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1 Artical
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2 Words and&nb...
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3 Notes on&nbs...
“To have another language is to possess a second soul.”
—— Charlemagne
1 "The key to success in America is the flawless command of the English language," my father used to say. For this reason, he limited our use of Spanish to our visits with grandparents and other family members who did not speak English.
2 In the fifth grade, however, I had a true Renaissance man for a teacher. It seemed Mr. Bloom could do everything well (from playing the guitar to conducting science experiments with light and sound). Special projects and field trips were the tools of his trade. Looking back, I think one of Mr. Bloom’s projects was to make me feel proud of my Spanish heritage. I have to confess, I did not make it easy for him.
3 On one occasion, he walked towards the blackboard and wrote the word mesa. Then, pointing to a relief map of the southwestern states, he asked, “Carmen, the name of this landform is mesa. Can you tell the class what that means?”
4 A picture of a table immediately came to mind, but embarrassed, I blurted, “I ah... I don’t know.” I was ten years old, but already I hated being singled out as the Spanish girl.
5 The teacher went on to explain that mesa was the Spanish word for table. “How is this landform like a table?”
6 "It’s flat, like a table," I said. There, at least I had shown I was smart, not different.
7 "That’s right! It’s shaped like a table." And he went on to the next landform.
8 On another occasion we visited the Museum of Natural History in Manhattan. The exhibit was “The Amazon Rainforest.” The word casa was printed in bold type on one of the displays.
9 "Who knows what the word casa means? Carmen?" I shook my head to indicate I had no earthly idea what the word meant. I did not realize that my teacher was fully aware of my little charade.
10 A few days later, it was Edward Poli’s turn to be Office Helper, a program for the 5th and 6th graders. Office Helpers filed attendance cards, collected lesson plans left in receptacles outside classroom doors, and delivered messages to teachers and staff throughout the building. Since Edward was absent, I was asked to go.
11 That day I worked with other helpers from three classrooms. I remember filing the attendance cards. It was June and hot inside the building. Mr. Goldberg, our principal, ordered ice-cream pops for the student helpers and other staff members. When we were dismissed, he asked me to stay a minute.
12 "Mr. Bloom tells me you are a very good student." I just smiled. How else do you respond to such a statement?
13 "He also told me your parents are Puerto Rican. Do your parents ever speak Spanish at home?"
14 "Sometimes," I said.
15 "Good. You are very lucky to be able to learn another language. My own parents are Jewish and my grandparents came to this country from Russia. As a child, I was embarrassed to have parents who were, well... different. But at the university my knowledge of Hebrew and Russian helped me to learn many things about the world, about my family and about myself. Speaking another language is a gift. A very wise man once said that ‘To have another language is to possess a second soul.’ I want you to think about that."
16 Mr. Goldberg’s words would have a tremendous impact on my life. They opened my heart and my mind to a new world and culture. In the days and months to come, I listened to the women who came to visit my mother with stories of the barrios of Aguas Buenas (Good Waters). I listened to my mother recite from memory the poems of Ruben Dario and to my grandfather, as he told me the story of El Conde de Montecristo (The Count of Montecristo).
17 At school, my mind was free to make connections to my native language. One day, while trying to decide what the word “evade” meant, I heard a part of my mother’s conversation with a relative: “Quiere evadir todas sus responsabilidades...” The word evade meant to avoid. Proudly, I raised my hand.
18 "There’s a word like that in Spanish," I began... Mr. Bloom smiled.
19 Little did I know that my father’s health would make it necessary for our family to return to Puerto Rico, where I would not only listen, but speak, read, and write the language of my ancestors, discovering in the process, my second soul.
