TO CONCLUDE...

After almost nine gruelling months of arduous work, I sighed with relief on Wednesday, when I finished the hardest part of my C1 exams. However, I know that all this chaos in which I am immersed will be worn out, and then, I will miss the fulfilling moments I have lived in this course. I have to admit, that the two and half hours we have shared every Tuesday and Thursday, have not been long at all, despite having been working during the whole morning. On the contrary, sometimes the lessons have had a therapeutic effect, as while I have been concentrated on them, I have forgotten most of the day-to-day problems. I could not help feeling snowed under in some moments, especially during the endless second term. To be honest, I thought even about giving up. It was the pleasant atmosphere created in our group which encouraged me to stick it out.

Among the countless tasks we have had to do, we have written a poem. At that time I was feeling nostalgic, so that in my poem I tried to express the sorry for the loss. In this moment I have a similar regret for having finished this stage and losing touch with all of you, so I will dare to share it, even if I am  a little bit ashamed, knowing that I am not a great poet.

A BOTTLE WITH A MESSAGE INSIDE

I did not realize how special you were

Until  the day  you suddenly disappeared.

I could not understand that knot in my throat

That  pain in my chest.

I tried to forget  that absurd craziness,

As you hardly had noticed my trivial presence.

It was an impossible task,

Since as a joke of  fate

Your name came back 

Again and again,

In a sound, in a book, in a paint on the wall.

Then, a foolish idea hit my mind,

I sent you a bottle with a message inside,

I threw it to the sea, on the off-chance

That you could find it, and remind me

Through a word about the days behind. 

 I would like you remind me "through a word about the days behind", of course, a word in English.

MY SELFPORTRAIT

Rarely do people agree about whom you look like: your father or your mother. In my case, none of them have such dark eyes like mine. I wish I had a small Roman nose, as my mother, but undoubtedly, my father' genes have prevailed. I have also inherited from him my determination, as well as my stubbornness, while patience and tolerance are my mother's legacy. As decades go by, our own character is forged at the same pace as wrinkles are drawn in our face. Women having deep lines between the eyebrows and a mean mouth, as I have, are supposed to be meticulous and excessively worried about things for which they are responsible. Admittedly, it was the way in which I used to behave ten years ago, before a key event in my life changed my mind. Since that moment, I try to keep my head and to think twice before frowning or pursing my lips because of unimportant things.

Poetry event – 23 April

First of all, I would like to congratulate both my classmates and the EOI's teachers on their poems as well as on their fantastic readings. Admittedly, I have to learn a lot of vocabulary and new expressions from their work. Apart from this, the event was wonderful, with a beautiful mixture of music and poetry that created a peaceful and relaxing atmosphere.

Nowadays, the 450^th anniversary of  Shakespeare´s birth - the greatest poet in English language- is being celebrated in Stratford-upon- Avon http://www.shakespearesbirthday.org.uk/

In his honor I remind you one of his poems:

Carpe Diem

O mistress mine, where are you roaming?

O stay and hear! your true-love's coming

That can sing both high and low;

Trip no further, pretty sweeting,

Journey's end in lovers' meeting-

Every wise man's son doth know.

What is love? 'this not hereafter;

Present mirth hath present laughter;

What's to come is still unsure:

In delay there lies no plenty,

Then come kiss me, Sweet and twenty,

Youth's a stuff will not endure.

TUDOR'S DYNASTY

History has never been my strong point. In fact I have had serious problems trying to understand the Tudors' genealogical tree, to prepare our last reading task. The reason for my trouble are not only the six marriages of Henry VIII, but also the great amount of "Marys" related to this dynasty : Mary I- Bloody Mary-, Mary Tudor -Mary Queen of France- ,Mary Queen of Scots-Mary Stuart- and Mary of Guise.

 As a consequence I have sought on the Internet and  I have found so much information for my narrow brain than the result has been rather counterproductive. In the end I have chosen this video that since my view summarizes in the easiest way what I wanted to know.

Can Chess Check-mate Alzheimer's?

Thanks to our last lessons, in which we have been learning about neuroplasticity, I have reminded something that I heard years ago related to the benefits of playing chess, in order to prevent Alzheimer's .

In fact, it has been shown by statistics that hardly never great players suffer from this disease. Interestingly, one of them who was diagnosed with Alzheimer's, had symptoms that made think that his illness was considerably less developed than his autopsy revealed after his death.

