2/20/11: The Language Barrier.

Sometimes I feel really lost here because of the language barrier. One moment, I’m running through the woods, refreshed and happy, and I can barely believe my good fortunate at being able to live and ride here. When I have a lesson with Alois, I'm always excited and feel like I'm learning a lot. I know I'm lucky and that no time or effort I spend here is wasted. However, sometimes I walk around the barn or sit at a table for a meal with what feels like an ocean of space around me. People speak in a language I can’t understand. I can’t contribute to the conversation; I can barely even say hello! Sometimes I don’t say hi to someone or try to start a conversation simply because I know it will be halting and awkward. I just smile and wave a lot! Sarcasm is tough to get through the language barrier, and it's hard to express my opinions and ideas.

Despite all this, the sweetest thing happened today. I was working Cessana on the flat when a nice, middle-aged woman who has come to ride at APS twice said to me, “my English is not so good but after riding I have little surprise for you.” I don’t know the woman's name… one of the many plights of the non-German speaking person living in Germany is that I often don’t know people’s names, what they do, or who they really are! I just see them, I can’t KNOW them. I had no idea what this woman was talking about but I smiled, said thank you, and continued to ride. When I finished riding, the woman walked back to the barn with me and said, in very broken English, “last Wednesday you said you liked my perfume. I brought you small bottle!” and she gave me a little sample bottle of her Hermes perfume, Eau Claire Des Merveilles. It was amazingly sweet! I can’t believe she remembered what I said and thought to bring me a sample. I think it goes to show that no matter how difficult communication is, smiles and compliments are always appreciated. The small gesture of handing me a tiny perfume sample really made me feel at home, even thousands of miles away. I thanked my new favorite German friend, hugged her, and sprayed on some perfume! The smell made me happy the whole day.