Lost Your Place Mid-Story? Find the Last Clear Point and Keep Explaining

Yesterday Emily was telling a friend a simple story about a Sunday market. Her friend asked one small question in the middle, Emily answered it, and “and suddenly I had no idea where I was in my own story.” (00:15) She did not run out of English. Paul puts it in one line: “So the problem was not that you had no English.” (00:20) “You had lost your place.” (00:24)

This page goes with the episode and is written for B1 learners. The episode does not teach you how to avoid every blank moment, and it does not teach you how to answer every question instantly. It teaches one narrow skill: what to say after the conversation has already started and your thread disappears. Paul and Emily work through it in four scenes: the market story that went wrong, an answer about taking the train that wandered, a weekend chat with one interruption, and a project check-in where the side question comes with a consequence. Then they finish with a pronunciation drill, a quiz and a speaking challenge. The practice section below follows the video chapters, so you can pause at each scene.

Watch the episode: Watch the episode on YouTube

Time: about 28 minutes to listen, and 45 to 60 minutes for the practice below.

Before you listen: think of the last time a question in the middle of your story pulled you off course. What did you do next: start again from the beginning, say sorry, or keep talking? Keep that in mind and listen to what Paul and Emily do instead.

How to use this page: listen once without stopping. Then read the key idea and the tables, and use the practice section for a second pass. The full transcript is at the bottom.

What You’ll Learn

• Why restarting a story feels safe but makes the listener travel over old ground
• How to look for the last clear point, the last thing both people still understand, instead of searching your whole memory
• Three jobs for three phrases: Where was I? names the problem, Right, I was saying… reconnects, Anyway, after that… moves the story forward
• How to return after a side question with So, back to what I was saying… or Let me pick up from there
• How to save the meaning when you lose the details with The main point was…, and how to park a detail with I’ll come back to that
• How to notice the other kind of blank moment, where you keep talking but drift away from the point, and fix it by removing branches
• Five weak recoveries (restarting, jumping ahead, apologizing, following every detail, hunting for the planned sentence) and a better version of each
• A speaking challenge you can repeat with any ordinary story

Key Idea

When you lose your place, do not recover the perfect sentence. Recover the shared thread.

Paul’s test for what to look for is “Search for the last point both people still understand.” (02:58) Emily draws the conclusion herself: “I do not need the exact next sentence.” (02:43) “I need the last clear point.” (02:48) Near the end she gives the same idea its sharpest form: “you do not have to recover the sentence.” (15:28) “recover the thread.” (15:31) The reason is that the listener has never heard your private draft: “But the listener does not know my original sentence.” (15:14) “I can choose a new one.” (15:17)

Where you are	A short line from the episode	What it does
You notice you have lost the thread	“Where was I?” (02:37)	Names the problem lightly
You remember the last point	“Right, I was saying I went there to buy a plant.” (02:40)	Reconnects to the thread
A side question was answered	“So, back to what I was saying,” (04:21)	Signals that you are returning
You know the place where you stopped	“Let me pick up from there.” (04:48)	Continues from the last clear event
You lost the order but know the reason	“The main point was” (05:16)	Saves the meaning
A useful detail would pull you away	“I’ll come back to that.” (06:05)	Parks the detail
You have reconnected and want movement	“Anyway, after that,” (03:13)	Moves the story forward

Language from the Episode

Chunk	What it does	Example from the episode
Where was I?	Marks that you lost your position	“Where was I? Right, I was saying I went there to buy a plant.” (02:37)
Right, I was saying…	Returns to the last point you remember	“Right, I was saying I changed my evening routine because my class moved to Tuesday.” (07:56)
So, back to what I was saying…	Returns after a side question or a short side topic	“So, back to what I was saying, there was a long line outside the restaurant.” (11:27)
Let me pick up from there.	Continues after one clear event	“Let me pick up from there. After I replaced them, I noticed that two captions also needed approval,” (17:56)
The main point was…	Gives the reason when the sequence is gone	“The main point was that parking became difficult, so the train was simpler.” (09:13)
I’ll come back to that.	Protects the main thread from a useful side detail	“There was also an email issue but I’ll come back to that.” (14:40)
Anyway, after that, …	Moves the story forward once you are back	“Anyway, after that, I found a little shop near the back of the market.” (03:13)

The last clear point

Emily’s market story shows how it goes wrong. She had told her friend why she went (“I said I went there because I wanted to buy a small plant for my kitchen.” (01:29)) and where she got off the bus (“I got off the bus near the old station.” (01:34)). Then her friend asked about the blue entrance, Emily answered, and the order disappeared: “I had the whole story in my head, but the order disappeared.” (01:57) She restarted at the bus stop. Paul explains why this is a communication problem even when the English is fine: “Restarting can feel safe because the beginning is easy to remember, but it makes the listener travel over old ground with you.” (02:23) The cleaner move goes back only as far as the last point you both still have: “Where was I? Right, I was saying I went there to buy a plant.” (02:37)

Three jobs, three phrases

Paul points out that the phrases do different work: “Where was I? Identifies the problem.” (03:23) “Right, I was saying reconnects to the thread.” (03:27) “Anyway, after that, moves the story forward.” (03:31) He warns against collecting phrases without knowing what each one is for: “because people often collect phrases without knowing which job each phrase does.” (03:39) The practice section lets you try each job separately.

A side question versus a lost message

After a side question you usually know exactly where you stopped, and Right, I was saying… or So, back to what I was saying… returns you there. When the details are gone but the reason is not, you save the meaning instead of rebuilding the sequence. Paul’s example is a schedule change: “The main point was that the new class starts earlier, so I need to leave work by six.” (05:46) The idea works for the opposite problem too, and Paul shows it in the quiz: three lines for three situations, and the second one is the meaning-saver. Emily’s summary is “Save the meaning instead of rebuilding every detail.” (22:31)

Too many branches

The second blank moment is not silence. Emily answers a question about taking the train and ends up at coffee. She says herself: “I did not go silent.” (08:52) “I lost the main thread while still producing English.” (08:53) Paul calls this “uncontrolled continuation” (09:00) and says why it happens: “because stopping feels uncomfortable.” (09:07) The repair is shorter than the problem: “The main point was that parking became difficult, so the train was simpler.” (09:13) Emily’s version of the lesson: “So the recovery is not always remember more.” (09:28) “Sometimes it is remove the extra branches.” (09:33)

The thread, not the sentence

In the mistakes chapter, Emily admits what she usually does: “I often think there is one correct next sentence hidden somewhere in my head.” (15:06) Her new view is that the listener only needs a sentence that reconnects the meaning, and Paul agrees: “The shared conversation is more important than your private draft.” (15:21)

Hear the recovery phrase as one chunk

The pronunciation drill uses a single anchor: “Right, I was saying we changed the plan on Friday.” (15:47) Paul’s advice is to keep I was saying together and not to give every word the same push. The reason Emily gives at the end is that the phrase becomes a familiar unit: “because the recovery phrase becomes one familiar unit.” (21:32)

Mistakes to Repair

The episode names five weak recoveries and gives a better version of each. Each fix keeps the listener oriented with the least amount of extra talk.

