PRIVACY WORRIES OVER 'EMA' WISHES AND PRAYERS神社の絵馬もプライバシー保護

The issue of privacy is in the spotlight at Shinto shrines in Japan, where visitors write wishes and prayers on small wooden tablets called ema.

Recently, some people have started covering their ema with stickers to hide their names and messages.

Some of the roughly 300 ema tablets at Nishinomiya Shrine in Hyogo Prefecture are covered with stickers. 

The shrine doesn't sell stickers, so the people who wrote on the tablets must have brought them.

Another shrine is preserving privacy in a different way.

It's using small pouches instead of stickers. The shrine started offering the pouches four years ago. 

In the age of social media, people are increasingly worried that their secret wishes will be leaked.

◆poche　小袋、ポーチ   

◆leak（液体や気体が）漏れる、（パイプなどが）水漏れする」という意味ですが、そこから転じて「（情報が）漏れる、漏えいする 

Daily Vocabulary(2023/12/13）

31531.virtually (オンラインで）on a computer, rather than in the real world 
Professors can help students virtually by communicating over the Internet. 
31532.in person(直接）if you do something in person, you go somewhere and do it yourself, instead of doing something by letter, asking someone else to do it etc 

It nice to meet you in person. 

31533.renovate(新たにする、修復する、刷新する ）to repair a building or old furniture so that it is in good condition again 

The condo is still being renovated. 

31534.catch up on (～の遅れを取り戻す、～の不足を取り返す） extremely important and needing to be done or dealt with immediately
I watched a couple of movies and was able to catch up on some sleep.

31535.send one's apologies（欠席する旨を知らせる）to produce a result, answer, or piece of information 

I'm sorry, but Emily has sent her apologies.