She was sitting in a convenience store, waiting for the rain to chill out, when suddenly a squad of about ten teenagers stormed in. Some were fully Vietnamese, some were Western imports, and some were half-and-half combos.
Then they opened their mouths – A non-stop stream of English. For a second, She thought she was in Sydney. Or maybe Singapore. The whole conversation lasted an hour, and not. a. single. Vietnamese. word.
That reminded her of visiting a friend’s family. Their kids had been in international schools since kindergarten, spoke English as if they’d been born in Manchester. The weird part? At home, they still spoke English – with their parents, who were, by the way…100% Vietnamese.
Clothes foreign, cars foreign… now even language has gone “import edition”?
Their mom sighed: “They say it’s easier to express themselves in English. Writing in Vietnamese feels like torture. Their vocab is so poor – never touched a Vietnamese dictionary in their life.”
Sure, globalization is great. But if you globalize so hard you forget your own language, isn’t that just… uninstalling your roots?
Sometimes, the grandparents and parents would fight over this:
- Grandparents: “You’re in Vietnam! You’re Vietnamese! Learn Vietnamese properly first. Then study whatever you want.” Root down before branching out!”
- Parents: “But we want them to thrive in a global environment, study abroad, fit in with international friends…”
And so the battle rages: one side preaching “roots and tradition,” the other chanting “global citizen”. Stress level: maximum.
Yes, speaking English is cool. But at home? Maybe stick to Vietnamese first. Keep the language clean, pure, and intact – it’s a national treasure, after all.
Because if one day you can’t even speak your own mother tongue, people won’t call you “international.” They’ll just call you “rootless.” 🌱
