Notebooks. Your calendar. Pencils. Pens. Typing paper? A pocket recorder? Highlighters? Markers? Old textbooks?
Today is the beginning of a new relationship. It’s kind of like a first date… except in a much more professional sense. At long last, I’ve finally called and made an appointment with my wife’s language instructor, who apparently is the best thing since sliced bread.
Those American readers would recognize that “best thing since since sliced bread” is a common English figure of speech use to mean “best thing in a very long time”. But to a Bosnian, it probably just sounds weird. I hope my new instructor doesn’t read this.
My boss reiterated the goal of language learning for me yesterday. The goal is that we would be able to do our jobs in the local language. That is to say that, as we have more locals join our staff or partner with us in some way, business conversations, personal conversations, emails, announcements, i tako dalje, would eventually switch from English to Bosnian.
I was glad to hear the goal restated. But, the way I going right now, I feel that the goal is getting further away, rather than closer. I’ve not studied new material in several weeks. It’s great that I’ve finished a textbook — so, now I supposedly know all those basic concepts of the language. But I am not taking on new words, and I feel atrophy setting in. Whether that’s really the case or not, can be debated. I probably talk more in Bosnian now than I ever have. But I don’t have anyone pushing me to actually learn more.
Maybe that’s something we all need, whether we’re learning a language or not. OK… my appointment is in 45 minutes. Wish me luck…
