More Rainy Days and Mondays

What's not to love about rainy days OR Mondays?

Lia mentioned that I say a lot about our Danish class, but I don't say how my Danish is doing.  Interestingly enough, one assignment in class today was to interview a classmate, and ask how they are feeling about their Danish.  I said that I am getting better at reading and writing the language, but I still get frustrated listening and understanding.  Copenhagen Danes notoriously speak fast, and often leave me behind in the dust.

Tonight at the center we had a meeting before family home evening began.  The young man who conducted spent two years on a mission in South Chicago (in case you are wondering, he said there were things he never mentioned to his mother!), and his English is great....but I was amazed to realize that I understood the better part of what he said in Danish.  Even the parts I didn't understand were decipherable to me because I could pick up on words that gave me  a sense of the meaning of the message.  That realization was heady!!!!

Doris is cute and says often, "By Christmas, we will be speaking Danish!"  I hope that is true.

A young 23-year-old woman from India is here for possibly another 3 months before returning home with her husband.  She is always well-prepared for class, she asks very bright questions and she is quick with correct answers.  She doesn't hesitate to challenge the teacher (in a very kind way), and she will press her point if the teacher doesn't understand what she is trying to say.  SK and I marvel that she is so diligent about learning a language that is only spoken in this little country, and which she will probably never have a need for once she is in India again.  We love her beautiful Indian accent in English.

The 37-year-old Latvian man is a dedicated husband and father of two children.  He brought his little family here because his wife is studying at the university in Copenhagen.  She will be here 2 years doing that.  His children are learning Danish in school, and he would like to get a better job so he is working very hard to learn.  It seems that every week we see his progression.  He is speaking and understanding more and more.

We asked him about his family today.  He told us that his little 6-year-old son corrects the dad's Danish!  He is proud of the little boy and his 9-year-old daughter.  He is proud that they are all learning a new language, but he stated emphatically that in their home they will speak their mother tongue.  He does not want them to lose that language.  I was inspired by his devotion to them and to his country.

Melba was back today, still looking woebegone.  I didn't get a chance to visit with her today, but I hope things are improving for her.

SK and I stopped at a grocery store on the way to the center (after class) and each got a $2 hotdog.  It is just the weiner in a tunnel-shaped bun (it doesn't open like the hot dog buns in the states...the weiner slides down into the tube)  with a mysterious and delicious sauce, oddly enough, called "hot dog sauce."  Isn't it amazing how something so simple can be so fun?

Family Home Evening tonight was exciting and fun.  After the sister missionaries gave a sweet little spiritual presentation, a returned missionary from Russia organized a rousing game of zoo....whatever that is.  It involved clapping in unison, calling out the name of an animal while making the sign for it, and then exchanging places if you do it incorrectly.....or something like that.  We laughed just watching, and it appeared that everyone had a grand time.  That was followed by 3 noisy games of CRUD.

Now it is time for bed..slipping off to sleep with the gentle patter of rain on the windows.  Good night.