There are few things in life that are life changing.
Many people would never think that learning a language could be life changing. In fact, learning a
language can indeed change the course of your life. Opportunities that you
normally wouldn’t know about seem to come knocking at your door. You even develop
highly coveted leadership skills, such as the ability to communicate
interculturally. What’s it like to have your life enriched by a language? Read
on to find out how Spanish changed this Princeton University doctoral student’s
life, and what helped her reach fluency.
BGLL: Thank you so much for agreeing to share your story! Tell
us about yourself. Who are you and what do you do?
Lindsay: My name is Lindsay Griffiths, I’m 21 years
old and I’m a first-generation Jamaican-American (both of my parents are
immigrants from Jamaica). I grew up on Long Island, but I am presently living
in Manhattan. My native language is English. I have a Bachelor of Arts in
English Literature and in Spanish with a concentration in Translation. I am
also a Ronald E. McNair Scholar and a member of the Sigma Delta Pi National
Hispanic Honor Society. I am also in the English Ph.D. program at
Princeton University, an accomplishment I owe to my strong-willed mama who
sacrificed everything to see her kids succeed, and my God who honored that dedication.
I currently work as an English writing tutor
at the Macaulay Honors College at CUNY Hunter College.
I really hope for my graduate research to explore the global and
multi-faceted black identity, looking particularly at African American and
Afro-Latinx literature. I know so well from experience that blackness is not a
monolith, and I think the literature that we produce says so much about that
difference, while also speaking to a very salient common experience.
I also consider myself a creative. I write fiction and have been
working on a novel over the past four years. Set in a dystopian world, it is
the story of a young woman of color and her search for a voice in a society
that wants to silence her. I won't share much more than that, but hopefully
I'll be blessed enough to get it published someday. I write short stories and
poetry here and there, and I also used to sing with the Macaulay Triplets, an a
capella group from my undergraduate institution.
BGLL: You’ve studied Spanish extensively, are you fluent in it?
Do you speak any other languages?
Lindsay: I am fluent in Spanish, and I’ve put it to good
use. In 2017, in collaboration with the publishing house Chatos Inhumanos, and
with guidance from Professor Adrián Izquierdo and my colleague Will Parucki, I
translated a book – Mercedes Cebrián's Burp. Apuntes Gastronómicos (Burp:
Gastronomical Writings in English). The Spanish Translation
program at Hunter College gave me this opportunity; the faculty and program are
phenomenal and deserve so much recognition. I’m also a volunteer
translator with the non-profit 826NYC, and I spent a summer volunteering at El
Centro de Educación de Trabajadores. There, I met and connected with people
from across Latin America and Spain (and I was even mistaken for being
Dominican, which I consider a high compliment of my fluency and coolness levels).
I will learn (Brazilian) Portuguese next, since a third
language is required for my doctoral program.
.
BGLL: What made you want to learn
Spanish?
Lindsay: I started learning Spanish in the 7th grade
simply because of a middle school language requirement. After I had completed
the required courses, I found that I really loved the language, and so I
decided to continue studying it all the way through college. I also grew up in
a community with a lot of Dominicans, and I just fell in love with the way the
language sounded. To me, the language just sounds like music, so fluid and
beautiful; it’s almost sacred. I also learned Spanish because of the insightful
interactions it enabled me to have with classmates who had just immigrated and
only spoke Spanish. I appreciate that most about language learning - it
breaks down borders and facilitates dialogue.
Although Spanish is the only foreign language I know right now, I
believe it would still be my favorite once I master Portuguese. I have so much
history with Spanish; I have gained such incredible opportunities, met
intriguing people, and learned valuable lessons because of my Spanish
proficiency. I am also completely enamored with the sound of the Spanish
language, in all native accents. It just melts my heart.
BGLL: Wow! It seems like Spanish is a huge part of your life?!
Lindsay: It is! I have grown so much. Knowing Spanish
expanded the scope of my research. It gave me the command of English grammar
that I needed to land my writing tutor job in undergrad. Yes, it has been complicated;
with ten years of study, I can explain to you in intelligent Spanish the
existential dilemma in San Manuel Bueno, mártir, but I sure can’t name
all the parts of a car. Learning Spanish has been humbling. Sure, I had a
Spanish teacher in middle school accuse me of cheating on a quiz because she
couldn’t believe I had scored 100%. But I also had instructors who encouraged
me to write poems in Spanish and enter a competition (and win), who proudly
showed everyone my original Spanish rap song presentation (despite the awful high
school grammar), and who recommended me, a little black girl who hadn’t even
finished her bachelor’s, for a book translation. I am a product of so much love
and support.
BGLL: What are three tips you would share with someone looking
to learn another language?
Lindsay: Practice,
practice, practice as much as you
can. It's the use-it-or-lose-it principle that is crucial with language
learning. Don't be afraid to look or
sound stupid. You will make mistakes, and that's okay. I’ve found that
people are usually excited that you’re trying, and don’t care that you’ve
conjugated a verb improperly. Never stop
learning. I think it was my hunger for improving and learning that really
drove me to where I am today. And I am proud to be still learning to this
day. Keep striving and keep learning languages, with the ultimate goal
being to expand your world, and to communicate within and beyond it.
BGLL: How can we keep up with you on social, Lindsay?
Lindsay: You can follow me on Instagram! My name on
Instagram is @lindsaytaelor.
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