At Spanish Inspired we believe in the power of stories to help us learn languages. We know how hard it is to learn a second language. This is the reason why everything we do is informed by this realization: when we are inspired to share our ideas and experiences with people who speak a different language, the foreign words and complicated grammar are no longer an obstacle to overcome but a tool that we can’t wait to master.

I can’t think of a better example of someone who works hard to communicate her life stories in Spanish than Frances. She is always inspired to share her ideas and experiences with people from other cultures. Frances already speaks a few foreign languages and is now adding Spanish to her list. I have asked Frances to share some of her insights about writing stories in Spanish with us. I hope that reading Frances’ wonderful advice gives you the encouragement you need to start working on your own stories in Spanish!

What do you like the most about writing stories in Spanish?

Writing a story in any language is a creative challenge that requires thinking about what you can offer, the audience that would appreciate your story, and how to present the story in the best way (is it an adventure story? a funny story? a harrowing tale? reminiscing? a philosophical or spiritual reflection? some of all of these?). What I like about writing a story in Spanish in particular is being able to work at my own pace to put together sentences that are more complex than what I can manage in spoken conversation at this point.  This challenges me to try out new vocabulary, and new grammar, and to express more interesting ideas.

A written story is also permanent, concrete proof that I’m working hard at learning a new language. So whenever I finish a story in Spanish, I am so proud that I have to show it to my Spanish-speaking friends and family right away, whether they want to read it or not! Writing a story indeed takes time, some frustration, and hard work, but I believe it pays off by helping me push the envelope of what I can say in Spanish.

What is the most difficult aspect of writing stories in Spanish?

The most difficult aspect of writing stories in Spanish for me is to remember to think in Spanish rather than in English. When I try to write when I’m tired, I start to cheat almost right away by writing sentences in English and then translating them into Spanish. Why is that cheating? Well, when I think of having conversations with Spanish friends, there’s not enough time to think in English and then translate into Spanish – 30 to 60 seconds would go by before I’d be ready to respond… and by then even the most patient partners want to move on to a completely different topic.

So for me, the biggest challenge in writing Spanish is to try to strike a good balance between working with the Spanish I already have and writing quickly, and looking up how to translate words and grammatical constructs from English into Spanish so that I can say more interesting things.

What advice would you give to someone who is just getting started writing stories in Spanish?

Imagine you are sitting with someone who wants to get to know you a little better and a particular theme or question comes up, such as a favorite movie or dream vacation. What story would you fish out both to entertain your conversation partner and tell him or tell her a little more about yourself?

I think we often forget that a story doesn’t need to be something with a super clear-cut beginning, middle, and end, with maybe a moral in there somewhere. Stories can be fun, informative, and even philosophical, even with gaps, jumps, and unexpected twists. It can make them feel more spontaneous and personal and you spend less time worrying about creating the “perfect” story. Get the core idea of your story into Spanish and build the rest of the writing around it.

Are you ready to read one of Frances’s stories?

Before you read this story, I want to spend a few minutes telling you about the process we use to help members like Frances improve their Spanish skills through writing stories. First, we start with a simple premise such as “Let’s write a story about a memory from our childhood” or “Let’s create a story about what we do for a living”. Each month we select a new topic to focus on and encourage our members to write a story and share it with us. After we receive the story, we send it to a person on our team who reviews the story and suggests ways to polish the Spanish grammar and words used to tell the story.

Our goal is not to create a grammatically perfect story in Spanish but rather to make minor edits that will help the story flow better in Spanish. Keep this editing process in mind as you read Frances’s story today. It takes a lot of effort to go from a first draft to a final, revised version. The story that we are sharing with you today is the result of almost three hours of work by Frances and a little bit of help from a language coach from our platform.

I hope you enjoy reading Frances’ story as much as we did! We are so proud of all of our members who work hard every day to improve their second language skills so that they can share their life stories in Spanish with other people. Our mission at Mokovi is to connect people through foreign language learning and friendships across cultures. And I am happy to say that we are the first ones to benefit from this mission. The lives of every person in our team are richer and more fulfilled through the connections and friendships with our members.

