T's language learning

It has been a long time since I wrote down my thoughts as a mother or took any note on T's development. My work obligation and pressure have somehow prevented me from talking about my private life in public. It seems though to be very common for people to shrink from revealing anything in private sphere in a work context in Japan.


It is particularly difficult for me to measure the distance between neighbours, fellow mothers, colleagues and strangers. In some experiences, I was daunted by some people's indifference or lack of response, but in Japan they call it shyness.

T's linguistic development stands for a battlefield for the rivalry between his two cultural backgrounds: Japanese and Taiwanese. I knew that by sending him to nursery, it almost means that I am giving out the privilege of Chinese language that he would naturally get as "mother tongue" to Japanese. As he starts to utter single syllables of whatever vocabulary, my anxiety and disappointment have deepened because he naturally is picking up more and more Japanese words and in the meantime giving away/forgetting the Chinese vocabulary that he first acquired from me. I will not deny that I am living in the terror of not able to communicate with my own child in my mother tongue in the future. I deliberately refuse to speak Japanese language to him first as a cultural resistance and second as a form of education. I was panicking and had imagined that a time would come when I am isolated by my own determination and inflexibility.

T has learnt to say "Shieh shieh" (thank you in Chinese) since he was 1.5 year old when my mother taught him. He sometimes used it when instructed at meals, but was unable to use it in a context. About 3 weeks ago, during a meal, he looked at me and uttered the word "Shieh shieh" clearly after I shared with him my fruit. That was the first time when he used it in a real context and showed a real intention in the word.

I was very touched, more moved than when he learnt to call me mama (as that was a long period of his experimenting different pronouns to call the parents).

This is not a permanent triumph of my culture though. He started to say "ah...do" (imperfect pronunciation of thank you in Japanese) this week, and I guess he would stop using "shieh shieh" for sometime from now on.


____________________

T likes funny stories. His recent favorites include the following two picture books in Japanese by the same author, Fukami Haruo.

I Hate Bitter Medicine! 

Grandpa's Amazing Walking Stick