Student experiences: Part 3

Thòisich mi mo thuras anns a’ Gàidhlig…

I began my journey into Gaelic in the early 1980s with the Roderick Mackinnon Teach Yourself  Gaelic book. I struggled through to the end of Lesson 3 and realized that with the exception of a single song badly recorded on a cassette tape, I had never heard the language and was probably saying everything wrong. This was discouraging enough, but shortly thereafter, life threw me a series of giant curveballs and I had to return to university with two small children to complete my degree in art education. Four years later, degree in hand, I moved to Oregon from Montana, started life over again, and Gaelic was again relegated to the back burner. Fast-forward some 30-plus years, and I’m starting over, this time with far more resources than previously available. As an older learner (I am fast accelerating toward the age of 61), I’m faced with diminished memory and ability to focus. I also live in a place far enough away from everything that it’s a major and costly production going to classes in Seattle, or even Portland.
Thankfully, there’s Skype and You-Tube, and Facebook friends who regularly post videos and lessons to remind me to study and to practice. I am so grateful for having Caroline Root as a teacher on Skype, although I had to drag myself kicking and screaming into the 21st century to get it on my computer. Still, even with all the technology available, I’m not yet willing to download podcasts and carry sound around with me. If I can’t get it on regular radio, I’m reluctant to listen because I can’t justify spending even more time at my computer than I already do. 
So, I know a few words now, and can get a skeletal gist of what’s being said, but I’m still translating into Beurla, and I still struggle to understand the structure of the language itself, not to mention the idiomatic qualities that sail right over my head. The process is agonizingly slow for me and my ossified brain. I deeply regret not keeping up with it at an earlier age. I am, however, determined to continue along my journey through this immensely beautiful language and it’s rich cultural heritage. It deserves to be spoken. 
{I recently attended two Language Hunters classes—all Gaelic with ASL (American Sign Language). Everyone repeats everything in unison, which gives people a lot more oral practice while still covering everything required in the curriculum. Short of immersion, the two sessions I attended were excellent practice for me and did much to reinforce some of what I’d forgotten or thought I already knew.} 

Anyway…sin agad e. 

Gayle