| 2008-06-21 15:04:03 纯真年代
(杭州) 6 years to give 2 speeches
SPEECH ON THE OPENING OF THE ENGLISH SALON( 2000.11.23)
My dear friends, welcome to my English salon and certainly my Book Bar as well.
Today we are here to hold our first English Salon in the form of celebrating Thanksgiving Day. As we all know it is a day set aside for Americans each year for giving thanks to God for blessings received during the year. On this day, people give thanks with feasting and prayer. That’s why I have prepared so pretty dishes for us to enjoy the special occasion. And at the same time I mean it to be an opportunity for us especially for me to feel the warmth of understanding, friendship, love and gratitude towards those who have helped us in our life. All the human being can’t live without them. That’s why I start my English Salon on a day that celebrates these human emotions. I am very grateful to people around me who have been so kind and helpful during my suffering from cancer and the chemotherapy afterwards. It’s their love and friendship that have brought me through the crisis and helped me to hold on to life. And they have also helped me a great deal with my book bar, which I think embodies my point of view towards life—Life is just once and precious and life is so delicate and vulnerable that one can die any time just like some of my friends in the hospital. Death may take away one’s life without any notice sometimes and it is like an eraser for it will wipe out any abstract signs a living person left in the world. And after the narrow brush with Death I felt the urge to do something useful to the society and meaningful to the people around me, but all my friends, my family members especially my husband strongly objected to my plan. They thought I was out of my mind with such a crazy idea and in such poor health. But in the end they agreed with me for they understood how much it would mean to me and what I had felt during the suffering. I should say I have never complained about my illness. Instead I am thankful for I have experienced their love and friendship during the hardship.
I open the book bar and the English salon with the delicious idea that the same desire to learn more, to share more with others their knowledge, their point of view of the world and their feelings and emotions will bring people closer together. And I think I have fulfilled what I have dreamed of. Once I wrote in my diary like this that language is the dress of thoughts, so it’s necessary for one to improve his language just as one beautifies his appearance. And language is also the carrier of a culture. With knowledge of another language, you will be even more sensitive and sensible to the world and the people around you, and to your own feelings. We may become more understanding and considerate to others’ feelings. How nice it will be if every one of us cherishes good wishes and tender feelings towards others!
Thank you!
Zhu Jinxiu(Jane), hostess of Innocent Age Book Bar
Speech on the 6th anniversary of my Innocent Age Book Bar(2006.9.29)
How time flies. My book bar is six years old today. Six years ago, still in poor health after chemotherapy, I decided to open the book bar, which embodies my point of view towards life---Life is special and just once, so make it meaningful and beautiful. Few of my friends have expected that the book bar could last long, because they were worried about my health and my little knowledge of running a book bar. Anyhow I am lucky. As a cancer patient I have survived illness and as a book bar keeper I have managed to keep it alive. What’s more, the book bar is now becoming more and more popular among literators and English lovers. Last night we launched a writing project for literators to write down their stories about friends at this book bar. Tonight, we are going to have English salon in the form of music night to celebrate the 6th anniversary of my book bar.
I hope my book bar can last as long as possible and to have more meaningful and beautiful nights like tonight.
Wish you a good time here tonight. Thank you.
Jane Zhu, hostess of Innocent Age Book Bar
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