How many languages do you speak?

[flowerseverywhere]

English but French spoken at times in my childhood home when relatives around. Currently taking a French class twice a week and meet with French speakers weekly. Fluent enough to get along quite well. and my pronounciation is very good. Watch TV and read in French as well.
this fall or next spring plan to take up Spanish.

[bae]

Apparently 80% of Americans are monolingual, which seems a poor plan.

https://www.amacad.org/news/remainin...ca-fall-behind

[bae]

Interesting:

[bae]

Also interesting:



https://www.census.gov/library/stori...guage-use.html

[rosarugosa]

bad bunny.jpg

[catherine]

This conversation about "there is no language but English" reminds me of how stubborn people can be about what they think they "own." Just yesterday I read this parable on Facebook written by one of my favorite spiritual authors, Anthony deMello. He clearly adapted it from Dostoyevsky's onion parable, but I like how he framed it:

An old woman died and was taken to the Judgment Seat by the angels. While examining her records however, the Judge could not find a single act of charity performed by her except for a carrot she had once given to a starving beggar.

Such, however, is the power of a single deed of love that it was decreed that she be taken up to heaven on the strength of that carrot. The carrot was brought to court and given to her. The moment she caught hold of it, it began to rise as if pulled by some invisible string, lifting her up towards the sky.

A beggar appeared. He clutched on to the hem of her garment and was lifted along with her; a third person caught hold of the beggar’s foot and was lifted too. Soon, there was a long line of persons being lifted up to heaven by that carrot. And, strange as it may seem, the woman did not feel the weight of all those people who held on to her; in fact, since she was looking heavenward, she did not see them.

Higher and higher they rose until they were almost near the heavenly gates. That is when the woman looked back to catch a last glimpse of the earth and saw this whole train of people behind her.

She was indignant! She gave an imperious wave of her hand and shouted, “Off! Off all of you! This carrot is mine!”

In making her imperious gesture she let go of the carrot for a moment—and down she fell with the entire train.

There is only one cause for every evil on earth: “This belongs to me’”

A president and cult so fixated on taking all their toys and sitting in their playpen refusing to share is not a healthy way to run a country. It goes beyond whether you like small government or big government. This level of violent exclusion of everything beyond your nationality, your language, your race, your religion is not going to get us very far.