2026/10/10(Sat.)*SMC*
Lecture: SM Takahata
Read the notes below and fill in the blank.
(1) A: I want to make a (l 1 ) as a film actor.
B: You’re aiming high, the reality is harsh. Most aspiring actors
can’t even get their foot in the (d 2 ) with major talent
agencies.
1= to earn enough money to buy the things you need
2= to enter a business or organization at a low level, but with a
chance of being more successful in the future
(A: 僕は映画俳優として食べていきたいんです。
B:目標は高いけど、現実は厳しいよ。俳優志望者のほとんどは大手芸能プロダクションに入るきっかけすらつかめないんだから。)
(2) A: Guess what! I’ve got some news. It’s about Miho.
B: Don’t keep me in (s 1 ).
A: She is expecting.
B: You mean she’s having a baby?
A: Yes, she is (d 2 ) this fall.
1 = to deliberately delay telling them something that they are very
eager to know about
2 = It is expected to happen, be done or arrive at that time
(A: ねえ、聞いてよ。ちょっと話があるの。ミホのことなんだけど。
B: もったいぶらないでよ。
A: 彼女おめでたなの。
B: 赤ちゃんができたってこと？
A: そうなの。今年の秋に出産予定よ。)
(3) A: How have things been with Kyoko since your quarrel?
B: I texted her to (p 1 ) things up, but she left me on (r 2 ).
A: I guess she still hold a (g 3 ) against you for (two-t 4 ) her.
1 = to get back together
2 = to ignore the text
3 = to hold a resentment
4 = to deceive someone you are having a relationship with by having a secret sexual relationship with someone else at the same time
(A: けんかの後、キョーコとはどうなった？
B: よりを戻そうとしてメールしたけど既読スルーされたよ。
A: まだ浮気のことを根に持っているんだよ。)
(4) A: Our boss is very nice and kind.”
B: You should have seen him 15 years ago. He was a real slave-(d 1 ). But he’s (m 2 ) out over the years. Maybe age has something to do with it.”
1 = a person who makes other people work hard
especially over a period of time
(A: 部長ってすごく優しい人ですよね。
B: 15年前の彼を知っていたら驚くよ。部下をこき使う人でね。でも年を重ね
るうちにだいぶ丸くなったよ。年のせいもあるかもね。)
(5) A: If you don’t wear a suit, you won’t pass (m 1 ) at that upscale
French restaurant.
B: Does that mean they won’t let me in?
A: That’s right. You can’t (d 2 ) down there.”
1 = to reach an acceptable standard
(A: スーツじゃないとあの高級フレンチレストランでは通用しないよ。
B: え？それって入れてもらえないってこと？
A: そういうこと。あそこはラフな格好じゃダメなんだ。
Answer
(1) 1: living 2: door (2) 1: suspense 2: due (3) 1: patch 2: grudge 3: read 4: two-timing
(4) 1: driver 2: mellowed (5) 1: muster 2: dress
Table Topic Speech
(1) When in your life have you been a victim of stereotyping?
(2) Whe do you find peace?
(3) Who is your mentor what have you learned from them?
(4) What small act of kindness were you once shown that you will never forget?
(5) Is there ever the time when giving up makes sense?
(6) Whose life have you had the greatest impact on?
(7) What have you read online recently that inspired you?
Prepared Speech
(1) Baseball Fanatic: SM Eda
(2) Introduction to The Seventeenth-Article Constitution: SM Noro
Recently, I happened to know the concept of democracy had been written in the Seventeen-Article Constitution even before the Magna Carta of 1215, so I investigated it. According to Nihon Shoki, the Seventeenth-Article Constitution was traditionally attributed to Shōtoku-Taishi and written in Chinese language in year 604.
I asked ChatGPT to translate it into English.When I read the Seventeenth-Article Constitution, I was amazed at how progressive the thinking behind it was. I would like to introduce it briefly.
Article 1 — Value Harmony
Harmony is to be valued, and needless opposition is to be avoided.
Article 2 — Revere the Three Treasures
Sincerely revere the Three Treasures: the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha.
Article 3 — Respect the Sovereign’s Commands
When you receive an imperial command, obey it with reverence.
Article 4 — Make Proper Conduct the Foundation
Ministers and officials should make proper conduct and courtesy the foundation of their behavior.
Article 5 — Reject Greed and Judge Fairly
Reject indulgence and greed, and judge lawsuits clearly and fairly.
