If your parents’ first language isn’t English, you’re bound to witness how difficult life can really be for immigrants, trying to make it in the States ― especially as you’ve probably tried to utilize your own language skills to help them.
But their experiences also shape your outlook today, and this clip illustrates exactly that.
BuzzFeed recently released a video entitled “When Your Parents Speak Broken English,” featuring kids with that very background. And their words are heartbreakingly poignant.
In the video, people shared the unique and sometimes painful experiences they shared with their parents. Oftentimes, the memories involved translating for their mothers or fathers.
Another woman explained exactly why her mother her mother speaks broken English.
““Because her priorities were always work ... in order to survive, she had no time and energy to dedicate to learning English.””
“Because her priorities were always work ... in order to survive, she had no time and energy to dedicate to learning English.”
However, while many of the people in the video describe the occasional frustration they feel when having to translate for their parents, they said they’d gladly do it, especially considering the struggles their parents have endured.
“My dad was a veteran in the Vietnam War. My parents had to flee the country,” one woman explained. “So every time I have to translate for them, I think about ‘why do I even have to do that?’ It’s because they sacrifice so much to be here for me.”
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