Hello, everyone!

I have just completed the task in which we are asked to write about our reasons for wanting to learn Japanese. I figured that I would probably fill a page, and I nearly did, hahaha. I have numerous reasons for my interest in Japan, but basically, I am always interested in how other cultures approach issues that we all deal with and how that knowledge might improve my life.

I have to say, my health improved a lot when I began trying my hand at recreating Japanese cuisine from my cookbooks. I eat vegetables more than ever, haha. I also admire their cultural arts which require so much patience, discipline and attention to detail.

I just wonder how much knowledge is out of my reach because I am unable to read the language.. That is my biggest reason for joining you all here today; I WANT TO KNOW MORE! Hahaha. I don’t want to be stuck on this side of the language barrier anymore!

I’ll let you in on my dark secret (gasp!).. I have been studying Japanese off and on since 2002, but I never advanced beyond an elementary understanding. Other things kept taking precedence over my language studies, but my interest has never gone away, and studying it was always so much fun for me. I want this to be the time that I returned and stayed and didn’t stray away again. I want to feel that sense of accomplishment that comes with actually being able to hold a conversation, haha.

I look forward to making friends here. Let’s do this together! (^_^)