Do you use your Spanish? How does it make you feel?
I know some people use it on skype with us or with a private teacher .
But are there occasions when you suddenly have to use it or find that you can actually speak without knowing that before?
How did it make you feel? Did you feel good, incapable of speaking, nervous, happy?
I saw this posted by Dogwood on the International café.
I had a very positive and encouraging experience yesterday. A new patient at the clinic where I volunteer came in for some tests. Another worker had screened the lady, and I was in the position to collect a blood sample for some lab work. I first asked her how she was doing, then looking only at the chart information before me. She responded by saying "normalmente" then she paused. I looked up and recognized that she was not comfortable with her English. I told her it was okay to speak Spanish there (am I crazy or what?). Then she finished the sentence in Spanish. I was able to respond in Spanish and tell her I have studied Spanish for several years. I'm not comfortable detailing the conversation (HIPAA and all), but between her broken English and my broken Spanish, we were able to have a decent conversation. I believe she left there feeling better knowing that someone had taken the time to try to learn her native language.
I felt good, too.
Would you like to share your own experience? 
28 Answers
In my volunteer work I sometimes am required to speak to a group of people. Normally this group would be English speakers, but, sometimes I also have the opportunity to share my experiences in front of the church, which is 100% Spanish speaking. We have a translator that translates our church services into English (mainly for my wife and for visitors). A month or so ago I was asked to speak to the church and I was given about 30 minutes in which to do it. The most surreal experience I've had was, I could hear the English translation in the background as I was speaking in Spanish. I can't begin to tell you how 'odd' that is. When the realization hit me of what was actually happening, it was emotionally overwhelming. During this time, the congregation would respond, sometimes with applause, sometimes with laughter or whatever, always appropriately, and it dawned on me, "hey, they understand me". After the service I received so many hugs and kisses, and affirmations of "Jack, we understood everything......." I knew I had arrived at a place I'd never dreamed I'd be.
In the max-security prison near here, I teach a bible class. For the last few years it's been English, but I've been trying to transition it into Spanish. I finally got the 'blessing' of the prison and I just started the class in Spanish. My 'lightning bolt' moment in class was last week, there was a new guy from Honduras. We had never met before, and sometime during the class he begin to ask a few questions, and one was "how long have you been studying Spanish?". When I told him that this coming June would be my 3 year anniversary of learning Spanish, he didn't really believe me. The guy next to him, from Ecuador said the same thing. The 'day maker' for me was when the Honduran guy says "you sound like you've been studying 8 or 10 years or more, and the guy from Ecuador is adamantly agreeing. Wow, I think to myself, I knew I had been working hard, but I had no idea what my 'level' was. So, the four hours a day for three years is paying off, finally some 'real' fruit.
My teacher/tutor has shared with me that many of his students, through the years, have shared with him very powerful and 'emotive' experiences that come with learning a new language. I've thought a few times that I'm actually going crazy, because during one of these 'moments' I would just be emotionally overwhelmed. For example, during the preaching/message in a church service one day, it just 'hit me', hey, I'm understanding this on my own, without a translator. I was so emotionally overwhelmed I just sat there and wept. That was the first time since I 'weaned' myself off the translator, and I knew I could finally do it.
Going in the prison the other day, there was a Hispanic family that had come to visit a family member. They could not speak or understand English, and the guards at the front entrance were having a rough time trying to communicate that they couldn't come in without certain types of identification and such. I interrupted the conversation and spoke to the family in Spanish, telling them what the rules and requirements were. Huge smiles and many thanks from the Hispanic family, and grouchy rude comments from the guards. It was still a neat moment for me.
This has been, and continues to be the most emotive experience of my life, the ups and downs (and there are many), but the journey has become so much more enjoyable. Considering the fact the the Hispanic population nearly doubled in my state since the last census, I should have continued opportunity to use my new language.
I have to use Spanish almost everyday. I am gradually increasing my vocabulary, but I am still often at a loss for words. My accent is still really bad, but people are saying "mande" a lot less when I speak. My goal is to become "fluent enough" in two more years.
This seemed like a good place to add this:
**A quotation from Charlemagne, King of the Franks who lived 1,200 years ago. "To have another language is to have a second soul". The origin of a language is intricately tied with a nation's culture and philosophy. It reflects how a nation thinks. The origin of even a single word can have a rich history, and the grammar says something about how people think and feel. **
In all my life I never had a need or desire to learn a second language until one day I decided to try Spanish – and for no particular reason – I just like the sound and rhythm of the language.
