第二节完型填空（共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分）
I believe listening is powerful medicine. Studies have shown it takes a ___36___ about 18 seconds to interrupt a patient after he begins talking.
It was a Sunday. I had one last patient to see. I ___37___ her room in a hurry and stood at the doorway. She was an old woman, sitting at the edge of the bed, ___38___ to put socks on her swollen（肿胀）feet. I crossed the threshold（门槛）, spoke quickly to the nurse, and scanned her chart noting she was in stable condition. I was almost in the clear.
I ___39___ on the bedrail（床的栏杆）looking down at her. She asked if I could help put on her socks. Instead, I launched into a monologue（独白） that went ___40___ like this, “How are you feeling? Your sugars and blood pressure were high ___41___ they’re better today. The nurse mentioned you’re ___42___ to see your son who’s visiting you today. It’s nice to have family visit from far away. I bet you really look forward to seeing him.”
She ___43___ me with a serious, authoritative voice. “Sit down, doctor. This is my story, not your story.”
I was surprised and embarrassed. I sat down. I helped her with the socks. She began to tell me that her only son lived ___44___ from her, but she had not seen him in five years. She believed that the stress of this ___45___ greatly to her health problems. After hearing her story and putting on her socks, I asked if there was anything else I could do for her. She ___46___ her head no and smiled. All she wanted me to do was to listen.
Each story is different. Some are detailed; others are vague. Some have a beginning, middle and end;others wander ___47___ a clear conclusion. Some are true; others not. Yet all those things do not really matter. What matters to the storyteller is that the story is heard without ___48___, assumption or judgment.
Listening to someone’s story costs ___49___ expensive diagnostic testing but is key to healing and diagnosis.
I often thought of ___50___ that woman taught me, and I ___51___ myself of the importance of stopping, sitting down and truly listening. And, not long after, in a(n) ___52___ twist, I became the patient, with a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis（多发性硬化症） at age 31. Now, 20 years later, I sit all the time in a wheelchair.
For ___53___ I could, I continued to see patients from my chair, but I had to resign when my hands were affected. I still teach medical students and other health care professionals, but now from the perspective(角度) of physician and patient.
I tell them I ___54___ the power of listening. I tell them I know firsthand that immeasurable healing ___55___ within me when someone stops, sits down and listens to my story.
36. A. professor            B. physician           C. musician           D. teacher
37. A. passed                B. examined          C. approached        D. observed
38. A. hoping               B. struggling          C. waiting             D. expecting
39. A. sat                            B. stood                C. lay                    D. leaned
40. A. something           B. anything            C. nothing             D. everything
41. A. so                      B. because             C. though                     D. but
42. A. worried                     B. nervous             C. anxious             D. upset
43. A. stopped                     B. begged              C. urged                D. persuaded
44. A. far away             B. in the distance    C. next door          D. around the corner
45. A. referred                     B. contributed        C. stuck                 D. attached
46. A. lowered                     B. hung                 C. shook                D. waved
47. A. with                   B. without             C. by                    D. in
48. A. distinction          B. interruption              C. instruction         D. attention
49. A. rather than          B. other than          C. more than          D. less than
50. A. that                    B. which               C. what                 D. as
51. A. required             B. recalled             C. reminded           D. informed
52. A. expected             B. unexpected        C. regular              D. irregular
53. A. as soon as           B. as long as          C. as far as            D. as fast as
54. A. believe in           B. realize               C. admit to            D. appreciate
55. A. turns out             B. takes charge       C. comes up           D. takes place