C1 English Reading – Short Story & Grammar Quiz
Samantha Vance was a real pioneer. In a world that still used old farming ways, she dreamed of fields growing easily. Her neighbors, mostly farmers, thought her ideas were nonsense. “Why bother?” they’d ask, watching her build strange machines. “He does nothing but play with those pipes all day,” one well-known farmer complained.
Samantha, though, preferred new ideas over old ones. She would rather spend hours in her workshop, planning a complex water system with pipes. She didn’t want to waste time chatting at the village market. She was yet to make anyone believe in her plan, but her hope stayed strong. “There is no point doing things the old way if a better way exists,” she often said.
One very hot summer, a bad drought came. Crops died, and people felt hopeless. While others wished for rain, Samantha started her system. Water from a secret spring moved through her pipes. Her fields became a green, watered place. It was amazing to see. Suddenly, her neighbors were interested in her work. They had to have her show them how it worked. Samantha, with a quiet smile, taught them. She deserved to see her idea succeed, not just for herself, but for everyone in their town. “Why not try something new?” she thought, as her neighbors, who once doubted her, started to help.