This page includes the first and final draft of my Language and Literacy Narrative. This essay reflects my relationship with the Spanish language and the role it plays in my everyday life. Below that you will find my Translation 1 assignment that was inspired from this personally written essay.
First Draft
What exactly is language? Language by definition is the principle method of human communication, consisting of words used in a structured and conventional way and conveyed by speech, writing, or gesture. On a deeper level, language is a form of expression that can relay a message of who you are as an individual. It shows one’s background and culture. Language can tell a lot of stories that make you wonder how a person used their voice to express themselves.
The use of language is a gift one should not take for granted. It plays a heavy role in our lives everyday. In my life, language is my greatest gift. I’ve mastered expressing myself in my native language, English. I can speak what is classified as standard English to my classmates, professors, my boss, co workers etc., anyone that I need to talk to in a professional manner. I can easily swap that with lots of slang that I use with my friends and close family members. They all know me well because of the use of my language, how often I express what’s on my mind with the words that come out of my mouth. Since language ties back to culture, I can switch my language to Spanish, my second form of expression. Being able to switch between the two always feels super cool, especially when I’m surrounded by others that do it the same way as me, but when one language isn’t as fluent as the others, is it actually that cool to others?
I speak Spanish everyday of my life with my mother whose only language is Spanish. With her, I can use my “broken” Spanish and she will understand me perfectly. However, my bilingual skills get used everyday outside of home, like at work. My job is to manage people’s housing, such as their rent, help get any repairs fixed, or provide any other assistance when it comes to their living situation. I speak with different tenants, vendors, or solicitors daily, which exercises the use of my professional language. My job is for the people, so there is no doubt that my language is going to be used to its fullest. Being shy won’t get you nowhere in that job, so I am constantly getting out of my comfort zone and finding new and professional ways to express myself. Of course, this is all easy to do in my native language, English. My biggest struggle is advancing my Spanish professionally. Since I speak Spanish everyday at home, people would expect my Spanish to be top tier. However, that is not the case. I struggle with being able to fully express myself both professionally and amongst family and friends. This fact can easily be seen when dealing with an only Spanish speaking tenant at my job.
At the office, we get phone calls daily from tenants with issues with their rent, house, or even just small inquiries. This one specific day, a tenant called from a certain building, that if you knew the tenant lived there, they were for sure only going to speak Spanish. I work quietly at my desk while the smell of a very traditional Dominican meal, white rice, red beans, and baked chicken pours through the small office as my coworker heats up her lunch. While typing away on my computer and ruffling through papers, the phone suddenly rings and I am the first of three to reach for the phone. I pick up the phone and start with the line said at the beginning of every call, “Innovative Property Management, how may I help you?” Once I hear the “Ehh si, llamo de parte del edificio…,” (Uhh yeah, I’m calling from the building…) I immediately know that it’s time to focus and start preparing myself mentally. You never know if a tenant is calling for a simple question, or if they are coming in with heat and you need to figure out how to put out the fire. As the tenant continues talking, I begin to recognize the condescending tone and begin to worry because I do not want to sound like I don’t know what I’m saying. The tenant rambles on about how she believes she has been overcharged for rent and as I try to explain to her how she was not, she continuously fights back and says I must be wrong. It’s like our words are playing an intense game of ping pong with each other. I begin to fluster because at this point, I am stuttering and nervously answering back as my brain tries to muster up the correct words. I am already criticizing myself in my brain, like a tiny monster telling me how stupid I sound. This call was definitely one of those where I needed to put out the fire. The tension is piercing through the office because everyone knows how intense tenants can be. After continuously explaining, the tenant finally waved her white flag and accepted the truth. My brain, feeling all smoked out, can finally put all the walls down and breathe.
Expressing myself properly in Spanish is always a mental battle. My brain scrambles through its dictionary to deliberately relay a message. It sometimes leads to the point where I do not want to speak Spanish, because I do not want to be made fun of for not being as fluent as others. It is normalized to make fun of kids with a Hispanic background for not being super fluent in the language. They can say that you basically aren’t even Hispanic. My language of Spanish may not be as advanced as others, but it is still my voice and can tell stories of events that led to certain thoughts and experiences.
Final Draft
My Relationship with Spanish
Language is a gift humans were blessed with. Everyone has their own way of communicating. I have the opportunity to express myself in two beautiful languages: English and Spanish. Since I live here in America where the main language used, taught, and developed is English, it is my most fluent language. My Spanish is not as developed as my English, and that is where most of my problems lay. Starting the work part of my life showed me the true challenges I would face with my Spanish. In a work place where communication means everything because it determines the status of someone’s living situation, how I piece together my words and how I deliver my message not only represents me but represents the company. My job is more than helping you slap your signature on a lease, but to effectively communicate with you and others that can help your living situation at any given moment.
At the office, we get phone calls daily from tenants with issues with their rent, house, or even just small inquiries. This one specific day, a tenant called from a certain building, that if you knew the tenant lived there, they were for sure only going to speak Spanish. While typing away on my computer and ruffling through papers, the phone suddenly rings and I am the first of three to reach for the phone. I pick up the phone and start with the line said at the beginning of every call, “Innovative Property Management, how may I help you?” Once I hear the “Ehh si, llamo de parte del edificio…,” (Uhh yeah, I’m calling from the building…) I immediately know that it’s time to focus and start preparing myself mentally. You never know if a tenant is calling for a simple question, or if they are coming in with heat and you need to figure out how to put out the fire. As the tenant continues talking, I begin to recognize the condescending tone and begin to worry because I do not want to sound like I don’t know what I’m saying.
In situations like this is where my strongest language becomes evident. Since I spend my whole life studying the bits and pieces of the puzzle that make up the English language and its grammar, my focus was never on the development of my Spanish. I kept my vocabulary to where it was effective enough to hold standard conversations and communicate with my family. When my brains wants to pull the finest vocabulary out of the archive to use in situations where I want to assert my power as Site Manager, I do not know what its translation is in Spanish.
Focusing back in on the phone call, the tenant rambles on about how she believes she has been overcharged for rent an
d as I try to explain to her how she was not, she continuously fights back and says I must be wrong. It’s like our words are playing an intense game of ping pong with each other. I begin to fluster because at this point, I am stuttering and nervously answering back as my brain tries to muster up the correct words. I am already criticizing myself in my brain, like a tiny monster telling me how stupid I sound.
There are always people who believe they are superior to you no matter what, but when it comes down to having a conversation and you can not keep up with them, you automatically lose. That was my experience with this call. Although I knew exactly what was wrong and could have communicated perfectly in English, the fact that I was arguing in Spanish made me lose by default. I felt as if I looked stupid and my power now looked undeserved. I still embrace my “no sabo” Spanish, and people are just going to have to decide whether to work with me to understand it or be stubborn and walk all over it.
