I realized in horror, however, that the next task in the class was standing up and introducing yourself to the whole group as well as sharing why you wanted to learn Hebrew. My heart started to pound and as others introduced themselves, I tried to formulate a competent introduction with my limited vocabulary.
When it was finally my turn, I stood up and said,
"Dzien dobry! Jestem Sonja. Usze sie polskiego..." "Hello! I'm Sonja. I'm learning Polish..."
and before I could say anything else, the instructor exclaimed (in Polish),
"What!? How much of the last hour have you understood? Only a little?"
"Tak, troche." "Yes, a little"
"Skad jestes?" "Where are you from?"
"Jestem z Stanow." "I am from the States."
"Dlaczego jestes w Polce?" "Why are you in Poland?"
At this moment I was so thankful that I had earlier noticed a poster in the room that said, "Building a Jewish Future in Krakow" in both Polish and English, so even though I can never remember the word for Jewish, I could steal a quick look at the poster.
"Studiuje musyki zudowskjei tutaj na JCC!" "I study Jewish music here at the JCC!"
"Musyka Zudowska?" "Jewish Music?"
"Tak." "Yes."
She asked how long I have been in Krakow, and when I said,
"4 togodny," "4 weeks."
She exclaimed,
"Only 4 weeks and you speak so beautifully? Bardzo swietnie. Witamy z Polsce." "Very wonderful. Welcome to Poland!"
Red-cheeked and having caused waves of whispers across the room, I was more than relieved to sit and listen to the next introduction.
It is so humbling to be so frequently in situations where I must speak in a new language. So often we judge people's intelligence based upon their ability to communicate in OUR language. It makes me cringe to think about what people think of me sometimes. I'm in Poland on a prestigious scholarship to do independent research, but the man who asked me for directions on the street to day or the woman from the local store would never guess that based upon my pre-school locational vocabulary or ridiculous pantomime illustrating my need for a kitchen sponge.
Even so early on in my experience here, I have gained so much perspective on our perception of intelligence and even personality through language. I have an immense amount of respect for anyone who comes to a new country and attempts to learn and use a new language. It takes so much effort, intelligence, and guts. It is an incredibly humbling feeling to struggle to say the simplest of things; not being able to express yourself freely is exhausting and frustrating. Its something we take for granted in the United States; especially in rural or mono-cultural communities we do not encounter English-as-a-Second-Language speakers as often as people in Europe. True, there are loads more languages spoken here and frequent exchange across foreign borders, and here it is almost essential to know at least two languages. Many speak at least two fluently, and many know a few more at beginner levels.
I'm not harping on Americans for their lack of bi- or tri-lingual skills (I will admit it is practically less necessary), but I definitely think that more credit should be given to ESL learners, and more patience and understanding should be extended to them. Now, if someone has been in a foreign country for many years and has made little to no effort to learn the language and requires others to accommodate their lack of language skills (as I have frustratingly run into with some expats here and individuals stateside), that is another story.
But I cannot explain how much it means to me when Polish people encourage me and/or repeat themselves more slowly and clearly (not with more volume, mind you). I am so grateful to the Polish people who have taken the time to spend time with me, not just to help me in desperate situations of need but actually invite me out to coffee, gently correct my grammatical mistakes, and offer to help me with seemingly simple situations and the post office or shoe repair shop that become intensely complicated with a limited vocabulary. If people judged my personality based on my Polish, they would find me a timid girl with an occasional stutter who didn't pass 2nd grade. I hope that perceived personality loses its stutter and passes 6th grade by the time I leave!
All in all, I do make a fool of myself every day, but I am learning to laugh about it and just be a fool. That is how I will truly learn and become more confident in this language. I find that the Polish people are generally so grateful that I am making an honest effort to learn their language and immerse myself in their culture, and in return they have something to laugh about at the dinner table with their friends and family. "So today this one girl was trying to speak Polish..."