Veteran dad has no desire to start a second family

DEAR ABBY: I’m a single mom in a serious relationship with a divorced man who has children of his own. Between us, we have seven, ranging in age from 7 to 17. I’m in my early 30s; he’s in his early 50s.

My dilemma: I’m interested in having another child if we get married. He definitely isn’t.

Is it

unreasonable

for me to want to add to this already large

potential

blended family? I love the idea of experiencing motherhood again with a little more experience and age under my belt, and I’d love to share that intimacy with him. While he likes the

abstract

possibility

of “our” child, he says he feels too old now and he wouldn’t be able to be the kind of father he would want to be.

If neither of us had kids of our own, this would be a deal-breaker for me, but how do I know if my maternal longings are just the last, painful tickings of my biological clock, or a real desire that I’ll end up resenting him for if I ignore it and we stay together?

IS SEVEN ENOUGH?

DEAR IS SEVEN ENOUGH?: Because your boyfriend is in his 50s and has made it clear that he isn’t interested in becoming a father again, I think you should count your many blessings and consider that seven is a lucky number.

※ 다음에 나오는 문제들은 본 기사에 나오는 중요한 어휘들로 구성된 토익, 토플, 텝스 기출 및 예상 문제입니다.

※ Choose the one word or phrase that best keeps the meaning of the highlighted part or fill in the blank with a suitable one.

1. Samuel Beckett is known for his plays about the overwhelming desire to communicate in the face of human

disintegration

.

① disparity ② survival ③ division ④ breakdown

2. His attitude

doesn't make sense

① is unreasonable ② is not strange ③ is not stupid ④ is impolite

3. Humans can only develop their full human

as members of a human culture.

① future ② dignity ③ civilization ④ capacity

4. This philosophy paper is extremely confusing. Its key concepts are so

① subjective ② indispensable ③ intangible ④ unanimous

5. The ________________ is turning into reality for some families.

① possibility ② omission ③ decline ④ elevate

[번역 및 정답]

1. [번역] S. Beckett는 인류의

붕괴

상황에 직면하여 의사교환을 하고자 하는 압도적인 갈망에 관한 희곡으로 잘 알려져 있다.

[정답] ④

2. [번역] 그의 태도는 이치가 통하지 않는다(이해가 되지 않는다).

[정답] ①

3. [번역] 인간은 인간문화의 구성원들로서 그들의 완전한

잠재력

을 개발할 수 있을 따름이다.

4. [번역] 이 철학 논문은 대단히 혼란스럽다. 이 논문의 핵심개념들이 너무나

추상적

이다.

[정답] ③

5. [번역] 그런 가능성이 일부 가족들의 경우 현실로 바뀌고 있다.