March 1st marked seven months in Moldova for me. I still have days where I cannot believe I am here(even though the signs are all around and obvious). There are still days where I miss the comforts of home. And everyday I am thankful for this once in a lifetime opportunity. Everyday I am aware that this time is part of God's plan for my life.
I wanted to jot down a list of things that I havent' experienced in 7 months. Some of these are obvious, but it's my list.
It's been seven months since I've:
sat foot on American soil
driven a car
held my neice
attended a church service where the entire service was in English
eaten any American fast food other than McDonalds
seen my Memphis/Millington/Missouri family and friends
picked up my cell phone to call my mom at anytime of the day
eaten my mom's cooking
been to Walmart
listened to K-love
used an American dollar to pay for anything
drank water out of the faucet
So, this is just a partial listing....I could go on, but I won't. This isn't supposed to be a sad, Shauna-is-homesick-today-kind-of-post, but I just wanted to share what I was thinking about. I think it's interesting to see the little things that we give up to experience something else. If I was still in Memphis, I wouldn't have experienced the richness of what God has wanted to show me and teach me in the last seven months...and counting.
In the last seven months I've:
flown overseas for the first time in my life
taken public transportation for the first time in my life
immersed myself in a culture and a language other than my own
used a foreign language in conversation outside of a class in school
made many new friends
lived in an apartment for the first time ever
learned to cook (something I didn't know I could do)
learned to appreciate all the comforts I've been afforded growing up in America
faced my fears on a daily basis
boiled water to drink for the first time ever
experienced God's faithfulness and mighty hand at work in my life and those around me
Thank you for reading and God bless!
Showing posts with label language. Show all posts
Showing posts with label language. Show all posts
Monday, March 3, 2008
Friday, January 25, 2008
Fixin' to learn me some English, ya'll!
This blog was prompted by this comment from one of my students this week: "Hey, you can learn Romanian and English while you're here (in Moldova)!" This comment was said in good fun and was followed by laughs from all, but it got me thinking.
From the time I first walked through the 'Gates of Opportunity' at my college, I've heard this question over and over again, "Where are you from?" This question undoubtedly was asked in reference to my southern drawl. My reply was always, "TN." The next comment was always something in reference to my accent or "I thought so." Now, I know I have an accent and I'm sure it was pretty strong when I first left TN for MO. In those early days of college I tried to deny it by asking, "What accent?" In all reality though, I heard all sorts of accents on my college campus.
Even now as I am working and living with other Americans from northern states, I can hear their accents as well. My student mentioned above would say that she does not have an accent, but that I just "talk wrong."
So, during school yesterday we decided to have a little fun and we made a list of just some of the word endings that I say differently or with a southern accent/drawl. Here are the word endings and a couple of examples. See if you can identify!
Word endings:
ail as in mail I say mail like this: Did you get the male(or mill)?
ill as in hill I say hill like this: We climbed up the heal.
eel as in peel I say peel like this: I am going to pill these potatoes.
ull as in full I say full like this: This bag is too fool.
eal as in heal I say heal like this: The Lord has hilled us!
As a teacher, these were very important realizations for me and a good reminder to make sure that I use correct pronunciations and enunciate my words. I don't want to leave any endings off my words like we tend to do at home. For example, I hope you enjoyed this blog. I am fixin' to go to bed....
From the time I first walked through the 'Gates of Opportunity' at my college, I've heard this question over and over again, "Where are you from?" This question undoubtedly was asked in reference to my southern drawl. My reply was always, "TN." The next comment was always something in reference to my accent or "I thought so." Now, I know I have an accent and I'm sure it was pretty strong when I first left TN for MO. In those early days of college I tried to deny it by asking, "What accent?" In all reality though, I heard all sorts of accents on my college campus.
Even now as I am working and living with other Americans from northern states, I can hear their accents as well. My student mentioned above would say that she does not have an accent, but that I just "talk wrong."
So, during school yesterday we decided to have a little fun and we made a list of just some of the word endings that I say differently or with a southern accent/drawl. Here are the word endings and a couple of examples. See if you can identify!
Word endings:
ail as in mail I say mail like this: Did you get the male(or mill)?
ill as in hill I say hill like this: We climbed up the heal.
eel as in peel I say peel like this: I am going to pill these potatoes.
ull as in full I say full like this: This bag is too fool.
eal as in heal I say heal like this: The Lord has hilled us!
As a teacher, these were very important realizations for me and a good reminder to make sure that I use correct pronunciations and enunciate my words. I don't want to leave any endings off my words like we tend to do at home. For example, I hope you enjoyed this blog. I am fixin' to go to bed....
