I've had an icky cold-type thing all week, but it's going away, so that's good news. I hope this counts as my turn to get sick. Everyone else has had...other problems.
I had almost a full day of readers today. They all enjoy practicing their English a lot. Several of them have told me that they've lost some of the English they've learned because there's no one to speak it to. And if they practice it on their own, they don't know if they're pronouncing it correctly. We're very happy to be here to help them for free!
Today, I read with Pãulo, one of Kensey's readers who she didn't have an open slot for this week (he can only come at 7:00p). His English is very good. He is not a believer, but he was very excited to be in the LST program. He doesn't want to lose his English; he said it was very hard to learn it. He thinks Jesus was a good guy and agrees with some of the things he says, but he doesn't believe in religion. We talked about our foundations (building your house on a rock, etc.). He said his was his education and experience. I told him that God has to be my foundation. When a flood comes and I rely on myself, I'm always disappointed and confused and scared. But when I allow God to be my foundation, I always have something stronger than myself to build on after the storm. He said that he thought what Jesus was saying was a good thing. I pray that God will use this opportunity to reach Pãulo in a way that he hasn't been reached before.
Daniel and Everton, both readers of Kensey, have been getting me to read a lot of Portuguese lately. I can speak a few words. The most important include phrases like, "I speak a little Portuguese," "I don't understand," and "Where's my donkey?" Evidently, though, my pronunciation is very good. Whenever they get me to read, they say they are very impressed. Unfortunately, I rarely understand what I'm reading. That helps me empathize with my readers a bit, even those who seem to speak English well.
Kensey is also learning Portugese, but she's way too American to speak it as well as I do. :)
I finally thought to upload a couple of pictures. Nothing too relevant to tonight's post, but they're pretty to look at, nonetheless.
View of Recife from Danny's apartment. The beach is about six blocks thataway.
On the way to the beach, we saw lots of sugar cane. There were hills and hills of it!
My closet at Danny's house. Don't let it fool you, that's a sweet pad.And of course, my beatiful team:
William just before his nap. His name in Poruguese is "Sehnor Grumpé Pants."
Kensey was attacked by bats on the stairs!That was a lie.
Okay, so maybe not the strongest start for pictures. But I'll have some better ones later. If I ever remember to take my camera to the Escola, I'll try to get some of my Brazilian friends.
Thanks for your emails and comments! We miss you!
3 comments:
On the rare occasions that I pronounce foreign words around people who speak the language (natively or learned), I often get told my pronunciation is good. It must be all that practice we had as kids speaking with foreign accents!
I am glad to hear that your reading sessions are going well! I know that you are all doing a great job.
Do Beavis and Butthead count as foreign accents?
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