题文
There was a gardener who looked after his garden with great care．To water his flowers，he used two buckets．One was a shiny and new bucket．The other was a very old and dilapidated one，which had seen many years of service，but was now past its best．Every morning, the gardener would fill up the two buckets．Then he would carry them along the path，one on each side，to the flowerbeds．The new bucket was very proud of itself．It could carry a full bucket of water without a single drop spilled(溢出)．The old bucket felt very ashamed because of its holes：before it reached the flowerbeds，much water had leaked along the path．
Sometimes the new bucket would say，“See how capable I am ! How good it is that the gardener has me to water the flowers every day ! I don’t know why he still bothers with you．What a waste of space you are !”
And all that the old bucket could say was，“I know I’m not very useful，but I can only do my best．I'm happy that the gardener still finds a little bit of use in me，at least. ”
One day，the gardener heard that kind of conversation．After watering the flowers as usual，he said，“You both have done your work very well．Now I am going to carry you back．I want you to look carefully along the path．”
Then the two buckets did so．All along the path，they noticed，on the side where the new bucket was carried，there was just bare(光秃秃的)earth；on the other side where the old bucket was carried，there was a joyous row of wild flowers，leading all the way to the garden．
小题1:What does the underlined word “dilapidated” probably mean ?A．dirty．B．dark．C．worn-out．D．plain-looking．小题2:What was the old bucket ashamed of ? A．His past．B．His aging．C．His manner．D．His leaking．小题3:The new bucket made conversations with the old one mainly to _______.A．laugh at the old oneB．take pity on the old oneC．show off its beautiful looksD．praise the gardener’s kindness小题4:Why was the old bucket still kept by the gardener?A．Because it was used to keep a balance．B．Because it stayed in its best condition．C．Because it was taken as a treasure．D．Because it had its own function． 题型：未知难度：其他题型
答案
小题1:C
小题2:D
小题3:A
小题4:D
解析
文章给我们讲述了一个寓言故事，告诉我们每个人都是用自己的用处的。小题1:猜测词义题。根据上下文可知这个词与shiny and new是反义词。C正确。
小题2:推理题。根据文章第2段3,4行The old bucket felt very ashamed because of its holes：before it reached the flowerbeds，much water had leaked along the path．可知旧的桶坏了，会漏水。
小题3:推理题。根据第3段第2行I don’t know why he still bothers with you．What a waste of space you are !”
可知那只新桶是在嘲笑那只旧的桶。
小题4:推理题。根据最后一段可知花匠仍然使用旧桶是因为它仍然有用。
考点
据考高分专家说，试题“There was a gardener.....”主要考查你对 [人生感悟类阅读 ]考点的理解。人生感悟类阅读
人生感悟类阅读的概念：
生活感悟类的文章就是指能给人心灵以启迪，使人从中受到教育的文章。这类文章的体裁可以是记叙文，如生活中一些感人故事或情感故事，有点类似心灵鸡汤一样的短文。
生活感悟类阅读解题指导：
一、文章特点：
生活感悟类的文章就是指能给人心灵以启迪，使人从中受到教育的文章。这类文章的体裁可以是记叙文，如生活中一些感人故事或情感故事，有点类似心灵鸡汤一样的短文。有时故事的结尾会有一句“点睛之笔”，点出全文的中心思想，就像《伊索寓言》里的寓言一样。还可能是夹叙夹议的哲理散文或生活随笔。散文随笔通常会阐述一种朴素易懂，耳熟能详的人生道理或宝贵品质。文章的结构和议论文类似，一般是总分总或总分结构。每段首句或尾句为主题句（论点），其它句子围绕主题展开论述（论据），论证方法多种多样，或举例，或引用名言，或正反对照等。
二、解题技巧：
针对生活感悟类文章的特点，做这类文章的完形填空时，要特别注意以下几点：
1、重点理解全文的首句。如果是记叙文，找出when，where，who，what等基本要素。如果是散文随笔，充分理解文章的中心句—全文的主题。
2、阅读全文的结尾段或结尾句，有助于理解文章所阐述或蕴含的哲理、感悟或忠告等。
3、调动自己的背景知识和情感。这类文章不会讲大道理也不会涉及到一些很专业的知识技术领域，而是谈一些小事和简单的道理，所以如果读者能和作者产生感情上的共鸣，读者会更好地把握作者的意图态度，从而提高做题的准确度。因此，考生在平时要做一个有心人，即用心去感悟生活中发生的小事，思考人生的一些基本道理，多阅读一些短小精悍的美文，多写写自己的心情故事和对生活学习的感悟。只有平时多用心，做题时才能调动自己的背景知识和情感。
