宮崎県英語暗唱弁論大会を終えて

　９月２２日（木）に宮崎市清武町の文化会館にて開催された「令和４年度宮崎県英語暗唱弁論大会　弁論の部」に都北地区の代表として出場し、５位に入賞した岩下和由さんのコメントを紹介します。

　「今回の大会では、自分を出し切って精一杯楽しむことができました。やはり、県の大会は市の大会よりも比べものにならないくらいレベルが高かったです。はじめは緊張していましたが、発表者の発表を聞いていくうちに自然と落ち着き、楽しむことができました。その結果、賞までいただいて、私は今とても満足しています。」

　そして、その発表原稿は以下のとおりです。

Isoichi Junior High School

3rd grader Iwashita Ayu

Stop the killing of pets

Three years ago, my family and I went to the pet shop and brought home a cute toy poodle maltese mix called Fuuta. At first, he was just a pet, but over time I came to think of him as family. So now, wherever I am, I am thinking of Fuuta all the time. That’s how important he has become to me. And that’s why I can’t understand the way some people treat their pets.

In this world, there are many people who think of their pets as no more than entertainment. When the corona virus first started spreading, people spent more time at home and many people decided to get a pet. At first, many pets had found new, happy homes. But many of these homes were filled with people who thought of their pets as toys that can be thrown away when they get bored. These irresponsible people often abandon, neglect, and abuse their pets. These actions lead to the deaths of many pets. In Japan alone, around 23000 pets are killed like this every year.

We have had this problem in Japan for a long time. When I first learned that pets are killed in large numbers every year due the actions of thoughtless people, I was overwhelmed with sadness, anger, and frustration.  I want to tell these people: How would you feel if the family you thought loved and carded for you, suddenly cast you aside and abandoned you? You might think that animals can’t feel pain or experience emotions, but that is not the case. These are the feelings of thousands of pets every year, shortly before they are put to death. Animals are not put on this earth for your entertainment; and pets are not a toy that you can cast aside when you grow tired of them. Pets exist to bring happiness and joy to your family, and become part of it. In return, you must make them happy too.

We need to change attitudes towards animals. In Japan, there are millions of people who love animals and think of pets as an irreplaceable part of their family, but at the same time, millions of people think of animals as objects, and pets as disposable toys. We must show these people that animals, just like us, are thinking and feeling beings.

I’ve thought hard about what I can do to help solve these problems.  By using Instagram and other social media, I can teach people in Japan and around the world. I can start by posting pictures of pets that are loved by their families and compare them with picture of pets that are to be put down. In doing so, I can draw attention to these problems.

In the future I plan to volunteer at animal protection organisations to prevent and uncover animal welfare issues. By involving myself in animal protection, I can help prevent the mistreatment of pets.

In the world, there are many other people who share my ideals. If we all join hands and work together, we will become unstoppable. So, I ask you all today, convince others to think of their animals as not just pets, but part of their family. If we just change the way we think about animals, we can create a world where all pets are able to live long happy lives. If only more people could think of their pets like I think of Fuuta.