We all know that one person who loves to rave about how beneficial learning a second language is for you, yet I personally find it unusual that the person in question frequently is not bilingual themselves.
Don’t get me wrong, I wholeheartedly agree with that statement. However, speaking more than one language myself I do find it can jeopardise friendships and generally endanger any relationship.
I may have used hyperbole in the last sentence, but hear me out, being fluent in a language besides your mother tongue does have its disadvantages.
Picture this: you are chatting lightheartedly with your friends when suddenly a controversial topic comes up and whilst voicing your opinion, it happens, you want to say a word that only comes to mind in your second language and you struggle to translate it into your native language but fail miserably. That would most certainly not ruin a friendship but you would dwell on that event later on.
That being said, I firmly believe the advantages outweigh the disadvantages, since knowing other languages can open doors for a person, in terms of employment, travel and yes, even friendships with those who speak said language you’ve learnt.
Speaking a second language can create annoying situations at times but, at the end of the day, I wouldn’t give it up for anything and encourage everyone reading this to give that language you’ve been meaning to learn for years a fair try.
Victoria Castro