since 2013 learning dutch

After being forced to go to Egypt and staying there for 6 years, I got a chance to move to the Netherlands in 2018.

I faced a lot of new things and big challenges in a different country, one of these challenges was definitely language.

I signed in an intense language course 4 days a week 4 hours a day for 6 months. Now that sounds harder than it actually was as i found out.

The dutch language was very amusing to me and relatively easy to figure out, there are a lot of similarities with English and German, my favourite word in the Dutch language is by far the word for 'grumpy', do yourself a favour and google it just to hear how it sounds, it's 'chagrijnig'.

The Dutch is one of the few languages which has the خ sound we have in Arabic, the G in Dutch, which makes me think of my second favourite word in Dutch, 99 'negenennegentig', I know very long and very amusing to say haha

I had to learn the language for many reasons, first of all it is a part of the integration program for refugees coming to the Netherlands, I needed it for my study (we will have a whole post about that later). You don't really need to learn Dutch to live here if i am being honest because literally everyone speaks English perfectly. 

That fact makes your brain lazy! Think of water in a river, the water flows then reaches a split in the path, one has a rock blocking it partially, the other is completely open... Water will flow more quickly and easily through the easier path, right? That's how the brain of an English speaker learning Dutch in the Netherlands.

"why would you think of all this grammar and sentence structure? Just say 'which train do I need to take to go to Utrecht?' you don't need to over think it" says your brain.

"I don't want to try to say it in dutch to a stranger, what if i made a mistake?" says your anxiety.

"but I need to try to speak it's how we learn! It's a chance! It's someone who does not know you so no harm!" you try to convince yourself.

Then you walk to the information desk and say "welke trein moet ik nemen om naar Utrecht te gaan?"... And time slows down, you start feeling your heart beating and expecting them to laugh at you, you second guess yourself and wait... And wait... Then the lady at the desk says "sorry wat zeg je?" and that is the worst she could say, beaten only by a lot of quick advanced Dutch, but now you have to repeat your question cos she didn't hear you, or maybe she didn't understand you? Your anxiety gets a boost and you hear it saying "I told you so! Stop now go English!", and brain supports it with its laziness... And you end up saying "which train to Utrecht?". Crisis averted.

But that's not how you learn, you have to be uncomfortable, you have to reach the point where you understand making mistakes is the point, people laughing at you and not understanding your accent means you are in the right way. You have to remind yourself that an accent does not mean you are stupid or ignorant, it means you are learning, trying and multilingual.

"fear is a super power, it makes you run faster, jump higher and think quicker. Listen to it and embrace it"

Move the rock in your slow stream away and let your new language stream stronger. 

Shout out to my fantastic teacher Rieteke, she was very patient. As well as to my language buddy Wouter, he forced me and challanged me to break the barrier of anxiety.

Find yourself patient people and try and make mistakes and learn a new language. 

I hope you are having a good motivation today

Wissam