Below are a few
quotes by Nelson Mandela that I thought were really deep.
“In my country we go to
prison first and then become President. “
___________________________________________________________________________
“It always seems impossible
until its done.”
____________________________________________________________________________
“I learned that courage was not the absence of
fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel
afraid, but he who conquers that fear. “
“For
to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that
respects and enhances the freedom of others. “
“Education is the most powerful weapon which you
can use to change the world. “
_____________________________________________________________________________
“If you talk to a man in a
language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language,
that goes to his heart.”
________________________________________________________________________________
That last quote
resonated very strongly with me today because of an interaction I had with one
of my students today:
"Say
Something Mr. Lemons: The importance of language in building community: Part I "
Xoloni is a student that I met today who was confused that I
only speak 1 oral language (I’m a sign language interpreter as well). In most
countries (other than the United States) people are multilingual, and rarely
ever just monolingual. Xoloni, like many of the other black students at Ned
Doman High School speak both Xhosa and English and sometimes Afrikaans (a
language spoken by the white south Africans). Xhosa is a language that is known
for it’s “clicks” and is known to be spoken by a large population of blacks in South Africa.
Below are the words/phrases that he taught me:
Thank you --------------------------------------enkosi
Hello-----------------------------------------------molo
How are you doing?---------------------------unjani
Fine/well Thank you……………..Ndiphilile enkosi
Xolani (his name)------------------------Make Peace
Simphiwe (his friend’s name)-------------------Gift
He was a great kid. I enjoyed meeting him. The fact that he
sought me out reminds me of the several black people in South Africa that I
have met who assumed that I was native, until I opened my mouth, and showed that I cannot speak a native African language. Not to mention, I have this nasal
Michigan/American accent that screams foreigner. It was clear that he was hoping that I could (as Nelson Mandela put it) "speak to his heart" by teaching him in his home language- Xhosa. His home language is only used in informal setting, as it is not the academic language of South Africa. However, what was most powerful was the reminder that although apartheid, and other oppressive institutions in South Africa stripped their people from many things, it did
not strip them from their home language. Xhosa (and other African languages) are still being passed down from generation to generation. And their “clicks” can be heard
throughout the streets, and informal settings (malls, recess at school, market places) of the entire country of South Africa. It’s a beautiful
thing to watch, listen to, and experience.
Thanks Nelson Mandela and my new friend Xolani for reminding
me of how important language is in building community. “Life and death is in
the power of the tongue.” Speak Life!
Much love/peace,
#SouthAfrica2012.
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| These are the students that i work with at Ned Doman High School in Crawford, Cape Town, South Africa. The entire school was gathered for an assembly, where everyone sang Happy Birthday in honor of Nelson Mandela. There is a student standing on the stage in front, performing a poem in honor of Nelson Mandela's Birthday. |
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