Progress is a Good Thing

I have this little quirk.  It's an annoying one, for both me and my family.   It's called perfectionism.

There are times when I can see the negative effects on them, so I know it's there, but really... let's face it.  I live with this all the time.  Okay... ?  Like all the time.  My family, burdened though they be, are only exposed to it when it has bubbled up so much within me to escape through overflow, somewhat remniscent of a volcano, but not quite that violent cause let's face it, I could never muster that much passion.  I just don't really do those extreme emotional outbursts.

So, this quirk of mine is something that has been a life-long companion, really.  At times, I have been thankful for it honestly because my perfectionism has pushed me to do more than I might have otherwise done.  Other times, it rears its ugly head and reminds me that doing something halfway isn't worth doing, and there's just no way I can pull this one off well enough.  The result?  Don't even try.

In that way, I feel like I've missed out on a lot of experiences that I might have enjoyed.  But that's in the past now, and it's not really what I want to talk about anyway.

This summer, I found a blog called Fluent in 3 Months that I could describe as intriguing.   I could also describe it as unbelievable, although as I found it I wanted desperately to believe it, and as I continue to read, I still do believe it.

It claims exactly what you think it does - that you can be fluent in a foreign language in 3 months.

So, I started.  3 months ago, I embarked on my journey to fluency en español.  And I am not fluent.

There are times when I would look at a blog like this and tell myself that I'm the one that failed.  After all, it's obviously possible, as Benny, the Irish Polyglot has proven.  But I haven't done it.

But wait... let me tell you what has happened.  Only let me tell you in Spanish:

Miéntras, no puedo hablar español con fluencia, he mejorado mucho en los meses.  Antes no puedo hablar con cuálquier personas porque no estaba seguro.  Pero ahora hablo con mis amigos latinos muy menudo.  Mis conversaciones no están perfectos, pero puedo comunicar bastante.  A veces uso palabras que no son la mejora pero sigo aprender cada día.  Puedo entendir casi todas las cosas que leo y cuando no sé una palabra buscar para ella.  Mi gramática necesita atención y esto es que trabajo ahora.  Cada día, también aprendo nuevas palabras.  Un día, sé que haré poder a hablar con fluencia.  Por así aun que no tengo fluidez ahora, tendré fluidez un día.

So, today, I'm reminding myself and anyone else who needs to hear it that it doesn't have to be perfect to be worth my while. I'm reminding myself that progress is a good thing.

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