—he was depressed all day long.
One day, he paid a visit to a wise man for effective prescription. The wise man told him, “What do you think is the best thing that will make you happy?” He looked around and couldn’t find the best thing. So he decided to look for it.
The young man packed his luggage, said goodbye to his family and started his journey.
The second day, he ran into a beggar and asked him the same question. Narrowing his eyes, the beggar said casually, “The best thing? It must be the delicious food.” After consideration, he decided that he had little longing for food, so it was not the answer he wanted.
The third day he met a woman and brought forward that question once again. She blurted out joyfully, “Of course it is the beautiful garment from Paris!” He was not interested in garment and left at last.
The fourth day he saw two men in serious disease. When asked the best thing in their minds, they said with regret, “Isn’t it obvious? It’s health!” The man disagreed,” “How come health is the best thing? I own it every day but I don’t think it is the best thing.”
The fifth day he met a child playing under the sunshine. When the child naively(淘气的)said, “ The best thing is to have many toys as I can,” the man shook his head and kept on his journey.
The following days he successively ran into an old woman, a merchant, a painter, a prisoner, a mother and a young man.
The old woman said, “Youth is the best thing.”
The merchant said “Profit.”
The painter said, “ Color.”
The prisoner said, “Freedom.”
The mother said, “ My precious child.”
The young man said, “ The smile of my beloved girl.”
None of these answers had satisfied him. He kept moving forward and encountering different people. Finally he came back to the wise man with all kinds of answers.
The wise man seemed to have known his experience and his disappointment, so he rubbed his gray beard and said, “ Stop looking for the answer as you will never find a precise and unique one. Think about it. Is there anything or scene that you like most now??hThrough the long and wearisome journey the man had suffered hunger and cold with dust covered all over his body. He thought for a while and told the wise man, “I have been out for a long time. I missed my wife and lovely kids. I missed the scene that my whole family sat around the stove talking and laughing in winter nights,” he could not help but sigh, “That’s my favorite picture now!”
The wise man patted him on the shoulder and said, “ Go home. The best thing is in your home now. It will cheer you up.”
The man was not convinced, “But I left from my home.”
The wise man smiled, “You didn’t know what you like before the journey, but now you must have known what you are fond of.”
He was right: The best thing in the world is what we like most.
No matter what you have owned or have not, no matter it is complicated or simple, no matter it is cheap or expensive, as long as you like it, it is bound to be the best thing in the world.
Step1. Skimming
Skim to get the main idea of the passage.
What can be the best title for the text?
A. The best thing in life is youth.
B. The best thing in the world is what we like most.
C. A man’s journey
D. We should value our life
Step2. Scanning
Scan to complete the following tasks.
1. What made the young man depressed all day long?
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2. How many people did the young man meet during his journey? Who were they and what were their ideas?
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3. At last, what did he think the best thing was in his life?
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4. What does the word “bound” mean in the last sentence?
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Retell the story according to the given words.