私は納得はいかんけど、バリ話しかけにくい人らしい。何回も色んな人に、「最初あなたを見た時、怖かった！」とか「オーラがありすぎるから話かけられんかった」みたいなことを言われた。マジで？自分が怖いと一回も思ったことがない。まぁ、確かに、黒い洋服が着ている、ピアスまみれのヤンキー外国人は一般人の目から見ると怖い。けど、実は、全然怖い人じゃなくて、私は結構フレンドリーなヤンキーなんだ。
I totally don't believe it, but apparently I am really hard to talk to. Many people have told me stuff like this, "The first time I saw you, I was afraid of you!" or "You just had this air about you, so I just couldn't go up and talk to you." Seriously? I have never once in my life thought of myself as being scary. Well, I guess many Japanese people in the country area where I live are kind of freaked out by the foreigner in black clothes with 13 piercings. But to be honest, I am not scary at all. In fact, I am a pretty friendly punk.
信じてくれんかもしれんけど、アンちゃんは人見知りだ。話しかけられたら、誰とでも仲良く話せるけど、私から話しかけることは殆どない。この間、子供の体育祭に行った。今年転校したけん、誰も知らん。私はもともとママ友の世界が苦手やけん、転校してから、さらに苦手になった。体育祭で、下の２人は友達と遊びに行って、夫は写真を取りに行った。可哀想なアンちゃんは一人ぼっちになった。普段のおしゃべりアンちゃんは無口になった。丁度その時、他のお母さんに話しかけられた。「テレビ見たよ！」って。それから、一時間ぐらい仲良く話した。彼女は、ひとりぼっちのアンちゃんを救ってくれた。相当気が合うけん、ママ友じゃなくて、普通の友達になるね。
You probably won't believe me, but I am actually kinda shy. If someone comes up to me and starts talking to me, I have no problem at all having a great conversation with that person. But it is a rare occasion when I actually start the conversation. A couple months ago, I went to the sports festival at my daughter's school. My kids transferred to new schools this year, so I don't know anybody. I have always had a hard time fitting into to the various groups of mommy friends, but after moving to new school, I was more uncomfortable than ever. Although I am usually a crazy chatterbox who never shuts up, this day I didn't say a word. My two younger daughters went off to play with their friends, and my photographer husband was off taking pictures, so I was on my own. After wandering around a bit, a lady came up to me and said, "Hey, I saw you on TV." We talked for an hour after that. I feel like she saved me from lonliness that day. I really like her, so I am pretty sure that she will not just be a mommy friend, but a true friend.
見た目は確かに怖いから話しかけられん人は多いけど、もう一つのことをよく言われる。それは、「オーラがある」ことだ。これは素敵な和製英語だと思ったけど、こういうことに気づいた。He's got an aura about him. 間違いなくアメリカ人は、日本人ほど言わない。He's just got this air about him!のほうが言うと思う。最近、「オーラが出すぎて、話しきらん」とか「オーラはすごい！」とか、よく言われる。そうなん？どうやって消したらいいと？オーラがあるということさえ、一度も思ったことがない。だって、私はアンちゃんだ。普通の人だ。活躍し始めてから全然変わってないんだ。けど正直、そう思われたらちょっと淋しいなぁ。私は、読者やファンがいるからこそ、こういうふうに楽しく活躍しよる。やけん、何よりも読者と話したい。ありがとうを言いたい。時々、私のオーラを恐れずに、話かけてくれる人いがいる。どんだけ嬉しいかって言葉に表すことができない。
While I guess my scary look is one reason that people can't talk to me, there is another. I am often told, "You just have this air about you!" Really? How can I get rid of it? It is almost like I am exuding some presence that makes it hard for people to talk to me. I don't feel like I have an aura at all. I am just Annechan, and I don't feel like I have really changed that much. To tell the truth, it makes me kind of sad when people say stuff like that. The only reason that I am able to do all this fun stuff like writing and TV is because to the hundreds of readers and fans who support me. So more than anything, I want to talk to them. I want to say thank you. Every now and then, a reader will throw off the shackles of fear and come up and talk to me when I am out. I can tell you that nothing makes me happier than that. I cannot even put my joy into words.
結論は何？１。アンちゃんは全然怖くないバイ！２。オーラがあると思っていても普通の人なんだ。もし宗像をウロウロしているアンちゃんを見かけたら、声をかけてください！待っとるバイ！
So what is the verdict? First, I am not scary. Second, even if you think I have some air or presence about me, I am just plain old normal Annechan. So if you see me wandering around Munakata like I usually do, please, talk to me! I'll be waiting!