English Speech Contest 英語原稿 ※カルナの息子の写真付き

スピーチコンテスト本番で発表した原稿です。
ぜひ最後まで読んでみてください！！
一番下に、親友カルナの子供の写真もあります。
 

I lived in Nepalbefore I came back to Japan last March..

 

I am going to tell you about my best Nepali friend, who I met in a small village in Himalaya during my stay there. His name is Karna. When we met for the first time in his village, we were both 15 years old. His family was very poor, but he was very active and he supported me a lot. We spent 4 whole days, eating together, farming together, and sleeping in the same house every day. Let me tell you something which will surprise you. Karna was already married, and his 14 -year-old wife was pregnant.

 This is one of the realities of poor people in Nepal.

 

  The village is mostly cold all year round, so I was wearing a warm jacket all the time, but for some reason, Karna was only wearing a T-shirt and short pants. I thought  he was feeling cold so I asked him “Aren’t you feeling cold?” He replied, “Yes, It’s very cold”.  So I told him to go back home and wear warm clothes, but he said with a smile, “This is the only clothes I have.”  Never in my life had I imagined that the people living there couldn’t have warm clothes. I was really, really shocked.

 

  On the last day of my stay in the village, I decided to give him my jacket as my token of our friendship. He thanked me a lot and hugged me. I could not stop crying when I left him and that village.

 

 After 5months, I went back to the village to meet him. But the shocking news was waiting for me. The villagers sadly said, “Karna went to Malaysia for work. He cannot come back for at least three years." I couldn’t understand the news at first. He was only 15 years old, and furthermore, his baby was coming soon.

 

But this is the reality of poor people in Nepal.  

 

His family told me,

 “When he left the village for Malaysia, he was wearing the jacket you gave him and proudly said, “my best friend gave this to me. This is my treasure.”

 It’s hard to describe in words how I felt at that moment.  It was one of the most heartbreaking moments of my life.

 Working abroad is not fun at all for them.  7-8 people live in an old and small one-room apartment. Salary is the lowest in the country, so they have to work hard for hours and hours every day to send money to their families in Nepal regularly.

Sadly, poor people are always poor. This is what I learned in Nepal.    

 

I would like you to think of how lucky we are. We always have lots of complaints about our life. We complain about  everything. But can you ever imagine a life like Karma’s?  After listening to my experience, Would you still want to complain about your life?  We are all given such a wonderful environment to study as Keimei students. We can study hard for our future dreams. But in this world, there are lots of young people who cannot go to school. In this world, there are lots of young people who cannot think of their own dreams at all.

 I think we have to think seriously about it.

 

 Before I close my speech, I would like to introduce you the letter I wrote to Karna in Malaysia, three days after I left the village..

 

Dear my friend Karna,

 

I heard that you are making furniture every day to feed your family.

I always remember you. Your smile, your kindness. You are my best friend forever.

I met your son three days ago. He is so cute! I am very sad to know that you cannot meet your son for a long time from now. When you come back to Nepal he will grow up into a big boy.

Your family and all the villagers miss you a lot.

Take care about yourself. Come back soon with your healthy body!

 I am looking forward to seeing you again!

 

                                                                                   From Your best friend, Yoshiki Seki

僕のネパールの親友・カルナ

 

親友カルナの子供。そっくりすぎて、笑っちゃう