黑龙江大庆铁人中学2023-2024学年英语高三上期末检测试题含解析

黑龙江大庆铁人中学2023-2024学年英语高三上期末检测试题考生请注意答题前请将考场、试室号、座位号、考生号、姓名写在试卷密封线内，不得在试卷上作

1.任何标记第一部分选择题每小题选出答案后，需将答案写在试卷指定的括号内，第二部分非选择

2.题答案写在试卷题目指定的位置上考生必须保证答题卡的整洁考试结束后，请将本试卷和答题卡一并交回

3.第一部分（共小题，每小题分，满分分）20L

5301.It isbeyond awkwardwhen everyonearound youlaughing ata jokethat you donot findfunny,especially ifits ajoke toldin aforeign language.A.run intoB.bursts outC.yells outD.falls into

2.—Sometimes I am evensleepy inclass.—Its terrible.You as well goto bedearlier.A.should B.willC.might D.can

3.The folkswere delightedat themessage of their relativesthat mineexplosion.A.survived B.to surviveC.were survivingD.surviving

4.The necklacethe womanbought is,because it is madeof glass.A.priceless B.worthwhile C.valuable D.worthless

5.■—Ann,our departmentmay benamed theDepartment of the Yearbecause of theoutstanding performance.A.Good toknow B.Fil sayC.I hearyou onthat oneD.Cant arguewith that

6.It givesus greatdelight Chinesescience fictionsare becomingincreasinglypopular.A.how B.whatC.that D.why

7.—I haveno ideawhat madethe studentsso excitedand crazy._it havebeen theirteams victoryin thefinalsA.Must B.CouldC.Would D.Should

8._!Somebody hasbroken thevase!—Dont lookat me.A.Come onB.Hi,thereB.It wasa holyplace for a religiousperson tohead for.C.He intendedto make arrangements forhis life in thefuture.D.He waitedpatiently inexpectation of meeting awise person.、2What doesthe underlinedpart“my ownquestion”refer toin paragraph6A.For whatreason didthe manstop beforemeB.Why didthe Asian man goto the mountainC.What changewould Imake withina matterof daysD.What was the probabilitythat otherstold usthe right words、3Which of the followingis closestin meaningto the underlined word“subtle”in paragraph7A.Apparent.B.Delicate.C.Precise.D.Sufficient.、4The authorviewed themeet with the Asian man asa miracle in his lifeinthatA.the Asianmans appearancehad adeciding effecton hisfuture lifeB.his wordswere inperfect responseto theneed he had atthat momentC.what the Asianmansaid wasabundant in the philosophyof lifeD.the Asianman impressedon himthe worthof whathehadpossessedE.What mightbe thebest titlefor the passageA.Can yourecognize a miracle B.Is a miracle significantto usC.When mightamiracleoccur D.Why dowe needamiracle6^After theencounter of theAsianman,what willthe writerprobably doimmediatelyA.Continue walking up to the topof the mountain.B.Have arest torefresh himself.C.Try to have aheart-to-heart conversationwith theAsianman.D.Come down themountain.第三部分语言知识运用（共两节）第一节（每小题分，满分分）阅读下面短文,从

1.530短文后各题所给的、、和四个选项中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项.A BC D（分）

26.30Winters arealways longand coldin NorthChina.The winterof2008wasespecially toughin onesouthwesterncity,1it becameextremely coldand（）itwas alsoa difficulttime forme.What wasworse,a n2in juryhappened to meand itmight keepme inbedfor severalmonths,uJust in time for the Spring Festival,mymother saidtome,sighing.But howcould Ifeel the3when thesnow was soheavy andI hadmonths ofphysical4aheadOne dayI wasdoing myhousework5there wasatap againstthe windowfrom abranchof thetroublesomefruit tree.On hearingthis,with myeyes closed,slowly,I began to recallthefall of1995when somebodyplaced apipefrom mypump nextto the.