At some point in my journey I started to want to know more about the people, the cultures, the countries, their experiences, their histories, their differences and sameness.
And I liked the people and wanted them to like me, and I read their books and listened to their music and it seemed magical – what is it about learning a second language?....... or is that just me?
I have been learning Spanish for about 8 months now but have never actually spoke with a native!! I have been teaching myself via cd's, books and of course this excellent website of yours! I am extremely pleased with my progress although at times i do confuse myself lol. One of the things i find most difficult is actually listening to and understanding Spanish speaking natives when they talk at normal pace. At first it was just a noise but i am finding that I am increasingly picking up more words and, with a bit of time to think, can piece together some of the meaning. I am generally far better at reading Spanish.
Anyway to your point lol, I will be going to Spain on holiday in a few weeks and i am really excited at the prospect of holding, at least, some very basic conversation. I am a little nervous, but im sure that when the cerveza starts flowing I will be ok
Well then,
I speak spanish each and every day. And even though I sound like a mexican,my construction is horrid, Somehow we manage. being monolingual isolates us from the big wonderful world out there.
The very best part for me is when I can help an english speaking tourist lost in the city find their hotel, and in one case a mexican family from Nuevo león find their way to an address. The locals just smile at the old gringo when I mis-conjugate, or fail to use subjunctivo, sometimes they correct me sometimes not,ni modo.
Our group of friends gather regularly every two weeks, and now after working here in SD for three months I am no longer on the sidelines,no don't even get the idea I speak well, I do not, but I am understood --I understand, and I am now more integrated than ever before.
I have been invited to teach in the technical college here, but at this point my spanish is just not good enough, I am working to that point, i hope soon to be able to take on that challenge.
I wish you could have been there.
I wrote the post Heidita referenced at the start of this thread the morning after the encounter occurred. Recalling the event still moves me, mostly for reasons I can not describe on the forum.
When I told the lady she could speak Spanish there, I felt a calm sense of peace and confidence. I believed I could handle whatever was about to happen. If you could have seen the change in the lady, from apprehension to calm - it was like she had been comforted by an old friend. I will probably not forget that experience for a long time.
Early every morning, I go to the site and write my sentence of the day. And every morning I ask myself why I bother to work so hard to learn something that other people do not see that I need. I see others speaking Spanish with ease and wonder why I have to work so hard to do the simplest sentence. I often feel like throwing the dictionary and the textbooks in the trash and give up altogether. Sometimes, I feel like the "view will not be worth the climb".
Then something like this happens and, for just a moment, there seems to be a reason for learning the language.
My experiences and feelings are similar to Vaanz's except she is braver than I am. I'm not too good at starting a conversation even in English.
When I was a little newer at learning Spanish I was at the local Home Depot and I dealt with an Hispanic woman during a purchase. She had a nametag which stated she also spoke Spanish. At the end of our dealings she told me to ask for her (concerning our dealing) and told me her name. As much to her surprise as mine, I replied “Mucho gusto”.
“Ah, mucho gusto” she said with a big smile, “Hasta pronto.”
I didn't realize what she had said until later in the day.
That's not much, is it? I was nervous and proud and thought it was a lot!!! Look at my profile – it says B E G I N N E R. 
Well... I don't have any proper experience. But I met a chef in a Tapas bar, who is from Spain. But didn't talked much.. We just exchanged greetings and I was so proud when he said, my Spanish was good(Which is a lie ofcourse 
)
But there is a Mexican restaurant in Helsinki, where we used to go for office parties, I thought the people there knows Spanish and tried to talk in Spanish, just greeting and about the menu and it was very embarrassing, when the waiter said 'I don't speak your language, do you know English?' All my colleagues laughed at me 
The Word of the Day and my friend( who learned Spanish when he was in Texas. I used to chat with him in FB using my broken Spanish, not in a advanced level though) keeps my Spanish alive 
I have used Spanish on many unexpected occasions in my city. For instance, helping people in a store to find something, explaining to nurses at the doctor's office what someone is saying, etc. It is not every day, but often enough.
I was once at a buffet (I hate buffets ) but since I had to be there, my life was spared because I knew some Spanish. The man standing behind the buffet table spoke no English. I was about to take a salad, but stopped to ask if there were any shell fish in the salad. When he told me that there was a combination of shrimp and clams he spared me an agonizing death from anaphalactic shock since I am deathly allergic.
