My Language...My Right!

So many times, we think to ourselves that nobody else understands our language, especially strangers, so we can therefore insult them, after all, they won’t understand. It’s my language and I am allowed to express myself in my language without any consequences right...WRONG!

Haven’t you ever been in very awkward situations where u think someone is from another tribe and all of a sudden, the person starts speaking your language? Next thing you'll probably say is, "so you understand Yoruba? Ahh, thank God I didn’t abuse you oh, Na so you for catch me". But some other times, maybe you were not so lucky and you already abused the person's k-leg, big eyes or even their outfit and the person just turns around and says thank you, right back in your language. First your eyes will pop, your throat will tighten and at that moment, you'll wish the ground could open up and borrow you for a while, but that never happens. Then you are left with trying to render pathetic apologies and that’s if the person gives you the chance to.

I remember I was shopping with my mum one day and there was this lovely couple in front of us, the husband was carrying the wife's bag , their beautiful child, and also all their shopping bags. My mum turned to me in our usual gossip style and said eyah ezigbo di which means "good husband". Now to be honest, the couple looked very Yoruba, if looks were 100% accurate, but this pretty wife turned around smiling with her husband and they both chorused "dalu" which means “thank you”. I don’t know if it was the shock or something else but the way my mum started walking fast ehn, you would think she was in a competition for fastest weight shedders. When I finally caught up with her, the first thing she said was Chimo! Thank God I didn’t say something bad oh.

She was very lucky, but so many of my friends have been unlucky and have said the wrong things and to the wrong people. One of which is still very recent, it actually inspired this write-up but their stories will be better heard in person than read here.

So my point is, no matter what you feel at any point in time (except it’s something good), if you can’t express it in a common language that everybody is deemed to understand, then it’s probably a sign that you should keep your opinion to yourself!

Don’t get me wrong, you can talk all you want, after all Talk is cheap they say, but cheap isn’t same as free. At the end of the day, you still have to pay something. Make sure yours isn’t a high price!