Compassion is a desire within us to help others. With effort, we can translate passion into actions. An experience last weekend showed me this is true. I work part-time in a supermarket across from a building for the elderly. These old people are out main customers, and it’s not hard to lose patience over their slowness. But last Sunday, one aged gentleman appeared to teach me a valuable lesson. This untidy man walked up to my register（收款机）with a box of biscuits. He said he was out of cash (现金), had just moved into his room, and had nothing in his cupboards. He asked if we could let him have the food on trust. He promised to repay me the next day.
I couldn’t help staring at him. I wondered what kind of person he had been ten or twenty years before, and what he would be like if luck had gone his way. I had a hurt in my heart for this kind of human soul, all alone in the world. I told him that I was sorry, but store rules didn’t allow me to do so. I felt stupid and unkind saying this, but I valued my job.
Just then, another man, standing behind the first, spoke up. If anything, he looked more pitiable. “Change it to me,” was all he said.
What I had been feeling was pity. Pity is soft and safe and easy. Compassion, on the other hand, is caring in action. I thanked the second man but told him that was not allowed either. Then I reached into my pocket and paid for the biscuits myself. I reached into my pocket because these two men had reached into my heart and taught me passion.
41. The aged gentleman who wanted to buy the biscuits .
A．promised to obey the store rules
B．forgot to take any money with him
C．hoped to have the food first and pay later
D．could not afford anything more expensive
42. Which of the following best describes the old gentleman?
A．kind and lucky B．poor and lonely
C．friendly and helpful D．hurt and disappointed
43. The writer acted upon the store rules because .
A．he wanted to keep his present job
B．he felt no pity for the old gentleman
C．he considered the old man dishonest
D．he expected someone else to pay for the old man
44. What does the writer learn from his experience?
A．Wealth is more important than anything else
B．Helping others is easier said than done
C．Experience is better gained through practice
D．Obeying the rules means more than passion.41---44 CBAB
网友回答
(答案→)41---44 CBAB
解析：
41.C 点评：由第一段中这位老人的话可以得知，他并非忘了带钱，而是没有现金（out of cash），新家里又没有食物，因而想赊账（on trust）。
42.B 点评：由文中对老人的描述可推出答案（如untidy）。
43.A 点评：第二段最后一句话与答案对应，“I valued my job”意为“我很看重我的这份工作”。
44.B 点评：理解主题思想。本题答案与文章开头两句及最后一段前三句相呼应，说明“passion（同情）”更注重的是“action（行动）”，说说容易做起来难。