As I sit and type this, our apartment is full. Full of life, love, and laughter…and bodies, as we have our 2 sons here, joining our daughter, Val, and me for the holidays. Christmas in our family has a lot of traditions, and while we’ve been able to preserve a couple in this new context, we’ve done new and different things as well. A cultural surprise was NOT singing Christmas carols at church, and no service on the 24th. Apparently in the culture of our congregation, New Year’s Eve and Day are the big connecting points, and Christmas is a more private, family affair. However, over the fall, Val and I have been involved in kid’s ministry at our church, so we were invited to the department Christmas party last weekend. A majority of the workers have Haitian roots, so we were treated to special Haitian dishes for dinner, after I gave a short message…in French. At the very beginning I said something and immediately asked if I had used the right word. I was told that, no, I had not, but they understood what I was trying to say. Ironically, I was talking about humility and discovered that’s a difficult word for me to say in French. Yes, that’s very humbling! Two nights later we were at a classmate’s apartment. She is Syrian, so we had another enjoyable, yet different, experience with her friends and family. Through the course of the evening, we heard many Syrian songs spontaneously erupt, and started to get to know our classmate in a fuller context. Apparently, there is a strong Latin American influence in Syrian culture, so half-way through the evening we were offered maté. The fact that we knew what it was, and enjoyed it, thrilled our hosts. Thank you, Joy, for that! All this reinforces what we’ve written about before; the absolute diversity of this city. We love the privilege of being able to connect and look forward to more now that we have a bit more French proficiency under our belts (brag moment: after 4 classes completed each, the lowest mark was a B+). And, of course, it has been so great having all the kids around! I remember my mom talking about how thrilled she was when we or my sister and her family were home, and I understand that quite a bit more now. We don’t even have to be doing anything, but that we’re together is what has been so gratifying! 2020 is right around the corner, and we continue to learn and connect. All God’s best in the new year and whatever adventures you may have in store.
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If you’re like me, and live in any part of English Canada, you probably don’t think twice about what a privilege it is to have grown up speaking English. Since being here in Montréal, I have begun to understand what this privilege means. Another definition for ‘privilege’ could be ‘an advantage gained primarily by no work our own doing’. In other words, I was born in BC to English-speaking parents, it just happened and I didn’t have to do anything to receive it. It’s a privilege. The difference between being an English speaker versus any other language, is that it is the language of the world. One in five people can speak or understand English. It is also the language of media – music, film and the internet. So, you might be asking, ‘I speak English, so what’s the big deal?’ THAT is the big deal! If you don’t realize it, then you are privileged. We take it for granted. Things we take for granted as native English-speakers:
All this to say, if someone who isn’t a native English speaker is ever having difficulty communicating to you, and they have a strong accent, be patient. You did nothing to learn English. You are privileged to know what you know. If you are travelling, and you find people who know English, be thankful and courteous. You are privileged, and they worked hard to learn your language. |
AuthorTom & Val, off on a mid-life adventure (but not crisis) in la belle province! Archives
May 2020
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