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200 words, Diana Schwenk, Diana's Enormous Book of Quotes, English, family, Foreign language, French, German, growing up, multilingual, parents, Relationships, Stuff my parents used to say and do
To have another language is to possess a second soul.
One of the things that I am most grateful for is that my parents taught my brother and I German.
We’re first generation Canadian. My parents immigrated to Canada in 1960. Three years later I was born and sixteen months after that my brother was born.
Mom and Dad spoke only German at home. We didn’t learn English until we went to school. I had a German accent up until about Grade Four. Mom recently apologized for only speaking German when we were little, but I’m so grateful to know the language.
As luck would have it, we lived in the Montreal area in Quebec, so Mike and I were also exposed to French. Before I came out west I could pretty much speak and understand French. I’ve since lost most of it, but when I visit Montreal, within days I understand what French-speaking people are saying. Mike is still perfectly fluent.
There is something really special about knowing more than one language. It opens up more of the world.
It does kind of feel like possessing another soul.
~ DIANA’S ENORMOUS BOOK OF QUOTES ~
Do you know a second language?
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