@Nadine , I am also bilingual. I came across this post because of a restack from Neela (thank you @Neela 🌶️ !). The rest of my reply will be in Spanish, naturalmente:)
El verdadero lenguaje del corazón no conoce fronteras ni se rige por reglas estrictas. No importa si hablamos español, inglés o cualquier otro idioma; lo que realmente trasciende es aquello que toca el alma.
Las palabras son simplemente vehículos para transportar sentimientos, y a veces, el acento que falta o la estructura imperfecta no son obstáculos sino características únicas de nuestra expresión más íntima.
Como el agua que fluye entre piedras, nuestras emociones encuentran siempre su camino, adaptándose al cauce pero manteniendo su esencia. Lo importante no es la perfección técnica sino la autenticidad con la que nos comunicamos.
El lenguaje universal del entendimiento reside en la mirada sincera, en el suspiro profundo, en la sonrisa espontánea. Estos símbolos atraviesan culturas y épocas, recordándonos que antes de las palabras ya existía la comunicación.
Cuando el corazón habla, el mundo entero escucha, pues su voz resuena en el silencio entre las palabras, en ese espacio donde habita lo inefable pero perfectamente comprensible.
I agree. And while I haven't heard this about Caribbean speakers I can imagine it perfectly, because I hear people say all the time that Indians aren't native speakers, when it's their country's official business language, it's just a different accent.
Appreciate you leaving a thoughtful comment, and relating to this. I know we'd have long exciting conversations over a whisky and a wine!
It feel like when learning a language you first learn all the rules and then learn to break the rules. I have been learning Spanish for a long time and have spent the last year in South America hoping to achieve a conversational level of proficiently (I've fail, although I have greatly improved). It is so interesting to hear how people use the language! And to hear the differences between those in SA who speak English so easily and those who struggle with pronunciation and the right words. I wonder how you get beyond just being able to communicate and sounding natural. I admire anyone who can call themselves bi-lingual.
I've been in South America for year. 3 months in Colombia, 3 in Ecuador, almost 6 in Peru, and now just under 2 weeks in Paraguay. We are returning to the US on Thursday.
We came to concentrate on Spanish, but it's turned out to be a whirlwind backpacking trip. I'm ready for a break. We will continue to work on our Spanish while we build-out a camper van in the US. Then we are off to Mexico.
Chubasco just came across my studies, which I'm pretty sure is when Chewbacca travels to Tabasco and it rains a little. That's how I'm holding it anyway. Also, this may be the word I use in English to say rain shower because it's so much more fun.
Why not? I call tires "llantas" for the same reason. My Espanglish game is so much stronger than my Spanish or English game anyway.
That is a lovely word. One of my favourites is our local volcano, Popocatépetl. It's a funny word to me but very impressive to people who think I won't be able to say it 😆
I'm not bilingual (I wish!) but I can relate to this - there is no such thing as perfection. Especially in language. It's always changing and each individual uses it differently. I often admire non native English speakers just doing their thing with confidence. Embrace the mess and creativity! Thanks, Nadine!
Alas I can only speak english and still struggle with spelling - my wife learnt mandarin for a while and NZ sign language - but it seems they are use it or lose it languages. Though I'm counting on her to gesticulate our way around China soon while telling people they look beautiful and can they feed us please.
I spoke French and Germany too, they're all use-it-or-lose-it languages... But I can confirm that if you don't use it, it probably wasn't very useful. There's a reason so many kids are now learning Spanish (as well as English) at school.
In reality, if you've nailed "love your shoes" and "where can I find pizza" in the local tongue, I think you can travel anywhere.
Am uncertain what might be in a Chinese Pizza so might stick to Ni Hao and Tài duōle and Háishì tài duōle with a stab at Kuàilè dì dìfāng zài nǎlǐ though the last one is a bit of a mouthful so I might just do the dance of shame to indicate what I need
I believe you can find pizza in every country and it's usually a safe food for travelling stomachs. I would be floored if China weren't pizza-friendly!
Those sentences are a good start, but maybe Zhè bù gòu...
It's amazing how quickly our core psychological needs can get tied into our sense of competency at a skill like language. Both our own sense of our competency, and perceived competency by others.
All that to say, I think it's helpful to remember that language is for communication, and the rules are helpful until they block connection instead of facilitate it.
Appreciate the maturity in your reflection, Nadine.
PS - I fell in love with UK English while I was there and am seeing so many fascinating nuances that I never would have experienced without being there. So there's a tangibility of being in a culture trying to use language to negotiate it that many will never experience when language is just an academic exercise.
Trust you to find beauty in our silly UK accents! Did you hear many variations?
You being up a lovely point about needing to experience it to value it on a different level. In fairness, I hadn't done that for many years when I was getting all uppity about it. However, I'll leave that core competency deficiency in the past with my inferior core psychology 😉 we're just stringing shapes together after all!
@Nadine , I am also bilingual. I came across this post because of a restack from Neela (thank you @Neela 🌶️ !). The rest of my reply will be in Spanish, naturalmente:)
El verdadero lenguaje del corazón no conoce fronteras ni se rige por reglas estrictas. No importa si hablamos español, inglés o cualquier otro idioma; lo que realmente trasciende es aquello que toca el alma.
