Answer the questions at the end based on the text.

I have a good memory of my grandfather,Jack. He was sitting in his armchair in the front room. 

I sat next to him. We were reading aloud,our heads bent over the page in front of us,a finger marking the words;separated by seven decades,brought together by words. It's a common scene in British families;however,in our case,the usual order of things is reversed .Granddad had been blind since I was tiny,so I was reading to him.When reading aloud,people usually read something that's of interest to the listener. So I didn't read children's books;I read the sorts of things Granddad liked to hear about. Much of the vocabulary in Granddad's reading material was far beyond me. When I met unfamiliar words,I'd spell them out. 

Granddad would help me. It must have been painful for him to hear news;but he never hurried me along or complained. Our reading wasn't really about getting knowledge. It was a way for us to spend time together. 

My grandfather wasn't always blind. He had been a good carpenter .The first Christmas of my parents' marriage,he built my mother a bookcase,which now belongs to my son Jonah,providing a link between four generations. 

I was a fortunate child;I spent a lot of time with my grandfather,and he opened the world to me in a particular way. Reading was our way of building a relationship that has had a lasting effect on me. In the school holidays,I sometimes accompanied him on trips to the seaside with the local association for the blind. This might seem strange,but I felt that my personal value was realized because I could finally do something for Granddad. 

A decade later,I found a position in a nursing home,which reminded me of my early experiences;reading to senior citizens was a connection back to Granddad. More than simple conversation,reading aloud is a connection between two individuals and it can have a big emotional effect on elderly people.

1. Could the author's grandfather see?
2. Had he always been blind?
3. What was his previous profession?
4. What is his name?
5. Where does the author work later in life?
6. Can reading to senior citizens have a positive effect?
7. What piece of furniture has been passed down for generations in the author's family?
8. How many generations?
9. Who owns it now?
10. Where did the author and Jack sometimes go on trips?
11. What group accompanied them?
12. Is reading together common in British households?
13. Did the author and Jack read kids books together?
14. Did his grandfather get annoyed with him?
15. What reminds the author of his Granddad?

Numbered answers:
1. no
2. no
3. carpenter
4. Jack
5. nursing home
6. yes
7. a bookcase
8. four
9. Jonah
10. seaside
11. the local association for the blind
12. yes
13. no
14. no
15. reading to senior citizens