But it’s still Spanglish sometimes

Date November 14, 2008

When I arrived in Colombia, I was sure that I would be surviving on sign language and charades forever.  Going to the grocery store was a chore and catching the bus was impossible.  And talking to my students’ parents?  Yeah, right.  

I’ve come a long way.

Our principal ran our staff meeting in Spanish last week and I found myself sitting next to one of the newbies.  About half way through, he looked up at me and laughed. 

“Mississippi, are you translating for her?”

“Yes, sir.  I think I am.”

I don’t know how it happened or where it came from or if I meant to do it at all, but I was.  I was hearing things in Spanish and saying them in English without thinking about it all.

6 Responses to “But it’s still Spanglish sometimes”

  1. Trava said:

    Por favor, hable más despacio. No hablo español…….heh heh heh!!! Copy and paste are my friends!!! ¡Hasta luego!

  2. Emily said:

    Congratulations! It’s an amazing feeling, huh?

  3. Deanna said:

    And here I thought I was doing good to be able to count to 10 in Spanish!
    YOU GO GIRL!

  4. Lou said:

    Kudos! I am proud of you.

  5. dani said:

    I’m jealous! I want to do that! I have all these little guys coming in to buy tires and they jabber a mile a minute and I just look and feel so ignorant! I need some classes!

  6. Amy Laboe said:

    ay monita, que bien. estoy muy orgullosa de ti. encontró otro trabajo para poder viajar este verano… no quiero perder esta oportunidad que ya estas en america del sur y que podemos hacer una aventura juntitas. te mando un abrazote.