It is really amazing the way my little one (3) looks at me. Like I am some sort of massive superhero. I wonder how long it will take him to figure things out.
The same thing happens when you fall in love. That special person is nothing short of perfect. You can almost hear a harp playing when he or she is in the room.
Time, in a steady but unstoppable fashion, brings everyone back to their senses. Kids and lovers realize that the perfect person is not exactly perfect. But that's ok. It is the way it is supposed to be and it happens so little by little, you barely notice when the harp stops playing.
Except for me and Jeannie…
I stopped being her perfect romantic superhero (cape and all) right after Thanksgiving day in 2005. Around 4 am. At a freaking Walmart.
It was my second time visiting Jeannie and the first Thanksgiving in my life. I got extremely curious about this thing called Black Friday. I was staying in the burbs and all the shops and malls were going to open at 4 am offering the most ridiculous discounts. I had to do it! It was new and exciting. What could possibly go wrong?!
It took some convincing but she finally gave up and decided to take me. I was so excited that I did not even sleep. I was going to buy an amazing laptop for $300, take it home and show it off.
In my mind, we were going to park the car, get the computer, pay for it, wish the cashier a good day, and go home and sleep. What I found, instead, was a parking lot completely packed and a line of people that went around the building. The most strange characters you can imagine. For we didn't choose a Walmart that was in the nicest of areas.
I could not feel my hands. I could not feel my feet. I was tired and the wait felt like the longest time in my life. Jeannie was quiet and looking around in desperation. I wonder if hearing that harp was becoming increasingly difficult due to her ear muffs (and my stupidity).
Then a terrible thought dawned on me... What if all these people were there to buy MY laptop?
I saw a Walmart employee walking around giving away a piece of paper to all of us waiting. He was followed by some sort of security guy carrying a gun. He looked like someone who escaped jail and tried to dress up as a security guard for a Halloween party. The piece of paper was a map of Walmart detailing every section of the store. It was the answer to my problem. I needed a plan.
I visualized EXACTLY how I was going to get to that laptop. I studied the route carefully.
Then, as I was studying the map, the doors opened. And hell broke loose. It was like the running of the bulls. Only more terrifying. Everyone was going in every direction and pushing and yelling. IT - WAS - AWFUL.
Thank goodness I had a plan. I grabbed Jeannie´s hand and went my own way.
Where the hell are you going?!!!
Don´t worry!!! I have a plan!!! Follow me!!!
I could hear the screaming in the distance. The carts hitting things far away. I was so darned stupid that I did not even find it odd that we were running down the isles completely on our own.
And then, suddenly, we found ourselves surrounded by nails, screws, hammers and drills. And nothing else...
I had taken Jeannie to the hardware section of the store. The freaking hardware section.
Computers have hardware (and software). So I had assumed that is where you buy them. In the freaking hardware section of Walmart.
In total desperation, we ran to the electronics but all the computers were gone. It looked like a war zone.
Quietly I went back to the hardware section and I grabbed a hammer. I could not go home empty-handed.
I remember the woman who checked us out. Scanning all those items. TVs, microwaves, stereos, Dvd players. Beep. Beep. Beep. She was like a robot. And then a hammer.
I remember how she paused to look at me. I was the guy who drove to Walmart in the middle of the night and waited in line for one hour in the snow to buy a hammer. A hammer that was not even on sale!
I looked at Jeannie and right away I knew that the harp was not playing and would not play again. I also noted it would be a good idea to keep that hammer away from her. Just to be safe.
So yes… If you are going to study a foreign language, you better have a plan. And if you are going to have a plan, it better be a good one.
Take 5 minutes to decide what you want to cover every week. You want to make sure that your plan includes a variety of things. Just like a good diet. There should be some reading, some listening, some reviewing of your notes from last week. Find some time to review something from weeks or months ago.
Don't just say things like “I am going to study some Spanish when I have a chance”. It will never happen. It is way more effective when you know what you are going to review and when it is going to happen.
Avoid overdoing it with your comfort zone. For a lot of students, their comfort zone is watching some Spanish Tv show on Netflix with subtitles. There is nothing wrong with that. As long as you do other things. You can't just watch some tv in Spanish and come to class thinking that you did enough. You didn´t.
Some of my students are retired and have lots of time. Some work 70 hours a week or are taking care of tiny children (which means they work 24/7). Plan according to your possibilities.