Gabriel had something important to tell me, and just like that, he started to speak English. Becoming bilingual is not as easy as one would think, and it certainly comes in many forms. Some people are born into a bilingual family, some study a foreign language, and for others like me, it is more like sink or swim: I paddled.
Chelsea only speaks English to Gabriel and Olivia, Chelsea and the children speak French to Martin, and Martin speaks English but mainly only to me. I speak English to everyone in my family, and they all speak English to me; Yann speaks French to everyone but not to me, and Gabriel speaks French to everyone too, but recently started speaking English to me! Olivia smiles.
As I was saying, Gabriel had something important to tell me. His words were heavily accented as he searched for them enthusiastically. He said, "Vavie, at our ouse ze washing (turning his hand around in a circle to express machine), (so I added machine?) Yes, ze washing machine tis… At this point, I watched him think, admiring his attempt to express something important with his limited vocabulary or, I should say, his newfound tongue in a second language. I understood instantly he did not know the word in English. As he searched, I recalled my attempt to use words I knew for words I didn't know. "Soup-Air I used for Super" The French use the word Super more often than we do in the States, and it doesn't sound corny. I said "Soup-Air" to replace words such as great, fabulous, wonderful, nice… it is a super word to have in your pocket as is, "Ca-Va," which means an entire mini vocabulary for the French. It saved me in many conversations.
Anyway, Gabriel had something important to tell me and just like that he found a word he needed to tell me about ze washing machine… he said, "Mommy telephone un personne ze washing machine is sicky." Sicky meant broken. Wow, he did it. He communicated with the words he knew brilliantly! Sicky is a child word we use to describe a child when they are not well and the washing machine isn't well.
Leave a Reply