Article 6 — Discourage Evil and Encourage Good
Punish evil and encourage good.
Article 7 — Assign the Right Person to the Right Office
Each person has a proper responsibility, and duties should not be confused.
Article 8 — Attend to Public Duties Diligently
Ministers and officials should come to work early and leave late.
Article 9 — Make Trust the Foundation
Trustworthiness is the foundation of righteousness.
Article 10 — Control Anger and Respect Differences
Put aside anger and resentment, and do not become angry simply because others disagree with you.
Article 11 — Reward and Punish Fairly
Examine merit and wrongdoing clearly, and make rewards and punishments appropriate.
Article 12 — Do Not Impose Private Taxes on the People
Provincial governors and local officials must not impose taxes on the people for their own benefit.
Article 13 — Know Your Duties and Cooperate
All officials who hold office should understand not only their own duties but also the responsibilities of their colleagues.
Article 14 — Do Not Be Jealous
Ministers and officials must not be jealous of one another.
Article 15 — Put Public Interest Before Private Interest
Turning away from private interests and devoting oneself to the public good is the proper way for an official.
Article 16 — Do Not Burden the People at the Wrong Time
Calling upon the people for public labor only at appropriate times is an excellent principle handed down from ancient times.
Article 17 — Important Matters Must Be Discussed Together
Important matters should not be decided by one person alone.
I think Article 17 represents the key concept of democracy.
I really recommend the global leaders to review and learn the Seventeenth-Article Constitution. Even King or President must abide by the rules.
Thank you.
(3) Neighborhood Communication: SM Kaneko
Today, I'd like to talk about neighborhood communication.
The main point of my speech is that, recently, while I was cleaning our neighborhood's garbage collection site, I had an opportunity to talk with one of my neighbors.
Let's look at this experience from three aspects.
First, our garbage collection site is shared by several households. Different days of the week are assigned to different types of waste. For example, burnable waste, or what is commonly called general garbage, is collected on Tuesdays and Fridays, while recyclable waste is collected on Wednesdays.
Second, crows sometimes come to the site and scavenge for garbage. There are protective nets to keep them away, but they aren't always effective. Also, some people aren't careful enough to prevent garbage from being scattered. Occasionally, someone even puts their garbage on top of the net!
I've also heard that crows are clever. While some crows lift the nets with their beaks, others take the opportunity to scavenge for garbage. As a result, the area around the site sometimes becomes very messy.
It's even dangerous because if a car swerves to avoid scattered garbage, it might hit a pedestrian or a cyclist. So, when a member of our residents' association asked me to help clean the site, I willingly accepted.
Third, a few days ago, while I was cleaning the site early in the morning, I happened to meet a neighbor. We talked about the problems I mentioned earlier. After our conversation, I felt that we'd had a really good talk.
In conclusion, although neighborhood garbage collection can cause problems, those problems can sometimes create opportunities for communication. I thought that if these problems hadn't occurred, I might never have had such a conversation with my neighbor.
Still, I don't like the garbage-and-crow problem at all! I hope I'll have more opportunities to communicate with my neighbors—but for better reasons!
Thank you for listening.
(4) My daily life: SM Ishimura
I usually get up 8 and drink a cup of room temperature water.
Prepare breakfast, one boiled egg, lettuce, broccoli, sprouts, chick peas, cheese, umebosi and a slice of bread. I put flaxseed oil and salad dressing on them.
Then have a cup of black coffee.
After breakfast.
I wash dishes and fold up our futon and put them in the closet. We don’t have a bed.
Then, I vacuum every room and clean the balcony. After that, I practice my handwriting for 15 minutes every day because my handwriting is not very good.
We often eat lunch out. We go to a nearby sushi restaurant about twice a week to enjoy my favorite seafood rice bowel. The prices are reasonable, and I like the owners’ friendly personality.
There are not many casual restaurants near our house so we often go to Machida, Hasimoto, Hachiohji and sometimes as far as Yokohama.
While we are there we also like to visit shrine and temples.
The other day we went to Showa Kinen Park and enjoyed the beautiful scenery.
In particular, the Kochia plants blooming across the entire field were beautiful.
One of my hobbies is studying English . whenever I have some free time, I like to listen to American radios or watch English-language programs on TV.
