For many parents, raising a teenager is like fighting a long war, but years go by without any clear winner. Like a border conflict between neighboring countries, the parent-teen war is about boundaries: Where is the line between what I control and what you do?

Both sides want peace, but neither feels it has any power to stop the conflict. In part, this is because neither is willing to admit .any responsibility for starting it . From the parents’ point of view, the only cause of their fight is their adolescents’ complete unreasonableness. And of course, the teens see it in exactly the same way , except oppositely . Both feel trapped.

In this article. I’ll describe three no-win situations that commonly arise between teens and parents and then suggest some ways out of the trap. The first no-win situation is quarrels over         unimportant things. Examples include the color of the teen’s hair, the cleanliness of the bedroom, the preferred style of clothing, the child’s failure to eat a good breakfast before school, or his tendency to sleep until noon on the weekends .Second, blaming, the goal of a blaming battle is to make the other admit that his bad attitude is the reason why everything goes wrong. Third, needing to be right, It doesn’t matter what the topic is –politics, the laws of physics, or the proper way to break an egg –the point of these arguments is to prove that you are right and the other person is wrong, for both wish to be considered an authority(权威) --- someone who actually knows something --- and therefore to win respect. Unfortunately, as long as parents and teens continue to think that they know more than the other, they’ll continue to fight these battles forever and never make any real progress.

Why does the author compare the parent—teen war to a border conflict?

A. both can continue for generations.    B. Both are about where to draw the line

C. Neither has any clear winner        D. Neither can be put to an end

What does the underlined part in Paragraph 2 mean?

A. The teens blame their parents for starting the conflict.

B. The teens agree with their parents on the cause of the conflict

C. The teens accuse their parents of misleading them

D. The teens tend to have a full understanding of their parents

Parents and teens want to be right because they want to ________.

A. give orders to the other           B. know more than the other

C. gain respect from the other        D .get the other to behave properly

C
One Sunday, my family had gathered at my parents’ house to feast upon Mom’s wonderful cooking. During the normal dinner chatter (闲聊), I noticed that my father was slurring (说话含混) his words. No one mentioned this during dinner, but I felt compelled to discuss it with my mother afterward.
We decided that there was something seriously wrong and that Dad needed to see the doctor.
Mom phoned me two days later. “The doctor found a brain tumor (肿瘤). It’s too large at this point to operate. Maybe they can do something then, but the odds are long.”
Even with the treatment, my father’s condition worsened, and the doctor finally informed us that this condition was terminal (晚期的). During one of his stays in the hospital, we brought our baby daughter Chelsey with us when we visited him. By this time he had great difficulty speaking. I finally figured out that he wanted Chelsey to sit on his stomach so he could make faces at her.
Watching the two of them together, I realized I was living an experience that would stay with me forever. Though grateful for the times they could share, I couldn’t shake the feeling of a clock ticking in the background.?
On the visit to my parents’ home during what we all know was my father’s last days, my mother took Chelsey from my arms and announced, “Your father would like to see you alone for a minute.”
I entered the bedroom where my father lay on a rented hospital bed. He appeared even weaker than the day before.
“How are you feeling, Dad?” I asked. “Can I do anything for you?”
He tried to speak, but he couldn’t make out a word.
“I’m sorry, but I can’t understand you,” I said.
With great difficulty he said, “I love you.”
We don’t learn courage from heroes on the evening news. We learn true courage from watching ordinary people rise above hopeless situations. In many ways my father was a strict, uncommunicative man. He found it difficult to show emotion. The bravest thing I ever saw him do was overcome that barrier to open his heart to his son and family at the end of his life.
【小题1】Which of the following statements is TRUE?

A.The writer accompanied his father to a medical examination.
B.The writer’s father got worse after the removal of the brain tumor.
C.The writer was quick to notice the strange condition of his father.
D.The writer’s father had known about his illness before the writer discovered it.
【小题2】 What does the underlined sentence “the odds are long” mean?
A.There’s little possibility for Father to recover.
B.It takes a long time for Father to recover.
C.Father needs love and care from his family.
D.They need a proper time to operate on Father.
【小题3】The father had never said “I love you” to the writer before because ________.
A.he believed in strictness and punishment
B.he was not so attached to the writer
C.he thought there was no need to tell the writer
D.he was not used to openly showing his emotions
【小题4】What does the writer attempt to tell us?
A.We don’t often value health until we lose it.
B.Don’t wait to see a doctor till it is too late.
C.Life is short, so live your life to the fullest.
D.Bravely express your love for your family.

A thief entered the bedroom of the 30th President of the United States, who met him and helped him escape punishment.
The event happened in the early morning hours in one of the first days when Calvin Coolidge came into power, late in August, 1923. He and his family were living in the same third-floor suite(套房) at the Willard Hotel in Washington that had occupied several years before. The former President’s wife was still living in the White House.
Coolidge awoke to see a stranger go through his clothes, remove a wallet and a watch chain.
Coolidge spoke, “ I wish you wouldn’t take that.”
The thief, gaining his voice, said, “ Why?”
“ I don’t mean the watch and chain, only the charm(表坠). Take it near the window and read what is impressed on its back,” the president said.
The thief read, “ Presented to Calvin Coolidge.”
“ Are you President Coolidge?” he asked.
The president answered, “ Yes, and the House of Representatives(众议院)gave me the watch charm. I’m fond of it. It would do you no good. You want money. Let’s talk this over.”
Holding up the wallet, the young man said in a low voice, “ I’ll take this and leave everything else.”
Coolidge, knowing there was 80 dollars in it, persuaded the young man to sit down and talk. He told the President he and his college roommate had overspent during their holiday and did not have enough money to pay their hotel bill.
Coolidge added up the roommate and two rail tickets back to the college. Then he counted out 32 dollars and said it was a loan(借款).
He then told the young man, “ There is a guard in the corridor.” The young man nodded and left through the same window as he had entered.

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