6.The earthwassowet that it7immediately withmost itsbare rootsupward.Seeing this,my mother8to pullitout,but Irefused,“How hardits trying!”I said,9the directionof itsstrong holdingof theearth.uIt is10of achance tosurvive5With tools,we11dry soilaround the treeand put upsome supportsinto theground,making it12upright.Several monthshad passedbefore Icouldbe13of it.Surprisingly,when springreturned,my“rescue14had grownsome leaves and many15In2009that littlerescue stickhadgrown into a toweringtree.What anunbelievable miracleof life!The daybefore theSpringFestival,the16at thewindowwas continuing,the morefiercewind,the17sound,as ifto remindme tolook upand appreciateits powerfullife.That nightI sleptpeacefully havingan18Jn thedream someflowers werecoming out19The nextmorning Istood againstthe window,20the windowwasthetree burstingwithlife.Anyway,I hadawonderful SpringFestival thatyear.

1、A.where B.which C.when D.that、2A.admirable B.terrible C.favorable D.slight、3A.duty B.joy C.cold D.failure、4A.treatment B.report C.exercise D.experiment、5A.while B.as C.when D.that、6A.window B.tree C.branch D.wall、7A.stood upB.came outC.got outD.fell down8^A.decided B.pretended C.failed D.continued、9A.attaching toB.watching overC.looking intoD.pointing to、10A.confident B.proud C.worthy D.certain、11A.threw B.turned C.needed D.placed、12A.bend B.drop C.stand D.swing、13A.aware B.tired C.worthwhile D.proud、14A.tool B.stick C.pipe D.pump

15、A.roots B・nuts C.flowers D.stems、B,striking C.attacking D.hitting16A.tapping、B,most C.better D.best17A.moreB・walk C.rest D.dream18A.idea、B.shyly C.passively D・wildly19A.politelyB.Outside C.Inside D.Besides、20A.On第二节（每小题分，满分分）阅读下面材料，在空白处填入个适当的单词或括号

1.5151内单词的正确形式分请

27.15As anew reporter,Zhou Yangis more than1,delight athis first-day experienceinChina Daily,22important andpopular Englishnewspaper.He iseager togo outon a story,

3.he canget the

4.approve ofhis newboss HuXin,because he is merelya greenhand.NowHu Xinis instructinghim howto be a goodreporter.At thevery beginning,he willwork asan assistantto anexperienced journalisttobecome

5.technical good.Later,only ifhe acquires

6.many skillsthan expectedcan hecovera storyon hisown.Besides,heissupposed to be curious,for there are manycases.reporters shouldask manydifferent questionsso that they canget necessaryinformation.Ofcourse,it isvital fora reportertohave a good“nose”

8.a story,knowing ifsomeone istellingthe truth.And whileinterviewing people,a reportermust listento theanswers carefully.Ifpossible,a reportercan recordthe interviewin casehe92_accuse ofgetting thewrong endof the stick.Last butnot least,make sureto submitthe articlein timeso asnot

10.missthedeadline.After hearingHu Xinsadvice,Zhou Yangis lookingforward tohis firstassignmentvery much.第四部分写作共两节第一节短文改错满分分分短文改错

1028.10Dear Ron,Iamvery excitingto hearthatyouare comingto our school soon.Now letme tointroduceour schoolto you.Our schoolis avery famouslyschool withlong history.We havemanyexperienced teachersand excellentequipments.There aretwo teachingbuildings；oneis forseniors and the othersis forjuniors.There aretwo labbuildings ora library.ExceptChinese,maths,Englishphysics andchemistry,we havesomeoptional courses.The studentscan choosethat theylike toattend.We loveour school.I amlookingforward tomeet yousoon.Yours sincerely,Li Hua36第二节书面表达（满分分）25（分）假设你是李华，最近你校举办了一年一度的“校园文化周（

29.25Campus Culture）”活动请给你的美国朋友写一封邮件，介绍这次活动内容包括Week Eric举办的时间、地点；

1..活动的内容讲座、展览及其他；

2.你的感受3注意词数左右；

1.

80.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯2参考答案第一部分（共小题，每小题分，满分分）

201.

