Nuwe 언어. New Languages.

It's no lie. I hated Spanish in high school and even more so in university. I was an English major. Why in the name of all that's good and holy did I need to be proficient and take up to 204 in a foreign language when I knew I would have no use for the damn thing? Sigh. ¿Cómo se dice ridiculous?

Turns out I was right about the Spanish. It hasn't helped at all here in Korea. I'll use my kitchen Spanish to understand my Latino friends here. It's also handy when we get into a taxi and the driver understands enough English that I have to say, "vamos a morir" (we're going to die) because I fear for my life. But still, Spanish and I just never...clicked. Lo siento Senora Wise. I'm sure I'll be fine with my primary language. Surely it's all I'll ever need. The whole world speaks English.

Ha. Haha. Hahahahahahahahahaha

So I started learning Korean. Then it was hard and I stopped. 하지마(don't do it) It didn't help that Koreans weren't exactly supportive in my language discovery. I am corrected all the time and if I mispronounced even a teeny tiny bit then they had no idea what I said. Also, I have a foreigner face. They look at me and inwardly start to panic when they realize they'll have to speak to me. They panic so much they miss the first few words I say to them. In their own language. Enter extreme confusion. Point is, I was a coward. Or lazy. Fine, I was both. Anyway, I stopped. I quit. I learned enough to get around. I could read and write and tell a taxi driver to 가자 (let's go!) and ask where the 화장실 (bathroom) is. But I've been convicted recently by the professor that I tutor. Sorry let me specify: the Chinese Language professor who's learning English as a third language. Convicted. Shame. Whatever.

So I started up again. Happy?

But I started learning another language in earnest last year. Afrikaans has got to be one of the easiest languages I've attempted to learn. *Side note, I've also attempted Cherokee and Irish Gaelic.* However, the uitspraak (pronunciation) is a bitch. There's no nice way to say it. 

Most people's reaction when they find out I'm learning Afrikaans is a one big "what the...?" moment followed by even more confusion. How in the name of Edward Cullen is that going to help you in Korea? African? Is that the one with clicks? 

Sigh. 

The quick answer is that I have a few Afrikaans friends and I wanted to understand what they were saying, I was looking at a South African uni for grad school, and my friends spoke this language. It was their heart. It is the language they dream in and talk to God with. I'm a firm believer in being a good friend and while that doesn't mean I need to learn every language my friends speak, I wanted to be close to my friends and show interest in their culture, respect their backgrounds and differences. Now, they get good laughs from me ALL the time, and are bombarded with questions at all hours of the day which I'm sure makes them roll their eyes, but bless them, they are patient. Dankie.

At least those were the reasons the language learning started. Now, I see it as this personal journey. One of determination and perseverance. Can I stick it out this time? Will I quit? It's hard being laughed at when you're making such an effort. I want to punch the Korean barista in the face when they giggle at my piss poor attempt to ask for low fat milk. I never ever of evers laugh at my students attempts with my language. They would all walk out of class, and be terrified of English forever. Language learning is hard. I cannot identify with Korean or Afrikaans. It isn't my culture. It makes no sense to me. But I feel good when I sit down to study. I feel excited knowing I'm closing the cultural gap. Afrikaans is 'n mooi taal, maar it's still difficult.  When I study and master a sentence or a grammar rule I feel the world become more accessible to me, a little easier to navigate. So I persevere and verstaan a little bit more each day. I open myself up to change each time I learn a new 표현, and the world becomes less scary with fewer boundaries. 

This guy is my inspiration. A white guy who's learning Xhosa (one with some clicks) and he's pretty good. Like it says at the end of the video, "Speak to a man in his own language, and you speak to his heart." Nelson Mandela

Good one Madiba.