Dear French Story Listeners,

There’s a little secret hiding inside the French language, and once you see it, you’ll never think about learning the same way again.

The French word for “to learn” is apprendre. The French word for “to understand” is comprendre.

Do you see it?

Apprendre, c’est comprendre. To learn is to understand.

Not to memorise. Not to repeat until it sticks. To understand.

And here’s the beautiful thing: your brain already knows how to do this. You’ve been doing it your whole life.

Here’s what really happens when you acquire a word

First, something new catches your attention. A word. A phrase. A sound you haven’t heard before.

Your mind notices it, not because you forced yourself to study it, but because it appeared in a story, in a moment, in a context that interested you.

Then something wonderful happens: you want to make sense of it. You connect it to something you already know.

You ask, even without realising you’re asking, what does this mean? Where have I heard something like it?

Your mind reaches out and finds handholds. It builds bridges.

And then, quietly, almost without effort, you understand it. And once you truly understand something, it stays.

Not because you drilled it. Not because you read it twenty times.

Because it made sense. Because it found its place.

This week’s story: Pygmalion ✨

A sculptor. A statue. A wish so pure it changes everything.

This week’s story is one of the most beloved myths of the ancient world, and I’ve told it slowly and clearly in French, just for you.

Watch here : https://youtu.be/11fAqzrK8lI

Here are a few words you might meet along the way, offered not as a list to study, but as a gentle preview, like glancing at a sculpture before stepping into the gallery:

— un sculpteur — a sculptor — une statue — a statue — parfait / parfaite — perfect — tomber amoureux — to fall in love — la déesse de l’amour — the goddess of love

Don’t try to hold onto them. Simply listen. They’ll find you when the time is right.

Your gentle invitation this week

Just listen.

Watch with a cup of tea or coffee.

Let the French flow slowly and clearly over you, the way sunlight comes through a window, you don’t have to do anything to feel it.

If a word catches you, wonderful.

If nothing does, that’s wonderful too.

You were there. You listened. That is enough.

Alice 💕

P.S. If you’d like to go deeper with this story, members of our community can read and listen to the full transcript of Pygmalion right here: aliceayel.com/resources/pygmalion. You’ll also find a warm, dedicated community of French learners from all over the world, people just like you, showing up week after week.

If that sounds like a place you’d love to belong, I’d be delighted to welcome you. Come and join us.