530、1B、2C、3D、4D、5A、6C、7B、8D、9D、10D、11B、12C、13D、14D、15A、、、、、16C17C18C19D20D第二部分阅读理解（满分分）阅读下列短文，从每题所给的、、、四个选项中，40A BC D选出最佳选项、21When ifsfive oclock,people leavetheir office.The lengthof theworkday,for manyworkers,is definedby time.They leavewhen theclock tellsthem they*re done.These days,the timeis everywhere:not juston clocksor watches,but oncell-phones andcomputers.That may be abad thing,particularly atwork.New researchshows onthatclock-based workschedules hindermorale andcreativity.Clock-timers organizetheir daybyblocks ofminutes andhours.For example:a meetingfrom9a.m.to10a・m”research from10a.m.to noon,etc.On the other hand,task-timers havea listof thingsthey wanttoaccomplish.They workdown the list,each taskstarts whenthe previoustask iscompleted.lt issaidthat allof usemploy amix ofboth thesetypes ofplanning.What,then,are theeffects ofthinking abouttime in these differentways Doesone makeusmore productiveBetter at the tasksat handHappier Inexperiments conductedbyTamar Avnetand Anne-Laure Sellier,they hadparticipints organizedifferent activities-fromproject planning,holiday shopping,yoga-by time or to-do listto measurehow theyperformedunder nclocktime vstask timeTheyfound clocktimers to be moreefficient butlesshappy becausethey feltlittle controlover theirlives.Task timersare happierand morecreative,but lessproductive.They tendto enjoythe momentwhen somethinggood ishappeningand seizeopportunities thatcome up.9The researchersargue thattask-based organizingtends tobe undervaluedandunder-supported in the businessculture.Smart companies,they believe,will tryto bakemoretask-based planninginto theirstrategies.This mightbea small changeto theway weview work and theoffice,but the researchersargue thatit challengesa widespreadcharacteristic of the economy:work organizedby clocktime.While mostpeople willstill probablyneed,and be,to someextent,clock-timers,task-based timingshould beused whenperforminga jobthat requiresmore creativity.Ifll makethose taskseasier,and thetask-doerswill behappier.、4What doesthe authorthink of time displayedeverywhereA.It makeseverybody awareoftime.B.It is a conveniencefor workand life.C.It may haveanegative effecton creative work.D.It clearlyindicates thefast paceof modernlife.5^What didTamar Avnetand Anne-Laure Sellierfind in their experimentsaboutclock-timers A.They seizeopportunities asthey comeup.B.They alwaysget theirwork doneintime.C.They havemore controlover theirlives.D・They tendtobemore productive.、6What dothe researcherssay abouttodays businesscultureA.It doesnot supportthe strategiesadopted bysmart companies.B.It doesnot attachenough importanceto task-based practice.C.It placesmore emphasison workefficiency thanon workers9lives.D・It aimsto bringemployees1potential andcreativity intofull play.、7What dotheresearcherssuggestA.Task-based timingis preferredfor doingcreativework.B.It isimportant tokeep abalance betweenworkandlife.C.Performing creativejobs tendsto makeworkers happier.D.A scientificstandard shouldbe adoptedin jobevaluation.、、221A、2A、3C、4D、、231C、2A、3D、4B、、、241A

2、3D、4C、、251C、2D、3B、4B、5A、6D第三部分语言知识运用（共两节）第一节（每小题分，满分分）阅读下面短文,从

1.530短文后各题所给的、、和四个选项中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项.A BC D、、261A、2B、3B、4A、5C、6B、7D、8A、9D、10C、11D、12C、13A、14B、15C、16A、17C、18D、19D、20B第二节（每小题分，满分分）阅读下面材料，在空白处填入个适当的单词或括号

1.5151内单词的正确形式

2.an

3.but

4.approval

5.technically

6.more

7.where

8.for

9.is accused

10.to miss第四部分写作（共两节）第一节短文改错（满分分）

10、一281Exciting excited、去掉2to、一3famously famous、后面加4with a、5equipments—equipment、前面加6other the、一7or and、8Except—Besides、9that^what/whatever、10meet—meeting第二节书面表达（满分分）

