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Saying ‘Adios’ To Spanglish
My second son has benefited from my bilingual tongue. I speak only Spanish to him while my husband speaks only English; I am proud to say that his first language was Spanish. My 7-year-old, on the other hand, still has a way to go. I'm embarrassed that I foolishly kept my beautiful native language from him. I hope I have not done irreversible damage. A couple of years ago, I began speaking to him only in Spanish, but I had not yet heard him utter a complete sentence back.
Then, as if my prayers were answered, from behind the couch, I heard a tiny voice exclaim, Ven, mira esto. It was my older son instructing his little brother to come look at what he was doing. Maybe I won't be his first bilingual teacher, but it looks like he's already learning from another expert—his bilingual brother. Maybe it's not too late after all.
Salais lives in Tucson.
Salais lives in Tucson.
© 2007
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Member Comments
Posted By: libertad_vargas @ 02/12/2008 10:43:21 AM
Comment: I was born in New York and raised in the Dominican Republic. Learned to speak, read, and write Spanish at home and learned to speak, read, and write English at school. I will forever be greatful to my mother for that instruction and gift. I had pretty much mastered the Spanish language by age 10 and began learning Italian as well. Watching how my peers in school struggled with Spanish made me very sad. As I continued to learn other languages, I became a spanish tutor to my friends and peers.
As a professional in the corporate world, my being bilingual has not only opened many doors for me but has allowed me to assist others in having more opportunities as well.
All that to say, no one has a right to limit the possibilites that are available to others, even thier children. I'm glad you saw the error of your ways.
Posted By: CARLITOSBROWN77 @ 02/12/2008 9:08:08 AM
Comment: I was born in America and I speak spanish perfectly, shame on you lady.
Posted By: erikas381 @ 02/07/2008 4:46:25 PM
Comment: As a Mexican American, I must say, this article did nothing but irritate me. Most of my early childhood was spent in a part of Texas that was predominantly ???white??? and many Mexican Americans living there were, as Leticia was, embarrassed to speak Spanish. I remember most of my childhood Mexican American friends either pretending not to understand or speak Spanish or truly didn???t know how. In a town where Mexican Americans were discriminated against and considered ???wetbacks??? regardless of their legal status, I was never ashamed of my heritage and proudly stated I was born in Mexico when asked. Even though my school mates teased me, I was never embarrassed of who I am and despite trying to humiliate me, I remained proud and the teasing stopped. Although I am fluent in both English and Spanish (I thank my parents for that) I never think of Spanish as a ???secret language???. My family is of fair complexion and on a few occasions, fellow Mexican Americans assume I don???t understand Spanish and I???ve heard comments made about me. Using Spanish to ???secretly??? talk about people around you is rude and disrespectful. In my opinion, everyone should be proud of their heritage regardless of what that is. Shame on those that are ashamed of theirs and don???t care to learn about it and embrace it! This article proves nothing but the foolishness I despise in uneducated, close-minded people.