Mr. Benson is an art teacher in a middle school. His wife(妻子), Mrs. Benson, Jennifer, works in a hospital. They have three children—two boys, Peter and Don, and a daughter, Alice.

Mr. Benson is 42 years old. He is tall. He has short black hair and a beard (胡须). He likes wearing a hat when he goes out. Jennifer is of medium height. She likes sports very much. She goes to the sports center every Friday evening. Jennifer wears glasses and she has long blonde hair.

Peter is 15. He has short black hair, like his father. He is tall. His brother, Don, is 13 years old. He has brown hair and is not very tall.

Their sister, Alice, is 17. She has beautiful long black hair. She has a new computer. That’s from her parents for her 17th birthday. She is very happy.

The Benson family has a pet dog, Victor. Victor is friendly and looks cute. Many people in the neighborhood like it.

The sound of the rain hitting the windows wakes me up and it sounds just exactly as it did 15 years ago, which made me think of my girlhood.

It was my second day of school and it was raining heavily. I couldn't get away from the habit I had at home, so I fell asleep right at my desk. I woke up to find myself not in the classroom but carried on Dad's back. We were halfway home. It was the last time I felt close to him.

After that, he never carried me or hugged (拥抱) me as other fathers did to their children. I was not troubled by this thought. I was proud of it, for I felt independent (独立的) and "grown up". However, there were times when I felt sad for not having got comfort from him,

One day, I was writing Chinese characters as my homework. I hated doing this more than anything. Dad came and stood behind me for a moment, watching me scrawling (潦草地写) on the paper. Then he said, "This kind of writing needs patience. Your writing is not strong enough. Press harder. "

I followed his advice for the next two weeks, but as: I could see little improvement (改进), I followed my own method-the fast way. His advice didn't improve my writing but our relationship. As I grew older, I found out that he had finished his schooling in Grade 6, which was the highest grade in town then, so he was considered to be a scholar (学者). People used to ask him to write something to put on the walls, but he never felt very useful.

He often said to me, "As you can see, this family is going to count on you. We are useless to improve anything for your future. You have to get an education to change the life for yourself. " As a result of his expectations, I have made it through high school and college.

I am a fourteen-year-old girl. I am tall with long blond hair and brown eyes. I like going fishing. I am very glad to be your pen pal. Let me tell you something more about myself.

Linda is my mom. She likes singing and she is a good singer. My father is David and he is a doctor. I want to be a doctor like him. My brother Peter is ten. He is a cute boy. Sometimes he likes to play a joke （玩笑） on me. He looks like my mother. There is also a little cat in my home. Cats are my favorite animals. David and I often play with it after school.

I have a small but ______ family. I love my family very much and they love me, too.

What about yours? Do you want me to be your pen pal. Please send（发送）me a photo of your family!

Yours,

Jenny Smith