New people learn language
It's funny how, even though I've been in the islands for over 9 years, having new people around reminds me of what it was like to arrive in the islands, a sweaty mess who didn't understand a word of the local language. My team full of new people (8 new adults and 2 toddlers) arrived at the beginning of the hot season in 2013, excited about mangoes and samosas, less excited about the humidity and the feeling of being perpetually sweaty. We've just now welcomed a new family to Clove Island, and they're in the throes of adjustment. How do we handle the heat? What sort of food will the kids eat? What do we do with the trash? How do we create healthy rhythms of life? I've been running their orientation to language learning, working to share the vision of why we learn language, the mechanics of how we learn language, and the personal insight and self-discovery that helps in staying motivated in the language learning journey. But why do we learn the local language? E...