Back in my university days, a professor recommended two books to me; Narcissus and Goldmund by Herman Hesse and The Magic Mountain by Thomas Mann. That was when I heard those authors’ names for the first time. He told me that those books were ones that had enabled him to get through the hardships of his youth, and from his view, I was going through similar problems then. He was originally from Argentina. According to what he told, he had experienced some kind of existential crisis in his youth. Because of that, he had begun to have difficulty fitting into his own country and culture to the extent that he began having some kind of anorexia as well as anxiety. He told that, in order to survive, he felt forced to set off a journey across boarders, wandering around different countries, and finally found a place where he would truly feel accepted and could live for life. He eventually decided to move to live in Japan. While we were talking, we were kind of emotional to the point that we were both almost tearful for no reason. I don’t understand what that was, but looking back, there was a strange excitement between us for discussing something important in life. Anyway, struck by the fervent recommendation from the professor, I started reading the book by Herman Hesse shortly after, and completely got captivated by it. After finishing the first book, I went onto one after another. I don’t remember how many books of his I read, but that was a lot for me. Some books had a great influence on me and changed me on many layers of my being. I couldn’t thank the professor more for guiding me to such a significant encounter in my life. Several days ago, however, I suddenly remembered that I hadn’t read The Magic Mountain nor any other books by Thomas Mann. Now I’m thinking of reading the book in English that had been recommended to me over 20 years ago. I wonder what held me back for so long.

I’m looking for someone with whom I can practice speaking English through video chats. My English proficiency would be upper intermediate. If you are interested, please let me know.

It seems that the search function for language partners was gone on italki. Or are there still ways to look for them on here?

The after hours 2 All of a sudden, a female clerk appears and speaks to her. "Where did you come from? I didn't see anybody here!" "You may not have been paying attention, ma'am. I've been here. Which item may I show you?" "No, you haven't but it's okay. Well, I'm looking for a golden thimble which I saw in your ad...but I'm not sure you have that here. I can't see any items on this floor." "Don't worry. We actually have the appropriate one for you. Follow this way." Then, the lady clerk walks and she follows. "Here you are." As a matter of fact, it's a golden thimble. "Oh, this is beautiful! Wonderful! It must be expensive. How much is it?" "It's made of 24-karat gold. Since it's on a sale, it's 250 dollars." "Not expensive, actually very reasonable. I'll take it." "You made a wise choice, ma'am. Thank you very much, Marsha. And will you be paying in cash or credit?" "I pay in cash. You know, I don't want things made complicated with signature or something.... But what did you say? Why did you know my name?" "We must have met before in this store because you are a special customer..." "That's impossible. This is the first time. I've never been here before." "No. You just misunderstood..." "How did I misunderstand something like this? Okay, never mind. Well, I have to go now." "Yes, ma'am, thank you very much. It was my pleasure serving you. By the way, are you happy Ms White?" "What? Why did you ask what was actually none of your business? How did you know my second and first name? What's the hell happening here? Why, you?" "I'm just making conversation... Well, suit yourself. I leave you. Have a nice day!" And just then, the elevator arrives and the doors open. Once Marsha inside, she doesn't see anyone on the floor...

The after hours 1 A young, good looking lady walks into a department store crowded with shoppers one day at the end of the year. She looks to be in her mid-20s. The simple combination of her white shirt and tight black skirt, both pleated neatly, which is a typical office lady look, contrasts her fine features. She's looking around on the ground floor. She has come to buy a golden thimble that she found in an ad of the store previously, and thinks that should be an ideal gift for her mother. After going around on the floor, she asks a clerk, who appears terribly busy attending to other customers, which floor she should go to for it, but he looks as if he doesn't hear her. Although she isn't sure now, wondering it might be in a gift section, she goes toward the elevators to find which floor there is a gift section on. There are two elevators, in front of which lots of people are waiting, so she also joins them. After a while, she sees an elevator arrives but nobody seems to care about it. She is the only person who moves forward and gets into it. Now in the elevator, only she and an elevator operator, a middle-aged man are inside. She feels awkward somehow and addresses the man. "Is this kind of a private elevator for me? I'm not a VIP nor a frequent customer here..." "This is an express for the 9th floor.. May I ask what in particular you are looking for?" "I'm looking for a thimble...a golden thimble for my mother..." "Oh, I see. It should be on the 9th." "Here we are." The door opens, but the floor is dimly lit inside and it seems that there is nothing but rows of empty showcases without any clerks or shoppers. "This must be some kind of mistake..." But the elevator starts to move down with the doors closed already. "Is anybody here?" Silence. "How can I find a thimble here? There is no merchandise here. This must be a mistake!" "Have someone attended you already?" All of a sudden, a female clerk appears and speaks to her.

Parable of a mother Buddha stopped off at a village and met a desperate woman whose son had died of a sickness some time before. She loved him so much and couldn't forget the little six-year-old boy, so she had been looking for a means to cure him from death and live with her again. She approached Buddha as he ended his sermon among a crowd of villagers, and asked him how she could get her son back from death. Buddha gave her an instruction: "Go and obtain a handful of a certain plant seed but from someone who has never lost any of his or her family members or relatives by death." Believing in his words, full of hope, she set off visiting people to get the seed. After going around her village, she moved to a neighboring village after another, asking all the people about the seed. She found some who had it but no one who didn't have an experience of death of their family or relatives. While searching, she got to know many people with a lot of sorrow stories of the separation with their loved husbands, wives, sons, daughters, or parents. After being exhausted of the search, she came to the conclusion that it would be impossible to get her son back to life, yet she learned about something that she didn't know before, and realized that she didn't feel agony any longer. With refreshed feelings and calmness, she recovered a gentle smile back on her face, and began to walk toward her village with not energetic but steady strides . ---------This story is based on a Buddhist anecdote, but may be very different from the original.

Writing practice for Eiken test It’s been a while since we began hearing Islamic State, a terrorist group, on broadcast news. In many areas over the world, especially in middle-eastern countries, a lot of assaults and terrorist activities have taken place day by day. One of the reasons why those terrorist groups keep attempting such inhumane activities is economic inequality prevailed everywhere in the world. In fact, the number of people whose daily living goes under 1 dollar is staggering. The terrorists justify their activities for solving the economic gap. Also, they recruit the poor, especially young generation, into their militia. The lack of education might be blamed for in that the poor are encouraged and willingly go involved into those activities. It seems that the terrorism can’t be ever eliminated unless the economic inequality is solved. However, we must strive to solve it no matter how. What concerned countries must do is firstly improve international relations. Through humane talk rather than military action despite conflict of interests, we can, for sure, improve the situation. The process may take really a long way, but as long as we keep making effort, the situation will improve and eventually the terrorism can be eliminated.