[Today's Lisa Zate Topic] Natural ignorance

 

Not knowing a foreign language is the same as being deaf.

I don't understand any of the African words. I've never heard an African conversation (I'll refer to any African word here) in my environment.

When I was living with Taiwanese, I gradually understood their words and became able to speak a little. I can still understand Mandarin after they return home.

When I was working with Fijians, I could understand the contents of the work by taking it from their facial expressions. Everyday conversations that don't feel like "what's your dinner today?" are still painful.

One day a almost deaf customer and his son came to the store. I talked him generally, but he was staring at my face. I wondered if my pronunciation was bad and tried again. Immediately his son told me, "My father has a bad ear and it's hard to hear." The father's reaction was the same as when the Japanese were spoken to by a foreigner

I had a deaf mother, and when she came here, when my friend talked to her, my mother pointed to her ear and said, "I'm sorry, I have a deaf ear," but that was "I don't understand English." It was a phenomenon with "I can't hear it".

I thought well then. "Oh, deafness and incomprehensible are the same phenomenon."

What is important is the look of what you are listening to. Even if you don't understand the words, even if you can't hear the words, if you have the attitude to listen, it will be transmitted to the other party. The customer and mother had the same attitude. They know their environment. They also knew what is waiting.

We take it for granted that everyone around us can speak and hear. We hesitate when we suddenly meet the handicapped people. Those who have lived with no inconvenience are sometimes ignorant.

We become ignorant when it is taken for granted. It also becomes incompetent.

I would have  a moment when spoken to by an African. I would be incompetent if I didn't show any attitude.