Success Stories

Learning English with Help From a Little Angel

I was sitting at my window looking at the day become evening and marveling at nature’s beauty. I was thinking about life and the circles that destiny spins us in.

In my country, I was a recognized teacher, and I also had a gift shop. I thought about the success that I had accomplished and then suddenly my life changed.

My husband had to come to this country, and after three years, I decided to come and join him. I left my profession and sold my shop so that my family would be complete. Most importantly, I wanted to give my daughter the emotional stability, love, togetherness and respect. After all God had granted me the gift of motherhood after ten years of marriage and I thought this was the perfect path to follow so that all three of us could be together.

Now I find myself in the country of opportunities, starting a new life and trying to approach things with great optimism and a great desire to move forward. Most of all, I want to take advantage of everything that comes our way.

Like everything, starting out is difficult. One of the greatest disadvantages is not knowing the English language. Here we have two very different languages, Spanish and English. It is not easy to communicate with English speaking people, not to mention reading signs, looking for employment, being able to say what one feels. The simple task of carrying on a conversation with someone else is indispensable and primordial in our lives.

The children at Escuelita naturally spoke English and they were only three years old. However much to my surprise as well as to theirs, we understood each other. They would come to me for help when they needed to solve a problem. They would speak to me in their language and I would respond according to their facial expressions “yes.” They would yell at me “nooooooo,” then I would say “no” back to them and they would cry. I did not know what to do because at the beginning I did not understand anything and I felt so embarrassed.

Where even though I was hired to help them with their Spanish, sometimes I did not know if they were fighting, or if they were hurting, or thirsty and simply wanted water. But there was a little girl, three years old, her name
was Isabella. She sensed my discomfort and that little angel got close to me and helped me to translate what the children were trying to tell me. Her father spoke Spanish and her mother spoke English. She was my starting point and with paper in hand I wrote down everything and reviewed all the time. Little by little I began to understand more and I was learning.

However, I needed to learn more and through the church, Cristo Rey, I found out there was a center named LA FUENTE where they offered English classes free of charge and I decided to register. I attend class three times a week and I feel that every day I learn more. These classes have helped me very much with my students, their parents, and to be able to communicate with other people. Even though I have not been in class long, I allow myself to practice communicating with others.

In addition, here at LA FUENTE Learning Center I feel very happy. I have made many friends. Everyone here is very friendly and they are always willing to help each other. They make one feel welcomed and warm.

I am also taking classes to become a teacher assistant, and in the future, I want to become a teacher here. For now all I need to do is continue my effort in mastering the English language so that the teachers I work with will recognize my abilities. But most importantly I want to do it for myself, so that I can feel self-actualized once again. I want to reach my goals as soon as possible, of course not leaving the support of my family behind. I am very conscious that this is another reality for me, very different from what I was used to, but with my unceasing effort, I hope to accomplish all my goals.