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Bryanna Restelli
Mrs. Oliveira
College Writing
19 January 2017
The Dictionary of Foreign Words
Foreign Languages always seemed to amaze me, particularly how different, yet similar
they are to the English language. Within the English language, people can speak with different
vocabularies during a conversation, depending on the audience. In other countries, they do the
same, but in their own unique way, which intrigued me. I understood I could not learn every
language in the entire world, so I decided to narrow down my options. During middle school, the
curriculum included a French, Italian, and Spanish class before I decided what language to
choose in my eighth grade year.
I found Spanish the easiest and most exciting of the languages, but still it did not fulfill
my thirst for knowledge. I wanted to discover a language I could have a personal connection
with. One language I would hear at home seemed foreign, yet very familiar to me. The Turkish
language spoken by my mom and her siblings always interested me; how they would talk so fast
and clear, and be able to hold dialogue? I wished to be a part of those conversations.
My grandmother, Hatice, taught my mother the Turkish language at a young age.
Growing up in a Turkish neighborhood in Brooklyn, my mother could communicate with others
and form great friendships because of it. My mother, now fluent in the language, spoke Turkish
like she lived in Turkey. Every word rolled off her tongue in such a coherent way, I could not
believe my ears. The enlightened conversations my mother and my aunt would have amazed me,

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but also created sadness. In a way I felt disconnected, unable to comprehend the dialect being
spoken. As the talker in my family, feeling disconnected was difficult. Unable to chime in on the
conversation because I couldnt understand Turkish, frustrated me.
Bu ocuklar beni dli yapti bugun, my mother said to my aunt in frustration.
Nye ne yaptlar? my aunt asked.
Btn onjaklan kartlar herye dktler ama ok gzel oynadlar brsey demek
istemedim, my mom explained.
Tabi ne dyejeksin oynasnlar, my aunt responded.
Bbyurum ondan braktm, my mom said agreeing with Auntie.
Throughout this entire conversation I wanted to know what was happening and be
connected to my mother. Growing up, my mom and I possessed a special relationship, as I
considered her one of my best friends. However I could feel our relationship waning, as the
language differences seemed to form a barrier between us.
The conversation I was excluded from happened to be about my little brother and me.
Earlier in the day my brother and I completely destroyed the living room when we came home.
We threw our toys out of our toy bin and scattered them across the whole house. However, my
mother did not interfere with our play time because she loved seeing us bond and play with one
another. Instead my mother vented to my aunt Mary when she came over for dinner.
Then one day I came across a book. The book covered in dust, resting on a black, wooden
bookcase caught my eye. I grabbed it off the shelf and in my hands I found a dictionary: a
Turkish dictionary. My eyes glowing with amazement, I finally found a way to learn Turkish.
Once my mother came home from work, I ran over to her in excitement.

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Can I borrow this book? I asked my mother.

Yes! Are you interested in learning Turkish? my mother questioned in return.
I want to learn some words so I can communicate with you, I responded with an
enthusiastic tone.
I began reading through the pages, realizing I could not properly pronounce a lot of the
words in the dictionary. Scanning over every page in the book, it became my mission to learn
new Turkish words so I could speak proudly to my mother.
Reading books was never my strong suit or an avocation of mine. I never liked to read
and it was very rare for me to gravitate toward a book. However, this rare occurrence, enticed by
the dictionary, sparked a change in my perspective of reading. Every day when I came home
from school, I would place my purple backpack on the kitchen floor and head upstairs into my
room, trying to decipher the dictionary. Needing some assistance here and there from my mom, I
practiced pronouncing the words and started to form phrases. I started simple, my first word I
learned was Merhaba, which translates to hello.
When I finally learned my first word, I was glad to see the hard work pay off. I went to
school and shared my newfound talent with everyone I knew. I approached my fellow classmates
and started talking in Turkish. Everyone, amazed at the language encouraged me to continue
with it. The language set me apart from other students and their facial expressions when I started
talking only made it better. Therefore, I continued to read the dictionary to expand my
vocabulary. While doing so, I learned new phrases to incorporate into conversations with my
mother.
Merhaba, I shouted with enthusiasm as she walked through the garage door.

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Merhaba, my mom said back.

Gnn nasld? I asked my mother.
Doruydu. Baz ocuklar sadece baz sorun yaratclar, my mother responded.
Although, I worked really hard studying the Turkish dictionary, I had no idea what my
mother said back to me. So I decided to end the conversation the best way I knew how, by saying
I love you.
Seni seviyorum, I responded with happiness in my voice.
Seni pratik grdn gryorum, seni de seviyorum, my mom claimed, proud at my
accomplishment.
This language that was once foreign to me became clear. I wasn't fluent like my mother
but I could understand simple terminology. Communicating with my mother in Turkish was a
dream come true. This dictionary helped me develop a connection that will last a lifetime.
Turkish is not a language most people hear or even know of, but for me it was the one thing that
separated my mother and me. After learning the words that seemed foreign, my mother and I
have a deeper connection that I am forever grateful for.