Читать книгу A Smart Girl's Guide: Manners (Revised) - Nancy Holyoke - Страница 28

what do you do?

What to say when you don’t know what to say.

Your brother’s girlfriend walks in the door. Her hair is red.

Yesterday it was blonde—and looked a whole lot better.

An obvious change in someone’s appearance is like an elephant in

the kitchen—it’s just too big to ignore. But if you say what you’re

thinking, this girl will feel terrible. So make it short and sweet: “You

changed your hair! Cool.” It’s not right to lie, but sometimes it’s better

to leave a thought unsaid than to hurt someone.

Jenna bursts into tears at lunch. Sobbing, she tells you,

“My parents are getting divorced!”

Express your sympathy and concern (“I’m really sorry!”). Offer what

help you can (“You can come over to my house anytime”). If Jenna

doesn’t want to talk, leave her in peace. If she does want to talk,

listen. Questions about her future are OK (“Will you still come to this

school?”). Prying into her parents’ troubles is not OK (“What do they

fight about?”). Finally, don’t say bad things about either of Jenna’s

parents—even if she does.