What goes wrong	Better	Why
Restarting everything: “Sorry, I forgot. Let me start again. On Saturday morning, I woke up at 8.” (13:17)	“Where was I? Right, I was saying we had just arrived at the park.” (13:28)	“We keep the shared point.” (13:33)
Jumping forward as if there was no break: “Yes, the cafe is near the library. Anyway, then I went home.” (13:42)	“So, back to what I was saying. We were walking through the park. After that, we found a cafe.” (13:51)	The listener asks, “what happened to the park?” (13:49)
Turning the recovery into an apology: “Sorry, sorry, I forgot what I was saying.” (14:03) “My English is terrible today.” (14:06)	“Where was I? Right, I was saying” (14:16)	Paul: “That adds emotional weight but no orientation.” (14:10)
Following every side detail: “The booking changed.” (14:26) “The room changed.” (14:27) “My coworker changed her schedule.” (14:29) “The train was late and oh, the email.” (14:31)	“There was also an email issue but I’ll come back to that.” (14:40) “The main point was that the room changed.” (14:45)	Emily: “The story becomes a drawer full of cables.” (14:34)
Trying to recover the exact sentence you planned	A sentence that reconnects the meaning	Paul: “You do not need the original sentence.” (14:54) “You need a sentence that reconnects the meaning.” (14:56)

The upgrade chapter adds simple swaps, each a step up from the basic version: I forgot → Where was I?; Anyway… → So, back to what I was saying…; and a plain Then… after a recovery → Anyway, after that… (the first two starting versions are labelled “Basic” in the video).

Practice with the Episode

Pause the video at the timestamps below. Say your answers aloud before you check them. Two things differ between the Final Script and the video, and this page follows the video. First, the video says some lines twice (“Before pronunciation, can we make the scenario more difficult?” at 16:28 and again at 16:33, and “That feels different from a weekend story.” at 17:03 and again at 17:06), and the full transcript below gives each of them once. Second, the Final Script has a few labels and remarks that the video leaves out: Emily’s “My specialty today.”, Paul’s “And while you search, the conversation waits.”, Emily’s “Hmm…” before “Where was I?” in the project check-in, and the labels “Basic:”, “More focused:”, “More natural in the middle of an explanation:” and “More directional:” in the second half of the upgrade chapter.

1. What to Say When Your Mind Goes Blank

Play 00:00 to 01:23.

1. What had Emily just remembered, according to Paul?
2. What happened in the middle of her story yesterday?
3. What does Paul say the problem really was?
4. What could Emily have said instead of starting again?
5. What is the harder part that Paul describes?
6. What skill is today’s episode about?
7. What is the episode not about?
8. When do you use these phrases?

Answers

1. “Emily, you look like you just remembered something embarrassing.” (00:00)
2. “She asked one small question in the middle.” (00:10) “I answered it, and suddenly I had no idea where I was in my own story.” (00:13)
3. “So the problem was not that you had no English.” (00:20) “You had lost your place.” (00:24)
4. “I could have said, right, I was saying and continued from the last clear point.” (00:30)
5. “But what if you answer the interruption?” (00:39) “Remember three different pieces at once, and still cannot find the main thread?” (00:41) “That is the harder part.” (00:47)
6. “Then today, we are practicing a very specific skill.” (00:56) “How to find your place again when you are already in the middle of an explanation, story or update.” (01:00)
7. “Not how to avoid every blank moment, and not how to answer every question instantly.” (01:07)
8. “This is what you say after the conversation has already started and your thread disappears.” (01:15)

2. A Real Story: Losing Your Place Mid-Conversation

Play 01:23 to 02:37.

1. What was Emily telling her friend about?
2. Why did she go there?
3. Where did she get off the bus?
4. What did her friend ask?
5. What did Emily answer, and what did she think next?
6. What did Emily say when she tried to restart?
7. How did her friend react?
8. What does restarting make the listener do?

Answers

1. “I was telling my friend about a Sunday market.” (01:26)
2. “I said I went there because I wanted to buy a small plant for my kitchen.” (01:29)
3. “I got off the bus near the old station.” (01:34)
4. “is that the market with the blue entrance?” (01:40)
5. “I said, yes, that one.” (01:45) “They painted it last year.” (01:47) Then she thought: “why was I talking about the market?” (01:51)
6. “So I said, anyway, the market, the bus, I went there in the morning.” (02:01) Paul’s comment: “You restarted the story.” (02:08)
7. “She was patient, but I could see that she had already heard that part.” (02:15)
8. “but it makes the listener travel over old ground with you.” (02:28)

3. Find the Last Clear Point Instead of Starting Over

Play 02:37 to 03:46.

1. What cleaner move does Paul suggest?
2. What does Emily realize she needs?
3. What should you not search, and what should you search for?
4. How does Emily try the phrase herself?
5. How does she move the story forward?
6. What three jobs does Paul name?
7. Why does this matter?

Answers

1. “A cleaner move would be, where was I?” (02:37) “Right, I was saying I went there to buy a plant.” (02:40)
2. “So I do not need the exact next sentence.” (02:43) “I need the last clear point.” (02:48)
3. “do not search your entire memory.” (02:56) “Search for the last point both people still understand.” (02:58)
4. “Where was I?” (02:37) “Right, I was saying I went there to buy a plant.” (02:40)
5. “Then I can say, anyway, after that, I found a little shop near the back of the market.” (03:13)
6. “Where was I? Identifies the problem.” (03:23) “Right, I was saying reconnects to the thread.” (03:27) “Anyway, after that, moves the story forward.” (03:31) Emily: “Three different jobs.” (03:36)
7. “because people often collect phrases without knowing which job each phrase does.” (03:39)

4. Useful Phrases to Get Back to Your Story

Play 03:46 to 07:01.

