There are moments when you realise how awesome it is to be able to speak two languages*.
I was reminded of this on the train last week. An English-speaking man wanted to plug his laptop in but couldn't find the socket. The English-speakers behind him couldn't help. However, a German guy (who had worked out what was going on as English-speaking man was waving around the laptop cable and looking confused) explained where it was in German. But this only made English-speaking man more confused as he couldn't speak German... This is where I came in: the person who could translate German guy's advice and tell English-speaking man where the socket was. It sounds ridiculous but it was one of those moments that made me proud to be able to speak more than one language. It is when you realise that you are getting somewhere with German.
These moments of awesomeness happen in the most innocuous of settings. I've translated things in coffee shops and train stations, hotels and museums. No the language required isn't demanding but that's not the point. The point is that I can actually do it.
*When I say speak two languages I mean it in a loose sense and I definitely do not class myself as anything close to fluent. My German falls in the categories of 'can usually get the point across' and 'work in progress'.
How flipping awesome. You should be so proud of yourself. It's so tricky to see the progression yourself. I know this for a fact as I'm currently learning Dutch (native language of my boyfriend), and continue to get frustrated with myself that I'm not fluent yet! Haha, as if it's as simple as that ; )
ReplyDeleteI'm sure it's one of those things that seeing your own development is not as easy as someone pointing it out to you, so in a situation as you just explained, it's the perfect opportunity to notice- and to give yourself a great big pat on the back!
This is no small feat, it's really inspiring and should be a little boost to keep going! : )
I look forward to when I hit this stage!!
Faded Windmills
Thank you! I completely agree... The more you learn a language the more you realise how much there is to learn, and tend to focus on the things that you can't do and forget about the things that you can. Sometimes you need something like the above situation to remind you that you are getting somewhere.
DeleteGood luck with the Dutch :)
So true!! Thank you : )
DeleteFunny you mentioning learning Dutch, Gemma... I used to do in the UK half a lifetime ago what Lucy is doing in Germany now (so yes, I can relate to the fluency thing in two languages) and your comment reminded me of one of my colleagues at the Welsh school. Her parents lived in the Netherlands and they never got the chance to learn any Dutch as, as soon as anyone picked up on their accent, would speak to them in very fluent English! Fingers crossed you can do better than they did! :-)
ReplyDeleteOops, omitted a "they" there... Task of the day: spot the error!
ReplyDelete