This new season of fresh stories all about personal experiences. I enjoy learning about my family history. My love of genealogy was encouraged by my dad who has done a lot of research. This last week I spent some time searching for clues about my ancestors. I found multiple documents, pictures, and even a few people I didn’t know about before. Today I am going to share a few of their stories. This story is told in both the first and third person using the past tense. Important vocabulary in the ...
Jun 20, 2023•17 min•Ep 17•Transcript available on Metacast This new season of fresh stories all about personal experiences. As you have heard in previous stories, I love the outdoors. I have been on many hiking and camping trips, but it wasn’t until a few years ago that I combined the two and went on my first backpacking adventure. That trek taught me many lessons and today I am sharing those lessons with you. This story is told in the first person using the past tense. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “mochila” (backpack), “sendero” (trail),...
May 30, 2023•17 min•Ep 16•Transcript available on Metacast This new season of fresh stories all about personal experiences. I have very fond memories of my childhood. I spent a lot of time outside with my friends and family, no matter the time of year. As a child I played, I ran, I rode bikes, I read, and I just had fun. This story is told in the first person using the past tense. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “recuerdo” (memory), “muñeca” (doll), “afuera” (outside), and “jugábamos” (we used to play). No matter where you are in your langua...
May 24, 2023•17 min•Ep 15•Transcript available on Metacast This new season of fresh stories all about personal experiences. I take my son on a lot of hikes. One time he decided to bring two of his stuffed animals on our hike in Grizzly Creek. Their names are Wolfy and Toothclaw. Toothclaw decided to take a swin in the creek and I went after him. This story is told in the first person using the past tense. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “arroyo” (creek/stream), “sendero” (path/trail), “mochila” (backpack), and “peluche” (stuffed animal). No ...
May 15, 2023•14 min•Ep 14•Transcript available on Metacast This new season of fresh stories all about personal experiences. David is one of my listeners and he recently shared his story with me. His adventures started when he joined the US navy at the age of 17 and they continue today. From playing the guitar to building his own house, David has lived a fascinating life. This story is told in the third person using the past tense. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “marina de guerra” (navy), “inscribirse” (to sign up/enlist), “avión” (plane) an...
May 07, 2023•14 min•Ep 13•Transcript available on Metacast This new season of fresh stories all about personal experiences. This is the second half of my Spring Break adventure in southern Utah. While everything did not go as planned, due to engine trouble, we were still able to have fun and enjoy Bryce Canyon National Park. This story is told in the first person using the past tense. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “taller” (shop), “nieve” (snow), “sendero” (trail). “por suerte” (luckily) and “puesto de observación” (lookout/observation poi...
May 02, 2023•18 min•Ep 12•Transcript available on Metacast This new season of fresh stories all about personal experiences. At the end of March, I decided to take my boys on a trip to some national parks in southern Utah. Unfortunately, our trip took a turn for the worse when my check engine light came on. Fortunately, we were still able to have some fun in Zion National Park. This story is told in the first person using the past and conditional tenses. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “la primavera” (Spring), “aceite” (oil), “estrellas” (sta...
Apr 25, 2023•17 min•Ep 11•Transcript available on Metacast This new season of fresh stories all about personal experiences. Living in Indonesia had a huge impact on my mother. Although she was young, she remembers much of her time there. While most of her time was spent in Kisaren, she also traveled to other places with her family. Her journey home marked a literal journey around the world that changed her forever. This story is told in the first and third person using the past tense. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “fueron” (they went), “ll...
Apr 15, 2023•16 min•Ep 10•Transcript available on Metacast This new season of fresh stories all about personal experiences. Many of my favorite stories of my mom’s life in Indonesia are about animals. I loved seeing pictures and hearing stories of her animal encounters. Today, I am going to share these stories with you. This story is told in the third person using the past tense. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “lagarto” (lizard), “techo” (ceiling/roof), “cabra” (goat), “piel” (skin) and “silvestre” (wild). No matter where you are in your la...
Mar 30, 2023•17 min•Ep 9•Transcript available on Metacast This new season of fresh stories all about personal experiences. Last episode I shared my mother’s journey from Michigan to Sumatra, Indonesia when she was eight. My mom and her family had a lot to learn when they arrived in Indonesia. Life there was quite different from life in Michigan. From school to food to shopping, nothing was quite the same. This story is told in the third person using the past tense. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “recuerda” (she remembers), “nivel” (level/g...
Mar 22, 2023•17 min•Ep 8•Transcript available on Metacast This new season of fresh stories all about personal experiences. Today’s story is about my mother and her family. When my mom was eight years old, she moved with her family from Michigan to Sumatra, Indonesia. I always loved hearing her stories and today I am going to share the story of her journey with you. Today’s story is told in the third person using the past tense. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “viaje” (trip), “barco” (boat) “abuelos” (grandparents), “llegó” (arrived), and “h...
