Learning to Walk
Have you ever felt like nobody understands you? Maybe, your ideas were too risky and unusual, or you simply didn't speak the language your listeners could understand. Even though different cultures have sayings like "those who say don't know, those who know don't say," language is an essential part of our lives. Without being able to express our thoughts and feelings in one way or another we are completely lost in this world. Learning to communicate with others is just like walking; it's hard, but it's an essential part of becoming a complete member of the society. A lot of people have to go through the process of learning a second tongue at least once in their life. I came to the United States almost four years ago. At first I felt like I suddenly became deaf and mute; I could neither understand people surrounding me nor communicate my thoughts so that those around me would be able to comprehend them. There was nobody I could turn to and bilingual education programs were not available in my school. I managed to learn by reading the textbooks and trying to study without a teacher's help. I spent thrice as much time doing homework than the average student in high school would; Russian-English-Russian dictionary became my permane
There are no words to express how different the country appeared to be this time. It mostly consisted of traveling through the country with a Russian tour group. Even though I live in a different country now, the thought of denying my heritage has never crossed my mind. For some reason learning another language in an English-speaking society has not been considered valuable way of spending time. I believe that being multilingual offers great rewards because you will be much more successful in life and have a richer experiences than monolingual people. Your children won't be losing Shakespeare. Eventually, my English got better, so now I am fluent in two languages. When I decided to go to UK the second time, I was already fluent in English. You are the one who is missing out on all the wonderful things being bilingual gives you the opportunity to experience. I didn't get much out of my first visit. I believe traveling becomes both easier and more enriching when you have the ability to communicate with inhabitants of the place you are visiting in their native language. with its crisp linen syllables" (Cisneros 753) and Russian can flow like a mighty river or cry like a baby, it can purr like a kitten and roar like a lion. I am extremely proud of being Russian.
Common topics in this essay:
Russian Reading,
,
Shakespeare They'll,
English Refusing,
Eventually English,
Ariel Dorefman,
Don't Afraid,
learn language,
speak language,
|