Hopes and Worries

I will admit that having studying abroad before has and will aid me this year, but don't let it fool you. Germans lead a different type of lifestyle and have a completely different culture than Spaniards. Living abroad for a year taught me how to be independent, adaptable, and observant. These are things that will definitely help me adjust to a new life in Germany. Of course, I still have hopes and worries for this year. I feel like I have filled out a "Hopes, Dreams, and Expectations" worksheet so many times, and I thought it would be nice to share some of them.

I originally applied for this scholarship program because I though to myself "Why the heck not?" I figured that if I got it, I could postpone college, and if I didn't, then I would go directly to college. Most people think that students who do gap years go because they're not quite sure where they want to take their life. While this is partly true for most, it was a bit different for me. Spain had already showed me what I want to do with me life: learn from the world around me, work with or in other countries, and learn a few languages and their respective cultures. Essentially, I saw this as an opportunity to push me further in that direction. That is Hope #1. Have this experience set me apart when I apply for university (again), and give me an edge in my future career. 

Hope #2 has to do with the "work hard, play hard" way of life, which the Germans love. I want to use this year to learn the language through talking to people, not by learning from a book, and absorb the culture by really living it. I worked hard in school in Spain, and had to be focused (somewhat) on my studies because I was still in high school and it mattered. In Germany, I'm in more in a "limbo" state of mind because I've graduated high school and haven't started college. In addition to working hard in Spain, I've also been that way my whole life. I'm going to use this year to have fun, relax, and absorb everything around me. 

Hope #3 would be learning the language, which I know I'm capable of. It's only been a few weeks here  (three of which were learning German grammar and surrounded by Americans). And I'm pretty impressed with how much I have learned, considering I left America with approximately zero knowledge of German. While I'm having trouble speaking a lot, I know that that is the most difficult and will come with practice and patience. In terms of comprehension, this is what I do: I pick out words I understand (since I have a small vocabulary), then piece them together with context clues and body language. If someone is talking directly to me it will take me a solid second to piece the puzzle together in my head then (try to) muster up a response. My host mom and sister speak slowly and clearly to me, so with them I'm able to understand pretty much everything they say to me. 

Because I'm going into this with more of a "non-chalant" attitude, I don't have many worries. Worry #1 is that I don't learn German well enough or fast enough. That is within my realm of control so it's up to me to make sure that doesn't happen. I would say Worry #2 is not making friends in school. Germans are pretty shy and maybe even closed off at first, so it really is up to me to intiate. Worry #3 would be things not working out with my host family, which to be honest, I don't foresee happening. 

I had my first day of school today, which went pretty well. I'm exhausted, though, from all the translating. I'll do a full blog post on about school at a later date. I have a really good feeling about this year!

Mondays look like a good day for me to do some blogging, so until then!

Shannon