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Lesson 10

Single mom

My daughter shocked us with the news that she is

pregnant. That day of revelation was surreal, and as my
husband and I tried to make sense of this cruel development, she

dropped another bombshell; she was going to have the baby. We
argued, pleaded, and wept for her, but to no avail. Abortion is not

an option, she was firm about that. “But how could you raise your
child on your own? How could you afford to have your child grow

without a father?” We wailed in frustration and love for our daugh-

ter, but she was adamant. As we finally bowed in resignation, we
listened to her silent plea. “I’m going to have this baby. It may make no sense to you

or to anybody, but this is a choice I want to make. It would be easy for me to get an
abortion, and less painful if I set up my baby for adoption, but there is nothing wrong

with being a single mom.” These days, more and more women are choosing to be
single mothers. It’s not so much that they are victims of philandering partners who

conceive a child and run away - some of these women reject honest proposal of
marriage. Perhaps because of disappointment with men, or distrust of marriage, or

perhaps because they think that a child grows up better under a single mom, these
women are taking the responsibility on their own.

Comprehension

1. What news shoicked the writer?
2. What other options are available excluding being a single mom?
3. What does the writer say about current single moms?

Questions
1. What do you think of single mothers?
2. What is your opinion on single parenthood?
3. What do you think of being pregnant before getting married?

4. Why do you think more women are choosing to be single mothers
these days?

Vocabulary & Expressions
surreal : a situation or experience that is surreal is very strange, like something from a dream
bombshell : an unexpected and very shocking piece of news
avail : if something you do is to no avail or of no avail, you do not succeed in getting what you
want
resignation : the act of resigning or a written statement to say you are doing this
plea : an urgent, serious or emotional request
philandering : having a lot of casual sexual relationships with women

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