1. What does Where was I? do, and how should it feel?
2. When is Right, I was saying… useful?
3. When does So, back to what I was saying… work especially well?
4. What example does Emily give with the blue entrance?
5. What is the wallet example for Let me pick up from there?
6. When is The main point was… useful?
7. What is Paul’s schedule example?
8. What can you say when a side detail matters, but not now?
9. What is the booking example?
10. What is the goal, according to Paul?

Answers

1. “You are not asking them to repeat the whole conversation.” (03:56) “You are marking that you lost your position.” (03:59) Emily: “It feels light, not dramatic.” (04:02)
2. “This is useful when you remember the last point and want to return to it directly.” (04:09)
3. “It works especially well after a side question or a short side topic.” (04:28) “You answer the side point, then signal that you are returning.” (04:33)
4. “Yes, the entrance is blue now.” (04:37) “So, back to what I was saying, I was looking for a plant.” (04:41)
5. “I found the plant, but then I realized I had left my wallet at home.” (05:01) Paul adds: “We are keeping your real story less dramatic.” (05:11)
6. “this is useful when you cannot recover every detail, but you still know why you were telling the story.” (05:20)
7. “the main point was that the new class starts earlier, so I need to leave work by six.” (05:46)
8. “Yes, and sometimes a side detail matters, but not now.” (05:59) “Then you can say, I’ll come back to that, so I can protect the main thread.” (06:05)
9. “there was also a problem with the booking, but I’ll come back to that.” (06:13) “First, I want to explain why we changed the date.” (06:18)
10. “The goal is not a perfect performance.” (06:45) “The goal is to keep the listener oriented.” (06:49)

5. Choosing the Right Recovery Phrase

Play 07:01 to 08:04.

1. What does Paul ask you to imagine, and what is his question?
2. Which phrases fit a side question when you remember the exact point?
3. Which phrase fits when you only remember the message?
4. Which phrase fits a useful side detail you want to park?
5. What does Paul say about listening passively and actively?
6. What does Emily say as her own model?

Answers

1. “You are telling a story.” (07:03) “A friend asks a side question.” (07:05) “You answer it, and now you remember the exact point where you stopped.” (07:07) “What could you say?” (07:12)
2. “I would say, right, I was saying, or let me pick up from there.” (07:14)
3. “If you cannot remember the exact sequence, but you still know the message you wanted to give.” (07:23) Emily: “The main point was.” (07:29)
4. “I’ll come back to that.” (07:37)
5. “If you are listening passively, you have already heard the answer models.” (07:41) “If you want active practice, choose one phrase now and say it once with your own everyday topic.” (07:46)
6. “Right. I was saying I changed my evening routine because my class moved to Tuesday.” (07:56)

6. When You Keep Talking but Lose the Main Thread

Play 08:04 to 10:51.

1. Is a blank moment always silence?
2. What is Paul’s question, and how does Emily start?
3. Where does her answer end up?
4. What does Emily say she did?
5. What does Paul call this, and why does it happen?
6. What is the repair, and what can you add?
7. What does Emily conclude about recovery?
8. Which of the two answers is easier to follow, and why?
9. What does Emily notice about these phrases?
10. What is their deeper function?

Answers

1. “A blank moment is not always total silence.” (08:08) “Sometimes you keep speaking, but you are no longer sure where the explanation is going.” (08:13)
2. “why did you start taking the train instead of driving?” (08:25) Emily starts: “I started taking the train because parking near the office became difficult.” (08:31)
3. “And actually the coffee shop near that place is good.” (08:41) Paul: “And where are we now?” (08:45) Emily: “At coffee.” (08:47)
4. “I did not go silent.” (08:52) “I lost the main thread while still producing English.” (08:53)
5. “can also look like uncontrolled continuation.” (09:00) “You reach for whatever detail comes next because stopping feels uncomfortable.” (09:04)
6. “The main point was that parking became difficult, so the train was simpler.” (09:13) Then: “And then you can add one useful detail if needed.” (09:22) “It also gives me time to read.” (09:26)
7. “So the recovery is not always remember more.” (09:28) “Sometimes it is remove the extra branches.” (09:33)
8. “The second one, it recovers the purpose of the explanation.” (10:03) And: “the listener can ask about the coffee later if they really want the coffee.” (10:07)
9. “These phrases are not just emergency phrases.” (10:16) “They are conversation organization phrases.” (10:20)
10. “but their deeper function is orientation.” (10:29) “Where we were, what matters, and where we are going next.” (10:33)

7. Supported Conversation Practice: Return After an Interruption

Play 10:51 to 12:23.

1. What are you supposed to do with the interruption in this practice?
2. What is Emily’s first answer about Saturday?
3. What does Paul interrupt with?
4. How does Emily return?
5. What does she say after “Keep going”?
6. How does she close the meaning?
7. What two recovery moves does Paul point out?
8. What does Emily say she did not do?

Answers

1. “Your job is not to avoid the interruption.” (11:03) “Your job is to return cleanly.” (11:05)
2. “I met my cousin near the river because we wanted to try a new noodle place.” (11:11) “We got there around one but there was a long line outside.” (11:16)
3. “Is that the place next to the small bookshop?” (11:20)
4. “Yes, exactly.” (11:23) “The bookshop has a yellow sign.” (11:25) “So, back to what I was saying, there was a long line outside the restaurant.” (11:27)
5. “The funny part was that we had spent 20 minutes talking about what to order.” (11:40) “But when we sat down, both of us chose the same thing in about 10 seconds.” (11:45)
6. “The main point was that the wait sounded annoying at first but it gave us time to catch up.” (11:52)
7. “After my first question, you knew the exact point.” (12:05) “So you used, so back to what I was saying.” (12:08) “After the second question, you used the main point was to close the meaning.” (12:12)
8. “And I did not restart with, on Saturday, I met my cousin.” (12:17)

8. Listener Practice: Continue Your Story Naturally

Play 12:23 to 13:05.

1. What do you do first in this listener exercise?
2. What does Paul interrupt with?
3. How do you answer?
4. Which two phrases can you use to return?
5. What is the complete model Paul gives?

