Many years ago as a Language
student in England I struggled while making a presentation mainly because I
felt like my accent was harboring my message.
However the Professor at the end
of the class commended me on a job well done and while looking for
reaffirmation I asked him if my accent had not come in the way of what I was saying.
To my surprise he said it had instead added and helped him appreciate more what
I had had to say, he also went on to say something that I have kept close at my
heart since which is that , the way I
talk is part of my heritage and I should not change myself for anyone. This
discovery was a show of deep truth; I learnt from it and have embraced it since
in my many journeys in unfamiliar lands far, far away from home.
When I have been back home, I
have had people wonder why I don’t have any of the exotic western accents. My people tend to be blindsided by thinking
everything West is supreme and the ‘IT’ thing. Growing up we were punished
for speaking our mother tongues while at school, one of the punishments for
speaking vernacular was wearing a sack for a dress until you found someone else
speaking the same and then you did the honors of passing it on, talk about
alienating one from the cool English speakers. I totally get where the school
system was coming from in their bid to ensure we learnt to not only write and
speak but express ourselves fluently in the Colonizers language (no pun
intended) that also double’s as my country’s official language.
I have a good command of both
written and spoken English and I think in English half the time, sadly I also express myself better in
English than my own language but then I have found that sometimes there are
some things that happen and my language has a richer expression of what
transpires and the English takes from it. When praying, I have also discovered
that when I use my language it is more heartfelt whereas in English sometimes it seems rushed or simply going through the motions.
I tend to speak my language more
and more whenever I can, being far away from home I cherish every time I can
get away with speaking it. Thanks to that professor’s revelation too, I no
longer have binders up that prevent me from seeing the richness in not just my
cultural heritage but my language in shaping my identity in an ever changing world.
I believe our first language is critical to how we identify ourselves ad
reinforces as well as builds our self-esteem.
After that epiphany many years
ago as a foreign student many years ago , I am a silent advocate for people
teaching children about their culture and what easier place to start than teaching them
how to speak their language. Understandably this easily said than done especially
for kids who live away from where they are ethnically from and find themselves
a minority of a minority in the
societies they live in.
However it is possible and has
been done, so you can imagine my joy when I met a cousin who is a 2nd
generation American, born and bred but speaks Luganda, my ethnic language as
fluently as me. She is only 15 and I had an eventful time trying to engage her
on her plans for the future. Her youthful energy was infectious as she talked
about her goals and how she was navigating between different choices. Most Ugandans will tell you we have a tendency
to throw in few English words while speaking our native languages and vice
versa so it was interesting how this has rubbed on her too.
As I sat back listening to her,
I not only understood her story but it was 'Crystal' clear to me that expressing
herself in more than one language in a way empowered her for the different
audiences that she encounters owing to her cultural background.
Differences in a multi-cultural
society should not only be accepted but celebrated. So proud of you Crystal for
taking pride in your culture and language, even more proud of your mum my aunt
Sarah for ensuring that what takes effort for others has now become instinctual
for you .
I will continue to advocate that
parents don’t erect barricades to stop their children from learning where they
come from; charity begins at home so let’s use our tongues to embrace our
languages as part of our identity.