Searching for more information, I have found this video that suggest that this sport can check-mate the onset of Alzheimer's. Admittedly, I do not have a clue about chess. I wish I had the time to learn to play it ,(maybe when I finish my C1 course).

I have bumped into this endearing video by chance, and although it is not obviously the best for practising "listening", it includes a wide range of amazing facial expressions, about which we have been also working. I hope you will enjoy it

Apparently, this lovely man is not avoiding Alzheimer's through the practice of chess. However, I do not think so at all. In contrast, I believe that he is a sensible man, who is able to take loneliness in his stride, instead of slumping dejectedly regretting his misfortune. He gives a valuable lesson of life.

The Sailor-Boy 's Tale

The Sailor-Boy 's Tale, from Winter's Tales, one of the best known books written by Isak Dinesen, is a lovely story that takes place on the coast of Norway. This tender tale narrates an adventure that happens to a brave young sailor, called Simon, who risks his life to rescue a peregrine falcon entangled upon the mast .

The thrill begins when the ship came to the harbour and such a display of life is discovered by Simon than he feels a self-confident adult in the middle of the incessant trade. No sooner had he mixed with the crowd, than he bumped into a wonderful girl, Nora, with whom he fell in love. He could not have been happier when she proposed to him to arrange a date for the next day.

   However, the plot has an unexpected twist as Simon accidentally kills Ivan, a Russian acquaintance who tries to prevent him from meeting his girlfriend. Since this moment, Simon is on the run for fear of being accused of murder. Had he not found a mysterious Lapp woman who helped him, he would have been arrested.

The atmosphere created by the author, through vivid descriptions, transports the reader to the northern in which the scene is supposed to develop. What Dinesen highlight in this tale is: should we behave honestly, we will be rewarded.

This story is well worth reading , as it is full of amazing moments as well as beautiful romantic details and a stunning creativity.

SYRIA'S LOST GENERATION

While I was watching this video, I could not help thinking of my teen students and even in myself at that age, as well as about how sensitive and dependent a human being is at that stage of his life.  I have been impressed by the sad and hopeless children's look. It should be the consequence of the shock of becoming suddenly adults. Try as I might, I could not imagine their feelings after losing their childhood, their home's safety  and their   family's support.

Apart from this, it is no wonder that the majority of this youth generation will suffer from psychological sequels in the future. Some of the words by which I have felt really moved are: "we should have died before have seen such things", told by a girl who is now playing the role of mother and father of her younger siblings. These two millions of people are supposed to bear the rest of their existence the bitterness of being witness and victims of their enemies's cruelty and barbarism .

 Nevertheless, I would like thinking that among this crowd, maybe some individuals will be able to transform their distress into wisdom, and forgive without forgetting the mistakes of the past, as an exceptional man- Mandela- did, in order to rebuilt their country free of hate and nastiness.

SAN VALENTINE'S DAY:BIG BUSINESS/BIG PRESSURE

Rent-A-Boyfriend Business Booming In China As Women Hire Fake Beaus To Please Nagging Parents

By Philip Ross   on November 11 2013 7:18 PM

The rent-a-boyfriend market, in which women pay young men to meet their parents, is on the rise in China. 

These days, finding a charming boy to impress the folks with is as easy as clicking “Add To Cart.” According to English People Daily, young people in China, particularly women, are renting bogus sweethearts through online marketplaces to parade in front of their scrupulous parents, who often pressure their daughters to find partners before a certain age.

CLIK HERE for more reading and listening information

MY OWN REFLECTION

      Is only in countries such as China where this kind of pressure exist?. I am afraid that it is not. In our own society, similar thoughts are kept, despite the fact that we are believed to be a modern country.

     For a large number of people,single women in their thirties or forties (as it is my case) are supposed to be in the obligation of searching for a husband. For some of them if a woman is talking to a good-looking man, she has to be expecting something else that a simple friendship.

     Apart from that, have your friends sometime 'prepared a boyfriend' for you without asking you in advance?.  Have became they a bit upset if you have not shown especially enthusiastic with their great help?.

     So that, even in our 'developed world', this kind of stress exist and some women agree to get engaged to a fiancé, although they do not like him at all. Their reward is to have an ordinary life and a partner for special dates (such as San Valentine's day) or social events (what in Spain is called BBC).

