Two weeks have passed since Sasha’s first interview
in Moscow and the refusal of his U.S. Visa. That morning sure changed our plans and our lives! We have now been connected with dozens
of wonderful people we would not have met if not for this “hiccup”.
That first week was a whirlwind of urgent actions. This week is a little quieter.
Monday (when his back
was so painful) Sasha wrote:
Hello Tina! I just
have one plan and that is: to be able to have six lessons (from 12 till 7 p.m.)
that's all for today. There will be four more Holiday days off ahead and looks
like no lessons ... so I have to do it today regardless my back...
Tuesday Sasha wrote:
I feel better and was able to have lessons.
Today Ahad came for the lesson. We discussed
with him the book - "The Headless Horseman”, which he is reading.
Also:
….I really have a kind of phobia. The reason
I didn't do it (comment on the Blog)...I am just ashamed to expose my English
all over the world. ... I have a strong feeling that my English is
imperfect....That was always the reason I wanted to visit the US. Not to stay
there for good, searching easier life or something in this way... I just wanted
to be immersed into the language and to see its beauties in its real
environment...
I told
Sasha that he speaks and writes English much better than any of us can speak or
write Russian. I, for one, am truly
impressed with how much he has taught himself!
HA!
ReplyDeleteFirst, to Tina, Sasha and everyone else: The term I use when something seems to go wrong, but turns out better than it could have if everything had gone to plan, is HA! Happy Accident. So when the visa is finally approved, it will be after meeting so many people along the journey and having an inspiring story to tell.
Now, to you, Sasha: One of my favorite things is dancing. I'm not all that good, but people like dancing with me because I have passion and I have fun. And every time I dance I get better. I used to sit through every dance because I did not know all the steps. I have come to realize that is ridiculous.
Your English is just fine. Most Americans speak only one language -- our own -- and some of us even butcher that! You probably speak two or three languages, like most Europeans. Really, your English is very good, and it will get better only when you speak and write to us -- when you get up and dance.
More importantly, just as you want to see the beauties of America, we want to experience the beauty of Sasha. We have already read about the beauty of your heart, your mind, your passion and intellect--and, much like Tina, your compassion to help others. No language proficiency can replace a heart of gold. So please, Sasha, speak to us through this blog, and allow us to enjoy dancing with you, even if you do step on a few toes. We'll all learn and have fun in the process.
Thanks to everybody for the kind words :-)
DeleteSasha (Alexander)
Tell Sasha to watch US tv shows and movies with the captioning on, so he can recognize the words as they are spoken. My son learned Russian when the University he was attending did not have high enough level Japanese. One of his professors was poet Yevgeny Yevteshenko (spelling?)He now teaches ESL in NYC.
ReplyDeleteJust a note on the Penny Project. I keep finding them in strange places. Thank for all, Linda of the Eucalyptus tree.
Thank you for the good advise. I shall certainly follow it. By the way, Evgeny Evtushenko is really a good poet. I like his poetry.
DeleteSasha
By not putting an apostrophe in the pronoun "its", Sasha is ahead of probably 75% of the US population for correct usage in English.
ReplyDeleteJR, you are so right! It's one of the most common errors of even intelligent writers. I'm a book designer and too bad I can't charge for every instance of its mis-use when clients send in their manuscripts.
DeleteToday, on May 9, was The Victory Day in Russia. It was the day of Memory, Great Sorrow, Tears and Happiness...Only officially, The Soviet Union suffered 20 640 000 casualties (more than other powers) in that war. ... We call that war - The Great Patriotic War. There is no family in Russia that was not touched by those events... My family was touched too... Early in the morning I stood out of bed and went to the main street of our town where a long procession of people walked in the direction of the grave memorial where the Solders are berried, to the annual meeting place to honor the memory of the fallen...I met my son there and after the meeting, we walked to the center of our town where Sereja had some fun on the children attractions.
ReplyDeleteSasha