Language AutoBiography

Ashyne Bright

12/16/10

“Ashyné” my grandmother called my down stairs, in a loud aggravated voice. “Yes!” “Why didn’t you call Kevin when you got to church?” “I didn’t have my jack wit me when I got dere, why didn’t he hit me up on da cellie?” I said in a loud kind of what are you talking about voice. “Huh?” she said in a confused tone with a blank expression. “what are you talking about Ashyné. I don’t know what you kids are saying these days. You all talk like your retarded.” Rubbing her arthritis-ridden hand and giving me the ‘I just caught the stomach virus’ look. (WHY IS IT BOLDED?)

I never thought about exactly what I was saying to my grandmother. I grew up with “proper English”, but when I hang around kids my age that is not how we talk to each other. I’m so use to speaking the slang that my friends and I use when we are with each other, that it has become a first nature to talk like that. I catch myself sometimes when I am talking to adults. I code switch when I am talking to someone older but sometimes I just forget at home or at church, because I am so relaxed and sometimes around my friends that I just fall back into that dialect.

I don’t think that I would be able to survive in the world of teenager in this day in age if I didn’t know the language and/or dialect that they/we speak. It would be hard for me to understand what teenagers are saying, just like my grandmother was having a hard time with understanding what exactly I was saying I think I would be in the same situations. I don’t think that I would be able to have the good friends that I have now or be able to relate to them as much as I do. Maybe even if they, the teenagers, would be able to relate to me.

“Omg I need 2 get da hell out of diz got damn house yo” I said to my friend nisse as we sat on my front porch steps. Nisse with the concerned face says, “Gurl why ? what did your gmom do to you now ? I mean because yaw always getting into dumbass argument. Im not surprised that you do wanna leave this hell hole.” I look at her with for about 20 seconds trying to figure out how to explain how I felt toward my family and this house. “Nisse I jus can’t be in diz house o more. My gmom don’t understand the fact that im not goin to eva be straight and my aunts critics me every time they get a chance to. This is not the way…” in the mid-sentence Nisse says “Nay baby you gotta understand dat it isn’t easy for your family to except it but I mean I see wat you are sayin to me right now. But you gota give it sum time love you can’t…” “Stop!” I said. I didn’t want her to finish her sentence because I already knew what she was going to say.

“Ashyne I know diz is going to be difficult but I went through da same tingz wit my family when I told dem I was gay. Dey flipped on me. Dey couldn’t understand why I was doing diz. But I had to give them time Nay. You gotta.” I had a deep since of pain come into the side of my chest as i tried to get my next response out but I couldn’t. I put my hot palm on my light skinned face. Placing them over my brown watered eyes to hide the rainfall that was about to come out of them. “Come here, Nay. Come here.” Nisse said with a voice of compassion as she layed my head on her lap and rubbed my back. She said, “It’s going to be okay Nay Nay. Im here for you through wat eva baby gurl. I got chu even if no one else does. I got chu nay. And I will always love you for who you are regardless of wat othaz say. I love you.” With a cracked voice I said “ I love you too”.

Talking to my friends with that type of dialect (DEFINE WHAT DIAECT) is the how we connect to each other.  I think talking to any teenager of this day and age would connect better with this language/dialect (WHY?). In the story Tongue Tied, the girl would have to speak (SPOKE) English when she was at school. She would have to leave her heritage at home and speak how everyone else did. When ever she was caught speaking Spanish in the schoolyard. The teacher would give her a whipping. They didn’t allow her to be herself. The teachers at the school and the kids couldn’t connect with her because she didn’t speak their language to well.

When Non-English speaking people went to college they had to talk speech classes to get rid of there accents. It was very hard them to get a job because of there accents. This is another example o connection. They boss, employees, and anyone else of that matter would be able to really connect or get to know them because of the way they talk and people language understanding.

Most people don’t take the time to sit there and understand someone. They just take what they think is right out of what they are saying and act off of that. Or they just don’t react or take anything from what they are saying because most people would rather stay in ignorance. It is hard for someone who hasn’t grew up in a certain dialect/language to comprehended what other ethnic groups, neighborhood clicks, or any other language but there’s.