I guess this is what the month is all about. As much as it is about content and the Michif language itself, it is also about how I learned it.
Today I learned about herbs - lii michin. Using the Michif language, I gained a sense not only of what the herbs used in medicinal teas and rubs are for but also how my teacher came to know about them.
I listened; I internalized the discussion; I smelled herbs; I related the stories back to the herbs; I increased my Michif vocabulary; I appreciated the origins of lii michin; I worked hard to treat the knowledge of the herbs with a level of reverence; and, of course, as per usual, I gestured with my big claw-like hands as I spoke and spilled the herbs all over the floor.
I soon learned what you do when that happens.
I must be retaining some of what I learn, though. My parents just made the drive from their home in Devlin, Ontario, to Camperville to visit me. They seem to have noticed (and seem a little shocked) that my teachers had good things to say about me. After a lifetime of mixed, not-always positive reviews from my teachers, it was quite refreshing for them not only to hear decent reviews from my instructors but also see and hear that I am speaking Michif functionally. As long-time interested observers and not-so-silent financial partners in the ongoing saga of Tricia's education, I think they were impressed. They were only here for a day but they could see, as I do, just how much you can learn in a day through Michif and the women who speak it.
Today I learned about herbs - lii michin. Using the Michif language, I gained a sense not only of what the herbs used in medicinal teas and rubs are for but also how my teacher came to know about them.
I listened; I internalized the discussion; I smelled herbs; I related the stories back to the herbs; I increased my Michif vocabulary; I appreciated the origins of lii michin; I worked hard to treat the knowledge of the herbs with a level of reverence; and, of course, as per usual, I gestured with my big claw-like hands as I spoke and spilled the herbs all over the floor.
I soon learned what you do when that happens.
I must be retaining some of what I learn, though. My parents just made the drive from their home in Devlin, Ontario, to Camperville to visit me. They seem to have noticed (and seem a little shocked) that my teachers had good things to say about me. After a lifetime of mixed, not-always positive reviews from my teachers, it was quite refreshing for them not only to hear decent reviews from my instructors but also see and hear that I am speaking Michif functionally. As long-time interested observers and not-so-silent financial partners in the ongoing saga of Tricia's education, I think they were impressed. They were only here for a day but they could see, as I do, just how much you can learn in a day through Michif and the women who speak it.
7/24/2007
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