Mydream of working in a flower shop had its roots in my grandmother's garden, al-组卷网

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My dream of working in a flower shop had its roots in my grandmother's garden, always in bloom, where I made bunches with whatever I could get my hands on. However, I wasn't prepared for the people. Their stories impressed me long after I locked up for the night.

I always enjoyed reading the messages that went along with each bunch. Most were what you would expect, plenty of “I Love You” and “Get Well Soon.” We got “Happy Birthday, ” “Happy Anniversary” and “Thinking of You” requests that phone messages were written in shorthand: H.B., H.A., T.O.Y.

I would laugh at messages that seemed too sugary or boring, and it disheartened me when customers asked what their sympathy card should say. But I also understood that finding the right words can be a monumental task and that sometimes those words just happen to be the same ones everyone else is using.

I have sold flowers to single men and women; to color-blind fathers shopping with their precocious daughters, to new parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles, to engaged 20-somethings and couples celebrating 50 years. I've given flowers to homeless men who have in turn given them to pretty girls in summer dresses. People buy flowers when they’re in love, in trouble, drunk, devastated, excited and sometimes for no obvious reason.

I took photos of card messages and told my favorite shop stories to co-workers, family and friends, but still so much has gotten away. Precious moments made all the more precious by the fact that they have already come and gone. Now I gauge months by what's in season: sunflowers in July, dahlias （大丽花）in August, roses and maple in October, pine in December, hyacinth（风信子） in March.

A favorite of mine is tulip magnolia（紫玉兰）, the way the buds（花蕾） break into flowers and the flowers into many colors on lawns, all in a matter of weeks while it's snowing cherry blossoms. How surprisingly beautiful the life of flowers can be.

【小题1】Why did the author like reading the messages going with the bunches?

A．They conveyed friendship, love and best wishes.

B．They reminded the author of his past.

C．They were sugary and the author found them funny.

D．They helped to attract customers to buy flowers.

【小题2】What can we infer from Paragraph 3?

A．The messages were boring because of repetitions.

B．The author likes tulip magnolia because of its growing place.

C．The author found it depressing to talk about sympathy cards.

D．The author learned a lot in her grandmother's garden.

【小题3】What does the underlined word "gauge" probably mean in Paragraph 5?