Answers

1. “Imagine Paul asks you, what did you do last weekend?” (12:25) “Start a short story.” (12:29)
2. “After two or three sentences, imagine he interrupts with, where was that?” (12:30)
3. “Answer the question in one sentence.” (12:36)
4. “Then use either, right, I was saying.” (12:38) “Or so, back to what I was saying.” (12:41)
5. “I went to a small park with my brother because we wanted to walk before dinner.” (12:47) “It was near the old library.” (12:51) “Yes, the one beside the bus station.” (12:53) “Right, I was saying we went there before dinner.” (12:55) “We walked for about 40 minutes and then we found a small cafe.” (12:57)

9. Common Speaking Mistakes and Better Repairs

Play 13:05 to 15:35.

1. What kind of mistakes does Paul want to look at?
2. What is the first mistake, and the repair?
3. What is the second mistake, and the repair?
4. What does the third mistake add, and the repair?
5. What is the fourth mistake, and the repair?
6. What is the fifth mistake?
7. What does Emily think there is hidden in her head?
8. What does she realize about the listener?
9. What short line does Emily say deserves a place?

Answers

1. “that are grammatically possible but communicatively weak.” (13:08)
2. “Restarting everything.” (13:15) Repair: “Where was I?” (13:28) “Right, I was saying we had just arrived at the park.” (13:29)
3. “Pretending there was no break and jumping forward too far.” (13:37) Repair: “So, back to what I was saying.” (13:51) “We were walking through the park.” (13:54) “After that, we found a cafe.” (13:55)
4. “That adds emotional weight but no orientation.” (14:10) Repair: “Where was I?” (14:16) “Right, I was saying” (14:17)
5. “Following every side detail.” (14:23) Repair: “There was also an email issue but I’ll come back to that.” (14:40) “The main point was that the room changed.” (14:45)
6. “Trying to recover the exact sentence you planned.” (14:49)
7. “I often think there is one correct next sentence hidden somewhere in my head.” (15:06) “Then I search for it.” (15:12)
8. “But the listener does not know my original sentence.” (15:14) “I can choose a new one.” (15:17)
9. “You do not have to recover the sentence.” (15:28) “recover the thread.” (15:31) Paul: “That is a good one.” (15:33)

10. Upgrade Simple Responses to Sound Clearer

Play 15:35 to 16:30.

1. What is the basic version of “I don’t know where I am”, and the upgrade?
2. What is the better version when you remember the point?
3. What is the basic Anyway… upgraded to after a side topic?
4. What replaces “There were many things”?
5. What replaces “I will talk about that later”?
6. What does a plain Then… become?
7. What does Emily say about the tone of Where was I?

Answers

1. “Basic.” (15:39) “I forgot.” (15:40) The upgrade: “Where was I?” (15:42)
2. “Better when you remember the point.” (15:44) “Right.” (15:47) “I was saying we changed the plan on Friday.” (15:47)
3. “More useful after a side topic?” (15:54) “So, back to what I was saying.” (15:57)
4. “There were many things.” (16:00) becomes “The main point was that we needed more time.” (16:02)
5. “I will talk about that later.” (16:06) becomes “I’ll come back to that.” (16:07)
6. “Then.” (16:10) becomes “Anyway, after that.” (16:12)
7. “Where was I?” (16:17) “It does not have to sound like a crisis.” (16:21)

11. Real-Life Challenge: Recovering During a Project Update

Play 16:30 to 20:22.

1. What changes about the pressure in this scene?
2. What does the listener need?
3. What question does Paul ask first?
4. What does Emily say about the plan and the photos?
5. What does the teammate ask, and how does Emily answer?
6. How does she find her place again?
7. What does she say about the captions?
8. What does Paul say about her recovery?
9. What complication does Paul add?
10. How does Emily respond?
11. What does Paul say about interruptions?
12. How is this different from the earlier blank moment?
13. What can you do if you forget a small detail?

Answers

1. “This time, the interruption changes the pressure.” (16:39) “Imagine a short project check-in.” (16:43)
2. “The listener needs the final reason.” (16:58) “Not your whole history.” (17:01)
3. “Emily, why did the draft move to Thursday?” (17:21)
4. “We planned to finish it on Tuesday, but on Monday, we received new product photos, so I needed to replace several images before I could finish the layout.” (17:24)
5. “Were those the photos in the shared folder or the ones Mia sent directly?” (17:35) Emily: “The ones in the shared folder.” (17:40) “Mia’s photos are for next week.” (17:42)
6. “Where was I?” (17:45) Paul: “You were explaining why the draft moved.” (17:47) Emily: “Right, I was saying the new product photos changed the layout.” (17:51) “Let me pick up from there.” (17:56)
7. “After I replaced them, I noticed that two captions also needed approval, so Tuesday became too tight.” (17:58)
8. “You answered my side question, recovered your location, protected a side detail, and finished the reason.” (18:25)
9. “wait, I thought the captions were already approved.” (18:39)
10. “The old captions were approved.” (18:51) “The two new photos needed new captions, so back to what I was saying, that extra approval is part of why we moved the draft to Thursday.” (18:53)
11. “People interrupt because they are listening.” (19:14) “Not because they want to break your speech.” (19:17) And: “A side question can actually help the conversation.” (19:22) “Your job is just to know how to return.” (19:26)
12. “Here, I am not buying thinking time at the beginning of an answer.” (19:35) “I am managing a thread that already exists.” (19:40)
13. “you can skip it and protect the main point.” (19:53) Example: “I can’t remember the exact date, but the main point was that the schedule changed after the new files arrived.” (19:56)

12. Pronunciation Practice: Chunking “Right, I Was Saying…”

Play 20:22 to 21:41.

1. What is the focus of the pronunciation practice?
2. What is the anchor sentence?
3. Which words should stay together?
4. How does the slow version sound?
5. How is the mini-dialogue set up?
6. How does the dialogue continue?
7. Why does chunking help?

Answers

1. “Our focus is chunking.” (20:24)
2. “The anchor is right.” (20:27) “I was saying we changed the plan on Friday.” (20:29)
3. “Keep I was saying together.” (20:42) “Do not hit every word with equal force.” (20:46)
4. “Slow version.” (20:49) “Right.” (20:51) “I was saying we changed the plan on Friday.” (20:52)
5. “Now put it in a mini dialogue.” (21:12) The question: “was that before the meeting?” (21:15) The answer: “Yes, it was.” (21:18) “Right.” (21:20) “I was saying we changed the plan on Friday.” (21:21)
6. “Then continue.” (21:25) “Anyway, after that I sent the new version to the team.” (21:27)
7. “Chunking helps because the recovery phrase becomes one familiar unit.” (21:31) “Not five separate words.” (21:37)

13. Quick English Speaking Quiz

Play 21:41 to 23:17.

