I met him first in 1936. I rushed into his ugly little shop to have the heels of my shoes repaired. I waited when he did it. He greeted me with a cheerful smile. “You’re new in this neighborbood, aren’t you?”
I said I was. I had moved into a house at the end of the street only a week before.
“This is a fine neighborhood,” he said. “You’ll be happy here.” He looked at the leather covering the heel sadly. It was worn through because I had failed to have the repair done a month before. I grew impatient, for I was rushing to meet a friend. “Please hurry,” I begged.
He looked at me over his spectacles. “Now, lady, we won’t be long. I want to do a good job. You see, I have a tradition to live up to.”
A tradition? In this ugly little shop that was no different from so many other shoe repair shops on the side streets of New York?
He must have felt my surprise, for he smiled as he went on. “Yes, lady, I inherited a tradition. My father and my grandfather were shoemakers in Italy, and they were the best. My father always told me, ‘Son, do the best job on every shoe that es into the shop, and be proud of your fine work. Do that always, and you’ll have both happiness and money enough to live on.’”
As he handed me the finished shoes, he said: “These will last a long time. I’ve used good leather.”
I left in a hurry. But I had a warm and grateful feeling. On my way home I passed the little shop again. There he was, still working. He saw me, and to my surprise he waved and smiled. This was the beginning of our friendship. It was a friendship that came to mean more and more to me as time passed.
Every day I passed his shop, we waved to each other in friendly greeting. At first I went in only when I had repair work to be done. Then I found myself going in every few days just to talk with him.
He was the happiest man I’ve ever known. Often, as he stood in his shopwindow, working at a pair of shoes, he sang in a high, clear Italian voice. The Italians in our neighborhood called him la luce alla finestra—“the light in the window”.
One day I was disappointed and angry because of poor jobs some painters had done for me. I went into his shop for fort. He let me go on talking angrily about the poor work and carelessness of present-day workmen. “They had no pride in their work,” I said. “They just wanted to collect their money for doing nothing.”
He agreed. “There’s a lot of that kind around, but maybe we should not blame them. Maybe their fathers had no pride in their work. That’s hard on a boy. It keeps him from learning something important.” He waited a minute and said “Every man or woman who hasn’t inherited a prideful tradition must start building one.”
“In this country, our freedom lets each of us make his own contribution. We must make it a good contribution. No matter what sort of work a man does, if he gives it his best each day, he’s starting a tradition for his children to live up to. And he is making lots of happiness for himself.”
I went to Europe for a few months. When I returned, there was no “light in the window”. The door was closed. There was a little sign: “Call for shoes at shop next door.” I learned the old man had suddenly got sick and died two weeks before
I went away with a heavy heart. I would miss him. But he had left me something—an important piece of wisdom I shall always remember: “If you inherited a prideful tradition, you must carry it on; if you haven’t, start building one now.”
【小题1】The shoemaker looked sadly at the shoes because A．they were of poor quality.B．he didn’t have the right kind of leatherC．he thought they were too worn to be repairedD．the author hadn’t taken good care of them.【小题2】The author was surprised when she heard that the shop had a tradition because the shop .A．looked no different from other shoe repair shopsB．had a light in the windowC．was at the end of a streetD．was quite an ugly and dirty one【小题3】What does the underlined word “inherit” mean in paragraph 6 mean?A．develop B．receiveC．learnD．appreciate【小题4】The author later frequently went into the little shop .A．to repair her worn shoesB．only to chat with the shoemakerC．to look at the new shoes thereD．only to get fort from the shoemaker【小题5】Why was the shoemaker called “the light in the window” by his neighbors?A．Because he always worked late at night.B．Because he always put a light in the window.C．Because he was always guiding the others.D．Because he was always happy and cheerful.【小题6】What’s the best title of this passage?A．A Proud ShoemakerB．A Prideful TraditionC．The Light in the WindowD．Treasure Your ShoesD
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(答案→)D
解析：文章介绍了主人公有一天去修鞋，我急着有事儿，而这个鞋匠说可能要持续的时间要长一点儿，我感觉有点儿着急，然后鞋匠告诉我，他从他的祖父还有他的曾祖父那里继承了一种传统，就是无论做什么工作，都要尽最大努力，不但能获得金钱还能得到快乐，经历了这件事之后，我们就成了朋友，会经常在一起聊天，等我去了欧洲几个月回来的时候，这个鞋匠去世了，我很难过，但也会永远记住他所说的，如果你继承了一种引以自豪的传统，那你就继续传下去，如果没有，你就建立一种好的传统。
【小题1】D细节理解题。He looked at the leather covering the heel sadly. It was worn through because I had failed to have the repair done a month before.句意为：他很伤心的看着我的鞋，它被我穿破了，因为我一个月前，我没有把它修好。所以这里是指我没有照管好我的鞋。故答案应为D。
【小题2】A细节理解题。 A tradition? In this ugly little shop that was no different from so many other shoe repair shops on the side streets of New York?句意为：一个传统？这个丑陋的小店和对面的修鞋店没有什么不同啊。所以我感到吃惊，故答案应为A。
【小题3】B细节理解题。He must have felt my surprise, for he smiled as he went on. “Yes, lady, I inherited a tradition. My father and my grandfather were shoemakers in Italy, and they were the best. My father always told me, ‘Son, do the best job on every shoe that es into the shop, and be proud of your fine work. Do that always, and you’ll have both happiness and money enough to live on.’”大意为：他一定感觉到我吃惊了，笑着对我说：“是的，太太，我---了一种传统，我的父亲和曾祖父在意大利是鞋匠，他们都是最棒的，他们总是告诉我，凡是来这个店里的每一又鞋都要好好的修，你会以你的漂亮的工作而自豪，你不但会获得报酬，还会得到幸福。故这里是从祖父，父亲那里得到了好的传统，故应为B。
【小题4】B细节理解题。Then I found myself going in every few days just to talk with him.意思为：我发现自已每隔几天都要进去，仅仅是和他聊天。故答案应为B。
【小题5】D细节理解题。 He was the happiest man I’ve ever known. Often, as he stood in his shopwindow, working at a pair of shoes, he sang in a high, clear Italian voice. The Italians in our neighborhood called him la luce alla finestra—“the light in the window”.句意为：他是我见到过的最快乐的人，他经常站在橱窗前修鞋，又清晰声音又高的唱着歌，我们社区的意大利人把他叫着窗户里的亮光。这里是指乐观的人。故答案应为D。
【小题6】C细节理解题。The light in the window,这里的light是指人的精神，即有从父亲，祖父那里继承来的对工作认真负责的精神，也有乐观的态度，所以答案应为C。
【考点】考查日常生活类文章的阅读理解。