When I Tried to Think in English (And Got Hungry)

 



When I Tried to Think in English (And Got Hungry)

A long long time ago, when I was in high school, one day, my teacher told us: “You should start thinking in English.” That sounded... scary. My brain barely worked in Spanish before coffee! But I wanted to try.

So the next morning, I looked at my breakfast and said (in my head): “This is bread. I like bread.” Not too bad, right? Then I opened the fridge and thought, “I want… umm… the thing with milk… yogurt?” I wasn’t sure, but I was trying.

It got funnier at school. I stared at my friend and thought, “She is wearing… a pink thing… with sleeves… a shirt! Yes!” My inner voice was slow, but it was learning. At one point, I accidentally answered my mom in English. She gave me that look and said, “¿Estás bien, mija?”

Even though I made tons of mistakes in my mind, I kept going. I learned that thinking in English doesn’t mean you need perfect grammar—it means you're practicing, even when nobody hears you. And honestly, it made speaking out loud a little easier.

Now, I catch myself thinking random things in English all the time. Like, “Why is the sky so blue today?” or “Do I really need to do homework or can I pretend it's Sunday?” Progress!.



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