IELTS SPEAKING TEST
Part 2
Describe an occasion that you lost something
You should say:
- What you lost
- When and where you lost it
- What you did to find it
- And explain how you felt about it
Sample Answer
There are times when we are completely at a loss for words when we can’t find something that is very precious in terms of its material and emotional value.
I am emotionally attached to my father. And I have preserved all the toys and books that he has given me since the days when I was a school kid.
These things I keep at my home, and there is hardly any possibility of losing them.
But, there was a special gift that my father gave me on my 20th birthday that I was about to lose on one horrible day.
I was turning 20 and my father gave me a beautiful golden ring. A jeweler who lived next door gave this idea to my father. He advised him to give me a golden ring on my 20th birthday.
And indeed it was a very lovely ring. As it was a gift, I would wear it all the time, and never remove it.
It all went well till the day I had to go to an exam center that was on the outskirts of my city.
It was some 3-4 years ago. As the exam center was quite far from my house, I asked my friend John to take me there in his car.
John is my childhood friend, and he instantly agreed to do as I wished.
So, on that day we reached there at around 10 in the morning. The exam was about to start at 11.
But, there was this curious rule that I didn’t know till we reached at the gates of the center.
There the security personnel were asking candidates to remove all the metal objects that they were wearing. That included rings, necklaces, bracelets , and earrings.
At first, I tried to register my protest with the staff present at the center. But, it was useless.
They were adamant, and I had to remove my ring.
Instead of putting that in a locker at the center, I gave it to John. John took the ring and went to the parking area where he had parked his car.
The exam lasted for an hour, and by the time I came to John, I had completely forgotten about my ring.
We drove home, and after dropping me off, John went home.
In the evening, when I was washing my hands, I saw that there was no ring on my finger.
I was quite horrified. And for a while, I was clueless. Then it dawned upon me that I had given that ring to John at the center.
I instantly called him. And he told me that he had put that ring into his bag which he left in his car.
When I asked him to go and get my ring, he said that he had given his car for servicing to his car-mechanic.
I was trying not to lose my temper, but it was very difficult for me to have some patience.
Luckily, John’s mechanic was an angel in disguise. When he was washing John’s car, he saw John’s bag on the back seat of the car.
He placed that bag in his cabin, and did the servicing to the car.
Therefore, when John and I went to his garage, the mechanic handed him his bag. And we were greatly relieved to get my ring back as no one had looked into the bag before we reached there.
We thanked the mechanic for his honesty , and I tried to give him some money for that but he refused to accept that.
When I got home, I told the entire episode to my father.
First, he called me on the carpet for being a careless person. But, then he hugged me tightly and we both cried for a while.
These tears washed away all the exhaustion of the day, and I pledged never to lose that ring again.
IELTS SPEAKING TEST
Part 3
What kinds of things do people usually lose?
It is a tough question to answer. As per my opinion, people lose things such as car-keys, mobile phones, and some other small objects such as pens and other stationery items.
Losing a pen that costs not more than a dollar is one thing. Whereas, losing an expensive wristwatch or a golden ring is something that makes us anxious for its whereabouts.
And, more often than not, expensive things get stolen when we regret having lost them.
What do people often do when losing things?
In 9 out of 10 cases, people start panicking. They become so anxious that they lose their temper.
In those anxiety ridden moments, one loses ones ability to think clearly.
And then they start recollecting the last time they saw the thing they have lost.
But, this all depends on how much do they value that thing.
Is it an effective way to use rewards to find lost things?
Of course it is. We can’t assume that everyone is honest and selfless.
People are good, and they like to do good to others. But, sometimes a material reward induces them to do good things zealously.
If we lose something that has more value in terms of emotions, then we can give anything to get it back.
Suppose a son wants to find his deceased father’s pen, then he must reward the person who finds that pen handsomely.
Without offering the carrot of a monetary reward, it is useless to depend upon people’s charity to get you your lost things back.
What kinds of people may lose things often?
Again it’s not possible to point out a particular group of people who have the same tendency to lose or misplace things.
In popular culture, forgetfulness is attributed to college professors. But, I don’t think it to be true.
In my opinion, people who try to manage too many things at a time tend to lose things very often.
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cover Image by Mohamed Hassan from Pixabay