Since I learned English in junior high, I have set my goal for the new language as a tool to advance my knowledge, not a tool to communicate with English-speaking people. From this perspective, I have been spending a lot of time on new words to widen the volume of my vocabularies and on the English grammar and syntax to facilitate my reading. In so doing, I cared less about phonetic alphabets, listening comprehension, and oral English till now.

I came to my sons in Boulder, Colorado, a few days ago, and my daughters joined us, too. It was a precious reunion, but during the merry communication among the whole families, I acted as a polite listener, almost always smiling but quiet. Why was that? Partly because my hearing problem and slow reaction due to age, I could not fully understand what they were speaking with inarticulate syllables in a fast speed. Unwillingly, I  opted for reticence. (Why not speaking in Mandarin among us? Because both of my son-in-law and daughter-in-law are Caucasian Americans.)

BTW, you may wonder how I could stay in America without oral communication with others. Well, I can read and communicate with others in writing online. If I must talk in English with others, sometimes I would make a gesture by putting my palm beside my ear to insinuate the guy I was talking with to speak louder and slower. Ha!