25、29Dear Eric,How iseverything goingthese daysIm writingto sharethe annual“Campus CultureWeek”in ourschool withyou.The“Campus CultureWeek washeld fromMarch5th to9th thisyear.All the worksof calligraphy,photography andpainting createdby studentsand teacherswere ondisplay.Some lectureson Chineseculture weregiven,from whichwe benefiteda lot.Undoubtedlynot onlycan thisevent enrichourschoollife,but alsoit canoffer usa goodopportunity tolearnmore aboutour culture!Do you have similaractivities inyour schoolLooking forwardto yourearly reply.Yours,Li HuaC.Thank goodnessD.Dear me

9.If wea tablein advance,we wouldntbe standinghere in the longqueue.A.reserve B.reservedC.have reservedD.had reserved一

10.Anything todrink Whatabout coffee一Er...I thinkFil havea colddrink coffee.A.other thanB.more thanC.less thanD.rather than

11.The biggestproblem formost plants,which justget upand runaway whenthreatened,is thatanimals liketo eat them.A.shall notB.cantC.neednt D.mustnt

12.It wasjust atthe time the bellrang hefinished thelast word in hiscomposition.A.when;which B.that;when C.when;that D.that;which

13.She wassuch aproud personthat she would dieshewouldadmit she was wrong.A.since B.whenC.unless D.before

14.Usually doctorsare understandablyabout newmedicinesbecause ofthe uncertaintyof theireffects.A.considerate B.logical C.optimistic D.cautious

15.My motheropened thedrawer tothe knivesand spoons.A.put awayB.putupC.put onD.put together

16.Sorry Imso late,but youcannot imaginegreat troubleI tookto findyourhouse.A.which B.howC.what D.that

17.In thismovie goingseason,women aredriving ticketsales toa degreejf ever,seen before.A.really B.frequentlyC.rarely D.never一

18.Who recommendedNancy forthe post一It wasJames admirationfor herwas obvious.A.who B.that C.whose D.whom

19.Once hemakes up his mindto dosomething,seldom giveit up.A.he willB.does heC.would heD.will he

20.Painting fromstill imagesleads toa lossof sensitivity,which isto anartist.A.absolute B.urgent C.especial D.vital第二部分阅读理解满分分阅读下列短文，从每题所给的、、、四个选项中，40A BC D选出最佳选项

21.6^Big messagingapps abroadWhileWeChat isChinas biggestmobile messagingapp,therearemany equivalentappsin othercountries thatoffer similarfeatures.WhatsApp USUsers:more than300millionPlatforms:Android,iOS,Windows Phone,BlackBerryFeatures:Text chat,push-to-talk,file sharing,location sharingWithmore than300million activeusers,WhatsApp isone ofWeChafs biggestcompetitors.Developed bytwo ex-Yahoo employeesin2009,WhatsApp originallyfocused ontextchat,but onAug.6it alsostarted push-to-talk service.Ifs notedfor itsaccessibility,ease ofuseand theabsence of adverts.The serviceis freeforthe first year,after which$

0.

996.06yuan ischarged fora one-year subscription.Kakao TalkSouth KoreaUsers:more than100millionPlatforms:Android,iOS,Windows Phone,BlackBerry andBada anoperating systemdevelopedby Samsung行Features:Text chat,group chat,push-to-talk,group calls,le sharingWithmore than100million usersin more than230countries,Kakao Talkisamulti-platformtexting applicbtionthat allowsusers tosend and receive messages for free.With KakaoTalk,users canmessage each other one-on-one orin group chats withunlimited numbersoffriends.You canalso choosefrom more than250animated emoticonsand sharethem withfriends.Line JapanUsers:morethan200millionPlatforms:Android,iOS,Windows Phone,BlackBerry andPCFeatures:Text chat,group chatpush-to-talk,file sharingjocation9sharing,gaming,stickersLine topsthe listofthe most downloadedfree apps in52countries.Apart fromtext andvoicemessagingLine providesits userswith morethan250original stickersand emoticonstobuy fromits ownshopln the first quarterof2013alone,it made$17million justfromstickers.The popularapp alsoallows friendsto battleeachotherin theLINE Game.、1Compared withtheothertwo apps,which ofthe followingfeatures makesLine standoutA.Group mobilegames.B.Free emoticons.C.Free downloadoftheapp.D.Text andgroupchat.、2Which ofthe statementsis TRUEaccording tothepassageA.Users canalways sendandreceivemessagesforfree withWhatsApp.B.Users canshare fileswith anyofthethree apps.C.Kakao Talkfrees usersfrom unwantedadvertisjments.D・Line ranksfirst inthelistofthemost downloadedappsin52countries.、3In whichpart ofthe newspapermay thisarticle befoundA.Advertisement.B.Economy andFinance.C.Entertainment.D.Science andTechnology.（分）（）

