GENERATIONS GALORE

I know this is a tough subject to talk about and that there are lots of points of view out there.  My point of view focuses on the more we know, the better.  I don’t see the sense in forcing people to speak only one language.  Here’s why… 

Just recently, I went to the drugstore where my older son works at.  He had already clocked out and a lady was ringing me up.  As she was ringing me up another one of my older son’s co-workers came up and started talking to us.  Without thinking, we all started to talking in Spanish, including my younger son.   When, out of the blue, the lady ringing me up interrupted us and said, “English, please…there are other english-speaking persons present.”  We all stopped, wide-eyed, looked at her, looked at each other and just turned away.  Our happy to see each other moment, over.   Frankly, I felt insulted, because the conversation wasn’t even with her.   I can  understand if she was a part of the group there talking, but she wasn’t.  Instead, I was the customer and she was the employee ringing me up.   I know that if she had been a part of the group talking, then by all means we would have spoken in English, we’re not rude or trying to be rude.   I can’t even imagine myself as a spanish speaking only person, asking a group that is speaking English around me, to stop and speak in Spanish.  Is it paranoia or are people just so self-conscious that they can’t help thinking that maybe someone is talking about them?  I frankly don’t know.  I have had people speaking in french, italian, chinese, vietnamese, etc. around me and I think nothing of it.  On the contrary, I embrace it and try to learn from them.  There are words I can catch and understand.  The ones I don’t know, I ask.  

Definitely, I think we need to open up to the fact that as technology and communication grows, our world is becoming smaller and smaller.  Just the other day, while on a business call, I found out that although I was dialing a domestic number, I was actually calling Hong Kong.  That’s Skype for you.  We are no longer a nation that can stay in it’s own little world.  Now, the world market is at our finger tips and we need to be able to open our minds and accept change and embrace everyone’s differences.   We must widen our minds, that way we can widen our capabilities.  I chose to teach my children to speak more than one language and to put their language skills to practice wherever they can.   No one should be forced to be speak only one language.  What’s the sense in that?