I’ve posted before about the game we play – World of Warcraft. I’ve talked about the accomplishments, how fun it is and all that, but today it’s something else that I want to share. To preface, let me first explain that not only do you play in-game with others, you also communicate with them by voice through a program called Ventrilo. When coordinating plans and talking through difficult maneuvers, it’s a must. With over 11.5 million monthly subscribers to this fabulous game, you have the opportunity to group and play with people from many, many different geographic locations.
Desire is a moving force used to overcome all sorts of obstacles. Right? But sometimes, desire and drive is lost when you can get what you want without effort.
Perry and I are in a guild (a group formed to help one another in-game) that is very diverse. While my son, my cousin, and 4 local friends are members of this guild, we also have new friends we play WoW with as well. The guild, No Remorse, sports members from all over the US and Canada. Some of the members are French Canadian. Surprisingly, Warladin, our guild leader speaks English extremely well. Ok, so “charred earth” sounds like “chowder ert” and “third” always sounds like “turd” — but I’ve got to give it to the guy! He communicates! Warladin isn’t the only French Canadian in our guild. There are others; and each one communicates — just with varying degrees of skill.
Asking Warladin if he’d taken English in high school or college, he explained that his desire to be a group and guild leader required that he be able to speak English. Woah! His desire to do one thing required that he take action. Once he began listening to others speak and attempted to decipher what was being said in type, he was able to pick up bits and pieces of the language. His confidence grew. Warladin then shared with his friends by translating — and in turn, they began to learn and communicate as well.
Not one place in World of Warcraft do you get to press 2 for Spanish or 3 for French. There is a requirement for action in order to achieve what you desire. Yet, here in the US, we have a bajillion Mexicans who simply don’t NEED to put forth any effort to learn the English language because we make it easy for them — and HARDER for us! So with the ‘when in Rome’ theme in mind — here’s a photo of Perry and I with our French Canadian guild leader. Adios!