1. Which line is best after you answer a side question and remember where your story stopped?
2. Which line fits when you forget two small details but know the reason?
3. What can you say when a useful side issue would pull you away?
4. Is an interruption automatically a problem?
5. What do you need to recover: the sentence or the thread?

Answers

1. “B.” (21:57) “I was saying we had just arrived.” (21:59) “It reconnects to the last clear point.” (22:07)
2. “A.” (21:46) “The main point was that the schedule changed.” (22:18) Emily: “Save the meaning instead of rebuilding every detail.” (22:31)
3. “I’ll come back to that.” (22:44)
4. “No.” (22:56) “It can be a normal sign that they are following.” (22:57) “The skill is returning to the main thread afterward.” (23:00)
5. “The thread.” (23:11) Paul: “That is the central choice.” (23:15)

14. Final Thread-Recovery Speaking Challenge

Play 23:17 to 26:13.

1. What should you explain, and for how long?
2. When does the interruption come, and what can it be?
3. What do you do after the side question?
4. How do you protect the main thread?
5. How should you finish?
6. How many task phrases should you use?
7. What is the sample answer’s opening?
8. How do you personalize it?
9. What is the independent retry?
10. What is the optional challenge?
11. Why does Emily like it?

Answers

1. “You are explaining an ordinary event, decision or small change to another person.” (23:22) “Speak for 60 to 120 seconds.” (23:37)
2. “After about 20 or 30 seconds, imagine the listener interrupts with one side question.” (23:45) Options: “Where was that?” (23:51) “Who was with you?” (23:52) “Was that before the meeting?” (23:54) “Or is that the place near the station?” (23:55)
3. “Answer that side question in one short sentence.” (23:58) “Then do not restart from the beginning.” (24:01) “Use one thread recovery phrase.” (24:04)
4. “If another detail tries to pull you away, protect the main thread with I’ll come back to that.” (24:15)
5. Near the end: “make sure the listener gets the reason you were telling the story.” (24:23) Then: “Finish naturally.” (24:30) “Do not keep talking just to prove you recovered.” (24:32)
6. “Use at least four task language phrases across the full challenge.” (24:36) “If they fit naturally.” (24:41)
7. “Last Saturday, I went to a small craft market with my sister because she wanted a birthday gift.” (24:48)
8. “Choose a real harmless topic you can explain without special vocabulary.” (25:25)
9. “Tell the same story again but this time make the interruption happen at a different point.” (25:34) “Try a different recovery phrase.” (25:40)
10. “after the interruption, let the listener add one new fact that matters.” (25:50) “Work that fact into your explanation, then return to the main point without starting over.” (25:55)
11. “I like that because it proves the thread is flexible.” (26:01) Paul: “It can bend and still stay connected.” (26:09)

15. Recap: Recover the Thread, Not the Perfect Sentence

Play 26:13 to 27:44.

1. How did Emily see her problem yesterday, and how does she see it now?
2. What would she say?
3. Which phrases does she want to keep?
4. What does Paul add?
5. What is the bigger reminder?
6. What is the small language action for today?
7. Why is it fine if it feels strange?
8. How does Paul close?

Answers

1. “Yesterday I thought my problem was my mind went blank so my story was broken.” (26:15) Now: “Now I would say the story was not broken.” (26:23) “I had simply lost my place.” (26:27)
2. “Where was I?” (26:32) “Right, I was saying I went to the market to buy a plant.” (26:34) “Then I would continue from there.” (26:38)
3. “The phrases I want to keep are where was I?” (26:41) “Right, I was saying.” (26:45) “So back to what I was saying.” (26:47) “The main point was, and I’ll come back to that.” (26:50)
4. “Plus, let me pick up from there.” (26:55) “And anyway, after that, when you need them.” (26:57)
5. “Do not recover the perfect sentence.” (27:04) “Recover the shared thread.” (27:08)
6. “Tell a 30 second story aloud.” (27:13) “Interrupt yourself once on purpose.” (27:16) “Answer a side question.” (27:18) “Then say, right, I was saying and continue.” (27:20)
7. “You are practicing the exact moment instead of only thinking about it.” (27:28)
8. “And when the real moment happens, you will already know one way back into the explanation.” (27:33) Then: “Thanks for practicing with us.” (27:38) “See you next time.” (27:41)

Your small action

Tell a thirty-second story aloud about anything ordinary: a trip, a class, a meal. Stop yourself once, answer an imaginary side question in one sentence, then say Right, I was saying… and carry on from the last clear point. If you want a second round, interrupt yourself at a different place and use So, back to what I was saying… or Let me pick up from there. Record it on your phone and listen for one thing: did you go back to the old ground, or did you go back to the last clear point?

Keep Practicing

Want a guide that does not need the episode? Try Where Was I? How to Find Your Place in English After an Interruption. It sets a story you restart next to the same story with a clean return, then gives you ten exercises with answers.

If the problem is the quiet moment before you answer, rather than losing your place afterwards, What to Say in English When Your Mind Goes Blank covers the first few seconds. For the next scene in the same series, where you answer the request rather than the topic, see Yes, Oat Milk, Please? How to Answer the Request Instead of the Topic in English.

Chapters

• 00:00 What to Say When Your Mind Goes Blank
• 01:23 A Real Story: Losing Your Place Mid-Conversation
• 02:37 Find the Last Clear Point Instead of Starting Over
• 03:46 Useful Phrases to Get Back to Your Story
• 07:01 Choosing the Right Recovery Phrase
• 08:04 When You Keep Talking but Lose the Main Thread
• 10:51 Supported Conversation Practice: Return After an Interruption
• 12:23 Listener Practice: Continue Your Story Naturally
• 13:05 Common Speaking Mistakes and Better Repairs
• 15:35 Upgrade Simple Responses to Sound Clearer
• 16:30 Real-Life Challenge: Recovering During a Project Update
• 20:22 Pronunciation Practice: Chunking “Right, I Was Saying…”
• 21:41 Quick English Speaking Quiz
• 23:17 Final Thread-Recovery Speaking Challenge
• 26:13 Recap: Recover the Thread, Not the Perfect Sentence

Full Transcript

The transcript follows the video. The video says two lines twice (“Before pronunciation, can we make the scenario more difficult?” and “That feels different from a weekend story.”), and they are given once here. The Final Script has a few remarks and labels that the video skips (Emily’s “My specialty today.”, Paul’s “And while you search, the conversation waits.”, a “Hmm…” and several “Basic:” and “More …:” labels in the upgrade chapter), and they are left out here.

