Language
Being a language teacher and attempting to learn a language myself has put the topic of language into the forefront of my existence. Getting my head around English grammar well enough to teach it is challenging, but in a way it's also fun. I like playing with the language and it's great to be learning about something I have been using my whole life that I know little about.
Turkish is just as challenging as English, but on a different level. Whereas I need to be able to explain English grammar without appearing a fool, I need Turkish to function in the real world. Sometimes I sit in cafes or restaurants and just listen to the Turkish sounds rolling over me, not bothering to try to catch every word. My ears catch some of the words, depending in the situation. Sometimes I am able to at least understand the topic of conversation, but other times I am a floundering swimmer in the middle of the Pacific. I wonder about all the people thinking and speaking in Turkish around me and how amazing it is to think that these people have been speaking Turkish their whole lives and have no problem with it, where in a parallel universe I have been speaking English without giving it a second thought.
When I see my students outside of class, I always speak English to them. The other day I ran into one of my students and her mother who lives four flights above me. During our conversation, the postman came by and asked me, in Turkish of course, why I haven't been getting any mail (I've been having it sent to the school). Everyone was quiet, waiting for me to answer. After a few moments I understood what he had asked and replied, "Posta yok!" (There isn't any post.) My student was so delighted that I knew what he was saying that she burst out laughing.
My Turkish must be getting better. Yesterday I dashed out for lunch into a borek and simit shop. Simit are these delicious sesame rings. I wasn't sure about everything they had behind the glass, so always going for the vegetarian option first I asked about something that looked like it had spinach in it. When I asked to explain what was in it, he looked at me like I was asking him to have his baby. After explaining that I only know a little Turkish, a smile spread across his face and he launched into "Where are you from and why are you in Trabzon?"
Every now and then I meet someone here who speaks German. I love speaking German, but I hate having to search for words. I think for every Turkish word I learn, I forget a German one. This concerns me, as this is half of my heritage. Of the three children my parents have, I am the only one who can speak or understand it. When I think about this, I want to pack up all my bags and head straight to my birthplace, and throw myself back into German culture. I have no idea what I would do there, where I would live, or how I would get food, but this desire is sometimes so strong that I feel my heart being ripped in two. But then, I'm young.
Oh, not for long! I just realized that if I live until I'm 80, my life is almost half over. Will I ever get to live in Germany? I hope so.
No time for such thoughts now. I have to learn about relative clauses, subject/object questions, the differences between present perfect and simple past, and what to make for Christmas dinner.
Turkish is just as challenging as English, but on a different level. Whereas I need to be able to explain English grammar without appearing a fool, I need Turkish to function in the real world. Sometimes I sit in cafes or restaurants and just listen to the Turkish sounds rolling over me, not bothering to try to catch every word. My ears catch some of the words, depending in the situation. Sometimes I am able to at least understand the topic of conversation, but other times I am a floundering swimmer in the middle of the Pacific. I wonder about all the people thinking and speaking in Turkish around me and how amazing it is to think that these people have been speaking Turkish their whole lives and have no problem with it, where in a parallel universe I have been speaking English without giving it a second thought.
When I see my students outside of class, I always speak English to them. The other day I ran into one of my students and her mother who lives four flights above me. During our conversation, the postman came by and asked me, in Turkish of course, why I haven't been getting any mail (I've been having it sent to the school). Everyone was quiet, waiting for me to answer. After a few moments I understood what he had asked and replied, "Posta yok!" (There isn't any post.) My student was so delighted that I knew what he was saying that she burst out laughing.
My Turkish must be getting better. Yesterday I dashed out for lunch into a borek and simit shop. Simit are these delicious sesame rings. I wasn't sure about everything they had behind the glass, so always going for the vegetarian option first I asked about something that looked like it had spinach in it. When I asked to explain what was in it, he looked at me like I was asking him to have his baby. After explaining that I only know a little Turkish, a smile spread across his face and he launched into "Where are you from and why are you in Trabzon?"
Every now and then I meet someone here who speaks German. I love speaking German, but I hate having to search for words. I think for every Turkish word I learn, I forget a German one. This concerns me, as this is half of my heritage. Of the three children my parents have, I am the only one who can speak or understand it. When I think about this, I want to pack up all my bags and head straight to my birthplace, and throw myself back into German culture. I have no idea what I would do there, where I would live, or how I would get food, but this desire is sometimes so strong that I feel my heart being ripped in two. But then, I'm young.
Oh, not for long! I just realized that if I live until I'm 80, my life is almost half over. Will I ever get to live in Germany? I hope so.
No time for such thoughts now. I have to learn about relative clauses, subject/object questions, the differences between present perfect and simple past, and what to make for Christmas dinner.
posted by nicole @ 8:45 AM
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