Syrine Ben Ayed - Week 5 - Growing Up in a Multilingual America
As I stroll through the Farmers Market, I find myself surrounded by vibrant produce, the unmistakable sizzle of street food stalls, and most prominently, the chatter of people passing by. I am entranced by the tapestry of languages that envelops me. Whispers of Mandarin, Russian, Hindi, Tagalog, and Spanish fill the air, harmonizing into this chorus of cultural diversity that represents the very essence of America.
I love America. I love California. I love the Bay Area. And I can’t imagine living anywhere else.
I’ve always been mesmerized by this “melting pot” of cultures and languages, a place where the world converges and blends. At the tender age of five, moving to America had felt like I was taking on the world. From having only been exposed to my Tunisian friends and family who all held one culture and one language, it was as if I was stepping into the pages of a fairytale, entering an entirely new realm.
Having only known the languages of my homeland, I had began my story as an English Language Learner, being pulled from class to read aloud and immerse myself in this unfamiliar language. Soon, I had caught on, as I received my prized English Language Proficiency Certificate. I found myself proud to have mastered the language that would connect me to this whole world before me.
But that wasn’t enough.
As I marveled at the rich tapestry of languages and cultures surrounding me, I yearned to be a part of something more. I wanted to connect with my neighbors and friends on a deeper level. I wanted to understand.
I can vividly recall sitting at the kitchen table with my Russian Kindergarten best friend, Samantha, as her mom called out to her in their native tongue. The complexities of the language, with its soft, rhythmic sounds and rolled r's, had left me spell-bounded. Driven by an excitement and insatiable curiosity, I pleaded Samantha to teach me the beauty of her language, and promised that in exchange I would teach her my own. Together, we embarked on a journey of object naming and repeating random phrases, our innocent giggles echoing the joy of our discovery.
My journey continued as I went on to attend Mandarin classes in the third grade, and later enrolled in Safari Kids for three consecutive summers, where I immersed myself in the language of Hindi.
Through each experience, my passion for understanding and connecting with others through language continued to grow. I came to realize that, in America, language isn't just a means of communication; it is a bridge to cultures and a testament to the beauty of our collective diversity.
Hi Syrine! Your articulation to explain the cultural diversity of America created a highly appreciative tone that really emphasized your ideas about a fascination with language diversity. The second paragraph stood out to me as especially powerful due to the short sentence structure and the relatability of the ideas—most students at American High likely agree with you that the Bay Area is a great place to live due to the sheer diversity of the population here. Your wanting to “understand” everyone around you is something that I can also relate to, although regretfully, because I have slowly been losing my proficiency in languages other than English as time passes. This is a pattern that I hate to see in myself, but I also find myself too lazy to do anything to fix it because the only way to become comfortable with a language is to use it consistently throughout your daily life—as I grow older, I and the people around me speak Hindi less, leading to the language slowly drifting away from me. This has been forming a gap in my identity, and it is something that helped me relate to one of the ideas in your blog post—yearning to connect with others.
ReplyDeleteYour detail and description of your surroundings never ceases to amaze me. When you describe the Farmer's Market, it's almost as if I am there too. Usually my mom makes me tag along with her, so I would say the way you describe the market is pretty accurate. The only difference being that I usually do not hear Russian or Spanish, but maybe that is because we probably go to different markets. It is really nice that as a child, you and your friend taught each other your own languages. It's always a lot more interesting when you are learning something new from/with your friends. It is really cool that you went on to learn Mandarin, and then Hindi. Do you still remember/learn Mandarin, and if you do, who do you speak it to? I find that if I do not speak to someone for a couple months, I completely forget it. For example, after last summer, I forgot so much Chinese because I did not speak it with my family or friends. I definitely agree with you that language is not only used to communicate with each other, but it also lets one immerse themselves in that culture whilst learning it. California is factually and statistically a place of diversity, with California being ranked number 1 by the U.S. News & World Report in 2020.
ReplyDeleteHey Sryine! Your story reminds of how a lot of people think others cultures are more interesting than there own. Although I am Chinese I would not consider myself knowledgable in Chinese culture (although I do know some of it). So when my dad would bring me to China I would be amazed by the assortments of food and mumbles of Chinese (which I barely understood at the time) on the streets. Wearing my bright T shirts with English words and my highlighted hair from swimming, I stood out a lot not as a quirky Chinese girl trying some funky fashion but as a foreigner. Pedestrians would laugh when they see me walk by but I was unfazed, only focused on trying as much yummy food as possible. I remember finding boba ice cream at the Chinese corner store (before boba ice cream was main stream in America) and I was mesmerized. They were 10 yuan each or about 1.50 USD and also the most expensive ice cream there. I remember the store owners making fun of me in Chinese about my poor financal decisions thinking I didn't understand. But still despite all the mockery I still want to learn more. In china, other kids would feel the same about American culture. Always amazed by the fact I could speak english and had a english name (they even had me sign their notebooks).
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