Paul: Emily, you look like you just remembered something embarrassing.

Emily: A little. Yesterday I was telling a friend a simple story. She asked one small question in the middle, I answered it, and suddenly I had no idea where I was in my own story.

Paul: So the problem was not that you had no English. You had lost your place.

Emily: Exactly. And instead of starting again from the beginning, I could have said, “Right, I was saying…” and continued from the last clear point.

Paul: That solves the first part. But what if you answer the interruption, remember three different pieces at once, and still cannot find the main thread? That is the harder part.

Emily: Yes. Because in that moment my brain gives me everything except the next useful sentence.

Paul: Then today we are practicing a very specific skill: how to find your place again when you are already in the middle of an explanation, story, or update.

Emily: Not how to avoid every blank moment. And not how to answer every question instantly.

Paul: Right. This is what you say after the conversation has already started and your thread disappears.

Emily: I wish I had known that yesterday.

Paul: Tell me what happened.

Emily: Okay. I was telling my friend about a Sunday market. I said I went there because I wanted to buy a small plant for my kitchen. Then I told her I got off the bus near the old station.

Paul: So far, very easy to follow.

Emily: Then she asked, “Is that the market with the blue entrance?”

Paul: Reasonable question.

Emily: I said, “Yes, that one. They painted it last year.” Then I looked back at her and thought, wait. Why was I talking about the market?

Paul: That is the exact moment we want.

Emily: I had the whole story in my head, but the order disappeared. So I said, “Anyway… uh… the market… the bus… I went there in the morning…”

Paul: You restarted the story.

Emily: Almost from the bus stop.

Paul: And what did your friend do?

Emily: She was patient, but I could see that she had already heard that part.

Paul: There is the communication problem. Restarting can feel safe because the beginning is easy to remember, but it makes the listener travel over old ground with you.

Emily: That is such a good description. Old ground.

Paul: A cleaner move would be: “Where was I? Right, I was saying I went there to buy a plant.”

Emily: Ah. So I do not need the exact next sentence. I need the last clear point.

Paul: Exactly. That is our first useful distinction. When you lose your place, do not search your entire memory. Search for the last point both people still understand.

Emily: Let me try it. “Where was I? Right, I was saying I went there to buy a plant.”

Paul: Good. Now the story has a place to continue from.

Emily: Then I can say, “Anyway, after that, I found a little shop near the back of the market.”

Paul: Yes. Notice what happened. “Where was I?” identifies the problem. “Right, I was saying…” reconnects to the thread. “Anyway, after that…” moves the story forward.

Emily: Three different jobs.

Paul: And that matters because people often collect phrases without knowing which job each phrase does.

Emily: Let us make the jobs clear, then.

Paul: Start with “Where was I?” It is a natural question you can say to yourself and the listener. You are not asking them to repeat the whole conversation. You are marking that you lost your position.

Emily: It feels light. Not dramatic.

Paul: Right. Next, “Right, I was saying…” This is useful when you remember the last point and want to return to it directly.

Emily: Like, “Right, I was saying I went there to buy a plant.”

Paul: Exactly.

Emily: What about “So, back to what I was saying…”?

Paul: That is a little more explicit. It works especially well after a side question or a short side topic. You answer the side point, then signal that you are returning.

Emily: “Yes, the entrance is blue now. So, back to what I was saying, I was looking for a plant.”

Paul: Clear and natural.

Emily: And “Let me pick up from there” sounds like I know the place where I stopped.

Paul: Yes. Imagine you stopped after one clear event. You can say, “Let me pick up from there. I found the plant, but then I realized I had left my wallet at home.”

Emily: Oh, that would be a much worse Sunday.

Paul: It would. We are keeping your real story less dramatic.

Emily: Thank you.

Paul: Another phrase is “The main point was…” This is useful when you cannot recover every detail, but you still know why you were telling the story.

Emily: That one feels important. Sometimes I cannot remember the sequence, but I remember the reason.

Paul: Exactly. Suppose you are explaining why you changed your evening schedule. You lose the order of two small details. You do not need to rebuild everything. You can say, “The main point was that the new class starts earlier, so I need to leave work by six.”

Emily: That saves the meaning even if one small detail disappears.

Paul: Yes. And sometimes a side detail matters, but not now. Then you can say, “I’ll come back to that.”

Emily: So I can protect the main thread.

Paul: Right. For example, “There was also a problem with the booking, but I’ll come back to that. First, I want to explain why we changed the date.”

Emily: That stops the story from growing five branches at once.

Paul: Nicely put.

Emily: And our last one is “Anyway, after that…”

Paul: Yes. It is simple, but useful when you have reconnected and want movement again.

Emily: I like that these phrases do not pretend the blank moment did not happen.

Paul: They do not need to. The goal is not a perfect performance. The goal is to keep the listener oriented.

Emily: That gives us a nice test. Which phrase keeps the listener oriented right now?

Paul: Exactly. Let us try a quick one. You are telling a story. A friend asks a side question. You answer it, and now you remember the exact point where you stopped. What could you say?

Emily: I would say, “Right, I was saying…” or “Let me pick up from there.”

Paul: Good. If you cannot remember the exact sequence, but you still know the message you wanted to give?

Emily: “The main point was…”

Paul: And if a useful side detail appears but you do not want to lose the main line?

Emily: “I’ll come back to that.”

Paul: Perfect. If you are listening passively, you have already heard the answer models. If you want active practice, choose one phrase now and say it once with your own everyday topic.

Emily: I will model one. “Right, I was saying I changed my evening routine because my class moved to Tuesday.”

Paul: Good. Now let us make the problem a little harder. A blank moment is not always total silence. Sometimes you keep speaking, but you are no longer sure where the explanation is going.

Emily: Oh, I do that.

Paul: I know. Imagine I ask, “Why did you start taking the train instead of driving?”

Emily: Okay. “I started taking the train because parking near the office became difficult. There is a garage, but it fills up early, and last month my coworker found another place, and actually the coffee shop near that place is good, and…”

Paul: And where are we now?

Emily: At coffee.

Paul: But the question was transportation.

Emily: Right. I did not go silent. I lost the main thread while still producing English.

Paul: Exactly. So mind going blank can also look like uncontrolled continuation. You reach for whatever detail comes next because stopping feels uncomfortable.

