Introduction

On the first day of class, my instructor Zhao Kai told us to keep a diary. I wasn't sure what to write so I didn't write anything. Since then I've been scattering notes about Chinese grammar on yellow legal pads at work and Hanzi on opened envelopes at home. I have quick links to some great resources on my laptop, desktop, and work computer. I have notebooks, 3 ring binders, and text books everywhere. I have podcasts on my MP3 player. I have Chinese films flooding in from Netflix and Blockbuster. I'm surrounded. This is my first attempt to bring some kind of order to all of it.

I'll start with why I'm here. Why Mandarin? After all, my heritage is Spanish. I took two semesters of it in college. Why not go with something easier, something more practical? My grandfather, my dad, and what seems like every Jose, Manuel, and Rodriguez speak Spanish in my neck of the woods. Why Chinese?

It all began in High School.

We were reading Pearl Buck's "The Good Earth". I remember getting through the book begrudgingly until the last page. And then it hit me. I loved the book. Later I read Amy Tan's "The Joy Luck Club" and "The 100 Secret Senses". Suddenly I wanted to learn the language. I didn't know there was a difference between Mandarin and Cantonese, or how I would learn a language that wasn't offered in school (nor college) in my tiny town of Pensacola, FL. With no avenue to pursue the language it was pushed to the back of my mind.

Years later I learned about the plight of so many Chinese children who needed homes, the majority of them females. Before my wife, Jennifer, and I got married we discussed children. We agreed we wanted to adopt. She had not given much thought about where she would want to adopt from but I had my heart set on China. As the years went by and numerous discussions followed she agreed. We would one day have a daughter from halfway around the world.

In 2005 we moved to Atlanta, GA. I was getting close to the minimum required age for Chinese adoption (30!) and was thinking of learning Chinese again. Jenn and I both want our child to remain connected to her heritage and language is a vital part of it. Surfing the web for Chinese language resources in Atlanta brought me to the Atlanta Language Institute. I discovered that they offered Chinese with 10 week classes or private lessons. I discussed it with Jenn and she encouraged me to do it. I signed up for class and waited patiently for the start date.

The week before the class I received a call that we would not be having class. The instructor had to go to China for family business. I had waited 10 years, what was another 2 weeks?

The first Saturday (星期六) rolled around. The class was small. Beside the teacher I was the only man in the class. I wasn't sure what to expect as we started. We began with the basics, pinyin (拼音) and common phrases like 你好 Ni Hao "hello" and 谢谢 Xiexie "thanks". It was exhilarating, to finally be acting upon a desire I had had for so many years!

That's how I got where I am now. I'm looking forward to posting notes from my journey.