¡Felicitaciones Frances! Tu historia es muy inspiradora y estamos muy felices de ser parte de tus aventuras en español.

Una Reflexión sobre las Vacaciones

Es curioso que las vacaciones puedan ser fantásticas y revitalizantes, aunque cuesten mucho dinero o nos roben mucho tiempo. Gentes de todo el mundo creen que las mejores vacaciones son siempre las más caras y largas. Por ejemplo, este verano viajaré con mis parientes políticos a Hawái, el estado más lejano. Nos embarcaremos en un crucero de una semana en el mes de junio y viajaremos desde Hawái a Maui y Kauai. La idea es llevar con nosotros a la tía abuela de mi marido, Claire, quien tiene muchos problemas para caminar y adora los cruceros. Aunque Claire no es la persona de más edad en el grupo, ella es la matriarca y, sobre todo, es muy terca y sincera. Por tanto, aunque estuvimos barajando varias sugerencias para el viaje, finalmente la suya ganó. Mi marido y yo tenemos mucha suerte, porque sus padres han pagado nuestros pasajes de avión y el crucero. No queremos, ni podríamos permitirnos, pagar tanto. Por supuesto que estamos encantados de tener la oportunidad de visitar Hawái, en particular de ver los volcanes de las islas y las fábricas de café y chocolate, así como de observar la exótica fauna y flora. Mis suegros y el tío de mi marido ya han estado allí y dicen que Hawái es un paraíso. Yo he estado en algunos países alrededor del mundo: Canadá, Estados Unidos, Alemania, Bélgica, Austria, Suiza, República Checa, Francia, Italia, España, Vietnam y Japón. Todos ellos son países de lo más interesantes y muy ricos culturalmente, pero ninguno de ellos es un paraíso. Por tanto, ¿podría ser este viaje a Hawái las mejores vacaciones de mi vida?

También me suelo preguntar si la gente – incluyéndome a mí – busca “las vacaciones de su vida” porque quizás sienten que en el día a día su vida no es una aventura. ¿Acaso no podemos experimentar felicidad y calma en nuestras propias casas, y en las calles, barrios, parques y jardines de nuestras propias ciudades? ¿Qué descubrimos cuando vamos a esos lugares lejos de nuestros hogares? Todas estas preguntas me saltan a la mente cada vez que reflexiono sobre el tema.

Creo que, a menudo, las personas desean un cambio de aires, porque buscan algo diferente a lo que viven en sus vidas diarias, un cambio en su estado habitual. Les gusta sentir que no siguen un solo camino durante toda su vida. Llegar a un lugar nuevo es un poco como convertirse en otra persona, una persona nueva. Al menos, es una oportunidad de estar en otro sitio, de vivir algo diferente a lo habitual, de descubrir una nueva personalidad. A una persona que normalmente es tímida, pasar unos días en una metrópoli animada, como New York, Río de Janeiro o Barcelona, la podría ayudar a ser un poco más extrovertida. Si la persona, por lo general, anda siempre ocupada y trabaja largas jornadas, pasar un tiempo en la playa o en un camping en las montañas puede resultarle positivo y sentirse relajada, aclarar sus ideas y plantearse sus prioridades, a la vez que disfruta de una copa de vino o una cerveza. ¿Todo esto podría ser cierto?

Sin embargo, se podría hacer otra reflexión: quizás esa felicidad equilibrada y permanente no depende de cambios externos y costosos. Si esta idea fuera cierta, no sería necesario viajar a todos los rincones del mundo en busca de la felicidad. Lo ideal sería rodearse de unos cuantos amigos buenos y extraordinarios, desarrollar algunas aficiones y adquirir nuevos conocimientos, cuidando la salud y la economía doméstica. ¡Y, por supuesto, aprender el español!