How do you describe your mother?

My multilingual mother is a driven and intelligent woman. There is no need to gas her up because it’s the truth. She is a quick learner, and she learns by hearing. She can cook, clean, she is supportive and offers advice, even when you don’t ask. She’s definitely a SCORPIO. The one thing that people do not realize is my mom is fluent in multiple languages, and just because her vocabulary includes more American slangs to some degree, she never forgot where she came from.

I remember when we traveled to Namibia but had to stop in South Africa, the women that checked our bags in, said some rude comments about my mom. They thought she didn’t understand nor speak Zulu, but as I have mentioned multiple times in my last blog post, BE CAREFUL, we live in a small word! Do you want to know what she did? Well, she expressed her concern about unprofessionalism. She responded in Zulu, and they were, of course, shocked.

Enough about the haterrrrrrssssss, let us continue, shall we?

My mom was born and raised in Namibia. Her mom, my grandmother (may she Rest in peace) spoke Zulu and very little English. She was from South Africa. Her mother preferred her kids to speak in Zulu, the common language spoken in South Africa. Therefore,  language was an important aspect of my mom’s life. I thought that was quite interesting because Germany colonized Namibia and in Germany, speaking German is highly advised and accepted. In fact, you must speak German before attending university in Germany. So, for my mom to be able to speak both her mother’s tongue and the languages spoken in Namibia gets an applause, in my opinion.

My mom speaks Afrikaans, English, Oshiwambo, Hererero, Zulu, and Xhosa fluently.

Afrikaans is probably the language besides English that is spoken the most in Namibia. It is taught in schools, spoken in coffee shops, libraries, practically everywhere. Afrikaans is similar to Dutch. Dutch colonists played an earlier role in the history of Namibia. There has been a couple of instances where my mom has been able to converse with a Dutch parent whose child attended my international school in Houston. Isn’t that great?

I do visit Namibia when I can, and I kind of feel left out because many, if not all, of my cousins, speak Afrikaans. I mean, it’s understandable. If it’s spoken virtually everywhere, you are bound to pick up a word or two. I don’t believe in ignorance, and in that aspect, most of my mother’s family members don’t believe in it either. My mom tried to teach me when I was a toddler since I was already learning Yoruba.

Not to worry, the brain is like a sponge. It can retain a vast amount of information.

However, she became discouraged when a little birdie, told her, “I will be confused.” Despite that nonsense, I have asked my mom to teach me now. She has been teaching me slowly, and it is such an exciting journey to learn another language. I can see my mom’s face light up when I repeat the new word to her. Yes, my Afrikaans vocabulary was limited when I was learning Yoruba and English.  But I am learning now, and that is what matters!

Thank you, mommy, for teaching me when and how you can!

So, what about me? Will I teach my offspring Yoruba or Afrikaans? As I have mentioned before, I understand Yoruba more than I speak, but don’t get it twisted I am capable of speaking as well. I pray my dad lives long enough to teach them, and I plan on teaching them what I know as well. Fortunately, we live in an era of YOUTUBE!

Who knows I might just send them to Nigeria to embark their secondary school journey and learn there?. I don’t know. I do know this. Speaking your native language is one way to embrace your culture, but it is certainly not the only way.

Stick around for part 2!