Shadowing Practice: Thank you for the last five years ❤️ - Learn English Speaking with Video
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43 sentences
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1
It is late summer, and the faintest hint of something crisp is in the air.
2
Autumn is only a whisper, but soon enough, my valley will be transformed into shades of gold and red and rich umber.
3
I started this channel in the spring, and I think it only fitting to step away in the fall.
4
Having a child is an enormous opportunity for transformation and growth, as is any great change in your life.
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Of that, I am certain.
6
If you're open to surrender your ego, to let go of the past in order to welcome a new future,
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you will lose things along the way.
8
It will not be easy, but you may very well become the person you were meant to be.
9
You may discover peace is no longer something you're searching for, but what you commit yourself to each day.
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I've been blessed with a little soul,
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and he has made me realize that I'm not capable of as much in regards to my work at this time.
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For years, I was in a habit of overfilling my plate and taking on more than I could without constant stress.
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I realize I do need to keep a balance, because it's not just about me anymore, and that is a huge responsibility and also a gift.
14
It is the beginning of a new journey, a new chapter, a new part of my story, and it will take enormous focus and mindfulness.
15
This experience of creating short films, of finding beauty in the mundane, celebrating nature and experimenting with foraging and crafts,
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all while sharing and connecting with you, has changed my life and challenged me in the best way.
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Over the last couple years, I've learned to be quietly content,
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to nurture a subtle peace that has grown in my soul and encompassed my whole self.
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It is the state of being I I will continue to explore
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and share with the fairy child that is now in my life.
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With that being said, I've had to come to the bittersweet decision to slow down and downsize.
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That means I will no longer be regularly uploading.
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I will hold on to a hope that perhaps I can put up a little update once a season,
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but honestly, I'm not sure what the future holds.
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I think I need to close this door in order to open myself to new possibilities, and so I'm trying not to make plans.
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Maybe when baby is older, I will have things a little more figured out,
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but I'm trying to be humble and accept that right now, I don't.
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I will not be disappearing completely, as I will continue to be active on Patreon, where I post monthly video updates,
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do live streams, and host a casual book club.
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It will soon be home to my new audiobook as well.
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I'm currently recording my fiction story, The Woods and Wisp, that will be posted on that platform next month.
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I've been enjoying a small and sweet community where I found many kindred spirits.
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Thank you.
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I am permanently retiring my art pieces from my Etsy shop as I can no longer keep up with the physical store.
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If you're interested, I have a sale going on before closing so that the last dozen or so prints can find a home.
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For those concerned, don't worry, I will also keep sending out postcards.
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However, since I know I will not see the vast majority of you for the foreseeable future,
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know that I'm sending you so much love and many blessings as you go forward on your own extraordinary journey.
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Keep shining your light, no matter how dark things seem sometimes.
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And it is my greatest hope that at some point over the last several years, I have brought you some small moment of peace.
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Take care, little fairy.
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Goodbye.
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Thank you.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This speaking lesson is built on the video “Thank you for the last five years ❤️”. This video has 43 sentences and 650 words to shadow. The speech runs for 6:33. The speaker talks slowly, about 99 words per minute, so there is time to copy every sound. Only 81% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is demanding.
Key vocabulary in this video
15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| enormous adjective | /ɪˈnɔː.məs/ | Extremely large; greatly exceeding the common size, extent, etc. |
| vast adjective | /væst/ | Very large or wide (literally or figuratively). |
| fiction noun | /ˈfɪkʃən/ | Literary type using invented or imaginative writing, instead of real facts, usually written as prose. |
| discover verb | /dɪˈskʌvə/ | To find or learn something for the first time. |
| connect verb | /kəˈnɛkt/ | To join (to another object): to attach, or to be intended to attach or capable of attaching, to another object. |
| experiment noun | /ɪkˈspɛɹ.ə.mənt/ | A test under controlled conditions made to either demonstrate a known truth, examine the validity of a hypothesis, or determine the efficacy or likelihood of… |
| extraordinary adjective | /ɪksˈtɹɔːrdɪn(ə)ɹi/ | Out of the ordinary; exceptional; unusual. |
| commit verb | /kəˈmɪt/ | To give in trust; to put into charge or keeping; to entrust; to consign; used with to or formerly unto. |
| explore verb | /ɪkˈsploɹ/ | To examine or investigate something systematically. |
| craft noun | /ˈkɹæft/ | Ability, skillfulness, especially skill in making plans and carrying them into execution; dexterity in managing affairs, adroitness, practical cunning… |
| goodbye | /ɡʊdˈbaɪ/ | Farewell; a formula used to another person or persons when the speaker, writer, or person addressed is departing. |
| autumn noun | /ˈɔtəm/ | Traditionally the third of the four seasons, when deciduous trees lose their leaves, and temperatures and daylight hours decrease; typically regarded as… |
| habit noun | /ˈhæb.ɪt/ | An action performed on a regular basis. |
| casual adjective | /ˈkæʒ(u)əl/ | Happening by chance. |
| transformation noun | /ˌtɹæns.fɔɹˈmeɪ.ʃən/ | The act of transforming or the state of being transformed. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| figure out verb | To come to understand; to discover or find a solution; to deduce. |
| keep up with verb | To manage to remain beside or just behind someone or something that is moving away from one. |
| put up verb | To place in a high location. |
| send out verb | To issue, dispatch or transmit. |
| slow down verb | To decelerate. |
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | I've been blessed · has made · has changed |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | will be transformed · were meant · I've been blessed |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 15 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, I've, you're. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: fiction /ˈfɪkʃən/, casual /ˈkæʒ(u)əl/, transformation /ˌtɹæns.fɔɹˈmeɪ.ʃən/, shine /ʃaɪn/, shade /ʃeɪd/
- Long words — get the stress right: experiment /ɪkˈspɛɹ.ə.mənt/, extraordinary /ɪksˈtɹɔːrdɪn(ə)ɹi/, transformation /ˌtɹæns.fɔɹˈmeɪ.ʃən/, permanently /ˈpɜː.mə.nənt.li/, audiobook /ˈɔdi.oʊbʊk/
How to practise with this video
- Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
- Shadow it sentence by sentence at normal speed, repeating each one until your rhythm matches the speaker.
- Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like enormous, vast, fiction.
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.