Just wanted to try that. The goal is just to share one very simple positive experience. Make it as short as possible. Don't need to bother with repetition or if someone had a similar experience. I will start with a simple one.
Learning Japanese become way faster later. I started with a few words per day. Then a 5, 10, 20 or even 50 sometimes. Thanks to, I don't know, knowing more kanji, getting used to the culture, etc? Probably a lot of different reasons. So, just... don't worry about being slow. It get easier later if you take your time =p
In the beginning, learning Japanese feels like hard work. Over time, however, it becomes a powerful tool, and eventually, the journey rewards you in incredibly positive ways.
You finish the hard work of learning and start enjoying your powerful tool. _)
Being able to experience manga and novels exactly as the author intended. Since a lot of details get lost in translation.
My reading comprehension, especially speed-wise, has gotten noticeably better since I started focusing on kanji and reading volume. The best part is that reading no longer feels like a chore :)
It amazed me on how much I'm able to understand bits and pieces of Japanese media in less than a year of studying. It showed me you can do anything if you really put your mind into it !
Being able to read and kind of understand the labels of Japanese and even Chinese products. Like, now I know that that giant plastic bag is actually for Kyushu trash sorting, even if I have no idea how I got to own it xD
Was visiting Osaka, went to a museum with someone else at the same youth hostel (this was MANY years ago). She was ..I want to say Korean, and we could chit chat because (semi-broken) Japanese was the only common language between us.
I have not "studied" Japanese at that time. Only exposure from Anime and Vtubers and 0 understanding of grammar and structure. Just by feeling I can somewhat talk (really barely) and understand spoken (definitely higher level than my talking) Japanese.
Coincidentally, got accepted to a Japanese Company in my country (Job market is tough, I literally spammed every job post I see and do interviews for all the ones I got response from). Japanese skills were not required from the job post, so I was not interviewed about it. But they were able to see my meager Japanese ability from work.
That sweet moment when you understand the origin of a common word or name, eg origami or sudoku or Shikoku.
wakaru wakaru studying etymology is kinda fun isnt it though I have 0 idea about the etymology of the words you mentioned what stick to me on my early days of studying is 邪魔 and 想像
Even though while I read chiikawa I cannot read kanji or 95% of words, my broken japanese is still good enough to get me a daily laugh out of usagi's screams or momonga's イヤイヤやだやだ chants or relate to chiikawa's onomatepia shouts or nibbles.
I got confused by an English announcement on a train and was able to ask another passenger in Japanese if I needed to get off at the next stop to get to my intended destination. The onboard wifi wasn't working fast enough for me to pull up directions so it was really helpful to be able to ask another passenger!
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