     Nevertheless, luckily this mentality is slowly disappearing and relationships are becoming more flexible and sincere. It does not matter how you fall in love, face to face, by internet or whatever it was, whether the feeling is authentic.

RED CROSS

Spanish Red Cross was founded in the XIX century to deal with the consequences of the war. Since then this humanitarian organization helps the most disadvantaged people.

The reason why I have chosen this NGO for my writing is that it is one of the largest and oldest in the world. Wherever it strikes a disaster, we can see in the news the quick reaction of the volunteers.

Moreover, not only do they work in emergencies or do they deal with the aftermath, but they also provide different services for millions of people. For instance, in Spain they are mainly committed to the families affected by the crisis, covering their basic necessities as well as offering to them projects to improve the possibilities of employment, and psychological help.

Apart from that, Red Cross carries on with the actions that it used to accomplish before the crisis, such as assistance to immigrants, women and children suffering hardship and abuse, disabled people, senior citizens, and all people living in difficulties of some kind.

Although I would like to contribute more directly with some charity, due to the lack of free time, I only can help with a little donation every month to Red Cross. Maybe in the future I could be more useful. 

http://www.cruzroja.es/portada/

MANDELA'S WAY

After reading this extraordinary book, I have acquired a better knowledge about Mandela´s strong personality as well as the events that have shaped him. It is not a cronological biography, but a portrait that has been made taking into consideration some important aspect of his life, each of them are developed along its fifteen chapters. The three chapters that I find more interesting are the numbers two, four and seven:

Chapter 2-  Be measured - According to Mandela, control is the measure of all human being. In fact, Mandela's measured responses to grave situations were a large part of the reason that South Africa did not plunge into civil war. Mandela strategy to fight was undermine his opponents through his style of play: he waited before making decisions; he considered all options; he formed an idea as complete as possible of the situation before taking action.So that, I see this point as the key part in Mandela's victory.

Chapter 4- Lead from the back- In the language of basketball we could translate as "pass to others and let them shoot". In other words, leading from the back means empowering others to lead, listening to them, summarising their ideas, achieving consensus, and seeking to mold opinions and steer people toward an action. This strategy shows how powerful Mandela's cleverness was.

Chapter 7- See the good in others - This aspect implies a great generosity. For Mandela "everyone is virtuous until proven otherwise". Seeing the good in other people improve the chances that they will reveal their better selves. Mandela always seeked the positive,  the constructive, "what he could take from him". Prison opened up Mandela's view of human nature rather than constricting it. He concluded that no one is born prejudiced or racist: apartheid made men evil; evil did not create apartheid.

       There are infinity of learnings that we can find in this book. To narrow them down, I will mention some of them that I have taken from the last part :"Mandela's give"

·It is possible after a great tragedy and almost fails then resurrecting and achieve harmony.

· It is through sacrifice and discipline that somebody will  reach important goals.

·Individuals are a part of an infinity complex web of other human beings.

We are the reason and we are the ones

 who made things happen.

SHADOWLANDS

Shadowlands is a touching film that little by little grasps spectators' feelings, in such a soft way that you will barely realize it until the end of the movie. Not only are pain and happiness mixed in an excellent manner, but also social prejudices are shown as they really appear in life.

Anthony Hopkin is superb in the role of C.S.Lewis. I find his character difficult enough to play because of the wide range of personality's features that he develops. First of all we find a self-assured and determined man, even rather arrogant but calm and rational. However, when he met Joy (played in a fantastic form by Debra Winger), he become a little bit insecure as well as timid, in front of this spontaneous and light-hearted woman. As the story turns up with an unexpected twist, the actor should change the register towards sensitivity, tenderness, passion and emotion.

The main idea suggested by the plot is: "how can we face the pain, especially when it is hitting us repeatedly?". The film propose two solutions in order to deal with it:

 In the first place, we can search the safety, for example fleeing from sorrow towards a magic world hidden at the background of a cupboard (as Lewis did in "Narnia books", maybe to heal his wounds after his mother's death).

In the second place, we can choose suffering, we can deal with grief through our best memories; in other words we should be aware of the harsh reality without forgetting that fate gave away us cheerful days, and there will surely be again.

That is the learning that this movie offers to us:

 "The pain now is part of the happiness then, that's the deal".