LANGUAGEISNOTJUSTLANGUAGE.,SALOTOFDIFFERENTMANNERS
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NAME: Luis Enrique Garcia
IDENTIFIES: Colombian
EXPERIENCE ABROAD: Left Colombia in 1998 to
study at Notre Dame University and returned for
post-graduate studies at Harvard University in 2006.
Now COO and co-founder of Envoys, an operator of
international experiential learning programs for highschoolers; divides his time between his permanent
residence of Colombia and Envoys’ headquarters in
Cambridge, Massachusetts.
WHEN
Garcia moved to the U.S. from
Colombia for the first time, he quickly adapted to
academic life at Notre Dame. He’d spoken Spanglish
with his international classmates since his teens, and was
classroom-fluent in English.
However, when it came to the essential task of
ordering burgers at a fast food-joint, he was helpless. For
a month, he simply answered “yes” to the question, “For
here or to go?”
“The sentence has no literal translation [where I come
from],” he explains. “It was frustrating, but I make jokes
about it now. I always say that I should have forced
myself into a stronger accent, as then people could have
understood that I’m a foreigner and not simply stupid.”
Nowadays, Garcia has a mastery of conversational
English, giving him something of a second identity. “I’m
a different person when I’m thinking and speaking in
English,” he says. “I have a better sense of humor when
I’m speaking Spanish. When I’m talking in English, I’m
more pragmatic.”
But it’s with Spanglish that he finds the greatest
scope, or perhaps his most complete self. “I don’t like
the concept of Spanglish – it feels disrespectful to both
cultures – but I like the practicality,” he explains. “The
two personalities come together: the humor and natural
feel of Spanish with the resources of English.”
Learn about Garcia’s company Envoys, which
offers international experiential learning
programs for teens, at Envoys.com
Photo by Nicolas Molina
As for me, after graduating from AULA in 2012, I’ve
relocated permanently to the U.K. and settled in the
city of Bath, an official World Heritage Site in thrall to
its former Romans occupiers, Jane Austen, and a trashraiding mafia of seagulls. I wear darker clothes and
savor warm beer, but my wife still corrects my lingering
American pronunciations (particularly, and aptly,
“frustrating”).
Returning to England felt like a homecoming – the
wettest summer for 100 years was the perfect fanfare
– but leaving the U.S. felt like leaving home as well.
My emotional response to both wasn’t intense, and in
turn I slipped easily back into English ways. Yet I’ve
recently become more actively interested in my Hispanic
background (my mother is a Chavez from New Mexico).
Now that “Breaking Bad” is over, I’m going to have to
come up with new ways to engage with my Southwestern
roots: perhaps another stab next Christmas at perfecting
my mother’s empanada recipe. -CA
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