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Growing Up Bilingual
"All I wanted was to blend in and be normal like everyone else."
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to this Commentary!
By James Kim
I love my mom a lot, but sometimes she can be really embarrassing. She has lived
in the US for over 20 years, but still has a heavy Korean accent. On top of
that, she can’t really speak fluent English. So things can get really complicated
when we’re together in public.
For example, I remember waiting in line on the first day of high school with
my mom. Of course, the whole time she was telling me in Korean what she wanted
me to do. Stuff like, go see your counselor, don’t forget to meet your teachers,
get all your stuff ready, and I’m standing there like wow… are you seriously
doing this to me… All I wanted was to blend in and be normal like everyone else.
Growing up I had no problem speaking Korean with my mom. At times, I was full
of pride to be able to speak another language in public. But somewhere between
middle school and high school I lost that mentality. I’m still proud of my Korean
heritage and I love the culture but every time we make a scene in a public place
I can’t help but feel like a foreigner.
I guess I don’t really have a problem with my mom not being able to speak English
well. Sometimes when I see her struggling to communicate in English I get frustrated.
If she could speak fluently she wouldn’t have to go through all abuse she receives
from people who say they can’t understand her English. So I try to help her
whenever I can, and that’s enabled me understand what it’s like for her.
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