Betty
Betty is Kevin’s cousin. She lives in Sweden now. Her Mum and Dad are English teachers who like to travel a lot. Last year it was Egypt, next year it will be China. People are different, each country is unique, but English is in great demand everywhere. And it’s not bad if teaching English allows you to meet some exotic cultures.
Betty is seven, she goes to school and in every country she tries to speak its own language. In Egypt it was Arabic, in Sweden it’s Swedish. As to China, well, she will go only to an American school. Betty has no desire to go bananas before she is ten. Of course she is a curious girl but not to such an extent.
Her cousin Kevin lives in Malta now. She can call him but it’s very expensive. So instead of calling him Betty writes him short letters every week. OK, he is not an orphan, let’s hope his parents can help him. People say Kevin is hard on ladies. OK, she will teach him how to be a real gentleman.
Wilma
Wilma is Betty’s mum. If you remember, she is an English teacher. She is twenty-eight, but everybody says she looks twenty. Maybe it’s not true, but it’s very pleasant to hear.
Being a teacher, Wilma visited many exotic countries. It’s strange but English helped her in every country she lived in. As a result, she had no need to learn French or Spanish. Her husband Fred, who is also a teacher, doesn’t like it. He says all modern people should know at least one foreign language. As to him, he knows German and Russian and is very proud of himself. His wife believes he is right, yet she is too lazy to learn Swedish or Dutch.
Actually, her daughter Betty can speak some languages. For example she learned spoken Arabic when she lived in Egypt. Nobody asked her to, just one day she noticed she could understand a news report on TV.
Unlike Betty, Wilma can’t learn a language by ear. She has to study grammar and learn many new words. As you understand, it will take her a lot of time. Frankly speaking, Wilma is not ready for hard work. She likes her quiet life. If it’s necessary Betty will teach her when she grows up. But not now...