I agree with a lot of what he says, but there are other aspects to this, which I am not. But, honestly, as a 35, going on 36, year old Navajo woman, I barely speak my own language. Im not able to always understand what is being said by my elders, and those who speak Navajo fluently. I do try my hardest to listen and pick up what I do know. However, I do have a slight, SLIGHT, advantage in being able to read (although not very well at times) and write in Navajo. Still, it hurts to feel left out, pushed aside, ridiculed, and shamed for not knowing how to carry a conversation or understand what shouldve been my first language. I cant blame my parents for not trying to teach me. They did whenever possible, but mostly spoke to me in English. Just like this man said, my parents were of an era that were pushed to get an education of the Western world, and that push extended to my and other generations after. Now, its a scramble to fight for teaching the younger ones the language that possibly dont want it because they consider it being too late. Many dont bother to try because its too hard to learn. I applaud those who already know that are teaching their kids the language, but I offer a disclaimer: teach your kids proper Navajo, not just so that they can berate another person with it, or to share dirty jokes. The Navajo language is beautiful and has much beauty when spoken in LOVE, NOT HATE. And ALL LANGUAGES ARE BEAUTIFUL WHEN SPOKEN IN LOVE AND ENCOURAGEMENT!
Posted on: Mon, 29 Sep 2014 04:02:24 +0000