I can sympathize with the author. I've lived in France for nearly ten years, I'm on track to become a French citizen, and I've even argued a case in front of a

I can sympathize with the author. I've lived in France for nearly ten years, I'm on track to become a French citizen, and I've even argued a case in front of a French court and won. But, yet, speaking French still sometimes feels like wading through waist high water, like I don't really know the language, I've just memorized a bunch of n-grams. I've sort of accepted that that's how it's going to be. I still study new French every single day, but I'm never going to be as smooth or as funny as I am in English. But it's given me a new perspective, and a new sense of understanding, for other immigrants I encountered back in the US growing up.