On Sunday afternoons I have been having an English class/conversation time with whoever wants to come. Lately it’s been separated into the beginner and the advanced class. Yesterday, the advanced class was reading a children’s book about missionaries. On one of the pages, it says, “Every month a pilot flew in the food and supplies we needed. I helped carry them to our house.” One of the guys got really confused after I explained the words “pilot” and “flew.” Read the beginning of the sentence carefully. “Every month a pilot flew in the food.” He got into a big grocery bag and used that as the airplane? If you don’t see his problem yet, consider the difference between these two sentences: “Every month a pilot flew in the airplane.” “Every month a pilot flew in the food.” It made me laugh, because I saw how it totally confused him. Yes, English can be funny sometimes. And so can all the other languages, too. That’s what makes it fun.
by Susie
My mom was born in Germany and came to the united States at 19. She still tells stories about learning the language…it’s not as easy as it seems!