阅读理解

　　Isn't it ironic(讽刺的)that perhaps the most loved toy a child has is a teddy bear? It is also ironic that lovers often give teddy bears to their partners with a few hearts and loving messages on them．You may ask what is ironic about that．Well, the way living bears are treated by humans is extremely cruel．

　　Did you know that over 12,000 bears are kept in cages in Asia where they cannot stand up and can barely turn around? They cannot hibernate as other bears do as they cannot lie down because of the bars they have to lie on．These bears are kept for their bile(胆汁)and the process of extracting(提取)it would make you weep．These beautiful creatures have tube inserted into their abdomens(腹部)leading to their gall bladder(皮囊)to extract the bile．The wound is opened up to three times a day to prevent it from recovering so that the bile can be extracted as it builds up．This of course often leads to infection, abscesses(脓肿), and great pain．

　　Perhaps some bear paw soup? In Cambodia, Vietnam or Japan, if you are prepared to pay＄1,000 you can have your fill of bear paw soup．They don't have to catch the bear; he is in a cage and kept alive．His paw is cut off and your order is prepared．Of course when the next order comes in, another paw is cut off and so on until he has no paws left．He is then hit to death eaten．I cannot tell you the manner of killing．It distresses me too much, but you can source this information from the Internet if interested．

　　Fortunately there are organizations out there trying to stop these horrific practices．We all need to lend our weight and support to these agencies; they rely on donations and volunteers．

　　I am sure that you now appreciate the irony of the beloved teddy bear that children take to bed with them．The bear is a beautiful creature and I find it hard to comprehend man's lack of sympathy and the depth of his cruelty．

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阅读理解

　　Either out of confusion or discomfort we sometimes express our feelings in an unclear way．One key to making your feelings clear is to realize that you most often can shorten them in a few words：hurt, glad, confused, excited, angry, and so on．In the same way, with a little thought you can probably describe very briefly any reasons you have for feeling a certain way．

　　In addition to avoiding too long expressions, a second way to prevent confusion is to avoid downplaying your feelings by saying“I’m a little unhappy”or“I’m pretty excited”．Of course, not all feelings are strong ones．We do feel degrees of sadness and joy, for example, but some communicators have a tendency to downplay almost every feeling．Do you?

　　A third danger to avoid is expressing feelings in an indirect or coded manner．This happened most often when the sender is uncomfortable about showing his or her feeling in question．Some codes are verbal ones, as when the sender hints more or less subtly(巧妙地)at the message．For example, an indirect way to say“I’m feeling lonely”might be“I guess there isn’t much happening this weekend, so if you’re not busy, why don’t you drop by?”Such a message is so indirect that the chances that your real feeling will be recognized are small．For this reason, people who send coded messages stand less of a chance of having their feeling understood and their need met．

　　Finally, you can express yourself clearly by making sure that both you and your partner understand that your feeling is centered in a specific set of environments rather than being indicative of the whole relationship．Instead of saying“I hate you”, say“I hate you when you don’t keep your promises”．Rather than“I’m bored with you”, say“I’m bored when you talk about your money．”

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