Does anyone else get an incredible sense of wonder and joy when they look down at a page of reading, or at an anime and think
“I can actually understand that”
Obviously not when doing ABSOLUTELY everything such as ANKI or Wanikani and there are some times when you have to put your head down and do it. But I’m helped when I remember when I started out how overjoyed I was when I could デスノート on a poster in my living room.
I’m sitting here listening to Japanese music on my lunch break reading Japanese material and just thinking how incredible this whole endeavor is and how much I enjoy it.
A truely wonderful and challenging experience. I love this language.
That is all
8 comments
Sure. This is what happens when you learn a second language. Is this your first second language?
I used to, then I started university, hit the intermediate plateau, burnt out and now there is no joy in my life. 🙂 I’m only half joking.
Now, I get excited when I can talk to people without any misunderstandings or not remembering vocabulary, or when I pick up a book I couldn’t really read a while ago, look at a few pages and realize that I actually made some progress.
I had a moment the other day where I was watching a Kalafina video, and they were talking before the song. About 10 seconds into I realized that I was naturally understanding it (without subtitles or consciously thinking about it) the same way I would understand something in my first language).
Otherwise lots of smaller moments like that when reading, or hearing song lyrics. I don’t necessarily get like big grand 凄い (すごい)よ moments… But lots of 嬉しい (うれし)ね sorta feelings, if that makes sense
Not an overwhelming amount, but more than I should. Perhaps that makes me a masochist.
To me it’s either :
* When I understand the lyrics of a song as I listen to it for the first time
* When I correctly guess the meaning and pronounciation of a word I didn’t knew
yeah basically same thing
anki is just work but it’s worth it
actually reading is super fun
I need to try and love listening more, so far I’m into reading
Nah, if I did I’d be better at it.
I wish. That was gone from the moment I progressed from kana to kanji.