Shadowing Practice: My Mom Is SO Cheap - Learn English Speaking with Video

Hi, I'm Camilia from Brazil.

Before I tell you my story, please like and subscribe.

My parents were super, super rich.

Just kidding.

We were living in the poorest neighborhood in town.

Mom stayed at home and dad mowed lawns and we had little to no money.

Hmm, maybe I should have subscribed to this channel and tried to win $10,000.

Hey, you should try that.

Subscribe to MSA today and you could be the lucky winner of $10,000 in just seven days.

Fingers crossed!

But anyways, being poor didn't stop my parents from spoiling my younger brother Pedro rotten.

You see, Pedro was a genius.

By the time he was eight months old, he could say his alphabet and count to 100.

By the time he was two, he was doing mathematical equations and solving puzzles.

Our baby is a genius!

He's going to make us so proud!

And what am I?

Chop lover?

On my fifth birthday, instead of the princess house with the car and pool I wanted, Mom stitched me a doll from old clothes.

We just don't have the money, sweetie.

But Pedro received a brand new remote control car.

Sweetie, we had to get Pedro something as well.

That wasn't even the worst of it.

Pedro was allowed to go to school, and I wasn't.

My parents said it was because Pedro had a special gift, so they used all the money they had to send him to a private school for gifted children.

And they couldn't even afford books for me to go to a public school.

Life was so unfair.

I felt so invisible.

The only time my parents saw me was when they wanted me to do some chore around the house.

Over time, I just got used to it.

And since I couldn't read books to myself, or I didn't have a phone to watch videos, I started to sew to pass my time.

Camellia, what did you do to my curtains?

I fell in love with creating new things from old stuff, and I wanted to become a fashion designer.

Because of how differently my parents treated Pedro and me, we never grew up close, and he always saw me as his slave, even though I was older than he was.

Clip my toenails!

Clean my shoes!

When I was 11, I begged my parents to send me to a sewing school.

Mom!

Dad!

I deserve to be able to follow my dreams too!

They don't have the money to send you to some stupid sewing school

when they're going to send me to the most prestigious college in the country.

I'm sorry, Camilla, but we have to support the child who has greater potential and will make the family proud.

With that, Mom and Dad just walked away as Pedro stood there with a stupid smirk on his face.

Oh, I wanted to smack him hard.

It was then that I decided I'd do whatever it took to get myself into a sewing school.

I tried to get a job, but nobody wanted to hire an 11-year-old, not even as a clown for a birthday party.

When I was 13, things looked as though they were turning around, and I finally landed a babysitting job.

But when my parents found out that I'd been neglecting household chores because of it, they were furious.

I was grounded for two months, and Dad tore up all my designs that I had stuck on my bedroom walls over the years.

I was devastated, but a tiny part of me refused to give up.

I had to be smart.

This time, when I drew, I hid my drawings under the floorboards of my bed, and when Mom sent me to the supermarket, I'd pass by the wishing fountain and take all the coins.

Don't give me that judgmental look, but after three years of saving those coins, it still wasn't enough.

Luckily for me, my life took an amazing turn when I turned 16, and that set things in motion for me.

One day, while drawing in my room, I was so focused that I didn't see this girl peeking in at me through the window.

Wow, that looks amazing!

Ah!

I toppled out of my chair and fell to the ground.

The girl then did a backflip through my bedroom window and came in.

Did the circus come to town?

What do you want?

Did my parents send you to spy on me?

No, silly.

I'm the new neighbor and I didn't even let her finish.

I just picked her up, threw her out of the window and closed the curtains.

As much as I wanted a friend, I didn't want anyone to know that I couldn't read or write.

What would she think of me?

But that didn't stop the crazy backflip girl.

Over the next few days, she did everything she could to get my attention, even juggling three cats while she balanced a mug of water on her head.

What a weirdo.

One day, I decided to take a shortcut home

because I had seen a lady with the most amazing outfit and I wanted to get home and sketch it.

