The purpose of the investigation was to describe and analyze through a personal case study the second language learning process for one subject, David, who became fluent in Portuguese at the age of fifty-eight and began his study of the Spanish language at the age of fifty-nine. A unique feature of the study was that the subject, David, was also the researcher. This adult learner, who participated in a self-styled program of learning called La escuela doméstica (the home school), kept a detailed diary of the learning events and his progress in the study of Portuguese and Spanish for a period of eight years from 1996 through 2003. Evaluation of the subject's language progress was achieved through use of the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Language-Oral Proficiency Interview and through reports written by native speaker tutors. Research questions were as follows: 1) Is the age of the subject a deterrent in the study of Portuguese and Spanish? 2) Does prior knowledge of other foreign languages impact the learning of Spanish? 3) Does formal course work influence the learning progress? 4) Is motivation the primary factor in the learning process? 5) Does culture play a part in the language learning process? 6) Does study with a native speaker tutor accelerate the learning process? Results pointed to motivation as the pivotal factor in the subject's eventual fluency in both Portuguese and Spanish.