The Daily French Lesson

 It's been 103 days, and I've kept up my daily French lesson on Duolingo. 

Okay, hands up, I did French all though high school until first year uni, where I hated it, then gave it up, but doing well at French at school, something always remained. Loving French cinema and having a few understanding French friends have kept some of the language skills. (Helps that I'm a bit of a polyglot too - I pick up languages like most people pick up a cold). 

When I started on the Duolingo app, they made up do a test to see what our proficiency was like. I was booted into the lessons starting in the mid 20s and was transported back into year eleven, with the joys of personal pronouns and reflexive verbs. 

What's really astounded me is how much French I've retained. 

I can distinctly remember singing along with the conditional endings for verbs (...ais, ...ais...ait, ...ions, ...iez... aient... It goes with the Mickey Mouse Club song.)

Not that we've got there yet, but I still remember the MR VAN DER STAMP verbs.  Mourir (to die), Rentrer (to return), Venir (to come), Arriver (to arrive), Naitre (to be born), Descender (to descend), Entrer (to enter), Rester (to stay), Sortir (To go out), Tomber (to fall), Aller (To come), Monter (to go up) and Partir( to depart). They're all coming and going verbs and the past participles take Etre (to be) instead of Avoir (to have). And somewhere, tucked away, is this knowledge for nearly instant recall. 

After 30 years away from French lessons, I'm remembering where to put personal pronouns. When to use qui and when to use lui. 

It's all in there - and it's a bit scary. 

103 days, I've been at it.

I'll keep going. 

The goal is to go on a writer's retreat to France in October. Five days in Paris, five days in the South of France (hopefully with a trip to Brittany to see an old university friend and visit Mont St Michel and St Malo... and also a few days in London/England before and after, as I really, really, really want to travel on the Eurostar. 

I'd love to say thank you to my old French teacher who obviously did a great job of drilling the language into me at a formative age. 

There is some talk of getting a French conversation class going nearer the date of the trip. I'd be on for that. 

I'm just enjoying learning something again. And doing something I love. 

Today's song: