Languages.

The other week when I was finalizing an academic presentation that I'm giving, it really struck me how many languages were involved - French and German, 2 stages of the language under scrutiny, another ancient language from which translations had been made, and, peripherally, yet another ancient language.

It really was a lot of languages, and it makes you realize how even in the contexts that I'm in, it really is a lot; I wonder how it appears to others, even apart from the fact that I don't hold a formal job in the area.

Years and years ago when I first began my masters, this one (august) (older) (German) professor had commented once that I should study more and I already had a lot of languages, and that was *then*.

Even fifteen years ago, I don't think I would have thought I'd have been at the point that I am now, linguistically, and that's really saying something; I really have turned into one of those people that I used to come across that work with a lot of languages, and I'd wonder how someone ever got that way.

That said, half the time I feel like I'm faking the French and the German, and I hope that I don't misinterpret and get nailed on scholarship.