Je parle francais, chan phut passa thai, I speak English.

I interviewed applicants for the Northern Thailand Rotary Club exchange program on Saturday. They were high school students ranging from 15 - 17, and were motivated, interesting and ambitious students. I was very impressed. My job was to have a short interview with each of the students (in English) and evaluate them on comprehension, skill, charisma, personal interaction, etc.

The last student I interviewed was a young girl who wanted to study in France. I asked her to introduce herself in French (since I speak a little) and then in English. She is sixteen years old and speaks three languages: Thai, French and English.

I feel so ashamed of myself for allowing my status as a native English speaker to enable me to "coast" as far as languages are concerned. I'm 22 years old, and I think I should do better. So I'm going to do better. I'm going to start private Thai lessons soon, and will hopefully become more fluent. I am going to start reading French literature to refresh what I learned in high school and college. And my next goal is to learn Spanish. I'll work on that once I get back to California... My goal is fluency in four languages: English, French, Thai and Spanish.

I'm amazed that some of the people who have been here in Thailand for years don't speak Thai. I think it is a sign of respect to the people and country of Thailand for long-term residents to learn the language. In my opinion, it is extremely ethnocentric to not at least try. Whenever I speak in Thai to locals, they rave about my skills and how wonderful it is that a foreigner would speak to them in their own language. It frustrates me that many Americans think that they don't need to speak other languages - or even worse, that EVERYONE ELSE should learn English.

I've encountered a lot of negativity towards Thailand and ethnocentrism since I've been here. People around me are always comparing this country with their own and making evaluations. Some live in their own little safe, American world where they hardly participate with Thai culture/Thai people. It really frustrates me, though I must admit that sometimes I am guilty of doing the exact same thing. My motivation for coming here was to learn more about Thai culture and experience it. Yes, it is different. Yes, some things can be frustrating. Yes, people tend to be more passive here. But c'mon, people! Let's be respectful!

I pray that I will not be critical and appreciate the richness of the differences between this country and my own, and appreciate how lucky I am to have this experience abroad. Pray with me, friends.