The Trouble with Seeking Helpers

 Hey guys! I am almost through with the Intermediate 1 Korean textbook! A little behind schedule, but that's ok. I'm still chugging through with my reading and learning, and it turns out I am remembering a lot more than I thought I would! I have been experiencing random aspects of life and been able to respond to them accurately in Korean with not much effort. The difficult part is remembering how different the syntax of Korean is when compared to English. But, figuring out different verb-endings has gotten easier! I think some of them are really interesting, especially since we don't really address verbs the same way in English. For example, for saying something like "shall we...," asking for someone's opinion (completely separate from asking a regular question), or even expressing a bit of uncertainty about one's statement, you have a completely separate way of ending a verb. It's wild! In my developmental psychology textbook, English and Korean were actually compared for this: English is noun-centric, and Korean is verb-centric. And I definitely agree with that assessment

I honestly began this blog because I am using it for documentation for my Senior Capstone Project, and one of the prompts my teachers gave me this week really struck me when I thought about my progress: 

"In times of struggle, Mr. Rogers tells us to look for the helpers. Who have been your helpers? How have others helped you on your journey?"

And that really made me think...I haven't really had any helpers! I haven't really let anyone be part of this project because it feels so individual. Sometimes, I get really caught up into my box of my learning that I want to do my way. I am slowly realizing it shouldn't be like that. I should be putting aside my anxieties to ask others to practice with me or see more opportunities to work with others. I have been learning alone, and it has been going really well. But there is no substitute for having conversations with Korean-speakers or learning from Korean teachers and tutors. Tonight, I will be heading off to a convention/concert for my All-State placement, and I am very excited about playing music with my friends. But there will be one Korean-speaking friend there that I will talk to and engage with in his native tongue. He is even on my hotel floor, so hopefully it should be easy to find him. I am writing this here to keep myself honest and on the ball--stay tuned to see how it goes!

When I can't talk to this friend, I brought my Korean textbook and notebook for the weekend, so I will be studying and trying to finish the book before I head home. Fingers crossed! I will be using this week as an opportunity to expand my language horizons, even in an unlikely setting. I think my biggest challenge will be putting myself out there. I almost feel like it would be easier if I were in an environment in which I could immerse myself in Korean language completely. Doing things like finding a fluent, fast-speaking friend to make mistakes with once in a blue moon makes it a lot scarier and anxiety-inducing because I am really not in the habit of doing so. But I think once I start doing it, it'll get a whole lot easier. I think I'll feel more confident in my skills. And the next personal goal after talking to my friend here is to visit a local Korean market and converse with the workers. I am looking forward to seeing this project through and pounding through the last stretch to glean as much knowledge and experience I can!