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日本語文末に）
Sometimes you don't have the slightest idea what you have actually accomplished meant to your future. I joined a typical summer vacation one month U.S. home stay program when I was 15. I realized I was acting in an interpreter role among the participants, and I had no communication difficulties in English. I liked my host family and the place, and boldly enough,I told them I was interested in going to a local school there and asked if they could find me a sponsor. My host parents me liked me a lot with two main reasons, they kindly adopted me for an year, and I could go to local school for free for an year. So it happened without taking exams or paying lots of money, I just won this chance. BECAUSE, I was already so good at reading picture books then. The family had a 2 years old daughter and her 3 huge picture book shelves were full of them just as many as a kindergarten's book shelves! It was mid-80's. The Read-Aloud picture books movement was in fashion. But I had no idea about it then.
I could read books even with words I never encountered. I could just guess the nuances. My host parents calculated quickly that having me for an year is a good way to secure a babysitter on every Friday night. Yes, I was told every Friday morning that I need to babysit their 3 years old kid because the couple was going out that night. Friday nights were a time to have fun time with friends. I understood that I couldn't go out with friends on Friday nights. Anyway, I could go to school for an year in Colorado, enjoyed all the little kids' home fun in all seasons and my reading aloud skill improved a lot.
It's only these last couple of years that I realized what my one year studying abroad in high school days was all about. My English skill are still improving even now and my English picture books reading aloud career is more than 30 years old by now.
I forgot most of the books I read in those days, because I didn't realized the value in those days. However when I opened this book after my daughter was born, I knew I read this some time when I was 16.
その時、自分が何をやらかしたか（達成していたか）、氣付いていないときもあるものだ(笑) わたしは16歳の時、米国の現地高校に1年通いました。試験も受けず、無料で。理由はわたしの英語絵本読み聞かせ能力がベビーシッターとして十分だったから1年限定の養子にしてもらえたからでした。折しも、80年代半ば、米国では絵本読み聞かせの効能について大ブームが巻き起こっていたと、つい近年知る。凄いラッキーな最中に、わたしは恩恵を得られる能力を発揮していたのだ。つまり今のわたしの英語絵本読み聞かせキャリアは30年越え！！その時その価値はしらず、実はやらされてる感で、関心もなかった絵本(笑) だけど、娘が生まれてこの本だけは、何回か当時読んだのを思い出した。
#英語絵本読み聞かせ #corduroy #picturebooks #readaloud