Las palabras son simplemente vehículos para transportar sentimientos, y a veces, el acento que falta o la estructura imperfecta no son obstáculos sino características únicas de nuestra expresión más íntima.
Como el agua que fluye entre piedras, nuestras emociones encuentran siempre su camino, adaptándose al cauce pero manteniendo su esencia. Lo importante no es la perfección técnica sino la autenticidad con la que nos comunicamos.
El lenguaje universal del entendimiento reside en la mirada sincera, en el suspiro profundo, en la sonrisa espontánea. Estos símbolos atraviesan culturas y épocas, recordándonos que antes de las palabras ya existía la comunicación.
Cuando el corazón habla, el mundo entero escucha, pues su voz resuena en el silencio entre las palabras, en ese espacio donde habita lo inefable pero perfectamente comprensible.
So happy to connect you with nadine’s article :)
This reminds me of trying to explain Caribbean dialect to people who think English is not our first language lol
I'm like, hello - our education system mirrors that of the UK.
I think making up words, using the “wrong” phrasing, even code switching mid-sentence, are all acts of fluency, too.
Happy Saturday, Nadine.
I agree. And while I haven't heard this about Caribbean speakers I can imagine it perfectly, because I hear people say all the time that Indians aren't native speakers, when it's their country's official business language, it's just a different accent.
Appreciate you leaving a thoughtful comment, and relating to this. I know we'd have long exciting conversations over a whisky and a wine!
Yes we will and it will happen one day Nadine.
I am looking forward to it.
It feel like when learning a language you first learn all the rules and then learn to break the rules. I have been learning Spanish for a long time and have spent the last year in South America hoping to achieve a conversational level of proficiently (I've fail, although I have greatly improved). It is so interesting to hear how people use the language! And to hear the differences between those in SA who speak English so easily and those who struggle with pronunciation and the right words. I wonder how you get beyond just being able to communicate and sounding natural. I admire anyone who can call themselves bi-lingual.
It's super hard, I agree. But you've done the hard part! How long have you been there?
I've been in South America for year. 3 months in Colombia, 3 in Ecuador, almost 6 in Peru, and now just under 2 weeks in Paraguay. We are returning to the US on Thursday.
We came to concentrate on Spanish, but it's turned out to be a whirlwind backpacking trip. I'm ready for a break. We will continue to work on our Spanish while we build-out a camper van in the US. Then we are off to Mexico.
Chubasco just came across my studies, which I'm pretty sure is when Chewbacca travels to Tabasco and it rains a little. That's how I'm holding it anyway. Also, this may be the word I use in English to say rain shower because it's so much more fun.
Why not? I call tires "llantas" for the same reason. My Espanglish game is so much stronger than my Spanish or English game anyway.
That is a lovely word. One of my favourites is our local volcano, Popocatépetl. It's a funny word to me but very impressive to people who think I won't be able to say it 😆
Oh, fun!
I'm not bilingual (I wish!) but I can relate to this - there is no such thing as perfection. Especially in language. It's always changing and each individual uses it differently. I often admire non native English speakers just doing their thing with confidence. Embrace the mess and creativity! Thanks, Nadine!
That's such a lovely way to see it! I'm always impressed with non-native English speakers who learnt our complex, illogical language too!
"Supportive." Italian doesn't really have a counterpart. So I tell my husband, "grazie perché sei supportive." He understands.
I love the idea of owning languages by tweaking them to reflect what we need to express.
I’m actually trying to reduce my vocabulary to only words that my dog and I have in common (and she does, fortunately, speak a little Spanish)
Alas I can only speak english and still struggle with spelling - my wife learnt mandarin for a while and NZ sign language - but it seems they are use it or lose it languages. Though I'm counting on her to gesticulate our way around China soon while telling people they look beautiful and can they feed us please.
I spoke French and Germany too, they're all use-it-or-lose-it languages... But I can confirm that if you don't use it, it probably wasn't very useful. There's a reason so many kids are now learning Spanish (as well as English) at school.
In reality, if you've nailed "love your shoes" and "where can I find pizza" in the local tongue, I think you can travel anywhere.
Am uncertain what might be in a Chinese Pizza so might stick to Ni Hao and Tài duōle and Háishì tài duōle with a stab at Kuàilè dì dìfāng zài nǎlǐ though the last one is a bit of a mouthful so I might just do the dance of shame to indicate what I need
I believe you can find pizza in every country and it's usually a safe food for travelling stomachs. I would be floored if China weren't pizza-friendly!
Those sentences are a good start, but maybe Zhè bù gòu...
It's amazing how quickly our core psychological needs can get tied into our sense of competency at a skill like language. Both our own sense of our competency, and perceived competency by others.
All that to say, I think it's helpful to remember that language is for communication, and the rules are helpful until they block connection instead of facilitate it.
Appreciate the maturity in your reflection, Nadine.
PS - I fell in love with UK English while I was there and am seeing so many fascinating nuances that I never would have experienced without being there. So there's a tangibility of being in a culture trying to use language to negotiate it that many will never experience when language is just an academic exercise.
Trust you to find beauty in our silly UK accents! Did you hear many variations?
You being up a lovely point about needing to experience it to value it on a different level. In fairness, I hadn't done that for many years when I was getting all uppity about it. However, I'll leave that core competency deficiency in the past with my inferior core psychology 😉 we're just stringing shapes together after all!
We're not living if we're not growing!