[ti:Pulling on Your 'Heartstrings'] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]¸ü¶àÌýÁ¦Çë·ÃÎÊ51VOA.COM [00:07.65]And now, it's time for Words and Their Stories [00:10.71]-- our weekly program about common, [00:13.21]everyday expressions in American English. [00:15.96]Americans celebrate Valentine's Day on February 14. [00:22.46]It is a day for love and hearts can be seen everywhere! [00:28.78]So, naturally, I had my heart set on [00:33.85]producing a completely new program about heart expressions. [00:37.53]I really wanted to do it! [00:39.78]I found every single "heart" expression that I could. [00:44.98]I wrote about how heart-to-heart describes two people [00:50.78]talking in private about something important and somewhat sensitive. [00:56.52]I explained that cold-hearted is a good word [01:00.52]to describe a person who doesn't seem to have feelings for others. [01:05.75]And the heart expressions went on and on and on! [01:09.85]My heart was really into it. [01:14.18]I threw myself, heart and soul, into the writing process. [01:19.22]I felt as if my whole body were involved. [01:23.09]I researched and researched. [01:26.59]I wrote and wrote. [01:29.02]I gave a whole-hearted effort. [01:31.79]And it felt good! If you really have your heart set on something, [01:37.72]you are not going to do it half-heartedly. [01:41.06]That's for sure. Why do something with only half your heart [01:46.18]when you can give it all you've got. [01:49.13]So, I wrote a story that used all the heart expressions I could find. [01:54.99]I wanted to pull at the listener's heartstrings [01:59.43]and really make them feel the powerful emotions that I was feeling. [02:04.83]So, I included a heart-warming example of two people deeply in love. [02:11.86]The story was really long, but I was pleased with it. [02:17.16]Later in the office, I poured my heart out to a coworker. [02:21.92]I gushed and gushed about how hard I had worked on the story. [02:26.86]She understood. Well, of course, she did. [02:31.24]I was wearing my heart on my sleeve. [02:33.49]I told her exactly how I felt. [02:36.16]But then she said that I couldn't use my story. [02:41.54]You see, years ago someone had already written [02:45.51]and produced a show all about heart expressions. [02:49.29]I would have to write another story! [02:53.34]I was heart-broken! [02:55.59]All that time researching the subject and writing was wasted. [03:02.67]After my story was rejected, [03:06.14]I just didn't have the heart to stay in the office. [03:10.04]I walked the city streets with a heavy heart. [03:14.48]I felt tired and sad. [03:17.82]I knew that I had to find another subject and fast. [03:23.72]The publication date was nearing. [03:26.78]But I had no enthusiasm. [03:31.22]I had lost heart. [03:33.44]I didn't feel like writing ... anything. [03:37.20]After hours of walking around, friends saw me, seemingly lost in the city. [03:45.77]Concerned about me, my friends bought me dinner in a lovely restaurant. [03:51.75]After hearing what happened, [03:54.76]they offered many ideas about what I could write for Valentine's Day. [03:59.85]"What about the word 'love,' " they asked. [04:04.14]"It's been done," I answered. [04:06.83]"What about different types of relationships?" [04:12.10]"Been done," I said. [04:13.85]They tried to think of something else [04:17.35]that would be a good subject for Valentine's Day. [04:20.41]But nothing sounded good. [04:22.58]Look, I know that their hearts were in the right place. [04:27.18]They are my friends and wanted to help. [04:30.60]And they are really kind-hearted people. [04:34.05]But I still felt alone. [04:37.81]I didn't have the heart to tell them that they couldn't help me. [04:42.90]This was something I had to fix on my own. [04:47.37]But then late in the dinner, something happened. [04:52.46]We ordered a tasty chocolate dessert. [04:56.41]One of my friends said that she had had a fabulous dessert recently at another restaurant. [05:03.49]She thought it was interesting that the two desserts were made [05:08.66]with the exact same ingredients but tasted completely different. [05:14.64]Suddenly, I had a change of heart. [05:18.53]I decided to look at my situation in a new way. [05:23.44]Although all the heart expressions had already been used in an earlier program, [05:29.74]there was no reason I couldn't write another story using the expressions in a different way! [05:36.71]And that's what I did. I also learned something. [05:41.76]If you have your heart set on doing something [05:44.81]and then find out that someone has done it before, [05:48.47]don't lose heart! Simply follow your heart. [05:52.94]Just do what you want and do it your own way! [05:57.09]And that's Words and Their Stories, from VOA Learning English. [06:02.05]I'm Anna Matteo. [06:03.85]"And I'm waiting for your change of heart, waiting for your change of heart.¡±