[kokopellime]

As noted in the title of this post I'm a 'novato' or newbie to learning Spanish. I thought it a great idea to join this online community as a line in the sand as I begin a new journey of learning, especially as we begin a new year.

My first encounter with leaning another language other than English was back in the '60s when I was in junior (middle) school, where I took three years of French, only to be followed by three more in high (secondary) school. And what do I have to show for those years; well nada. I can say a few phrases and I remember the frustration of my efforts to learn grammar and vocabulary. It turned me off towards actually trying to learn French or any other language, yet it didn't quash my interest.

I had a short stint of exposure to what I'll term semi-immersion in Spanish back in my college years. I attended a progressive school, where many of the students were Latino. I took an introductory class where the teacher spoke to us entirely in the language. To keep things going, many of the other students, seeing us coming out of the class at the end of the period would speak to us in Spanish. I was only at that school for the one semester, transferring to another, out of state. It was a great experience, and though I didn't build any skills, I realized the value of living the language.

Well, here I am again, deciding to learn Spanish. I want to learn, because I love learning. I want to be able to widen my exposure to Latino culture(s) from an insiders' perspective. I want to hang out with my buddy Elena (originally from Columbia), watch some telenovelas, catch a película and order some comida. I also believe that leaning Spanish will aid in my outreach as a community organizer to a wider community.

Though new, I look forward to contributing to everyone in this comunidad.

Just a little FYI regarding "kokopellime", my online username. It in homage to my love for la flauta indígena americana del norte. If you've been to the southwest of the Estados Unidos, you would have encountered the Hopi kachina or character Kokopelli, the flute player; hence kokopelli + me.