Despite an Accent

To fit in, to blend in, to be accepted by, and part of, the “in crowd” is probably any teenager’s dream. My son was no exception. His self esteem and personal worth was in jeopardy, as he felt handicapped by poor English and a strong accent. When he came to join me in the United States he was only fourteen years old, a difficult age for any boy. Obviously I tried to encourage him, but my efforts did not make much of a difference to him. He was afraid his inability to communicate effectively will forever keep him at the periphery of social life, will condemn him to a less than satisfactory career.

I was telling him about Schwarzenegger who was making a great living in a very competitive industry, were others with no accent were struggling. Then I told him about Kissinger who made it all the way to a powerful and prestigious position as Secretary of State, despite his pronounced accent. “Intelligence and hard work could overcome any accent,” I said, but the look in his young face was far from convinced. 

We enrolled him in Daniel Murphy, a Catholic school, across the street from were we live. The principal was a fairly young man and opened minded; after testing my son for English, math and science, he made a very special schedule for Mircea; out of the six hours school day, my son was attending English in the 8th and 9th grade, math, science, and history at an 11th grade level and one hour of religion like everyone else. The principal also told me that he reserves the right to reevaluate my son periodically and make adjustments as he will see fit. I agreed to all of it and thanked him for his flexibility and willingness to accommodate a special situation. My son did better than expected; his grades were good and he did make some friends. The principal congratulated him at the end of the school year and expressed his hope that Mircea will return for the following semester.