So, my non boyfriend, significant other, soul mate, whatever you want to call him, doesn’t really like me writing in English because I’m forgetting my roots. The funny thing is, I’m not. And aside of the fact that he has a good point on what he says when he argues with me about my unnecessary necessity for helping other communities – and countries – aside from my own, it is true that even if I wrote in Spanish he couldn’t disagree more on what I say or think.
And here is where all the conflict of interest starts; you can only disagree so much with your environment and your community before this can force you either to isolation or to simply lying or hiding what you think.
So, how far should we go on standing for what we believe regardless of what people think? It clear that all this is a matter principals, each of us can decide how far we are willing to go and this is what will define what we truly believe in.
Personally, I decided years ago that I would stand for whatever I believed in no matter what, but always always ALWAYS knowing that I have a good reason for believing on what I am doing and never just because I wanted to go against the currant or any type of authority. And maybe that is why people had had too much trouble understanding a lot of things from me, because behind being wicca, a vegetarian, and currently working on another country and for an institution that helps communities far from my own; there is a reason, a believer and great faith on what I do.
And again, some people – most people – may not agree on what I’m writing but it doesn’t really matter because: 1) it doesn’t really make a difference and 2) it’s not personal, meaning, I can enter a discussing about anything and still go nowhere. What I write are just thoughts, there is nothing certain in this life and this doesn’t mean I can’t believe or support different things.
So, don’t judge me, don’t kill me, support me or ignore me.
1 comentario:
I think it's too abstract to say we ever actually betray our roots, especially when it comes to nationalism and patriotism. Mexico has hundreds of languages, are we supposed to speak all of them? Are we less patriotic if we don't speak Nahuatl or other native tongues? We must also remember that Spanish comes from Spain, does that make us traitors or malinchistas to those of us who don't identify themselves as spaniards?
Yet Spanish descends and borrows from the crossroads of different languages, including greek, latin and arabic. Those languages descend and borrow from other languages too.
A language is indeed tied to culture and identity, but languages are still languages, they are tools of communication, not who we are. We are not morally obligated to use one more than the other.
On the debate of conformity vs non conformity, being real vs selling out, it quite depends on where you want to fit and with whom. Genius and crazy are divided not so much by ideas but by degrees of success. Some people prefer to conform and fit among many in the mainstream, others prefer to fit among a select few. There is no time tested formula really, but as Cosby said "I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody."
Have a good one.
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