Passage 1

the beginning
by j. robbins

after turning in his books to the principal's office, jake rolled his wheelchair down the hallway of his high school and looked around him. for the past four years, he had dreamed of the day he would graduate and leave high school behind. now graduation day had arrived, and he felt a pang of sadness. the years had passed quickly and led to the inevitable end of his childhood. memories flooded his mind as he wheeled himself past the long row of lockers.
jake touched the dent on the door of his locker and remembered the day two bullies had shoved his wheelchair into his locker and pushed him to the floor. the captain of the football team had chased the bullies off and jake back into his chair. now all that was left of that day was the memory of a good samaritan him and a small dent in a blue locker. the next student to use this locker would probably wonder how the dent was made.
as jake rolled out into the afternoon sunshine, he felt the sadness lift away like a cloud. this was not a day for looking back but for looking forward. he could not stay in high school forever. as always, time marched on. he had earned top grades and won a scholarship to college. next year, he would be rolling his wheelchair onto the campus of an ivy league college. after college, he was determined to become a lawyer specializing in legal aid for persons with disabilities. his dreams were far from over—they were just beginning.

passage 2

nothing gold can stay
by robert frost

nature's first green is gold,
her hardest hue to hold.
her early leaf's a flower;
but only so an hour.
then leaf subsides to leaf.
so eden sank to grief,
so dawn goes down to day.
nothing gold can stay.
3
both the story and the poem contain an allusion to which literary source?
a.
roman mythology
b.
the odyssey
c.
fairy tales
d.
the bible