阅读理解
Sometimes people call each other “scared-cat”, but have you ever thought about this expression?
When a cat is frightened, its heart starts beating faster, its muscles get
tense (紧张的), and there are changes in the chemicals in its
bloodstream. Although the cat doesn't realize this, its body is getting ready for
action. If the danger continues, the animal will do one of two things. It will
protect itself, or it will run away as fast as it can.
Something like this also happens to people. When we
are excited, angry or scared by other feelings, our bodies go through many
physical changes. Our hearts beat faster, and our muscles get tense. All
of these changes make us more alert and ready to react. We, too, get ready to
defend ourselves or run.
Human beings, however, have a problem that animals
never face. If we give way to our feelings and let them take over, we can get
into trouble. Have you ever said something in anger — or hit somebody — and regretted it later? Have you ever shouted at a
teacher, told somebody you were lonely, or said you were in love, and then
wished later you had kept your mouth shut? It isn't always clever to express your feelings freely.
Does this mean that it's smarter always to hide (藏) our feelings? No! If you keep feelings of
anger, sadness hidden away or bottled up inside, your body stays tense.
Physical illness can develop. It can actually be bad for your health. (It isn't good to keep pleasant feelings inside either; all
feelings need to be expressed.)
Feelings that you keep all bottled up inside don't just go away. It's as if you bought some bananas and stuck them in a
cupboard. You might not be able to see them, but before long you'd smell them. And if you opened the cupboard,
chances are you'd see little fruit flies flying all over them. They'd be rotten (腐烂).
You can try to treat feelings as if they were
bananas in the cupboard. You can hide them and you can pretend they don't exist, but they'll still be around. And at last you'll have to deal with them, just like those bananas.