Just then, I heard a man yell behind me.

Watch out!

As I turned, I saw a huge crane ball coming my way.

I froze in place, but luckily for me, someone pushed me to the ground just in time.

Girl, are you crazy?

This is a danger zone.

Can't you read?

I, uh, oh god, I was sweating like a bald man in spring.

Can you read?

I sighed heavily and shook my head.

That's okay.

I can't draw amazing fashion designs like you can.

Let's go and grab some ice cream.

My treat.

While eating the ice cream, crazy backflip girl, I mean Sophia, told me that she had moved next door with her parents and older brother Harrison.

Also, that Harrison was a rotten egg and always got himself into trouble.

She also told me that her father lost his job after his boss accused him of stealing money from his office,

and then blacklisted him so no one else would hire him while her mother worked as a maid for some rich lady.

I told her that my parents hated me

and wouldn't even let me go to school while they treated Pedro like he was a prince.

What do they think this is?

The 16th century?

No girl left behind.

Woman power.

Over the next few months, Sophia taught me how to read and write.

She was a great teacher, and I was a quick learner.

100

Sophia's mother even supplied me with her old drapes to practice my designs on.

101

As much as I loved my bestie, there was a downside of being neighbors with Sophia.

102

Harrison and Pedro became best friends, and they'd go out of their way to make mine and Sophia's life a living nightmare.

103

So we stayed out of their way as much as possible.

104

But then one evening, when I was coming home after getting groceries, I saw two guys push some guy to the ground and grab his keys.

105

Hey, stop it!

106

The guys looked around, and I was shook.

107

Pedro?

108

Harrison?

109

Let's get out of here!

110

They hopped into the car and sped off.

111

Was Pedro crazy?

112

That night, I cornered Pedro in his room.

113

What the heck was that stunt you pulled today?

114

What I do is none of your business.

115

You're my younger brother.

116

Of course it's my business.

117

If you tell mom and dad anything, I'll tell them that Sofia has been tutoring you.

118

I couldn't afford to lose Sophia's friendship.

119

So, I kept my mouth shut and kept a close eye on Pedro.

120

I found out that he'd been failing his subjects in school, and he was missing classes to hang out with Harrison and his goons.

121

I was so frustrated that I thought my head was going to explode.

122

Maybe you should start a podcast to ease some of your frustration.

123

Talk to strangers about my story?

124

That'll be weird.

125

Sometimes, strangers make the best listeners.

126

That night, Sophia helped me set up an anonymous podcast using her phone.

127

I went by the name Raven, and it felt so good to get so many things off my chest.

128

But what felt even better was reading the comments encouraging me to follow my dreams despite my parents' unfair treatment.

129

They even encouraged me to open an online store and set up a GoFundMe to get started.

130

And soon, my clothes were being sold faster than I could make them.

131

Yeah, I set up a secret workshop in Sophia's basement where I worked at night.

132

Over the next two years, it was a roller coaster.

133

First, Harrison was arrested for pickpocketing, and his father shipped him off to the Navy.

134

When he left, Pedro got a hundred times worse, and he was even kicked out of school.

135

And he continued to hang out with the wrong crowd, and my parents always made excuses for him.

136

But my life was super awesome.

137

I saved up enough money to get into the most prestigious fashion school in the country.

138

The only thing left to do was to send in my application which required me to create any design of my choice.

139

You've got this, bestie!

140

I'm rooting for you!

141

Over the next two months, I worked endlessly to create the most beautiful ball gown known to man.

142

I needed to get into this school!

143

I had something to prove to myself.

144

A few nights before the submission of my dress, while at Sophia's, I saw Pedro enter her parents' bedroom.

145

I snuck up to the door and peeked through the crack.

146

I watched in shock as Pedro was stuffing his pockets with jewelry.

147

Pedro, what on earth are you doing?

148

Pedro gave me one look and jumped through the window like a frog.

149

Sofia and her parents had been too good to me to let Pedro get away with this.