Mar 12, 2023•16 min•Ep 7•Transcript available on Metacast This new season of fresh stories all about personal experiences. Today’s story is about chickens. Josh and Marya were looking for a change of pace during the pandemic and they found it by becoming the owners of a few backyard chickens. With the help of a local Chicken Guy, Marya and Josh got set up for success in their new urban farming adventure. Today’s story is told in the third person using multiple tenses, including the present, past, and conditional. Important vocabulary in the story inclu...
Feb 28, 2023•15 min•Ep 6•Transcript available on Metacast This new season of fresh stories all about personal experiences. Today’s story is about my own personal Spanish journey. As you are aware, I am not a native Spanish speaker. While you can read a bit about why I’m a Spanish teacher on my blog, a couple of listeners have asked me to share the story of my Spanish journey in Spanish. Today’s story is told in the first person using both the present and past tenses. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “viaje” (journey), “idioma” (language), “s...
Feb 21, 2023•14 min•Ep 5•Transcript available on Metacast This new season of fresh stories all about personal experiences. Today’s story is about a very talented musical family and their band, Sugar ‘n Sage. Based in Vancouver, Canada, this groups gets audiences on their feet, dancing and singing along to their toe-tapping songs. Today’s story is told in the third person using both the present and past tenses. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “juntos” (together), “agrega” (adds), “baterista” (drummer), and “cantante” (singer). Learn more abo...
Feb 14, 2023•14 min•Ep 4•Transcript available on Metacast This new season of fresh stories all about personal experiences. Today’s story is one I did not write. It is a very special story of love told by someone I happen to share a name with. Camila is a native of Colombia. Her husband, Stephen, listens to this podcast to practice his Spanish, so Camila decided to write a story especially for him. Today’s story is told in the third person using mostly the past tenses. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “hermoso” (beautiful), “conocer” (to meet...
Feb 06, 2023•14 min•Ep 3•Transcript available on Metacast This new season of fresh stories all about personal experiences. Today’s personal experience comes from Skipper. Skipper was an amazing volunteer in his community, but he didn’t work alone. Skipper trained therapy dogs. His leonberger Ransom visited people from all walks of life, bringing them love and comfort. Today’s story is told in the third person using both the present and the past tenses. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “dueño” (owner), “entrenamiento” (training), “equipo” (te...
Jan 31, 2023•16 min•Ep 2•Transcript available on Metacast Today marks a new season of fresh stories all about personal experiences. I am kicking off the season with one of my favorite travel stories. When I went to Ecuador ten years ago, I had the opportunity to snorkel twice with blowfish, sea turtles and sea lions, which in Spanish are called sea wolves. The first day was amazing, but the second was a little scary. This story is mostly in the first-person plural (pronoun “we”) and the past tense. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “barco” (b...
Jan 23, 2023•20 min•Ep 1•Transcript available on Metacast This seventh season of Simple Stories in Spanish is updating some of my favorite episodes. Today’s remake is from Season 3, episode 13: La Leyenda del Carruaje de la Muerte. According to the legend, a “carruaje” or carriage appears in the night to carry souls to the afterlife. The carriage with its big, black horses is not meant to be seen. If you do see it, it can mean…death. This story is told in the past tense. Repeated words and phrases include “carruaje” (carriage), “muerte” (death), “oyó” ...
Jan 09, 2023•18 min•Ep 14•Transcript available on Metacast This seventh season of Simple Stories in Spanish is updating some of my favorite episodes. Today’s remake is from Season 2, episode 10: ¿Cómo es mi familia? If you have been following me for a while, you know that my family dynamics changed last year. So, I felt I should start this new year by celebrating the wonderful people I am related to. This story is told in the present tense. Repeated words and phrases include “mayor” (older), “menor” (younger), “hijo” (child/son), “hermanos” (siblings), ...
Jan 04, 2023•16 min•Ep 13•Transcript available on Metacast This seventh season of Simple Stories in Spanish is updating some of my favorite episodes. Today’s remake is from Season 6, episode 21. Juan is a little cat. Every day he explores the world with his family, but one day everything changed. When he woke up, his family was gone, and he was in the middle of a construction site. Would he be able to make his way through the heavy equipment to find his family? This story is written in the past tense. Repeated words and phrases include “viga” (beam), “t...
Dec 20, 2022•18 min•Ep 12•Transcript available on Metacast This seventh season of Simple Stories in Spanish is updating some of my favorite episodes. Today’s remake is from Season 6, episode 1. Luisa loves snow. She loves making snow angels and snowmen. She loves building snow forts and throwing snowballs. She likes skating and skiing and hockey. There is only one problem. It hasn’t snowed yet! This story is written in the present tense. Repeated words and phrases include “invierno” (winter), “nieve” (snow), “copos de nieve” (snowflakes), “muñeco de nie...
