Talk That Talk

     Communication is one of the keys to being alive. That being said, doesn't it make sense to speak to the best of your ability? Why is it that people refuse to watch how they speak?


     For as long as I can remember, people have criticized the way I speak. When I was five, I was asked by a classmate why I "talked like a White person." I didn't know how to respond. I spoke properly because that was how my grandparents raised me to speak. My grandmother detests when people speak "like they have shoes in their mouth."  In school, I was told I sounded like a "valley girl". I had no idea who that was or what she would sound like. I confess, I own the movie as an adult and I like it, but we don't speak alike.


     People judge you on how you speak. You don't have to speak the Queen's English, but you can at least attempt to have a decent command of the language. I won't lie, I can only take bad grammar for so long. I hate when a guy is attempting to hit on me and wants to "ax" me a question. Are you a lumberjack? You may "ask" me a question. I've often been asked where I'm from. When I respond, I'm told I don't sound like it. Also, being told I'm well spoken is insulting. I graduated college, how am I supposed to sound? Most importantly, when was my speech impeded by a stroke? I abhor that in this day and age people have made assumptions on what I am going to sound like before I open my mouth. My grandfather was from the South and my grandmother is of Bahamian decent. Education and proper speech were very important to them, so I've always been mindful of that.


     As an adult, I haven't encountered much criticism on the way that I speak, but occasionally someone will say something. Once when a guy commented on it, I asked him, "Would you prefer your lawyer to sound like you or me?"


     "I guess you," he said after thinking about it a few seconds.


     "Exactly," I said before going back to what I was doing.


     We all speak in some form. Though slang and jargon makes its way into our speech, it is up to you to gauge when it is appropriate. To speak poorly on purpose is unacceptable. It will limit you. Bad grammar is simply something, "ain't nobody got time for".