they might tell me he had died. So with many questions unanswered, I continued to volunteer there through my eighth-grade year.

Several years later, when I was a junior in high school, I was at the gas station when I noticed a familiar face. When I realized who it was, my eyes were filled with tears. He was alive! I got up the nerve to ask him if he was Mr. Gillespie, and if he had been in a coma about five years ago. With an uncertain look on his face, he replied yes. I explained how I knew him, and that I had spent many hours talking to him in the hospital. His eyes welled up with tears, and he gave me the warmest hug I had ever received.

He began to tell me how, as he lay there comatose (昏睡的), he could hear me talking to him and could feel me holding his hand the whole time. He thought it was an angel, who was there with him. Mr. Gillespie firmly believed that it was my voice and touch that had kept him alive. Then he told me about his life. We exchanged a hug, said our good-byes and went our separate ways.

Although I haven't seen him since, he fills my heart with joy every day. I know that I made a difference between his life and his death. As importantly, he has made a great difference in my life. I will never forget him and what he did for me: He made me an angel.

24. When the author volunteered at a local hospital, she .

A. mainly helped the nurses with their paper work

B. made up her mind to become a nurse herself one day

C. spent most of her time taking care of a man in a coma

D. became friends with Mr. Gillespie's visitors

25. The author didn't ask where Mr. Gillespie had gone because .

A. she feared that he might have died

B. she knew for sure that he had recovered

C. she forgot all about him when she returned to the hospital

D she had been concerned that he might stay in coma forever

26. Judging from the article, which of the following statements is TRUE?

A. The author met Mr. Gillespie at a gas station several years later.

B. Mr. Gillespie recognized the author's voice the moment he met her.

C. The author continued her volunteer work in the hospital until eighth-grade.

D. No one in the hospital believed that Mr. Gillespie would recover from his coma.

27. Which of the following statements best summarizes the point of the story?