Some people try to protect their children from unpleasant realities like illness, financial loss and death. But doctors point out that children can often end up feeling left out if they are old enough to understand what’s going on, but are not told the truth about family worries.

One widowed father told me how deeply he regretted that he and his late wife did not tell their son that his mother was dying of leukemia(白血病). “For months we kept that truth to ourselves. We thought we were protecting our son from emotional pain,” he recalled. “It was a great mistake. I had time to prepare myself. But my wife’s death stunned our boy. It was years before he trusted me again.”

Says Judith Davenport, a psychotherapist(心理治疗医师) who practises in Santa Monica, California. “It’s important to let children experience the reality of death, if it can be done in an atmosphere of love and caring. A child whose sibling, parent or grandparent is seriously ill can be made to feel helpful by being allowed to run errands(跑腿) or answer the phone. Even a very young child can comfort a sick loved one with a brief cheering visit.”

In many matters, if children are not told the facts about a financial setback, says Grace W. Weinstein, writer of Children and Money, they may imagine the worst. For example, they might think they’ll have no food to eat or will lose their home, when the simple reality may be that luxuries(奢侈品) will have to be taken away.

Even the busiest family can arrange to share a relaxed evening meal together at least once or twice a week. Mealtimes are often the only time that families can engage in stimulating(机动人心的) conversations.

Says Michael Abrahams, a licensed(得到许可的) clinical social worker in Rockville, MD. “How mealtime is used to argue or talk, discipline or praise is a good barometer(晴雨表) of whether a family is drifting apart or drawing closer.”

Another way to strengthen family closeness is to encourage your youngsters to invite a friend

for dinner from time to time, giving each child a turn at choosing the guest. This makes parents get to know their children’s friends, and also helps youngsters feel they are respected members of the family.

A joint endeavor can be stimulating if you choose one that everyone enjoys. Try planting and cultivating a garden, or organizing that box of old snapshots into a family album(相册), or learning how to bake bread from starch.

One father recalls the shared sense of success he and his son experienced when they finished building a dining-room table. “We started six months ago with plants and planks,” he says. “When the job was done, we looked at each other and said, ‘We did it1’”

1．The passage is written mainly for _____________

       A．parents                B．children               C．social workers     D．teachers

2．Judging from the passage, what does “sibling” in the third paragraph mean?

       A．Friend                 B．Brother and sister C．Cousin                D．Relative

3．What does the writer suggest in order to strengthen family ties?

       A．Youngsters should invite friends to dinner at home.

       B．Parents had better plant and cultivate a vegetable garden.

       C．Make sure to let the child, no matter how old he is, know right now if somebody in your        family is going to die.

       D．Parents should tell their children of financial setback in the family in order that they get        prepared psychologically(心理上)。

4．Why does building a dinner-room table give the father and his son shared sense of success?

       A．Because building a table a great pleasure.

       B．Because others didn’t believe that they could finally do it.

       C．Because a dining-room table is very important to the family.

       D．Because they achieve something by doing something together.