22.8While elephantsborn without tusks^^are notunheard of,they normallyformjust2to6percent ofthe population.However,that isnot thecase atMozambiquesGorongosa National Park,where anastonishing33percent offemale elephantsborn afterthecountrys civilwar endedin1992are tuskless.While thatmay appear tobejust acoincidence,Joyce Poole,an elephantbehavior expert,has anothertheory.The researcherthinks we maybe witnessingunnatural evolutionofthespecies duetotheconstant huntingof elephantsforvaluable ivory.一Poole saysbefore thecountrys15-year-long civilwar,the100,000acre parkwas hometoover4,000elephants.However,by thetimetheconflict endedin1992,about90percent of（武器）them hadbeen killedfor ivoryto helpfinance weaponsand meatto feedthe soldiers.Of theless than200survivors,over50percent of adult femaleshad notusks.Therefore,it isnotsurprising thatthe parkstuskless elephantpopulation hasgrown greatly.This isnot thefirst timeresearchers haveobserved a great change inthepopulation ofelephants.At ZambiasSouth LuangwaNational Parkand Lupande Game ManagementArea,areas whichwere heavilyhunted inthe1970sand1980s,2%of elephants25years orolderand13%of thoseyounger than25are nowwithouttusks.A2008study publishedin theAfricanJournal ofEcology foundthatthenumber of tuskless femalesattheRuaha NationalParkin Tanzaniawent from

10.5percent in1969to almost40percent in1989,largely duetoillegal huntingfor ivory.The recentban onivory inboth theUS andChina shouldhelp getrid of,or atleastreduce,elephant hunting.However,scientists arenot surehow longit willtake forelephantswith ahigher rateoftusklessfemales,to changethe trend.、1What isthe probablecause ofthe phenomenonmentioned inParagraph XA.Illegal hunting.B・Constant farming.C.A purecoincidence.D.Natural evolution.、2Why didpeople killso manyelephants duringthe civilwar inMozambiqueA.To getfunds byselling ivory.B.To developnew weapons.C.To providefood forlocal people.D.To makeivory products.、3Which ofthe followinghad theearliest recordon tusklesselephantsA.Gorongonsa National Park.B.South LuangwaNationalPark.C.The RuahaNationalPark.D.LupandeGameManagement Area.、4What doesthe underlinedphrase“the trend^inthelast paragraphrefer toA.Elephants facinggreater danger.B・Elephants growingmore slowly.C.Fewer femaleelephants stayingalive.D.More femaleelephants beingtuskless.（分）

