Bilingual Brilliance

Went to the 23rd Ontario Japanese Speech Contest on Saturday. Unfortunately, I didn't manage to stay for the latter half of it (which included the speeches of the Advanced and Open sections). The opening speech given by the current Consul General of Japan in Toronto, Hisao Yamaguchi. The sensitivity and thought with which his speech was composed reflects a level of diplomacy, professionalism and taste, the likes of which I haven't seen in a long while. Following his impressive speech were the participants of the actual speech contest. (During the beginners' section, the Japanese flag actually fell down from the wall... one wonders what that foreshadows.)
Consul General Yamaguchi's speech was fully bilingual, in the simple pattern of a paragraph in Japanese followed by its English equivalent. Of course, his Japanese was more rapid and fluent, but his English was quite well-pratised as well, and it was apparent that he was no stranger to the concepts which define English grammar.

On a totally unrelated note, I wonder whether it's actually *possible* for me to become fully bilingual. Of course it's been said that my English is impeccible (when need be) and that my breadth and depth of foreign languages is equally impressive. But despite these amateuristic hobbies, I must admit that I reserve some doubt as to whether one day I might be able to converse in German or Chinese or Japanese as well as I do with English, using the various famous lines of literature and lore at my disposal.
I digress. I hope my next entry will be more refined in its focus and flow.

D³

Darkness. Depression. Despondancy.

Gloomy shadows up above,
devour the souls of those below.
Drowning in a pool of blood,
Tormented by time that does not flow.
Blades and sheers soon numb the senses
As jaunts soon numb the mind,
The sun hides 'hind the sky of darkness
N'er again for mine eyes to find.