They say French is the language of love and I agree, given that among the scores of subjects I had in school, it was only Français that I fell in love with. Only a few days of Bonjour and Merci, I realised j'aime le français.
It was not easy in the beginning. I chose it as an option in school and getting the Grave and the Acute accents in their right places was a bother. More irksome was that I could not speak like the French- the musical touch was not part of my French at all.
While I studied the school test books, I also began to look up reference books and watched plenty of French movies. I heard dialogues and repeated them. I tried to imbibe the musicality whenever I spoke. My teachers were impressed, and my friends, who first made fun of me, goaded me to speak in French which I did with much flair.
I fared well in the subject all through school and our mutual admiration got only stronger. I knew learning French would help me with a career later and I am convinced today that learning a foreign language needs to be a must for everyone.
In fact, at the beginning of the 21st century, French was officially spoken in almost 30 countries in the world. Besides, France, Canada, Belgium, and Monaco to name a few, and in countries like Vietnam, it was and is also an important international language.
I always harboured a dream to study abroad and work abroad at least for a while and I knew mastering a language like French would do the job for me. I loved French phonology because it was lyrical and made me smile. While I realised that people across the globe spoke French differently, its grammar was strong and that is why the language ruled and is a little ruffled even today.
Post school came college, and there was no sign of French as a language in the one I enrolled in. Slowly and sadly the language and I parted ways. Academics got the better of me and the 12th standard Board exam ensured that my French books gathered dust in a corner. But the lure of my first love got the better of me and opportunity came knocking. A friend’s mother who knew I was good at French and also madly in love with it, offered to train me so that I could teach. I jumped at the offer.
Got my books out, dived again and deeper into French videos and movies, and got myself ready for the job. At first, I only taught primary school children but today I teach even college students.
So much is my passion for the language that I only sought more and more every day. When I wake up in the morning, even today, I ask myself where I can find a new resource to study and learn.
I understand other languages like Chinese, Arabic, and Spanish have also gained immense popularity over the last few years but French definitely remains the sweetest language on the face of the earth.
I am happy teaching French and happy learning something new about the language. My prospects to study and work abroad today are brighter and more definitive. That is the power of knowing a foreign language – it makes your applications to universities abroad look sweeter. More than that, you will never find yourself out of a job. If nothing else works, translator jobs are always available.
But first, fall in love with some language like I did.
