One of the people who downloaded the book just said “I’m really bad about learning a new language, over the course of many years, I’ve tried to pick up some proficiency in Spanish, but it just doesn’t stick . . . oops!”.
I totally understand. This is a common problem for many of us — me included. My mother knew some Spanish and taught me a bit. I took a semester in Jr. High and two years in High School. The end result was that I changed my college choice so I didn’t have to take a foreign language.
I was concerned before I moved to Costa Rica but decided it was worth a try. Well, things changed. While I was still working on-line in English, people who spoke English locally were few and far between. Unlike being in a class where “you are taught” what someone thinks you need to learn, you see what you need to learn.
It was a whole new game. I didn’t have to be “correct”, I had to be “understood”. When people saw you trying to learn Spanish most were willing to spend some extra time with you to help you out. That combined with a “slower” lifestyle made all the difference.
Today I am not a Spanish scholar but I understand and can be understood. It really is possible.