I’m still far from mastering English, but I listen to native speakers talking in their natural rhythm. It sounds to me almost like listening to pop music. It makes me feel happy and excited.
At my age, I think the best way to spend my time is to do what I really enjoy.
Recently, one subject I have become especially interested in studying in English is Buddhism.
I believe that Buddhist teachings are still very relevant to our lives today however, they are not easy to understand the first time, so I listen to the same teachings again and again.
The Buddha lived more than 2500 years ago. What made him different from ordinary people like us is that he attained enlightenment.
(5) A Sense of Fulfillment: SM K. Narisawa
A sense of fulfillment is the feeling of satisfaction and meaning that comes from doing something worthwhile, challenging, or personally meaningful.
In layman’s terms, there are many people who work simply to make enough money to get by. A friend of my son had a father who spent his entire working day hitting the lids of cans to make sure there was no air left inside them. He was doing what we call “routine work,” which did not make him happy, and he could not find any meaning in it. I wonder how many people are actually doing the work they really want to do.
I once had a student who wanted to become a voice actor. I advised him to look for a job in the movie industry, where there might be more opportunities than in voice acting. Looking back on my own career, I chose to become an English teacher because I thought I could make use of my English skills. But in reality, about 70 percent of my work was teaching English, while the other 30 percent—and sometimes 40 or even 50 percent—was taken up by various other duties.
I was disappointed at first. But, like the student I had advised, I settled for being a teacher because my work was at least somewhat related to English.
There was a man named Mr. Ohta, who was known as the “Don of English education in Hachioji.” He was the president of Speechcraft, an English speech study group like ours. He also ran an English conversation school in Hachioji. He was self-employed, so he could teach whatever he wanted to teach. Moreover, he once told us that his job had treated him well and given him a great sense of fulfillment. I envied him.
Right after my retirement, I wrote a bucket list. It included things like working out at a gym, setting up an English speech study group, and working as a part-time English teacher, and so on.
I managed to accomplish most of the things on my list, but teaching English conversation was still one thing I had not achieved.
But today, I am proud to announce that my dream has finally come true.
Tomorrow, I am going to teach my first lesson at a culture center in Hashimoto.
Without all those other duties, I can concentrate on teaching English conversation to senior citizens.
That is what I love to do. It took me more than 50 years to finally do what I really wanted to do.
And now, I have found my sense of fulfillment.
(6) Proverbs: SM Y. Narisawa
As you know, proverbs mean famous phrases or sentences that give us good advice and teach us useful lessons. We can learn many important things from proverbs.
Today I’d like to talk about my experiences related to the proverb ‘ You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink.’ This proverb means that we can give someone help or an opportunity, but we can’t force them to do something they don’t want to do.
The first one : My father liked reading books very much, especially Japanese historical novels. What I remember most vividly about my father is the sight of him reading. Whenever he had free time, he would read. He wanted me to read books, too. When I was in the sixth grade in elementary school, one day, my father came home with a novel he had bought for me at a bookstore. At that time, however, I was not very interested in reading. I told him I didn’t like the novel he had bought for me, so, he had to go back to the bookstore several times to exchange it for another one. Even as a child, I felt sorry for my father, and although I was reluctant, I eventually chose Arabian Nights. But to be honest, I don’t remember whether I finished reading it. Looking back, I think that, in the end, I might not have liked any novel at all. But now I’m reading English novels every day. I finally understand how interesting reading can be.
The second one : Since childhood, I had dreamed of being able to play the piano. I imagined how wonderful it would be if I could play my favorite songs on the piano. Because I couldn’t make that dream come true, I unknowingly began to place that dream on my daughter. When she was a kindergartner, without asking her whether she wanted to take piano lessons, I made her take them. I bought her a digital piano and found a private piano teacher for her. But she preferred physical activities to playing the piano. I didn’t understand that what I wanted for her was different from what she wanted for herself. In the end, she stopped taking piano lessons halfway through elementary school. Looking back now, I realize that you can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink.
Now, the digital piano sits quietly in the corner of my daughter’s room. It hasn’t been used for many years. Since I already have a piano at home, I want to try practicing with free online lessons. I feel like another proverb ‘ You are never too old to learn. ’ is pushing me forward.
I believe where there is a will, there is a way.
Meeting Schedule
In-person: 9:30 AM on Oct. 24 at Oyama Community Center (cooking practice room)
(Coordinator: SM Y. Narisawa)
コメント