Saturday, December 29, 2007
Everyday Life: A trip to the grocery store and other thoughts
I realized today that most of my blogs are very simplistic. Not a lot of deep thinking here. I'm just writing about everyday life. This is where I am right now. I am over culture shock, but there is still a certain amount of adjusting that it takes, I believe, to live in a foreign country. Most of the adjusting isn't due to drastic changes in life, but the little differences. I think that sometimes my blogs aren't very exciting on the surface because the day to day stuff in my life just isn't that exciting(blog worthy). My days include: riding the public transportation to and from the Raatz, where I teach the girls, teaching the girls (excitement depends on the day!), eating, cooking, reading, language lessons, church on Sunday, and the occasional trip to the grocery store. I try to go to the grocery store only when it is completely necessary. Just going to the grocery store takes a lot of my energy.
I thought I would fill you in on what an experience at the grocery store is like for me. I try to catch a ride to the grocery store when I know others are going, but this is not always the case.If I am going to the store on foot then I like to go to the grocery store on Saturdays. I have a nice, quiet walk through a park on the way to the magazin(store). This store is more modern and has a lot of things to offer the customers. Just about every time I am there the store is pretty crowded. Thank goodness the baskets are a lot smaller than the ones back home. There would be no where to walk. I usually have a very basic list consisting of the essentials: milk, butter, bread, eggs, cheese, and some kind of meat.
Being in the store is overwhelming for me. 1)There are people everywhere 2)I am the foreigner that stands out 3)I am bombarded with voices speaking Romanian, Russian, and who knows what else....most of which I cannot understand and 4) I am trying to figure out exactly what I am buying(the writing on the package could be in Romanian, Russian, English, Arabic, Dutch, or something else.) I have found certain brands that I really like of certain products, so that makes those purchases easier anyways.
The most exciting part(s) of the experience: 1) sometimes there are songs in English over the speakers. Imagine my excitement at hearing Elvis! 2)I usually get to witness one heated conversation in Russian between two frustrated customers waiting not-so patiently in the forever long line.
Record time from my apartment to the store and back: One hour!
Today was no exception to my usual grocery store experience. Like many of you back home probably experienced on Dec. 23/24, that is what I experienced today. You see, most Moldovans don't celebrate Christmas on Dec. 25th like we do. Christmas is officially Jan. 7th. (they go by their old calendar). New Years is a huge deal though. It was evident today by the fact that there were no available carts. There was an increase in customers and the volume of items in their carts. As I scanned the carts around me, I noticed lots of alcohol, cakes, sausages etc. They are getting ready to celebrate big. In fact, New Year's is so big that most places will be closed on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day! (Nothing was closed on Dec. 25th. It was just a regular, work day here.)
The most stressful part of the grocery store for me is paying. I always hope that I am able to get by with the Romanian I know when asked any questions. It always works out fine, but I don't always know exactly what the cashier has said. The stress is amplified by the fact that I am trying to bag my own groceries, pay, and keep hold of my purse at the same time. Interesting.
So, I am not a frustrated shopper, just an overwhelmed shopper who still needs time to fully adjust to the shopping experience.
I am not bored though with my non-exciting(on the surface)day-to-day life. I take time to find things to laugh about, to ponder life, to try to figure out what other people are saying around me, and I like to analyze situations and guess what people are thinking.
I don't want my time here to fly by without taking time to soak all the differences in culture in. Five months have already come and gone. I still have 5 plus months left. I want to find ways to enjoy the walking, the riding in the public transportation, the fact that I can't understand everything being said, but that I have learned so much, the fact that God has blessed my time here so richly, the fact that God has called me here, and certainly the fact that God cares about and is present in the everyday events of my life.
I thought I would fill you in on what an experience at the grocery store is like for me. I try to catch a ride to the grocery store when I know others are going, but this is not always the case.If I am going to the store on foot then I like to go to the grocery store on Saturdays. I have a nice, quiet walk through a park on the way to the magazin(store). This store is more modern and has a lot of things to offer the customers. Just about every time I am there the store is pretty crowded. Thank goodness the baskets are a lot smaller than the ones back home. There would be no where to walk. I usually have a very basic list consisting of the essentials: milk, butter, bread, eggs, cheese, and some kind of meat.
Being in the store is overwhelming for me. 1)There are people everywhere 2)I am the foreigner that stands out 3)I am bombarded with voices speaking Romanian, Russian, and who knows what else....most of which I cannot understand and 4) I am trying to figure out exactly what I am buying(the writing on the package could be in Romanian, Russian, English, Arabic, Dutch, or something else.) I have found certain brands that I really like of certain products, so that makes those purchases easier anyways.
