A．sound B．patching C．series D．career E．list F．inevitably
G．tormented H．seeping I．perishable J．settled K．sizable

An old friendship had grown cold．Where once there had been closeness，there was only strain．Now pride kept me from picking up the phone．
Then one day I dropped in another old friend，who's had a long（1）

D

D

as a prime minister and counselor．We were seated in his study------surrounded by maybe a thousand books and fell in deep conversation about everything from small computers to the（2）

G

G

life of Beethoven．
The subject finally turned to friendship and how（3）

I

I

it seems to be these days．I mentioned my own experience as an example．''Relationship are mysteries，"my friend said，"Some endure．Others fall apart．"
Gazing out his window to the wooded Vermont hills，he pointed toward a neighboring farm，"Used to be a large barn over there．'Next to a red-frame house were the footings of what had been a（4）

K

K

structure．
"It was solidly built，probably in the 1870s．But like so many of the places around here，it went down because people left for richer lands in the Midwest．No one took any of the barn．Its roof needed（5）

B

B

；rainwater got under the caves and dripped down the posts and beams．"
One day a high wind came along，and the whole barn began to tremble．"You could hear this cracking，first，like old sailing-ship timbers，and then a sharp（6）

C

C

of cracks and a tremendous roaring sound．Suddenly it was a heap of scrap lumber．"
"After the storm blew over，I went down and saw these beautiful，old oak timbers，solid as could be．I asked the fellow who owns the places what had happened．He said he figured the rainwater had （7）

J

J

in the pinholes，where wooden dowels held the joints together．Once those pins were rotted，there was nothing to link the giant beams together．"
We both gazed down the hill．Now all that was left of the barn was its cellar and its border of lilac shrubs．
My friend said that he had turned the incident over and over in his mind，and finally came to recognize some parallels between building a friendship：no matter how strong you are，how notable your attainments，you have enduring significance only in your relationship to others．
"To make your life a（8）

A

A

structure that will serve others and fulfill your own potential，"he said，"you have to remember that strength，however massive，can't endure unless it has the interlocking support of others．Go it alone and you'll（9）

F

F

tumble．"
"Relationships have to be cared for，"he added，"like the roof of a barn．Letters unwritten，thanks unsaid，confidences violated，quarrels unsettled-----all this acts like rainwater（10）

H

H

into the pegs，weakening the link between the beams．"
My friend shook his head，"It was a good barn．And it would have taken little to keep it good repair．Now it will probably never be rebuilt．"
Later that afternoon，I got ready to leave．"You would like to borrow my phone to make a call，I don't suppose？"he said．
"Yes，"I said，"I think I would．Very much．"