Scolded

I was a bit scolded today at the gym for not speaking French. An acquaintance said hello then mumbled something I couldn't understand. When I replied that I didn't understand, he said in English, "You've lived here for two years and you don't know what I said? You should be speaking French." It's not that I'm not speaking French. It's the fact that he said it so quickly I needed him to repeat - which, by the way, isn't uncommon. All of this got me thinking. If the situation was reversed, would I reprimand someone in America for not speaking English?

Quite honestly, no. If I knew two languages, and someone who wasn't a permanent resident maybe wasn't fluent in one, I'd communicate with them in the other. And, I would never tell them they should "do anything." At some point, I might say it would make it easier on them, but I wouldn't go so far as to condone their actions.

I chalk it up to the French's constant display of nationalism. They're so worried about losing individuality in a world consumed by the United States, they make a strong effort to hold their values dear. Which, is fine with me, but don't then secretly wish you had everything I have the right to including a job and a home in the land of the free.