150

I ran home, but when I opened the door, the confrontation did an uno reverse on me.

151

Dad glared at me as he was holding a necklace in his hand.

152

Camilia, why was this in your dresser?

153

As if on cue, Pedro walked into the room to examine the necklace.

154

Wait, isn't that Sophia's mother's?

155

You should know, since you stole it.

156

Pedro told us that he saw you take this.

157

I didn't steal anything.

158

It was Pedro.

159

I just don't understand where we went wrong with you.

160

Me?

161

Pedro's the one who got kicked out of school.

162

Genius in my butt.

163

We also found cash hidden under the floorboards.

164

Where did you steal that from?

165

I froze.

166

How did they...

167

My eyes met Pedro's and an evil glint flashed over his eyes.

168

That's my money.

169

I earned it.

170

Stop lying, Camillia.

171

I think it's time to teach Little Miss Fashionista a lesson that she will never forget.

172

Pedro, bring the dress.

173

Dress?

174

What dress?

175

The words stuck in my throat when I saw Pedro return with my submission dress.

176

I watched in horror as Mom lit the fireplace and took the dress from Pedro.

177

Mom, please, don't!

178

You will learn your place in this family, Camelia.

179

My mother threw my dress in the fireplace, and it lit up quicker than a barbecue on Independence Day.

180

I tried to get it out, but Dad and Pedro held me back as I kicked and screamed.

181

After a while, my dress was nothing but ashes.

182

As an avalanche of tears ran down my face, I knew that my time in this family was up.

183

I wanted to attack my parents and Pedro, but I decided to pack my bags and I went to Sophia's.

184

That night, after bawling my eyes out, I did a live podcast and revealed to my listeners what I had just endured under the hands of my parents.

185

This time, I used their real names.

186

Yep, I was done being the nice guy.

187

By the next morning, my parents were chased out of the neighborhood, and the rich lady Sophia's mom worked for pulled some strings, and she got me another submission date.

188

Bestie, this dress is even better than the last one.

189

I have to admit, I really did outdo myself.

190

About two weeks later, I received a letter in the mail.

191

Beads of sweat ran down my forehead.

192

With trembling fingers, I opened the letter and my jaw dropped.

193

What does it say?

194

I got accepted into the fashion school.

195

Yes!

196

I felt as though I were on cloud nine.

197

Over the next four years, while I was away at school, Sophia went to a community college.

198

I worked hard and came out at the top of my class.

199

I earned a junior position in a fashion company.

200

I even convinced Sophia's dad to apply as a manager there, and he got the job!

201

It wasn't long after they were able to move into a nice place.

202

I was finally living my dream.

203

One night, after one of the company's shows, I spotted my parents in the hallway waiting for me.

204

What are you guys doing here?

205

I see you're a fashion designer.

206

I'm so proud of you.

207

I'm so proud of you.

208

Words I always wanted to hear my parents say, but I knew they weren't sincere.

209

Why are you here?

210

Dad shifted uncomfortably.

211

Pedro's in trouble.

212

He and some of his friends got caught breaking into a bank and we need money to bail him out.

213

And after everything you and mom did to me, you think that I would help you?

214

Sweetheart, we're family.

215

And that's what families do.

216

They help each other out.

217

But where was my family growing up?

218

Where were you when I needed you?

219

Are you going to help or not?

220

Not.

221

Had you done your job as parents and parented Pedro instead of letting him wrap you around his finger, He wouldn't be in a jail cell now!

222

As I looked across the room, I saw Sophia and her parents waiting for me.

223

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to join my real family.

224

I pushed past my parents and walked toward the people who helped me and never turned their backs on me.

225

Family is not just about blood, but those who stood by you through thick and thin.

226

Have I told you guys how amazing you are?

227

Not recently, no. You guys are amazing.

228

So are you, bestie.

229

I love you, and I'm so proud of you.

230

I love you too.

What is the Shadowing Technique?

Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.

Shadowing Practice: My Mom Is SO Cheap - Learn English Speaking with Video

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