Most of us have suffered the pain of broken friendships. But most friendships can be mended. If theres a broken friendship youd like to mend, try the following advice.
Give your friend the benefit of the doubt.
Its easy to assume1 the worst. But if a friend had hurt you, he may not even realize hes done so.
Its probably true that if someone hurts you, they should have known better. But the fact is we are all human and we mess things up. You need to give people the benefit of the doubt because you will need that as well.
Take the initiative to communicate with your friend.
If youve been hurt, your instinct2 is probably to pull away and protect yourself. But if you do this, the friendship will likely die.
“You need to reach out,” says 20yearold Jamie, who has restored several broken friendships. “Friendships get broken when trust is lost. Both friends need to reach out and demonstrate they are trustworthy.”
Be the first to apologize.
Even if you were hurt, apologize for anything you did wrong. Give up your right to be proven right. Otherwise the conflict wont be forgotten, as it should be.
Walk through the conflict together.
Start by trying to see things from your friends point of view. Talk about the problems openly but kindly.
At first, Jessica didnt understand why Joyce stopped talking to her. Then Joyce finally explained that Jessicas teasing3 bothered her. “I finally found out she was angry because I teased her in front of the boys in our class,” Jessica explained. Jessica meant nothing by her teasing and thought it shouldnt bother Joyce. But when she accepted that it was embarrassing to Joyce, she stopped. Then their friendship could heal.
Accept the fact that friendship may change.
Nicole and Michelle had been best friends since preschool4. But in college, Michelle suddenly pulled away. “We didnt talk to each other for a while, then tried to reconcile5.” Nicole says, “But were just polite acquaintances now.”
Its normal for friendships to change. Often two friends just drift apart. Problems come when one friend tries to hang on while the other friend lets go.
If your friend isnt willing to work things out, accept it and move on. But if you are able to reconcile, youll have a friendship thats triedandtrue!
【生词注释】
1. assumevt. 假设；臆想
2. instinctn. 本能；天性
3. teasevt.&vi. 取笑；戏弄
4. preschooln. 幼儿园
5. reconcilevt. 调解；使和解
1. How many pieces of advice on mending friendships does the writer give us?
A. Three.
B. Four.
C. Five.
D. Six.
2. Why did Joyce stop talking to Jessica?
A. Because Joyce didnt understand Jessica.
B. Because what Joyce did was embarrassing to Jessica.
C. Because Joyce always made fun of Jessica in front of the boys.
D. Because Jessica laughed at Joyce in front of the boys in their class.
3. Which of the following is TRUE according to the text?
A. Youd better study advice first if theres a broken friendship.
B. Friendships will be broken if conflict is lost.
C. You should be the first to apologize for anything you did wrong.
D. Its unacceptable for friendships to change, for its abnormal.
4. What would be the best title for the passage?
A. How to get rid of a friendship
B. How to heal a broken friendship
C. What to do with a friendship
D. How to build a friendship
Amit and Nikhil were best friends. Both were 11 years old and studied in Class 6. Both the friends were helpful and caring. They always took care not to hurt each others feelings.
Their friendship was wellknown in the entire school. And some boys were jealous1 of it. Motu, who was from a rich family, was one of them. Poor as he was at studies, he wanted all the boys to praise only him and was always surrounded by a group of flatterers2.
Motu felt jealous of Amit and Nikhil and wanted to break off their friendship. When Gotu asked why, he said “Once their friendship breaks off, they will become enemies. The hatred3 between them will be as intense4 as their love now.”
One day Nikhil said to Amit, “I received a letter from my father today. He said that he will not be able to send me money this month. Can you lend me Rs. 300 to pay the fees?”
“I dont have Rs. 300 with me. I have only Rs. 20 left,” said Amit.
“Dont joke. My whole year will get spoiled if I dont pay my fees,” said Nikhil.
“Had I got the money, I would have definitely given to you. But I am no richer than you.” Saying this, Amit left for the classroom. Nikhil become disappointed.
Gotu saw all this and went to tell Motu. Motu was glad to get the information.
The next day, the teacher announced that the school was arranging a hiking trip. The students wanting to go had to pay Rs.500 in advance.
Hearing this announcement, an idea struck Motu.
“Here take Rs. 500. Go and get Amits name included in the list of students going for hiking,” Motu said to Gotu.
Gotu thus went and get the money submitted5 in Amits name. Later, when Nikhil saw Amits name in the list, he was shocked. Nikhil felt very hurt to realize that his dear friend had lied to him.
【生词注释】
1. jealousadj. 嫉妒的
2. flatterern. 奉承者
3. hatredn. 憎恨；憎恶
4. intenseadj. 强烈的；剧烈的
5. submitvt.& vi. 屈从；呈递
1. What was the real basis for the friendship between Amit and Nikhil?
A. They were both helpful and caring.
B. They valued their friendship.
C. They were of the same age.
D. They were in the same class.
2. Many boys surrounded Motu because .
A. money makes the world go around
B. he was among the top students in the school
C. he often helped them and respected them
D. he threatened to beat them if they didnt
3. Motu wanted to break off the friendship between Amit and Nikhil because .
A. they were both his enemies
B. they seldom played with him
C. he felt jealous of their friendship
D. he liked to see others fight each other
4. What happened one day between Amit and Nikhil?
A. They had a quarrel.
B. They had a fight.
C. There was a misunderstanding.
D. Nikhil refused to lend money to Amit.
5. Why did Motu let Gotu submit Rs. 500 for the hiking trip in name of Amit?
A. To show kindness to Amit.
B. To get Nikhil annoyed.
C. To test the friendship between Amit and Nikhil.
D. To break off the friendship between Amit and Nikhil.
Edgar Snow was born in Kansas City on 19th July 1905. After graduating from the University of Missouri School of Journalism at Columbia University in New York, Snow worked for several newspapers.
