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Listener Mail 101

Voice 1

Hello and welcome to Spotlight. I’m Marina Santee.

Voice 2

And I’m Mike Procter. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.

Voice 1

Welcome to our listener mail programme. Our first letter comes from Ilyes in Algeria. He writes about our programme Understanding Your Dreams:

Understanding Your Dreams

"I went to get some extra milk. I realized while I was in the store that I was naked. I wondered how to get home without any shoes on."

"I was falling and falling off a cliff down into a deep canyon ..."

Voice 2

Ilyes liked the fun nature of this programme. He also shared one of his dreams and goals in life. He desires to speak English softly. Ilyes, I am sure that you can reach this goal. And we hope that Spotlight can help you!

Voice 1

Our next letter comes from Le Anh Tuan in Vietnam. Le Anh Tuan writes about an issue that lots of people are talking about - global warming!

Voice 3

‘Global warming is the increase in the average temperature of the earth’s near-surface air and the oceans. It causes a lot of problems to the environment, human life and animals. But who creates global warming? We polluted the air, the ocean and the seas.’

Voice 1

Like many people, Le Anh Tuan is concerned about the effects of climate change. He suggests some ways that people can help care for their environment:

Voice 3

‘We must stop throwing away waste. We must re-use waste. We should use public transport instead of personal cars and motorbikes. We could use solar energy from the sun, or wind power for electricity.’

Voice 1

Thanks for talking about such an important issue Le Anh Tuan You are right. We must all work together to help our planet.

Voice 2

Our next email is from Gianni in Italy. He writes:

Voice 4

‘I am 44 years old. I am learning in English for my job. One year ago I could not speak even one word of English. I began listening to your programme, downloading it onto my ipod. I listen before I go to sleep. It is not easy after a hard day’s work. I listen to your programme and it helps me very much.’

Voice 2

Gianni, congratulations on your level of English. I think your story will greatly encourage other people learning English. Last year you could not speak any English. And today, you write and speak English to a good level. Congratulations!

Voice 1

Next we have a letter from Elzbieta in Poland. She says that Spotlight is her favourite website. She is happy that there is a free website for learning English.

Voice 1

Elzbieta also writes:

Voice 5

‘I have a suggestion. A glossary with the difficult words would be very helpful. For example: to purchase means to buy something.’

Voice 1

Thanks for your suggestion Elzbieta. Our word list uses many of the words we use in the program. You can find this on our website. We also try to make the meaning of the words clear in the programme. But we will think about other ways to define and explain words. We hope you continue to enjoy Spotlight!

Voice 2

Now we have a letter from Alireza in Iran. He writes:

Voice 3

‘I want to know about Christian special days and their holidays. I have a Christian friend. I want to send him an email on these days. Thank you.’

Voice 2

Thanks for the interesting question! Christians celebrate many holidays through the year. There are two that are the most important: Easter and Christmas. Most people celebrate Christmas on December the twenty fifth. At Christmas, Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. They give each other gifts and share a meal with family and friends.

The date for Easter changes every year. But it is always in the northern spring. In the northern hemisphere, spring is in the months of March and April. This year, Christians from Eastern and Western traditions will celebrate Easter on the same day - April the fourth. Easter represents Jesus’ death and resurrection. So people give each other eggs. The eggs represent new life. Some people give real eggs, children like sweet chocolate eggs. People greet each other by saying ‘Happy Easter. Christ is risen.’

There are other holidays and celebrations around Easter and Christmas. We have some programmes on our website. Look for ‘Advent’, ‘Easter around the world’, and ‘The Last Passover.’

We hope this helps you to share greetings with your friend.

Voice 1

Our next letter comes from the Netherlands:

Voice 4

‘The listen and read programme is very good. I think it is better if the sound is on all the pages. You can stop, and listen again to words that you need to hear, and start again.’

Voice 1

Thank you for writing. Yes you are right. The best way to learn English is to listen and read at the same time. You can follow the words on the script as you hear them. In this way, you can improve your listening and reading skills. We wish you the best of luck.

Voice 1

Our last letter made us smile. It comes from Adem in Turkey:

Voice 3

‘Dear friends. Your programme gave me extra energy. I returned home a bit tired and sad from my job. Then I decided to check my email and listen to your programme. Suddenly I shouted. I saw my name on your programme - Listener Mail 99. I forgot about my sadness and tiredness. Small things make us happy sometimes. I hope everyone can find something to be happy about. We know life is so hard. But, there are lots of good things. Let us look at the good sides of life together.’

Voice 1

Thank you for your encouraging and wise words Adem. We like them a lot! You are right. It is good to think about the positive things in life, and enjoy them together.

Voice 2

Well that is all we have time for today. We hope you have enjoyed our listener mail programme.

Voice 1

If you would like to write to Spotlight you can email us. Our email address is radio at english dot net. Spotlight is also on Facebook. Just search for "Spotlight Radio." Become a fan of our page and you can get updates about future programs. Or you can join our discussion page on our website at http://www.radio.english.net. There you can also find other Spotlight programs, read our scripts, and see our word list. We may read your letter in a future listener mail programme.

Voice 2

The writer and producer of today’s programme was Marina Santee. All quotes were adapted and voiced by Spotlight. The voices you heard were from the United Kingdom and the United States. Thank you for joining us in today’s Spotlight programme. Until next time. Goodbye.