23.8Customers whocome intothe Waffle House recognizeserver EvoniWilliams,a soft-spoken18-year-old from Texas City.It allstarted with a Facebookpost.On themorningof March3,Laura Wolfwas eatingbreakfast atthe Waffle House inLa Marquewhenshe overheardan olderman,who reminded her of her late father,tell Williamshe hadtroublewith hishands.The man,later identifiedas regularcustomer AdrienCharpentier,had anoxygen tanknearby andneeded helpcutting uphis food.“Without hesitation/9Wolfwrote,Williams“took hisplate andbegan cuttinguphisham.”Impressed,Wolf postedthe momenton herFacebook pageto sharethe warmthand（关注）kindness withall.The followingday,Williamss Facebooknotification beganto lightup.Her friendssaw WolFspost andtracked herin itWilliamshad noidea thatsomeone tooka photothat morning.The dinerwassobusythat aline extendedoutside thedoor.She saidhelping Charpentierwas reflexive.She hasbeenworking atWaffleHousesince lastJune tosave forcollege,and this,she figured,wasjust theright thingto do.I wouldwant someoneto helpmy grandmotheror grandfather/9Williams said.The postbeganto make itsrounds inLa Marqueand eventuallylanded in front ofthecitys mayor,Bobby Hocking.He decidedto declareMarch8as Williamssday,and alsoreceivedan emailfromTexasSouthern UniversityPresident AustinA.Lane,asking iftheschool couldpresent Williamswitha scholarship.Williams stillworks atWaffleHousefive daysa weekand plansto doso untilshe startsclassesinthefall atHouston-based TexasSouthern.Wolf saidWilliams doesnot havea cartoget toclasses,but somepeople haveoffered tostart aGoFundMe pagefor her,proving thatamoment of a kindnesscan changea life.、1Why didWolf postthe photoon FacebookA.The photoremindedherofherlatefather.B.It couldsatisfy herinner needs.C.She wastouched bythe sight.D.The customerhad troublewith hishands.、2What doestheunderlinedwordinParagraph3probably meanA.Without asecond thought.B.After carefulconsideration.C.Winning areward.D.Better servingcustomers.、3What canwe inferabout EvoniWilliamsA.She seldomsaw Charpentiercome tothe Housefor breakfast.B.It wasGoFundMe pagethat led to hergood luck.C.She isno longerworking inservice business.D.She hasprobably receivedascholarshipfor hercollege education.4^What isthe authorspurpose ofwriting thearticleA.To helpWilliams receivehigher education.B.To introducea randomact ofkindness.C.To showthat younggeneration canalways help.D・To emphasizethe influenceofthesocial media.（分）

24.8Its thoughtthat around5trillion piecesof plasticare currentlyfloatingin our oceans.Both mammalsand fishbenefit fromclean oceans.It isreported thatmorethan8milliontons of plastic endup in ouroceansevery year,and nearlyhalf ofthe plasticwe produceissingle-use only.This shoebrand,however,is ridingthe waveof changeand ison amission to help cleanupour watersand ridthe seaofplasticbottles thatcan takeup to400years tobreak down.Vivobarefoofs newestfootwear usesrecycled plasticmaterials andhas createdan educationprogramthat spreadsawareness abouthow harmfulplastic isfor sealife.Every pairof shoesis madeup of17plastic waterbottles takenfrom theocean andturnedintoasustainable,comfortable pairof shoes,which arealso healthyfor yourfeet.Andwhile noteveryone cantake partin oceancleanups,choosing littleways wecan giveback toourplanet goesa longway.Vivobarefoofs newproducts includea varietyof high-performance stylessuch ascasual（首仓sneakers,running shoes,and hikingboots.The brandhopes thatits latestinitiative!j精神）will helplessen theindifference topollution andhow harmfulitisfor allliving beings.In thefuture,Vivobarefoot hopesto increasetheir productionof shoescreated fromsustainable materials,and thankfully,they arenow oneof manybrands thataim toincreaseenvironmentalism andeducate communitieson howglobal warmingaffects everyone.This year,theyll addmore recyclableand traceablematerials intomorethanhalf oftheirproduction line,and theyhave plentyof creativedevelopments intheworksas well.The shoesalso havea healthbenefit.Based on the conceptthat wider,minimallydesigned shoesenable ourfoot tofunction atmaximum potential,wearers alsoexperiencebetter balanceand sensoryinput.、1How doesthe authormake hispoint convincingA.By listingfigures.B.By tellingastory.C.By givingexamples.D.By makingcomparisons.、2What isVivobarefoot doingtohelpwiththemarine creaturesA.Donating moneyto buyfood forthem.B.Keeping theoceans freefrom plasticbottles.C.Producing moreshoes fromsustainablematerials.D.Raising publicawareness ofrecycling andreuse.、3What isprobably Vivobarefoofsoperation philosophyA.Customer-focused.B.Service-orientedC.Money-saving.D.Environmentally-friendly.、4Which ofthe followingis Trueaccording tothe textA.Vivobarefoofs newproducts haventbeen released.B.Vivobarefoot isthemostpopular shoebrand inthe world.C.Vivobarefoot caresabout notonly itsbusiness butalso publicservices.D.Vivobarefoot isthefirstcompany tofind thenew functionof wastematerials.（分）

