歌手兼作曲家Jewel创立基金会帮助困境中的青少年

       

Singer and songwriter Jewel experienced how terrible the poverty cycle can be. Before becoming a Grammy-nominated artist, Jewel grew up so poor in Alaska that she had nowhere to live and even shoplifted. "I was a homeless kid who was stealing," Jewel said this week at the SALT Conference in Las Vegas. "I didn't have $40 to buy a dress, much less to get any housing."
       Speaking to a crowd of financial types who pay thousands of dollars to attend the event, Jewel spoke about the Inspiring Children Foundation, which helps at-risk youth. She shared her life story to explain how demeaning(失去尊严的) it was to be homeless. Jewel recalled how people would stay away from her. "People treated me like I was contagious(传染的). They thought the homelessness might spread to them," she said.
       In between performing songs for the crowd, Jewel said being homeless made her realize "what it was like to be an animal" because she had to focus entirely on food and shelter. Like other homeless people, Jewel was the product of a very difficult home life. She said her dad suffered from PTSD and was an alcoholic who became abusive(虐待的). "I never drank and never did drugs in my whole life. The poverty cycle was just really hard to break," said Jewel, whose struggles also appeared in her song Never Broken.
       Eventually, Jewel was discovered at 19 years old "by accident" when she was singing in bars and coffee shops. Jewel ended up selling 30 million albums, getting nominated for four Grammys and landing on the cover of Time.
       Back when her life was in rags, Jewel said she would have killed for the opportunities offered by the foundation to help at-risk youth. Inspiring Children, Jewel's Never Broken nonprofit program， has provided mentoring, working skill development and other tools to help young people find success.

      本时文内容由奇速英语国际教育研究院原创编写，未经书面授权，禁止复制和任何商业用途，版权所有，侵权必究！（投稿及合作联系：028-84400718  QQ：757722345）

1.What does the underlined word “shoplifted” in the first paragraph mean?

A Experienced.

B Sang.

C Grew.

D Stole.

解析：选D。D 词义猜测题。根据第一段第三句的I was a homeless kid who was stealing可以得知，Jewel曾经没有地方住，甚至“偷东西”，所以推断shoplifted的意思为“stole”。故选D。

2.Why did Jewel mention her own experience to a crowd?

A She would get thousands of dollars for herself.

B She founded the Inspiring Children Foundation.

C She knew it’s necessary to help the homeless.

D She showed how other people treated her badly.

解析：选C。C 推理判断题。根据第二段第二句的She shared her life story to explain how demeaning it was to be homeless可以得知，她通过自己的故事来说明那些无家可归的人是毫无尊严的，即他们继续帮助。故选C。

3.What did the homeless have in common in their life?

A Most of them were alcoholic.

B Their family weren’t happy.

C They were fond of singing.

D They didn’t have shelters.

解析：选B。B 推理判断题。根据第三段第二句的Like other homeless people, Jewel was the product of a very difficult home life可以得知，和其他无家可归的人一样，她也是家庭不幸的受害者。据此可以推断很多无家可归者的家庭都是不幸福的。故选B。

4.How did Jewel’s foundation help the homeless?

A It helped them sell 30 million albums.

B It landed them on the cover of Time.

C It equipped them with working ability.

D It would pay to buy coffee for them.

解析：选C。C 细节理解题。根据文章最后一段第二句的...Jewel’s Never Broken nonprofit program has provided mentoring, working skill development and other tools to help young people find success可以得知，她的非盈利组织帮助他们（陷于困境中的青少年）培养工作的技能，从而使他们在生活中能够取得成功。故选C。