题型：阅读理解 题类：期末考试 难易度：中档
B
My father got his first job when he was eleven years old, cleaning up the garbage outside of the bowling alley（保龄球场）. Two years later his dad died, and my father took odd jobs to help put food on the table during the Depression. Ten years after that, Dad fell in love, married Mom and had a baby girl. Eight more children followed. During those years, Dad slipped into a routine he never broke. He woke up before six, took the train to work and wouldn’t get home until after five thirty. After supper, Dad spent the rest of the evening in the basement making dental parts for extra money.
Two years ago, at the age of sixty-four, Dad retied. When I was young, Mom and Dad did well to hide the fact that we were poor. All nine of us attended Catholic schools and we always had plenty of school supplies. We slept in wooden beds, shared one bathroom and watched television from a tiny black-and-white set in the living room. Mom and Dad never bought anything for themselves. They clipped coupons（优惠券）, wore the same pair of sneakers for twenty years and sewed worn clothing together every Saturday afternoon.
At his retirement party, I wanted to thank Dad for all his hard work and sacrifice by buying him the best present I could think of. As I shopped though, I realized there was nothing I could buy for Dad. Dad taught me through his own faith that the greatest gifts come from the heart. Finally, I left my present on the kitchen table for Dad to find before he left for his final day at work.
