France: John Larson (An Impactful Moment)
Hello! My name is John Larson and I am studying abroad in Aix-en-Provence, France. So far, I am very thankful for the ability to be here. The classes, food, culture, and especially sunshine (Aix-en-Provence has over 300 sunny days each year) all make living in France a blessing. Though it is such a wonderful place, I have encountered some challenges living in a completely new country. Putting aside the lack of clothes dryers or peanut butter-flavored food, a more pressing problem was the lack of English.
Going abroad having completed only five semesters of French created challenges. When I arrived in France, my academic program gave many welcome presentations, tours, and events solely in French. I felt wildly unprepared. I believe the most difficult time thus far was one welcome presentation during my second week, which I struggled to understand. I have a vivid memory talking with one of the program leaders asking her if it was even possible for me to succeed this semester. She reassured me that though learning may be difficult right now, I will succeed. It simply takes time. She was right.
After classes started, I slowly but surely began to understand more and more. As my listening comprehension increased, my speaking, writing, and reading comprehension improved as well. As classes continued, my confidence in French grew rapidly. This substantial change in perspective came about largely because of time and the realization that making mistakes is okay. I still make mistakes today, but because most French people understand that I am learning/trying, I don’t worry about small mistakes like forgetting an article before a noun or incorrectly conjugating a verb. I can truly enjoy living in a country different from my own while knowing my proficiency in French will only continue to improve.
John Larson
Hometown: Luxemburg, Wisconsin
Major: History; French
Program: Academic Program in Aix-en-Provence
I chose to apply to the Aix-en-Provence program because I wanted a French language immersion program with less American influence than Paris. The more “rural” setting of Aix-en-Provence will provide an excellent setting for learning the culture and language of France.