A man went to an insurance office to have his life insured. The manager of the office asked him how old his parents were when they died.

 

"Mother had a bad heart and died at the age of thirty. Father died of tuberculosis¹ when he was thirty-five."

 

"I am very sorry," said the manager, "We cannot insure your life as your parents were not healthy."

 

As the man was leaving the office, depressed², he met a clerk who had overheard the conversation.

 

"You must not be so frank and tell the truth," said the clerk, "no office will insure yoy if you speak like that. Use your imagination a little."

 

The man went to another office and was shown into the manager's room.

 

"Well, young man, how old were your parents when they died ? "

 

"Mother was ninety-three, and she died from a fall off her bicycle. Father was ninety-eight and he died while he was playing football."

 

一位男子去一家保险公司给自己投人寿保险。保险公司经理问他，他父母去世时他们是多大岁数。

 

“母亲心脏不好，30 岁过世的。父亲死于肺结核，其时35 岁。”

 

“我非常抱歉，”经理说，“ 我们不能给你办人寿保险，因为你父母身体不健康。”

 

正当此人沮丧地离开保险公司时，他遇上了一位办事员，此人无意中听到了经理和他的谈话。

 

“你不应该如此坦率地讲真话，”那位办事员说，“ 如果照你那样讲，没有一家公司会给你办人寿保险。发挥一点你的想象力吧！”

 

这位男子去到另一家保险公司，被带进了经理室。

 

“嗯，年轻人，你父母去世时他们多大岁数?”

 

“母亲93岁，她是从自行车上摔下来去世的。父亲98 岁，他是在踢足球时去世的。”

点击收听单词发音