73. Knowing French

You may have picked up the fact from some earlier posts that I served an LDS mission in France. Obviously, I needed to learn French in order to be effective in any way. I really enjoyed speaking French while I was over there, and it felt really good when I felt like I was getting a pretty good grasp on the language and didn't need to try as hard to speak correctly.

I've been back from my mission for about 4 and a half years now. I'm not nearly as fluent as I used to be. There are even times when I'll be speaking a bit with somebody who has been taking classes at BYU and realize that they can speak better than me. That's always kind of humbling and brings back a desire to polish up a bit. I can still understand the language quite well, I believe. I've been reading a book lately called Parole du Jour J (Words from D-Day). I picked it up while I was in France and it's been really interesting. It's basically a collection of letters and journal entries from people involved in D-Day and the Battle of Normandy. It includes accounts from both sides of the battle and it's been eye opening to read what it was like to really be there.

So, I try a little to keep my French up. I could be doing better, but I'm thankful for the opportunity I had to learn it and I am thankful for what I have retained.