Dec 12, 2022•15 min•Ep 11•Transcript available on Metacast This seventh season of Simple Stories in Spanish is updating some of my favorite episodes. Today’s remake is from Season 3, episode 2. Outside of Mexico City there are two volcanoes. One is a dormant volcano called Iztaccíhuatl, a name that means “white woman”. The other is the very active Popocatépetl, which means “smoking mountain.” Legend says these two volcanoes are star-crossed lovers that couldn’t be together in life. This story is written mostly in the past tense and includes dialogue. Re...
Dec 04, 2022•17 min•Ep 10•Transcript available on Metacast This seventh season of Simple Stories in Spanish is updating some of my favorite episodes. Today’s remake is from Season 6, episode 7: La pequeña Victoria. Victoria was feeling nervous and scared about leaving her small town and going to university in a big city. Her friend Piper didn’t seem scared at all. Victoria learned that some of Piper’s confidence came from her success in a martial arts class. Victoria decided to give the classes a try and she learned that small girls like her can be fier...
Nov 21, 2022•17 min•Transcript available on Metacast This seventh season of Simple Stories in Spanish is updating some of my favorite episodes. Today’s remake is from Season 1, episode 3: Eduardo busca novia. It can be hard to wander through life alone, especially during the holidays. Eduardo the elephant searches for the perfect girlfriend. He doesn’t care how she looks - she doesn’t even need to be an elephant! He just wants someone who is nice, fun, and patient. However, as Eduardo discovers, those traits can sometimes be hard to find. This sto...
Nov 13, 2022•18 min•Ep 8•Transcript available on Metacast This seventh season of Simple Stories in Spanish is updating some of my favorite episodes. Today’s remake is from Season 1, episode 7: La muchacha está enferma. It is that time of year in the northern hemisphere when sicknesses start to appear. When a child is sick, they should stay home from school. However, some kids will fake being sick to avoid doing their schoolwork. Such is the case of Jessica, who would rather be at home on her phone than in school taking tests. She fakes a cold so she ca...
Nov 07, 2022•19 min•Ep 7•Transcript available on Metacast This seventh season of Simple Stories in Spanish is updating some of my favorite episodes. Today’s remake is from Season 3, episode 3: La leyenda del Caleuche. In southern Chile there is an island named Chiloé. The fishermen of Chiloé tell the tale of a ghost ship: the Caleuche. This ship is different from others because it is driven by a lovely mermaid queen who throws parties for her court. But before they can have their party, they need to harvest souls. This story includes dialogue and both ...
Oct 31, 2022•17 min•Ep 6•Transcript available on Metacast This seventh season of Simple Stories in Spanish is updating some of my favorite episodes. Today’s remake is from Season 2, episode 8: ¿Dónde vivo yo? A couple of months ago I moved into a new home. I am still in the same area of Colorado, but there are some differences in my new abode from my previous homes. In today’s remake, I focus more on the description of my home as well as previous homes I have lived in in this area. This story is told in the present and past tenses. Repeated words and p...
Oct 23, 2022•18 min•Ep 5•Transcript available on Metacast This seventh season of Simple Stories in Spanish is updating some of my favorite episodes. Today’s remake is from Season 1, episode 14: Ramona en la playa. If you go to Costa Rica, you will probably go to the beach. And if you go to the beach, you will see animals. If you see animals, you will probably see a capuchin monkey. And if you see a capuchin monkey, they will probably steal something from you. This story is told in an “if-then” format using the present and future tenses and both the sec...
Oct 16, 2022•16 min•Ep 4•Transcript available on Metacast This seventh season of Simple Stories in Spanish is updating some of my favorite episodes. Today’s remake is from Season 3, episode 5: La Leyenda del Quetzal. In the middle of the Guatemalan flag there is a beautiful green bird with a bright red chest and a long flowing tail. It is the quetzal, a symbol of liberty and a nahual , or spirit guide, of the Maya and Quiché people. There are many legends surrounding this stunning and elusive bird and today’s story shares one of them. This story is in ...
Oct 09, 2022•19 min•Ep 3•Transcript available on Metacast This seventh season of Simple Stories in Spanish is updating some of my favorite episodes. Today’s remake is from Season 1, episode 13: Las vacas perdidas. I really enjoyed writing Las vacas perdidas . In the remake, I changed the story from the third person to the first person. I put the story in the past tense, and I added more numbers. Paula enjoys living in the mountains with her dog Bobo and her 150 cows, which she counts every day. One time Paula’s cows got into some sticky situations, but...
Sep 25, 2022•17 min•Ep 2•Transcript available on Metacast 
