When I spent my senior year of high school with my parents in Belgium, they enrolled me in a catholic girls school where (as it was Belgium after all) they spoke Flemish.The only class I understood was my English class. The English teacher didn't really take a shine to me. As soon as I came the students wanted to know if my life was like that of a character on Beverly Hills 90210. It was not. I had come from a school in the US where I was known as the math geek. Again, I was not. But as far as rumors go, I'll take math geek.
Regardless, my arrival set off an all things American fire in the other students bellies that my British loving English teacher was eager to squelch. The students asked my teacher why they had to learn the British spelling and pronunciation in class, why not American? After a long debate it was put to a vote, he agreed to teach which ever English variation the most students wanted. He had just finished a long lecture about how it would be better for them if they didn't sound like Americans, and was confident the vote would turn out the way he wanted. It did not. I, personally, voted for Scottish, because everything sounds better with a Scottish accent. Don't believe me? Try it. Read the rest of the post with a Scottish accent. Come on . . . do it, everyone else is.
The voting results showed an overwhelming majority for American accent, but the teacher decided that 17 year olds couldn't be trusted to decide what was good for them (which really is true, isn't it?) and kept on teaching all things British.
Had I any idea that my husband would speak Scottish (it just so happened he was in Scotland while I was in Belgium) I would have fought harder that day. I aways wanted to raise bilingual children.
On second thought it might have been just too much for little Chase. Being a Korean American with a Swedish last name and set of European ancestors puts him in a unique group. Add a Scottish accent? Talk about an identity crisis.
2 comments:
Wait . . . you're NOT a math geek?
HA HA HA HA
Jim F-- Redneck? I thought my relatives were white collar! But then you never were willing to count the chicken inspector.
Smash-- I know this may be shocking to you, as you were one of the elite who actually managed to be my friend in high school, but no I WAS NOT the math geek I was rumored to be. This is why I yelled at your brother in the hall when he asked me if I would help him and Jared with their homework. I realize your memories of me have been dashed, but I am sure you'll recover.
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