Meghan은 간다, Meghan ya no esta aqui

Viejos

Old Mexican men are my new favorites. It seems that if I ever have the chance to strike up a conversation with an older gentlemen, he will inevitably ask me where I learned my great Spanish. I attribute this to the surprise factor of me actually speaking Spanish, and perhaps this generation of Mexicans is not used to Americans taking the time to learn Spanish. Whatever the case, I can't help but smile and feel great for the opportunity to answer that question! While I am often frustrated that I didn't learn more grammatical correctness from school and books, I'm still a little proud that I've picked up my Spanish from conversations, from friends, from the people. However, I am often too embarrassed to speak in Spanish, especially in front of certain people. A lot of times I have to prevent myself from deferring to someone who is bilingual, or someone who speaks better Spanish. And too often I have to remind myself not to give up, that I actually can speak a good amount of Spanish. So to have some people understand me completely, ask where I learned my Spanish so well, and genuinely be kind about my Spanish - big deal for me.

Not to mention my favorite taco stand owner, who is always interested in my latest running habits, tells me how great I look lately, and asks me, "But, you're so skinny! How do you not have a boyfriend?"

Maybe I just need to wait around to be vieja. :)

posted by Meghan @ 11:19 AM