Mandarin

Back in February, my mother-in-law came to visit my wife and I at our new home, and over dinner she told me that she was counting on me to teach our daughter Chinese. My wife insisted that she was joking, and I am sure that she’s right, but I wouldn’t let that stop me - I decided that I was going to learn Chinese.

Now, my interest in China and the Chinese language has, until relatively recently, been limited to the Confucian canon and the historical context needed to understand it. Naturally, though, I became curious about how Confucianism has been practiced in the real world, leading me to begin reading more history. The language, though, hadn’t ever piqued my interest beyond my general interest in any language. So, I began my study thinking I’d simply dabble in it for a few weeks, then set it aside and go back to my attempts at Latin. Instead, the opposite happened - Latin is on indefinite hold because studying Chinese has been the most fun I’ve ever had learning a language, by far.