親愛的安妮:
I am in my early 30s with a small child. I recentlywent through some hard times and moved backhome with my parents. I have never asked myparents for money. I work two jobs and have put alittle away in savings. I'd like to take a smallvacation. The only major expense would be theairfare, and I have enough for that.
我三十出頭,孩子還很小。最近我的生活過得有些艱難,于是我就搬回家與父母同住。我從來不向父母伸手要錢。我有兩份工作,也有少量積蓄。我想去度個小假,唯一最貴的消費就是飛機票,但我已經(jīng)存夠錢了。
My parents are completely against the trip. They feel I would not be able to afford the airfare ifthey hadn't been helping me for the last few months. I agree, but on the other hand, I need alittle time with friends to relax and just have a good time. I'm an adult. Can my parents stilltreat me as a child?—Tired in Omaha
我的父母極力反對我去旅行。他們認(rèn)為如果不是他們前幾個月的資助,我是無法支付機票錢的。我承認(rèn),但另一方面,我需要一些時間跟朋友去放松一下,盡情地玩一回。我是個成年人了。我父母還能把我當(dāng)作孩子嗎?——奧馬哈一個疲憊不堪的人
Dear Tired:
親愛的疲憊不堪的人:
When adult children live at home, parents are prone to treat them as children. Your parentswant you to save enough to have your own place and need to know their efforts to help you arenot being frittered away on less-than-necessary things. They also may not want to baby-sit foryour child while you are away, in which case you should make other arrangements. Thank yourparents for their concern and say you need a break from your two-job routine so you can comeback refreshed and productive.
當(dāng)一個成年人住在家里時,父母總是會把他們當(dāng)成孩子一樣對待。你父母希望你攢夠錢有自己的住處,他們不愿意看到自己對你的幫助被浪費在不那么重要的事情上。也許他們不愿在你外出時幫你照顧小孩,如果是這樣的話,你應(yīng)該另作打算。你應(yīng)該感謝父母對你的關(guān)心,告訴他們你需要從繁忙的工作日程中抽點時間休息,這樣你回來后才會精神振作,效率更高。