Skip to main content

I love languages!


Foreign languages have always fascinated me. When I was a teenager, I started learning how to say something, even if it was just a simple phrase, in many different languages. I love hearing the different pronunciations and am so impressed when I meet people who are talented at communicating in more than one language.

As I have lived outside of my native country, it has been a unique experience to strive to adapt to a world where I cannot easily communicate or understand what is going on around me most of the time. It has given me a greater appreciation for my Spanish speaking friends from the United States and to my surprise, I feel like I can more easily relate to my deaf friends, to know what they might be dealing with when they cannot hear what's going on when others are talking.

American Sign Language is a beautiful language, and I love watching people communicate by using their hands. In a barbaric way, that's actually how I've been getting by in Taiwan to get my point across, but not in any formal language, often simply by just using gestures, facial expressions and emotions. It would be awesome to be able to actually "speak" in ASL.

I have a friend in Texas who is an ASL teacher and he has an excellent website that teaches this language. If you're interested in learning American Sign language, you might want to take a look at what Rob has to offer. He is a pro and can teach you as much as you want to know. If anything, click on his link HERE and check out his site. You will enjoy his minute and a half intro video and his likable personality. He is hoping to get more traffic and I know he would appreciate it.
Labels:

Comments

~ Tina said…
I love that photo!
February 20, 2011 6:48 PM
Kelly said…
I do too, Tina! I searched for an image to add to this post and when I saw that one, I couldn't believe how perfect it was.

After I added this post, I added a Google translator to my blog gadgets so my Chinese friends can figure out what I'm saying in English if they need help. Chinese characters are SO foreign to me! They seem impossible to understand, but that must be how they look at our letters.
February 20, 2011 10:05 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

San Antonio temple weekend

Here am I (five months pregnant), with Hannah, Kelly, Lindsey, and Christopher, walking out of the San Antonio temple after our new daughter was sealed to us for time and for all eternity during a special, sacred ceremony, this past Saturday afternoon.  We were happy to have a wonderful group of guests in attendance with us, Kelly's two sisters, Debbie and Brenda, my sister, Julie, Kelly's mom and dad, my mom, my good friends Lorraine and Stewart, Carol and Rick, and one person from our ward, my buddy, Sue. Dinner later that night consisted of a feast at the Salt Lick in Driftwood, Texas, for some incredible pork ribs, cole slaw, and more. We strolled along the Riverwalk to show our visiting family members one of San Antonio's popular tourist spots.  It was a beautiful, windy day, the Saturday following Thanksgiving, in San Antonio.  We tried to find a corner with less wind to blow in our faces.  More photos of the family.  The family, strolling along th...
18 comments
Read more

Triathlon triumph

Are you kidding me? A triathlon and I have never belonged in the same sentence. It must have been time for something new! (The "BEFORE" race shot, with goggles and swim cap in hand.) What an unforgettable week this was! I actually DID enter my first triathlon, with the goal of simply finishing it. Take note of the emphasis on the word FIRST, because I loved it so much, that you can guarantee that there will be more. It was a blast. Seriously. My friends Lorraine and Robin had trained and signed up to do the event, which was two days ago, on Saturday. Three days beforehand, I heard about it and basically had a spontaneous urge to join them, so I registered. The only partial preparation ahead of time that I had been doing was cycling in the neighborhood here and there on my mountain bike with some other friends. And doing some micro-laps in our backyard pool. Our friend, Dave, was also there. The three of us women appreciated Dave's encouragement and support, as he's ...
22 comments
Read more

The BIG REVEAL!

We LOVE our new pool! There are a couple of problems that need to be fixed, so we're crossing our fingers that they get it done right, and soon, considering we have given them the final check for the balance of the pool, and we don't have any leverage. Three of the waterfalls work. This is the main one and I like the natural look. Below, here's the deep end waterfall, and it's flows nicely. The water sheer like this one, that flows into the shallow beach area, is the fall that is not working. It's frustrating, but hopefully they'll fix it soon. The fountain in the spa is blocked too. Here's the small rock waterfall, which works just great. It took about 18 hours to fill the pool and we practically watched it gallon by gallon. I stayed up all night long, making sure it didn't overflow. We swim in it every day. Last night we went on a midnight swim and it was beautiful. The water temperature is perfect. I'm extremely thankful that we have our new...
26 comments
Read more