Skip to main content

Using Russian of Necessity

I have been learning Russian for more than a year now.  Like most Brits I am shy of using another language other than English.  I desperately want to, but it is just too easy to let the other person speak English, especially when they are so accomplished at it.  Today, however, I had an encouraging experience; at the bus stop was a lady and after a while I said something to her in English, naturally.  She indicated that she did not speak English.  I asked if she was Polish, she said Lithuanian.  A light dawned and in Russian I asked if she spoke Russian and she did and a little conversation took place between us which we otherwise could not have had.  I have a Russian friend but she speaks excellent English so the incentive to use Russian is just not there. I need to get out of my cozy little village and find some Russian speaking people who are not good at English.  Two things could happen; I could improve my Russian and now as I am a qualified teacher of English as a foreign language, they could improve their English, always with the proviso that they continue to speak Russian with me.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How do you cope with depression?

There are two main types of depression, reactive, which is a reaction to your circumstances and endogenous, which is a part of your makeup and not entirely affected by your circumstances. I get the second type. When I am depressed I like to sleep a lot, this is probably not a good thing as depression can lift if you do not have extra sleep. It is all very well knowing that , but acting upon it is another thing. Exercise is also beneficial. Some sorts of depression can be lifted by taking these measures, but some people need medication. You need to get to know your doctor and develope a relationship with him/her where you feel you can trust their judgement. Do look for help as there are lots of possibilities out there. It is not good to spend long stretches of time on your own. Talking with other people will often help lift your spirits, especially if they are people who have gone through this experience themselves. Maybe you need to join a self help group. Avoid people who tell...
Post a Comment
Read more

Reasons to learn a new language

I have been learning Russian for about a year.  There were times when I felt like giving up, but   something would come along to cheer me up and I redoubled my efforts.  But why do this at 70?  When I had already started learning I heard a programme about dementia and apparently learning a new language, it is claimed helps to put off the onset of dementia.  So there, indeed, is a good reason. It is one thing to learn to read and write a foreign language but speaking it and understanding it when spoken is another thing.  So how do I help myself with these things.  One thing I do is to listen to Russian on my phone.  Even when it is in the background I believe my brain is receiving it.  Just as a baby learns to speak from being surrounded by the spoken word in the home so if I listen eventually it will have a good effect.  I have the Bible recorded in Russian.  I was brought up on the Bible and know quite lot of the Bible and so ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Section A

I've posted off my work for section A. Now to get on with B. Onward and upward as they say. It does feel good to have completed A, progress is being made.I think my tutor is more nervous than I as to the outcome, but then I am his first student. We are learning from each other.But then that should always be the case. It's an adventure we go on together.The course seems to be suiting me alright but I feel there are a lot of potentially excellent local preachers out there who are put off by the study. Something should be devised to include these good people, we can ill afford to do without them, especially as the numbers of ministers is dropping. What did Wesley do? You don't need a degree, or even A levels to preach. You need a call, and a close relationship with God.
6 comments
Read more