After spending years traveling throughout the world and doing my best to communicate my daily needs to some very patient people, I have realized how important it is to not only know some phrases and words, we must develop the ability to speak the local language effectively.
This blog, Lyphwater, is so called to describe the necessity of communication in our lives. As we need water to nurish and quench our bodies, as humans, we need to continuously communicate with others to fulfil our need for community.
I am a speaker of American English, and as such, I feel called to assist others throughout the world to learn to communicate in "Spoken English". Having spent time in Germany, I initially learned some simple phrases to help me meet some immediate needs.
Where is the train station? Wo ist der Bahnhof?
One Beer Please. Ein Bier bitte.
May I see the menu? Darf ich das Menü?
How much does this cost? Wie viel kostet das?
What is your name? Wie ist Ihr Name?
I'm feeling ill. Ich fühle mich krank.
Do you speak English? Sprechen Sie Englisch?
Each of these were helpfull, however, the last, made me feel somewhat helpless and foreign, and made me appear as though I had little interest in the country I was not just visiting, but living in for over 5 years. During my stay, I managed to gain enough knowlege of spoken German to cary on light conversation, but I now realize that even that was not enough.
As an educator I am drawn to help others in their search for knowlege. This is the reason for my desire to teach others how to communicate in english and in turn, I desire to learn more from others about their language and culture.
