Think it, Speak it, Live it

And so it began, my first day of class.  While many were dreading 9AM, I was looking forward to finally speaking Spanish in a structured environment.  Fifteen, semi-sleepy students sat in a horseshoe as our professor, Jorge, questioned each and every one of us.  Caught off guard, some spoke an understandable version of Spanglish, while others sat confused. 

Needless to say, business students always impress.  Within a half hour, one student was asking another what he wanted to do after graduation, as another asked about her favorite animal.  It surprised me to see how everyone’s Spanish improved so quickly, almost instantly like a flip of a switch. I’m pretty sure Jorge noticed as well because he stressed how important it was for us to immerse ourselves within the language.  “Es difícil despertar en la mañana pensando en una lengua que no es tuyo.  También es difícil hablar en una  lengua que no es tuyo.  Pero es importante hacerlo para mejorar la fluidez.” (It’s difficult to wake up in the morning thinking in a language that isn’t yours.  It’s also difficult to speak in a language that is not yours. But it’s important to do so to improve your fluidity.)

So, I took the plunge.  Taking Jorge’s words to heart, I made a conscious effort to speak in Spanish as frequently as possible.  I returned to my home stay, where Mama Lola had a delicious plate of Shrimp paella ready for me.  Since her oldest son was lunching with us, I grabbed the opportunity to bring up topics we had discussed in class. One in particular really struck a chord with David, the son. 

As of January 1^st, the Spanish government restricted smoking in all public areas.  Doesn’t seem like a big deal, right? WRONG. In European culture, it’s commonplace to have a cigarette, or two, or three every hour or so.  When I brought up the fact that I had to visit local bars and restaurants to ask baristas and customers of their opinions on this matter, David threw a frustrated fit.  Hands flailing, rate of speaking increasing, David expressed his agreement with the government’s stupidity, taking away the liberties of its citizens.  Mama Lola, on the other hand, calmly explained to me that the country provided social security and that too many people were making hospital visits for Emphazima, cancer, etc and it became too costly for the government to have pay for treatments.  For this reason, they banned smoking in public areas…to prevent second hand effects and to lower usage by the regulars (hopefully).

But David wouldn’t have any more of his mother’s “nonsense.” He quickly finished his food, got up and went outside to, ironically, smoke a cigarette.  It was interesting to see the generational differences of opinion between Mama Lola and David.  As feisty as David was when the subject was brought up, Mama Lola was cool and collected. 

This just goes to show, with age comes a better understanding of the world and its complexities.