“Oeuf means egg, chapeau means hat. It’s like those French have a different word for everything.”  -Steve Martin, Wild and Crazy Guy, 1979

Sometimes I feel like that about Spanish! We just finished our 10th week of language school. 10 weeks. 4 hours a day. 1 on 1 with our Spanish teachers. We sit in a beautiful setting. There is cold water, tea and coffee available. The flowers are blooming in the garden. Our teachers are friendly, competent and willing to help us in any way that they can. Most days we love it and then there are days when we hate it.

My kids are picking up the language easily. Maureen and I, on the other hand, have to work hard for any successes that we experience. We’ve been studying, doing homework and arriving to school ready for class. Yet we have so far to go!

Yesterday, the gas tanks that fuel my “on demand” water heaters, were leaking, so I turned them off. This morning we had no hot water or gas for our stove. So today, I went by the tienda where I pay for my gas delivery. I arrived there with a script. I knew how to say “there may be a gas leak in my house”. I wrote down how to ask for help and I memorized the words for gas, leak and hose.

This tienda is run by a very nice gentleman and his wife. They are friendly, but they speak no English. I’m pretty sure that I arranged for my new friend to come to my house to check on the gas leak. He seemed happy to oblige and I’m fairly confident that he told me to expect him to arrive this afternoon.

Even factoring in the expected cultural tardiness in Guatemala, I would have expected him to already be here. But he is not. Back in the states when you wait for a serviceman between 12-5, and he doesn’t show until 6, the problem is typically with the cable guy, not you.  If my tank problem is not solved today, I will blame nobody but myself (and maybe my teacher).

This is but a small test of my patience, my ability to withstand cold showers, and my command of the Spanish idioma.

I’m still waiting.

(Todd)