The third and final part of Ivan Bunin’s “Rusya” reveals not only the quiet, inevitable end of first love, but also how a mother’s illness can cast a long, lasting shadow over her daughter’s entire life — shaping her fate, her choices, and the fragile echo of what might have been.

The Russian Soul in Stories

Руся. The final part of the Story of Love and Memory.

I feel Christmas and New Year's holiday in Japan and north America is opposite. In Japan, Christmas is more like party time, festival feeling, and new years holiday is more holy and family gathering feeling. 
日本のクリスマスとお正月。北米と逆だなと思います。日本はクリスマスはパーティーとかサンタクロースのイメージ。お正月がもう少し神聖な雰囲気で家族でも集まります。

Akari Talks Japan

Christmas and New Year Holidays in Japan 日本のクリスマスとお正月

Hosting alone this week, Brent explains the origins and typical usage of the phrase OFF THE HOOK.

Brentoni's English Podcast

041 - off the hook

Esta semana les voy a platicar de cómo usar los adverbios aquí, acá, ahí y allá que indican localización por medio de ejemplos.
Lo siento si me entro la nostalgia al hablarles de mi bello Yucatán.

Yuca-talk

Aquí, Ahí, Allá, Acá

Сегодня читаем рассказ Ивана Алексеевича Бунина “Холодная осень”. Не очень радостный, но полезный для знакомства с некоторыми выражениями текст.

Слова, которые объясняю в эпизоде: пережи́ть - испытать что-то в жизни, выдержать - survive, live through; опроме́тчиво - необдуманно, слишком поспешно - recklessly, rashly, hastily; с тех пор - since that time, from that time; спра́шивать себя - ask yourself; уже́ли - то же самое, что неужели - really; ненужный сон - unnecessary sleep / dream; горячо (ве́рить) - сильно, очень - strongly (believe); где-то там - somewhere (out) there; мо́лодость - возраст от отрочества до зрелых лет - youth; на свете - in the world, on the earth, on the planet.

Такая вот осенняя история. Спасибо, что послушали мой подкаст, поставили лайк и написали комментарий. А то как я узнаю, что вам нравится то, что я делаю и есть смысл продолжать это всё?! 

Смело предлагайте, каких авторов и книги хотели бы вместе прочитать! И помните, что чтение по-русски углубляет ваши знания языка! Хороших вам книг, друзья!

Reading Russian

Отрывок из рассказа “Холодная осень” И.А. Бунин

欢迎来到Chillchat全中文系列～ 本系列第一集献给Karen第一次去新加坡旅行的经历，所见所感，敬请收听。


Chillchat (Learn Chinese and Chill)

(全中文 Advanced Chinese, HSK5+) 新加坡初体验 

The exciting short story by Roald Dahl continues, withe new words explained at the end of the podcast.

Stories to Stimulate!

The Umbrella Man - Part two

Have you ever been "taken for a ride"? If you've been tricked or lied to before, then the answer is yes. Here are some other expressions about lying.

If someone confidently tells you a big lie and doesn't seem to feel bad about it, then you can say they are "lying through their teeth." Such people might make a "web of lies," telling many lies to make people believe them. And if someone lies all the time, you can say they "lie like a rug" – which is a joke using two meanings of "lie," because a rug can only lie on the floor.

If someone lies to you, tricks you, or wants to stop you from finding something out, you can say they are trying to "pull the wool over your eyes." The expression comes from the early 19th century, and may be talking about the wool wigs that some people wore at the time. So someone could pull your wig down, covering your eyes and stopping you from seeing what was really happening.

But not every lie is a big one. Sometimes people just "bend the truth," which is telling a small lie that is usually not serious and probably won't hurt anyone. Often people "bend the truth" by saying something that's part-true, while leaving out important information.

But if someone "stretches the truth," they are probably saying that something is better than it really is. Some people might stretch the truth to make a story more interesting.

Practice Listening, Reading & Comprehension

Don't Get 'Taken for a Ride' With These Lying Expressions

大家好，我是潘妮，欢迎来到古典智慧拾贝。在这里，我主要与大家分享中国古代的思想家的智慧。

今天这句话来自老子的《清静经》，是老子道家的智慧。

上士不争，下士好争。意思是有上等智慧的人，是没有争夺的心的，只有最下等最没有智慧的人，才一天到晚与人争夺。

我第一次看到这句话的时候，非常震撼。因为我们现代人，大部分都已经习惯了在各种场合与人争一个高低。不管是争夺有限的物质，还是在意见和他人不一样的时候争强好胜，都是古代圣贤最不会做的事情。老子不愧是圣人，只有不与人争，才能保持清静的心，保持一种自在和自由。这其实是传统中国文化的核心部分。

对此，你是怎么想的呢？谢谢你的收听，我们下次见。

Hello everyone, my name is Penny, welcome to this channel. In this channel, I will share with you wisdoms of Chinese thinkers and philosophers from the past.

Today's phrase comes from Lao Tzu, from the wisdom of Taoism. 

The highly respected men don’t argue and contest, the lowly respected men like to argue and contest. It means that people with superior wisdom do not compete or fight, and only least intelligent people compete with others all the time.

The first time I saw this sentence, it was a shock. Because most of us modern people have been used to competing with people on various occasions. Whether it is competing for limited material resources, or competing to win when opinions differ, these are the last things that ancient sages do. Only by not fighting with others can we maintain a quiet mind and keep our hearts truly free and at ease. This is actually a core part of traditional Chinese wisdom.

What do you think about this? Thanks for your listening and see you next time.