For years, my in-laws have told my children that my wife’s stepmother’s grandchildren are their cousins.

This alone is not true, since these kids are only involved in our lives due to marriage. I just keep talking to my kids and explaining to them the way the family tree works and that these kids are not their cousins.

At one point, my oldest son got mad and told one of these kids that he was not his real cousin, and then my in-laws confronted my son about what he said. They were apparently upset about it.

Amy, I am not going to create a world that does not exist. They are stuck on taking in these kids that have zero actual blood relation to them at all.

I stand my ground on this, and my wife just thinks that I am being an ass. Your thoughts?

Disturbed Dad

Disturbed Dad,

Before yospend the rest of your life carefully studying a family tree at every potluck dinner, remember that “family” isn’t some exclusive club that yoget to join by having two or more of the same biological relatives.

People in highly functioning and inclusive families will tell yothat all yohave to do to be a part of any family is to be considered part of the family. This means being included, regardless of your biological status, and reveling in relationships that are auntlike, grandparent-like or cousinlike. It is wise to explain truthfully all of these many and varied relationships to your children, but to use loaded terms like “real family” only underlines your emotional ignorance about relationships.

Your in-laws are doing a wonderful thing accepting these children, so put down the genealogy chart and apologize. After all, if we follow your logic, then your in-laws shouldn’t be accepting yoas family either; yoaren’t related to them by blood, so yoaren’t their “real family.”

The good news is, if yocontinue to treat your wife’s family this way, yowon’t have to worry about keeping the blood relatives and the step-relatives in this family straight — given your lack of good manners, these family members might disregard yoin favor of someone who is more open, accepting and inclusive.

Amy

58. The Disturbed Dad’s in-laws were upset because _______.

A. they all had failed marriages B. they knew of the Dad’s thoughts

C. one of the grandsons got mad D. some kids had no blood relation

59. What’s Amy’s attitude towards the Disturbed Dad’s opinion?

A. Objective. B. Negative. C. Doubtful. D. Cautious.

60. Amy may agree that _______.

A. the Dad shouldn’t be narrow-minded about the family tree

B. it’s necessary to consider biological relationships in a family

C. the Dad shouldn’t be accepted as family by their in-laws

D. it’s good news for the family members to disregard the DadC

Have yobeen told yohave penicillin allergy? Did your parents tell yothat yohad a reaction as an infant or child, so yoshould never take it again? Has it been so long since yohad a reaction to penicillin that yodon’t remember what happened? If yofit any of these descriptions or are just not sure if yohave penicillin allergy, there’s good news for you: Chances are, yoprobably don’t have it.

Between 10 to 20 percent of Americans believe they have a penicillin allergy, but a recent study at Mayo Clinic found that only 10 percent of those people are truly penicillin allergic. In other words, 9 out of 10 people who think they have penicillin allergy are avoiding it for no reason. Even in people with documented allergy to penicillin, only about 20 percent are still allergic 10 years after their initial allergic reaction. It’s not necessarily a permanent condition.

Why is this important? Aren’t there many other antibiotics yocan use if yohave penicillin allergy? Penicillin has been around since 1928. Penicillin and its related medicines include amoxicillin, methicillin and amoxicillin-clavulnate. These medicines are highly effective treatments for many bacterial infections, such as strep throat and ear infections. Of course, there are alternative antibiotics, but these are often much more expensive and carry a higher risk of side effects. Typically, these alternative antibiotics are broad-spectrum, meaning they fight many types of bacteria, both good and bad. That can lead to development of drug-resistant bacteria, or deadly “superbugs”. This increases the risk for all of us in the future of not having an effective antibiotic to treat our infection.

How do yofind out if yohave penicillin allergy? Board-certified allergists can test you. First, the allergist will get a history from yoabout your possible allergy. Typical questions include: How long ago did yohave the reaction? What type of reaction occurred, and how soon after yotook the penicillin did the reaction appear? The testing is done on the forearm by pricking the skin with a needle. If the results are negative and there is no reaction, penicillin will be injected in the skin. These tests are not painful, and results are available in 15 minutes. A positive reaction may lead to some swelling and itching where the test was placed, which usually goes away within an hour.

In very rare cases, an allergic reaction occurs. This can include hives, swelling, wheezing and/or difficulty breathing. The allergist is trained to treat this rare condition quickly if it happens. If all skin testing is negative, yomay be given an oral dose of penicillin in the office. The oral drug challenge is used to verify that yodon’t have penicillin allergy. Usually, you’ll be observed in the office for 30 minutes to make sure yohave no problems.

If yofind out yodon’t have a penicillin allergy, notify your physicians that it’s now safe for yoto take penicillin. They can take “penicillin allergy” off your chart for good!

61. What can we know about penicillin allergy according to the passage?

A. Most people believe that they are penicillin allergic.

B. People with documented allergy will have it forever.

C. About 90 percent of people are truly penicillin allergic.

D. Many people with initial allergy can avoid it later.

62. Which is NOT the drawback of the alternative antibiotics?

A. They cost much more than penicillin. B. They can treat many bacterial infections.

C. They can result in drug-resistant bacteria. D. They also fight good bacteria when used.

63. If yohave a positive reaction in skin tests, _______.

A. yocan’t leave the office within an hour B. your skin is supposed to swell and itch

C. it is not safe for yoto take penicillin D. you’ll be given an oral dose of penicillin

64. Which can replace the underlined word “verify”?