I wanna learn...

There are many things that I am good at and there are many things that I am awful at. I love learning new things, but patience isn't a trait that I really have so sometimes I have a very hard time learning new things because if I am not good at it from the get-go, I get super frustrated and stop without giving it much of a chance.  In general, I am not a quitter, but I am also not used to being bad at things, so when I am start something and am not immediately good at it, I get irritated.  However, I need to relax a bit and remember that not everything comes naturally and with practice, I can pick up new hobbies and skills if I really put my mind to it. Below is a list of things that I would love to learn how to do in the next few years.

1. How to Knit. I see people on the train knitting from time-to-time and find myself mesmerized by them. I find it to be such a great talent and something I would really love to do because it looks so therapeutic. And you end up with a keepsake or a gift. One of these days I will take a class and maybe even join a knitting circle. Who knows, maybe I can make new friends this way too!



2. How to Juggle. I have fantastic hand-eye coordination, but cannot juggle. I remember back in the day, in elementary school, when we use to practice juggling in the gym with scarves. I could handle it then, but not when we switched over to the balls. Hehe. I said balls. But seriously, I just can't do it. And don't even get me started on those people that run marathons and juggle the whole time. It amazes me every single time. You know, cause running a marathon isn't hard enough on its own, right?
3. How to French Braid. I have tried and tried many times and cannot for the life of me figure this out. I can do regular braids, but just not a french braid. Not on myself, and not on someone else. I have watched "How-To" instructional videos on YouTube and still can't figure it out. My arms get tired and I get frustrated. The last time I attempted to teach myself how to french braid, I ended up poking myself in the eye and being in pain for over 2 hours. Ouch.

4. How to Snowboard.  I have only skied twice in my life and the first time I picked it up naturally and the second time I was so scared I'd fall and hurt myself, I just couldn't relax. If I just went for it and blocked the fear, I believe I would be a pretty good skier. I just need to get back in the mountain. (On a semi-related note, I would also like to learn how to skateboard.)


5. How to Speak fluent Spanish. To me, being bilingual is a very cool trait.  For someone to master two languages is just so impressive. It never ceases to amaze me to see a person jump from one language to the next when having a conversation or even translating for someone else. Professionally, learning Spanish would only help make me even more marketable in the population I work with and make it easier to communicate with many of my students' parents as well. It would just give me a leg up. I did take 3 years of Spanish in middle school and 3 years in high school so I have a base to work with. I can understand more than I can speak but I know as an adult it is much harder to learn a second language. One of these days, I will pick up Rosetta Stone and start re-learning it all over again.

Now that I am 30 you know, I have a whole new decade to learn new skills and I am hoping to master all of these eventually. It's always fun to learn a new skill or get a new hobby and the feeling of accomplishment that comes with it can be magnificent as well.