INT English Podcast #05 – Family

1. Do you have a large family?

Well,  I definitely say so. In my immediate family, there’s like me, my husband, my 3 daughters, my younger brother, my parents and parents-in-law and then the extended family, we have my aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents.

2. Is family important to you?

Absolutely. They are the ones who love me unconditionally and go through ups and downs with me. No matter what life throws at me, my family always provide me with affection and encouragement that I need to overcome any obstacles. I guess it would be very lonely and miserable if I didn’t have my family support and love. 

3. Tell me about your favorite member of your family.

Well, I guess it’s my dad. He is a very hard-working and disciplined man. He sets a great example for me and my brother to look up to. He’s taught me important life lessons and values that form a foundational part of who I am today, and I’m doing the same for my kids. 

He is also very optimistic and has a great sense of humour. I mean, it’s always fun to be around him. My dad is very knowledgeable and supportive as well. I always come to him for advice or whenever I need to confide my problems. I love my dad and I’m forever grateful to be his daughter. 

4. How much time do you spend with your family?

Well, besides working, I spend the majority of my time taking care of my kids. They are still very small and need a lot of attention and care. I don’t see my parents very often since they live in another city, maybe a couple of times every month or every 2 months, I think. As for my relatives, it’s been quite a while I last saw them. It’s not that I don’t like them or anything, just because we live in different regions and we are all very busy with our lives. If I had the time, I would definitely visit them more often. 

5. Do you get along well with your family?

I get along with my family just fine. We do fight sometimes, me and my mom, we were not always on good term, but we are trying to work it out. Maybe it’s because of the generation gap between us, so we don’t share the same ideas and opinions about things. 

6. What sorts of things do you like to do together with your family?

Well, most of the time, I like to gather with my family in our favorite café at weekends. We can talk and share things together. Sometimes, my parents can come to my house and we all have a BBQ party in the garden. If I don’t feel like going out, I just lie on the couch with my kids and watch movies together. I think as long as I’m with the people I love, no matter what we do, it’s still fun. 

• Immediate family = nuclear family = close family (n)
• Extended family (n)
• Siblings (n)
• Relatives (n) = folks(n)
• To love sb unconditionally 
• To go through ups and downs = to overcome obstacles 
• Affection (n) =  the feeling of liking or loving somebody/something very much and caring about them
  Eg: Children need lots of love and affection.

• Miserable (n) very unhappy or uncomfortable
• To come to sb for advice ** advice (uncountable Noun)
• To confide sth to sb = to tell sb secrets and personal information that you do not want to share with others
• To be grateful for sth = to be thankful for sth
• To get along with sb = to be on good term
• To fight (v) = to argue
• To work out a problem
• Generation gap
• To gather with sb = to hang out with sb

Adjectives to describe personality
Positive	Negative
Hard-working Disciplined  Optimistic To have a great sense of humour Knowledgeable considerate	Lazy Disorganized Pessimistic To have a dark sense of humour Shallow Apathetic