1. Section B The Accident

2. Reading More Questions and Answers : Direction: Answer the following questions according to the text. 1. What’s you feeling after reading this story? 2. Why did Donna say the accident was the best thing in her life?

3. Intensive Reading 1. Christmas Eve fell on a Sunday that year. Meaning: Christmas Eve that year happened to be a Sunday. fall: v. come or happen, as if by descending 降临；到来 e.g. Easter will fall on a Friday this year. 今年的复活节适逢星期五。 2. As a result, the usual Sunday night youth group meeting at the church was going to be a big celebration. Meaning: Because of the unusual occasion, the usual Sunday night youth group meeting at the church would turn out to be a great celebration. the usual Sunday night youth group meeting: Note that in this phrase all the other words modify the word "meeting".

4. Intensive Reading 3. A mother of two teenage girls asked me after the morning service if I could find a ride for her girls that night, as I was the chairman of the youth committee. Meaning: When the morning service was over, a mother who had two daughters in their teens asked if I could get a car to take them to the church that night. She made such a request because I was the head of the youth committee. 4. We came up over a rise in the road, only to see an accident ahead of us on the road. Here up indicates an upward direction. Over means that the car reached the top of the hill after climbing it. Rise in this sentence is used as a noun meaning an upward slope or the raised part of the road. 5. I turned to see if the girls were okay, and I heard one of them scream... Meaning: As I looked back to find out whether the girls were injured or not, I heard a sudden loud cry from one of them.

5. Intensive Reading 6. Donna had been thrown face first through the car's front window and the sharp edge of the broken glass had made two deep cuts into her face. Meaning: When the car had to stop suddenly, Donna flew through the front window as she was not wearing a seat belt. When this happened, the front window of the car broke all around her and some glass cut Donna's face deeply in two places. 7. The investigating police officer said the accident had been unavoidable, but I still felt terrible that a beautiful seventeen-year-old girl would have to go through life with scars on her face. Meaning: The police officer who was responsible for the investigation of this accident said that there had been no way to prevent the accident from happening. However, I still had a strong guilty feeling because the girl was only seventeen years old and she would have to bear the scars on her face all her life.

6. Intensive Reading 8. He was taking great care with Donna's face to reduce the look of the scars as much as possible. Meaning: The doctor was very careful while sewing the wound in her face so as to make the scars as little visible as possible. 9. That made me feel better, but I still couldn't rid myself of guilt. Meaning: Donna's mother and sister's thanking me instead of blaming me made me feel better, but I was always haunted by a feeling of guilt. that=Donna's mother and sister's not blaming me instead of thanking me

7. Intensive Reading 10. Like a flash of lightening, the memories of the accident, the blood, and the scars flew back. Meaning: All of a sudden, I recalled so many things so quickly: the accident, the blood, the scars, and so on. 11. She graduated with honors, got a good job in a hospital, met a young doctor, fell in love and is happily married with two beautiful children. Meaning: She did well in school and graduated with high marks. She got a good job in hospital, where she fell in love with a young doctor and got married. Now they live happily with two beautiful children.

8. Testing Yourself Getting the Message Answer the following questions according to the text. 1. Why was Michael viewed as a ray of sunshine? 2. What does Michael mean by "If I were any better, I'd be twins!"? 3. Can Michael be positive all the time? Why or why not? 4. How does Michael deal with something miserable if it happens to him? 5. Was Michael scared immediately after the accident? When was he scared? 6. What did the expressions on the doctors' and nurses' faces show when Michael was taken to the hospital? 7. Do you think Michael lost his consciousness while the accident was taking place? Why or why not? 8. What conclusion have you drawn from the text?