Going from being different to normal.

When I came to Philadelphia from Bethesda,Maryland, I talked different than everyone else. It was weird to hear everyone without an accent like mine. It was not a rich,or thick accent but it was enough to know I’m not from Philadelphia. On the first day of kindergarten at my new school , I was nervous what would happen. I knew I was going to be the odd one in the class because I didn’t talk like everyone else.

I walked into the room, with my backpack and my lunch in my hand.As soon as I walked into the room, I was ready to get the day over with. The class scared me a little bit, the wall were painted white, there was educational posters all over the place.We were told to sit in a circle on the alphabet rug in the center of the room. It was time to take the attendance, Oh boy I said to myself sarcastically.

“Amanda?”

“Persent.”

Instantly the whole class laughed at me and I was embarrassed so I sunk in my chair. The class thought I was weird, what a great first day so far.  My teacher would have us read a sentence from the morning paragraph on the chalkboard. The teacher called my name to read the first sentence. I had to read it in front of the class.

“ Good mmmorrninng cccllaass, tooday iis sseepttember 8th 2005.”

They laughed again.

At least I came into kindergarten knowing how to read some words.All but one person laughed at me. She had long brown wavy hair, and a very nice smile.Her skin was tan, and she had big brown eyes that sparkled.  At that moment in time I wanted to thank her.

I did everything in my power to stay away from talking.I did try to talk when necessary, but that was only when the teacher asked the group a question in general. I had to ask go to the bathroom. “ Mrss. Paaagggee, maaay I goo too thee bathhroomm ppplleeaasee?”

It was play time,everyone went off to the different centers. There was a housekeeping area, dolls, coloring, blocks, and legos. While my classmates played I stood in the middle of the room looking for something to play with. I noticed the girl who didn’t laugh at me was playing with some other kids. I thought I would ask to join them.

“ Con I playy too.”

“Sure, I’m Brittney and don’t worry about those other kids they mean.” I knew we were going to be best friends. I joined the group on the rug and we played with the legos and bears.

“Whhaatt, the nnamme oof the cciitty?”

“ Wee are gooinng too naamme it beaarr ciitty.”

It was hard adjusting, to my new friends and how they talked. If I wanted to fit in I needed to learn to talk the way they did. Then I could be normal. I listened to how they talk and try it on my own.  After a few tries I got the hang of it. My friend Brittney helped me realize that I can adjust to the way they talk pretty easily.It didn’t matter if I talked different it was my peronalitily that they liked. Now people don’t even realize that I have an accent. They only notice if I tell them I’m not from Philadelphia.

Sometimes when I get annoyed my accent shows more than I intend. In one of the stories we read in class I notice this one part that spoke to me. “ I used it to win in arguments, to express myself, and to show who I am.”  When I saw that sentence I felt moved by it. I use language not only to express how I feel but to describe who I am. I use my accent for power sometimes. When I use it for power I will get very defensive.

Everyone laughs or thinks it cute because my face gets all red. My accent will get thick and heavy and it’s pretty scary but pretty cool at the same time. When I sing a country song it’s strong and sounds amazing. I enjoy it because it makes me different and unique.  My friends love hearing my voice when I sing country. It sounds so natural.

Language is one of the best ways to be yourself. It is always cool to hear others talk if they don’t speak English. So many cultures have languages that have cool dialect or accents. There are many ways to express yourself. whether it’s art, music, or writing. Language shows people how you speak. Everyone has a different way, but they need to learn the correct way to speak. That way is not using slang words and incomplete sentences.