Cultural Post #4

[Daniel Matthew Kunath]

One of my Greek friends, Myrsini, has been an immense help to me in my study of Greek.  She wants me to learn as much as she can possibly teach me.  Myrsini and I will have lunch sometimes, and during the whole meal, she will only speak to me in Greek.  If I ask for a clarification, she just hits me and says “You should know this”.  She usually says that much in Greek too.  She firmly believes in the immersive approach, and while I do believe that it is a very useful tool.  In part, Smaragda admits to putting Myrsini up to it, but wwe all know that she would have been more than willing to immerse me.  They call this immersion a baptism  into the culture, but sometimes it feels a little bit like drowning.  I don’t mind, because when I do come up for air, I appreciate the knowledge and insight I’ve gained from our conversations.  I’m counting Myrsini as one of my indispensable cultural artifacts.