９月１１日、太田市尾島庁舎にて、令和５年度太田市英語弁論大会が開催されました。本校から３年生の木村漣寿さんが出場しました。木村さんの発表は出場者の中で１番堂々としており、審査員・ＡＬＴの方々からも感心の声が寄せられていました。そして、見事第３位、県大会出場の栄誉を勝ち取りました。今後、県大会に向けて練習に励み、より一層の活躍を期待しています。以下、木村さんの原稿を掲載します。

My Mother and My Music
Renju Kimura
Ojima　J.H.S
(一般の部)

I like singing songs very much. It makes me feel relaxed. I sing songs anytime and anywhere. I sing songs when I am eating, brushing my teeth, washing my face and I even sing loudly and comfortably when I’m taking a bath. I don’t claim that I am good at singing. I just love singing. It’s my way to express myself and to relieve stress.
For me, there’s nothing wrong about it. I enjoy every word I utter and the sounds that I make makes me comfortable. However, when I’m singing, my mother does not enjoy it and even scolds me most of the time. I don’t understand why she’s irritated by my voice. It’s sad to know that when I feel better, my mother feels that I’m noisy and doesn’t like my singing. I wondered why, checked my voice and thought that maybe I am a little tone-deaf. I thought I could really sing well until my mother told me that my singing voice is terrible and she could only hear noise. I had no idea about it. I was really enjoying every song that I sang. Even if she honestly told me about it, I still can't stop singing.
Another thing happened in the music singing test. I was able to sing well in a loud voice, believing that I did good because I was happy and satisfied. But the sad part was, when I asked my music teacher about my performance. The truth was revealed and proven. I am a little tone-deaf. I didn’t realize it until I heard it, first, from my mother and second from my music teacher. I felt embarrassed, but I told myself, “It won’t stop me from singing”. I still sing at home and my mother still scolds me. Her negative reactions about my singing won’t stop me from doing what I love. Instead, I will take it as an inspiration to do my best and improve my singing skills.
One day, I asked my music teacher what I should do to fix my tone deafness. She told me to listen carefully to the sound of the piano and not only to my voice. I followed her advice and did everything I could. When I was practicing for the chorus competition, I listened carefully to the sound of the piano, rhyming my voice with the music and sounds, but my friend told me I was really out of tune. I didn’t mind him. I just continued singing and did my best to have the right tone and match my pitch with everyone. I really enjoyed that moment with my classmates and had so much fun. That’s the most important thing.
This year would be my last chorus competition as a junior high school student. I want to give my best and to unite with everyone. I know this requires a lot of practice as one team. Yes, I am a little tone-deaf, but I don’t want to leave any regrets behind, so I’ll do my best. Many challenges may come along the way such as me being a little tone-deaf, how to encourage our class to enjoy singing and be united and of course how to understand my mother’s agony every time she hears me singing - I think this is the hardest part.
Above all things, my love for music and my singing are useless if someone closest to me, my mother,
would not appreciate and enjoy the sound around her. This is the most challenging part. I want to express myself through songs and I also want my mother to understand my songs.
I am not losing hope. I wish someday, I’m going to sing my favorite song with her, enjoy it and accept our differences in music. I believe that one day she will understand my music, enjoy my voice and my love for singing. It’s the nicest thing to look forward to. I can’t wait to make this happen. Maybe not today, not even tomorrow, but I know it will happen soon!

Thank you for listening!