The most exciting part(s) of the experience: 1) sometimes there are songs in English over the speakers. Imagine my excitement at hearing Elvis! 2)I usually get to witness one heated conversation in Russian between two frustrated customers waiting not-so patiently in the forever long line.
Record time from my apartment to the store and back: One hour!
Today was no exception to my usual grocery store experience. Like many of you back home probably experienced on Dec. 23/24, that is what I experienced today. You see, most Moldovans don't celebrate Christmas on Dec. 25th like we do. Christmas is officially Jan. 7th. (they go by their old calendar). New Years is a huge deal though. It was evident today by the fact that there were no available carts. There was an increase in customers and the volume of items in their carts. As I scanned the carts around me, I noticed lots of alcohol, cakes, sausages etc. They are getting ready to celebrate big. In fact, New Year's is so big that most places will be closed on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day! (Nothing was closed on Dec. 25th. It was just a regular, work day here.)
The most stressful part of the grocery store for me is paying. I always hope that I am able to get by with the Romanian I know when asked any questions. It always works out fine, but I don't always know exactly what the cashier has said. The stress is amplified by the fact that I am trying to bag my own groceries, pay, and keep hold of my purse at the same time. Interesting.
So, I am not a frustrated shopper, just an overwhelmed shopper who still needs time to fully adjust to the shopping experience.
I am not bored though with my non-exciting(on the surface)day-to-day life. I take time to find things to laugh about, to ponder life, to try to figure out what other people are saying around me, and I like to analyze situations and guess what people are thinking.
I don't want my time here to fly by without taking time to soak all the differences in culture in. Five months have already come and gone. I still have 5 plus months left. I want to find ways to enjoy the walking, the riding in the public transportation, the fact that I can't understand everything being said, but that I have learned so much, the fact that God has blessed my time here so richly, the fact that God has called me here, and certainly the fact that God cares about and is present in the everyday events of my life.
Saturday, December 22, 2007
Dentist Visit #2
So, I went for another dentist visit on Friday. I had another wisdom tooth pulled. Two in one week. How fun. Once again, it was a quick procedure with no pain. Even now, thirty something hours after...I am pain free! Only a little soreness.
I was more ready for the initial shot( to numb the gum) this time. I still cringed and had a death grip on the chair, but I was a BIG GIRL. The dentist and assistant are very efficient and got right to business. As soon as I sat in the chair they were ready with the shot. They were speaking to one another in Romanian and I was preparing myself for the shot. They started laughing. I was thinking to myself, "You (the dentist) have a needle in your hand getting ready to stick it in my gum. I think this should be a really serious moment. Could we stop the laughing please?!?" Then, the dentist says, "nu opriț(no stop), OPEN." He was laughing because he had tried to say,"OPEN" in English, but instead said something completely different in Romanian. Once my gum was numb, it took less than a minute to get the tooth out. The dentist is a very kind man and he says to me when he sees me, "Relax, don't be afraid." Now, I have reason to believe him. He has gained my trust. Both of these wisdom tooth extractions have gone smoothly and I have suffered no pain. I am thankful that I was able to have these minor issues taken care of. I originally went to see the dentist because my teeth/head have been hurting for awhile. I thought I had a couple of cavities. Little did I know.....Anyways, I hope that these recent procedures have alleviated the cause of the pain in my ear/head. Please pray that once the soreness goes away, I will have no other headaches etc. Enjoy the pics.
I was more ready for the initial shot( to numb the gum) this time. I still cringed and had a death grip on the chair, but I was a BIG GIRL. The dentist and assistant are very efficient and got right to business. As soon as I sat in the chair they were ready with the shot. They were speaking to one another in Romanian and I was preparing myself for the shot. They started laughing. I was thinking to myself, "You (the dentist) have a needle in your hand getting ready to stick it in my gum. I think this should be a really serious moment. Could we stop the laughing please?!?" Then, the dentist says, "nu opriț(no stop), OPEN." He was laughing because he had tried to say,"OPEN" in English, but instead said something completely different in Romanian. Once my gum was numb, it took less than a minute to get the tooth out. The dentist is a very kind man and he says to me when he sees me, "Relax, don't be afraid." Now, I have reason to believe him. He has gained my trust. Both of these wisdom tooth extractions have gone smoothly and I have suffered no pain. I am thankful that I was able to have these minor issues taken care of. I originally went to see the dentist because my teeth/head have been hurting for awhile. I thought I had a couple of cavities. Little did I know.....Anyways, I hope that these recent procedures have alleviated the cause of the pain in my ear/head. Please pray that once the soreness goes away, I will have no other headaches etc. Enjoy the pics.
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