I had my first job at the age of thirteen, when a friend of my mother’s who owned a book shop  36 me for six hours a week to help her in the shop. I was very  37 to earn my own pocket money and my parents  38 interfered with how I spent it, even when I was spending it  39 . They believed that by earning money, spending it, and learning from the  40 , I would become more mature and  41  about how to handle work, relationships with others, and money.

  Like many  42 parents, my parents also let me and my brothers do things over which they  43 a great deal. When I was sixteen, for example, after I finished high school and before I entered university, I wanted to spend the summer months traveling around  44 . My mother was against the idea of my traveling alone at such a young age, but my father felt that it would be a great  45 for me. In the end, my father won the  46 on the condition that I limited my traveling to France, my mother’s home, where I had many uncles, aunts and cousins  47 through the country who could  48 shelter and help if I needed them.

  Three years later, my younger brother decided to  49 a year off after his first year in university and travel through the United States and the Caribbean. Again my mother was very worried and not  50 to see my brother leave school, but my father encouraged him and my brother had a(n)  51 year working his way on trains and ships to  52 passage to different ports and cities, and discovering many fascinating places and people.

  These kinds of experiences are probably rare for children in many countries but in the US they are fairly  53 . Most parents start  54 their children at a young age to do small things by themselves. By the time they have finished high school, many American kids have already had part-time jobs, traveled around the US or other countries on their own, have  55 the university they plan to attend and maybe even decided on their future career, and so on.

  36. A. taught     B. allowed    C. treated     D. hired

  37. A. anxious    B. content    C. proud      D. hopeful

  38. A. never     B. ever      C. always     D. even

  39. A. quickly    B. foolishly   C. seriously    D. honestly

  40. A. work      B. mistakes    C. others     D. books

  41. A. strict     B. reasonable   C. polite     D. responsible

  42. A. American    B. Japanese    C. Chinese     D. British

  43. A. helped     B. supported   C. shared     D. worried

  44. A. Asia      B. Africa     C. Europe     D. Oceania

  45. A. journey    B. experience   C. chance     D. possibility

  46. A. argument    B. game      C. discussion   D. plan

  47. A. send out    B. give out    C. carry out    D. spread out

  48. A. promise    B. afford     C. provide     D. serve

  49. A. leave     B. make      C. take      D. prepare

  50. A. angry     B. eager     C. sorry      D. sad

  51. A. unusual    B. hard      C. strange     D. busy

  52. A. accept     B. earn      C. find      D. search

  53. A. welcome    B. fit      C. necessary    D. common

  54. A. bringing    B. forcing    C. pushing     D. protecting

  55. A. selected    B. admired    C. afforded    D. left

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