25.10Sometimes just when weneed thepower ofmiracles tochange ourbeliefs,they materializeintheplaces wedleast expect.They cancome tous asagreatchangeinourphysical realityor asa simplecoincidence inour lives.Sometimes theyrebig andcant bemissed.Other timestheyre sosubtle thatif wearent aware,we maymiss themaltogether.They cancome from the lipsofastranger wesuddenly andmysteriously meetat justthe rightinstant.If welisten carefully,weUl alwayshear therightwords,attheright time,to dazzle（目眩）us intoa realizationof somethingthat wemayhavefailed tonotice onlymomentsbefore.On acold Januaryafternoon in1989,1was hikingup the trail thatleads tothe topofEgypfs Mt.Horeb.Pd spentthe dayat St.Catherines Monasteryand wantedto getto thepeakby sunsetto seethe valleybelow.As I was windingup thenarrow path,Pd occasionallyseeother hikerswho werecoming down from aday on themountain.While theywouldgenerally passwith simplya nodoragreeting in another language,there wasone manthatday whodid neither.I sawhim comingfrom thelast switchbackonthetrail thatledtothe backsideof themountain.As hegot closer,I couldsee thathewasdressed differentlyfrom theother hikersFdseen.Rather thanthe high-tech fabricsand stylesthat hadbeen thenorm,this manwaswearing traditionalEgyptian clothing.He worea tattered,rust-colored galabiaand obviouslyoldand thick-soled sandalsthat werecovered indust Whatmade hisappearance soodd,though,was thatthe mandidnt evenappeartobe Egyptian!He wasa small-framed Asianman,had verylittle hair,and waswearing round,wire-rimmed glasses.As weneared oneanother,I wasthefirstto speak,“Hello,I said,stopping onthe trailfora momentto catchmy breath.Not asound camefrom the man ashe walkedcloser.Ithought thatmaybe hehadnt heardmeorthe windhad carriedmy voiceaway fromhim inanotherdirection.Suddenly hestopped directlyinfrontofmeonthehigh sideofthetrail,looked upfromtheground,and spokea singlesentence tome inEnglish,“Sometimes youdontknow whatyouhavelost untilyouve lostit.As Itook inwhat I had justheard,hesimply steppedaround meand continuedhis goingdownthetrail.That momentin my life wasasmallmiracle.The reasonis less about what themansaidand more about thetiming and the context.The yearwas1989,andtheCold Warwasdrawing toa close,whattheman onthetrailcouldnt haveknown is thatitwas during my（朝圣）,Egyptian pilgrimageand specificallyduringmyhike tothe topof Mosessmountain,that Idset thetime asidetomakedecisions thatwould affectmy careerinthedefenseindustry,my friends,my family,and,ultimately,mylife.Ihadto askmyself whatthe chanceswere ofan Asianman dressedinanEgyptiangalabia comingdownfromthe topof thishistoric mountainjustwhenIwaswalkingup,stopping beforeme,and offeringhis wisdom,seemingly fromout ofnowhere.My answertomy ownquestion waseasy:the oddswere slimto none!In ameet thatlasted lessthan twominuteson amountain halfwayaroundtheworld frommy home,a totalstranger hadbroughtclarity andthe hintofawarning,regarding thehuge changesthat Iwould makewithina matterof days.In myway ofthinking,thafs amiracle.I suspectthat weall experiencesmall miraclesinour lives every day.Sometimes wehavethe wisdomandthecourage torecognize themfor whatthey areIn the moments whenwedont,thats okayaswell.It seemsthat ourmiracles havea wayof comingback tous againandagain.And eachtime theydo,they becomea littleless subtle,until wecan possiblymissthe messagethat theybring toourlives!The keyisthattheyre everywhereand occureverydayfor differentreasons,in responsetothe differentneeds thatwemayhave inthemoment.Our jobmaybelessaboutquestioningthe extraordinarythings thathappen inour dailylives andmoreaboutaccepting thegiftsthey bring.1Why didthe authormakeapilgrimage toMt Horebin EgyptA.He wasin searchofamiracleinhislife.。