Emily: What is the repair there?

Paul: “The main point was that parking became difficult, so the train was simpler.”

Emily: Short. It brings the listener home.

Paul: And then you can add one useful detail if needed. “It also gives me time to read.”

Emily: So the recovery is not always “remember more.” Sometimes it is “remove the extra branches.”

Paul: Yes. That is an important payoff.

Emily: Let us give listeners a small decision. Which answer is easier to follow? One: “I started taking the train because parking is hard, and there is a coffee shop, and my coworker parks somewhere else, and the road changed…” Two: “The main point was that parking became difficult, so the train was simpler.”

Paul: The second one. It recovers the purpose of the explanation.

Emily: And the listener can ask about the coffee later if they really want the coffee.

Paul: Exactly.

Emily: I am noticing something. These phrases are not just emergency phrases. They are conversation-organization phrases.

Paul: Good observation. They help after a blank moment, but their deeper function is orientation: where we were, what matters, and where we are going next.

Emily: Which makes them useful in stories, explanations, updates, even casual work conversations.

Paul: Yes, as long as the situation is normal and the language fits.

Emily: Let us build a supported conversation.

Paul: I will ask about your weekend. Tell me about one ordinary event. I may interrupt once with a side question. Your job is not to avoid the interruption. Your job is to return cleanly.

Emily: Ready.

Paul: What did you do on Saturday?

Emily: I met my cousin near the river because we wanted to try a new noodle place. We got there around one, but there was a long line outside.

Paul: Is that the place next to the small bookshop?

Emily: Yes, exactly. The bookshop has a yellow sign. So, back to what I was saying, there was a long line outside the restaurant. We waited for about twenty minutes, and then a table opened near the window.

Paul: Nice recovery. Keep going.

Emily: The funny part was that we had spent twenty minutes talking about what to order, but when we sat down, both of us chose the same thing in about ten seconds.

Paul: Did you like it?

Emily: Yes. The main point was that the wait sounded annoying at first, but it gave us time to catch up, so the afternoon was actually more relaxed than we expected.

Paul: Good. Notice two different recovery moves. After my first question, you knew the exact point, so you used “So, back to what I was saying…” After the second question, you used “The main point was…” to close the meaning.

Emily: And I did not restart with “On Saturday, I met my cousin…”

Paul: Exactly.

Emily: Listener practice. Imagine Paul asks you, “What did you do last weekend?” Start a short story. After two or three sentences, imagine he interrupts with, “Where was that?” Answer the question in one sentence. Then use either “Right, I was saying…” or “So, back to what I was saying…”

Paul: If you are not pausing, here is a complete model. “I went to a small park with my brother because we wanted to walk before dinner. It was near the old library. Yes, the one beside the bus station. Right, I was saying we went there before dinner. We walked for about forty minutes, and then we found a small café.”

Emily: The passive version still gives you the whole shape.

Paul: Now let us look at mistakes that are grammatically possible but communicatively weak. First mistake: restarting everything. “Sorry, I forgot. Let me start again. On Saturday morning I woke up at eight…”

Emily: Even if we were already at Saturday afternoon.

Paul: Better: “Where was I? Right, I was saying we had just arrived at the park.”

Emily: We keep the shared point.

Paul: Second mistake: pretending there was no break and jumping forward too far. “Yes, the café is near the library. Anyway, then I went home.”

Emily: The listener thinks, wait, what happened to the park?

Paul: Better: “So, back to what I was saying, we were walking through the park. After that, we found a café.”

Emily: Third mistake: turning the recovery into a long apology. “Sorry, sorry, I forgot what I was saying. My English is terrible today. I always do this.”

Paul: That adds emotional weight but no orientation. Better: “Where was I? Right, I was saying…”

Emily: Short and useful.

Paul: Fourth mistake: following every side detail. “The booking changed, the room changed, my coworker changed her schedule, the train was late, and—oh, the email…”

Emily: The story becomes a drawer full of cables.

Paul: Exactly. Better: “There was also an email issue, but I’ll come back to that. The main point was that the room changed.”

Emily: Fifth mistake: trying to recover the exact sentence you planned.

Paul: Yes. You do not need the original sentence. You need a sentence that reconnects the meaning.

Emily: That may be my favorite point in this episode.

Paul: Say more.

Emily: When I lose my place, I often think there is one correct next sentence hidden somewhere in my head. Then I search for it. But the listener does not know my original sentence. I can choose a new one.

Paul: Exactly. The shared conversation is more important than your private draft.

Emily: That deserves a short line: you do not have to recover the sentence; recover the thread.

Paul: That is a good one.

Emily: Let us upgrade a few simple responses.

Paul: Okay. Basic: “I forgot.”

Emily: Clearer: “Where was I?”

Paul: Better when you remember the point: “Right, I was saying we changed the plan on Friday.”

Emily: Basic: “Anyway…”

Paul: More useful after a side topic: “So, back to what I was saying…”

Emily: “There were many things.”

Paul: “The main point was that we needed more time.”

Emily: “I will talk about that later.”

Paul: “I’ll come back to that.”

Emily: “Then…”

Paul: “Anyway, after that…”

Emily: I also want to point out tone. “Where was I?” can sound relaxed when you say it lightly. It does not have to sound like a crisis.

Paul: Right. And that brings us to pronunciation.

Emily: Before pronunciation, can we make the scenario more difficult?

Paul: Yes. This time the interruption changes the pressure. Imagine a short project check-in. You are explaining why a simple task moved from Tuesday to Thursday. A teammate asks a side question about a file, you answer it, and then you lose your place. The listener needs the final reason, not your whole history.

Emily: That feels different from a weekend story.

Paul: Different relationship, different goal, more information pressure, and a practical consequence.

Emily: Let us do it.

Paul: I will be the teammate. Emily, why did the draft move to Thursday?

Emily: We planned to finish it on Tuesday, but on Monday we received new product photos, so I needed to replace several images before I could finish the layout.

Paul: Were those the photos in the shared folder or the ones Mia sent directly?

Emily: The ones in the shared folder. Mia’s photos are for next week. Where was I?

Paul: You were explaining why the draft moved.

Emily: Right, I was saying the new product photos changed the layout. Let me pick up from there. After I replaced them, I noticed that two captions also needed approval, so Tuesday became too tight.

Paul: Did the client ask for the new captions?