I think I should write a book: "How Spanish Saved My Life!" 
Oh, also, I was able to keep a dear sweet woman from Chile company for the last few months of her life. She was here in the States visiting her son who was always busy with work and leaving her alone at the hotel. He told me she was a very social person and hated to be alone. So I spent as much time with her as I could. Her English was so limited, but together we were able to form a brief, but beautiful friendship. Suddenly, she died on Christmas Eve, shortly after returning home to Chile. I feel so blessed to have been able to keep her company in those last few months of her life. She also taught me a lot of Spanish. I will never forger her. 
Dogwood said:
And every morning I ask myself why I bother to work so hard to learn something that other people do not see that I need. I see others speaking Spanish with ease and wonder why I have to work so hard to do the simplest sentence. I often feel like throwing the dictionary and the textbooks in the trash and give up altogether. Sometimes, I feel like the "view will not be worth the climb".
Don't think that. What do you mean by 'I see others speaking Spanish with ease..'? Native speakers?? If so, that is an unfair comparison you're making with yourself. If you're comparing yourself with other, fellow students of the language, I can guarantee you they're going through the same exact things that you are. Anyways, glad to hear such a positive story related to your language acquisition.
-Charlius-
I can't really say much...I've always wanted to be multilingual, so a few years ago I needed a foreign language for high school and picked Spanish...it was either that or Italian. I can hardly ever use or practice what I learn from my computer programs, and I only know a few fluent people, and not very well. Occasionally I'll chat online with a friend who kind of knows some Spanish, but before we really even say anything, we have to start picking apart what the other one said wrong 
I really enjoy language learning, but I wish I had somewhere to practice it with feedback...which is why I joined SpanishDict last week. I'm liking it so far! Keep up the good work!
I have been studying for over a year now. I took Spanish in high school for 4 years (many years ago) and after I graduated thought I knew it well until I heard someone speak and I understood almost nothing. I gave up and had not spoken it until I met a wonderful lady from Colombia. Now with the added incentive of trying to understand her family I study at least 1 hour every day. I am so lucky to have a great teacher (profesora maravillosa). We speak every day and I always have lots of questions. I wish they would speak slower. I am going to get a Tshirt that says "Puede hablar mas despacio por favor". I have been listening to Coffee brake Spanish on my Ipod every day while I walk and it helps to pick up a saying or word here and there.
The first time I actually spoke any Spanish outside the classroom was in Spain. I saw a Spanish marine use a lighter he had to light a cigarette, and I wanted that lighter. I can only imagine what I sounded like haha. When we were done, I had the lighter and he had my military belt buckle. It was a good trade.
I later got a job because I could speak enough Spanish to run a crew of Mexican workers which led to a great job, and resulted in me learning even more Spanish. In fact, I ended up renting a house with five of them, and they spoke no English in the house.
I then started volunteering to take any one on the crew, or their families to Doctors appointments and dentists etc.
I have had many opportunities to speak Spanish while functioning in my expedite/import business. However now that I have retired, and live so far North, that no sensible Latino would ever want to live in this cold environment, I have no opportunity to practice speaking.
I do regularly write to a friend from Honduras, and miss the chance to speak and hear the language spoken.
I am glad to have found this site to learn how to speak properly. So I guess I would say that speaking Spanish has enriched my life both monetarily, and even more importantly, by allowing me to taste cultures other than mine.
I have not used it verbally, but I have been carrying on an e mail relationship with a someone named José Diaz from Spain for over a year , and I first I was little nervous, but I reguarly write to him Spanish. I have talked to him about various thing and articles that he has sent me I surprised with the reach of my vocabulary. And what I like about him it that he actually takes the time explain expresion which I found helpful especially since I am not usd to Spanish from Spain. It does feel good, there a sense of accomplishment in being able to tackle something like a foriegn language. And that´s what has encouraged me to keep on learning. I feel a little more squeamish trying to talk I my vocabulary will fail me at inoportune time.
I worked up the courage to talk to a taxi driver in Mexico City last summer. We had a short conversation about the weather, what we liked to eat, and of course where I was going. I told him I was still learning and he said he could understand me. I hope to move from just being understandable to being fluent, but I thought being understood was a good starting point!
