritted my teeth. "Look," I said, "I didn't want to come to camp, I don't like it, I'm not having fun, and it basically stinks." I glared at Gary.
"So there's nothing here at all for you, huh?" he asked.
"Nothing," I answered.
"Let me show you something," said Gary. He got up, and I followed him along the path until I heard a
sound like a roaring freight train.
"What's that?" I asked.
"Wait and see," he replied, with a small smile.
When we rounded the corner, I couldn't believe what I saw. There was the biggest waterfall I could
ever imagine, right in front of me. "Cool!" I said, and I could feel my eyes getting bigger and a smile tugging at my mouth.
"Still think there's nothing here for you?" asked Gary. "Because there's a whole lot more of this kind of 'nothing' around here."
I had to admit, the waterfall was impressive.
"Look," said Gary, "camp is what you make it. You can be sullen(阴郁的) and closed-minded and
have a rotten four weeks, or you can take a look around you and see some of the incredible sights and
appreciate the opportunity. It would be useless for me to try to make you have fun. You can only do that
for yourself. But if you loosen up a little, you might actually have a good time." With that, he turned and
walked away, leaving me on the path.
That night, by the campfire, I found myself singing along with everyone else. By the time the four weeks were up, I didn't want to leave. I'd seen some amazing things and made some great friends.
Beauty is where you find it. Life is what you make it. I think it's going to be a good year this year. I
mean, I'm going to work to make it one. Maybe if I'm lucky, I'll get to go back to camp next year!
1.When Gary walked to Erica, you could predict that ________ .
A. he would help her feel better
B. she would say hello to him
C. he would talk about his life
D. she would tell him to go away
2.What can you tell about Erica from the ending of this story?
A. She has many close friends at home.
B. She is looking forward to the future.
C. She's a good student who gets mostly A's.
D. She often gets into trouble at school.
3.Which is the theme of this story?
A. What you get out of life depends on what you put into it.
B. Parents are always making kids do things they don't want to do.
C. You will forget your trouble by the campfire.
D. Waterfalls always make you feel better.