Emily: Not directly. That is another detail, but I’ll come back to that. The main point was that the new images created extra layout and approval work, so Thursday became the realistic delivery day.

Paul: That was strong. You answered my side question, recovered your location, protected a side detail, and finished the reason.

Emily: And I did not begin with Monday again.

Paul: Now I will add a complication. I say, “Wait, I thought the captions were already approved.”

Emily: Ah. Now I need to respond to new information without losing the thread.

Paul: Exactly.

Emily: “The old captions were approved. The two new photos needed new captions. So, back to what I was saying, that extra approval is part of why we moved the draft to Thursday.”

Paul: Good. The new information becomes part of the explanation instead of destroying it.

Emily: This feels much more like real conversation. People interrupt because they are listening, not because they want to break your speech.

Paul: Important point. A side question can actually help the conversation. Your job is just to know how to return.

Emily: Let us compare this with the earlier blank-moment problem. Here, I am not buying thinking time at the beginning of an answer. I am managing a thread that already exists.

Paul: Exactly. Different communication job.

Emily: And if I forget one small detail?

Paul: If the detail is not necessary, you can skip it and protect the main point. For example, “I can’t remember the exact date, but the main point was that the schedule changed after the new files arrived.”

Emily: That sentence mentions a missing detail, but the core move is still thread protection.

Paul: Yes. The missing date is not the lesson. The lesson is deciding what the listener still needs.

Emily: Good. Now pronunciation.

Paul: Our focus is chunking. The anchor is: “Right, I was saying we changed the plan on Friday.”

Emily: Let us hear the meaning groups: “Right / I was saying / we changed the plan / on Friday.”

Paul: Good. Keep “I was saying” together. Do not hit every word with equal force.

Emily: Slow version: “Right… I was saying… we changed the plan… on Friday.”

Paul: Natural version: “Right, I was saying we changed the plan on Friday.”

Emily: Again, no filler inside the repeat line. “Right, I was saying we changed the plan on Friday.”

Paul: Now put it in a mini-dialogue. I ask, “Was that before the meeting?”

Emily: “Yes, it was. Right, I was saying we changed the plan on Friday.”

Paul: Then continue: “Anyway, after that, I sent the new version to the team.”

Emily: Chunking helps because the recovery phrase becomes one familiar unit, not five separate words.

Paul: Exactly.

Emily: Quiz time. Keep it conversational.

Paul: Question one. You answer a side question and remember exactly where your story stopped. Which is the best next line? A: “Let me start from the beginning.” B: “Right, I was saying we had just arrived.” C: “Sorry, my English disappeared.”

Emily: B. It reconnects to the last clear point.

Paul: Question two. You cannot remember two small details, but you still know the reason for your explanation. A: “The main point was that the schedule changed.” B: “I need to remember every detail first.” C: “Never mind.”

Emily: A. Save the meaning instead of rebuilding every detail.

Paul: Question three. A useful side issue appears, but discussing it now would pull you away from the main topic. What can you say?

Emily: “I’ll come back to that.”

Paul: Yes. Question four. Your listener asks something in the middle of your story. Is the interruption automatically a problem?

Emily: No. It can be a normal sign that they are following. The skill is returning to the main thread afterward.

Paul: Question five. You forget the exact sentence you planned. What do you need to recover: the sentence or the thread?

Emily: The thread.

Paul: That is the central choice.

Emily: Now I want the listener to do the full challenge.

Paul: Here is the situation. You are explaining an ordinary event, decision, or small change to another person. It can be your weekend, a class, a trip across town, a changed plan, a hobby, a meal, or a simple work or study update.

Emily: Speak for sixty to one hundred twenty seconds. Start normally. Give enough context for the listener to follow.

Paul: After about twenty or thirty seconds, imagine the listener interrupts with one side question: “Where was that?” “Who was with you?” “Was that before the meeting?” or “Is that the place near the station?”

Emily: Answer that side question in one short sentence.

Paul: Then do not restart from the beginning. Use one thread-recovery phrase: “Where was I?” “Right, I was saying…” “So, back to what I was saying…” or “Let me pick up from there.”

Emily: Continue from the last useful point. If another detail tries to pull you away, protect the main thread with “I’ll come back to that.”

Paul: Near the end, make sure the listener gets the reason you were telling the story. You can use “The main point was…” if that helps.

Emily: Finish naturally. Do not keep talking just to prove you recovered.

Paul: Use at least four Task Language phrases across the full challenge if they fit naturally.

Emily: Here is a shorter sample, shorter than your full task. “Last Saturday I went to a small craft market with my sister because she wanted a birthday gift. We arrived around eleven, but one section was still closed. Yes, it was the market near the river. Right, I was saying one section was still closed. Let me pick up from there. We walked to another area and found a local ceramics table. There was also a food event outside, but I’ll come back to that. The main point was that we found the gift in a place we almost skipped.”

Paul: Good. Now personalize it. Choose a real harmless topic you can explain without special vocabulary.

Emily: And here is your independent retry. Tell the same story again, but this time make the interruption happen at a different point. Try a different recovery phrase. Your goal is not to reproduce the first version. Your goal is to reconnect more efficiently.

Paul: Optional challenge: after the interruption, let the listener add one new fact that matters. Work that fact into your explanation, then return to the main point without starting over.

Emily: I like that because it proves the thread is flexible.

Paul: Yes. A conversation is not a memorized track. It can bend and still stay connected.

Emily: Let us finish where we started. Yesterday I thought my problem was, “My mind went blank, so my story was broken.”

Paul: And now?

Emily: Now I would say the story was not broken. I had simply lost my place.

Paul: And what would you say?

Emily: “Where was I? Right, I was saying I went to the market to buy a plant.” Then I would continue from there.

Paul: Good.

Emily: The phrases I want to keep are “Where was I?”, “Right, I was saying…”, “So, back to what I was saying…”, “The main point was…”, and “I’ll come back to that.”

Paul: Plus “Let me pick up from there” and “Anyway, after that…” when you need them.

Emily: And the bigger reminder is simple: do not recover the perfect sentence. Recover the shared thread.

Paul: One small language action today: tell a thirty-second story aloud. Interrupt yourself once on purpose, answer a side question, then say, “Right, I was saying…” and continue.

Emily: If that feels a little strange, good. You are practicing the exact moment instead of only thinking about it.

Paul: And when the real moment happens, you will already know one way back into the explanation.

Emily: Thanks for practicing with us. See you next time.

Paul: See you next time.