Lost in Translation

Home

There is no place like home. I never understood that word until I came to America. When I was a little girl I used to watch American movies and pictured myself living in America. It was my dream to live in America. By the time I was twelve I had already known how to read and write in English. I also knew I would go to America if I graduated from high school with good grades in Mongolia. So I came here at sixteen as I planned. I was so happy because my dream was coming true. I thought everything was going to be so easy moreover new like in the movies. At that time I wanted to be as American as I could but I never realized there would be so many things that I would miss about being Mongolian.

Food was one of the things that I missed. My dad always says the dinner table is not ready if there isn’t any soup. Mongolia is located in a higher level of ground, so we have very cold winters, autumns and springs. I think that is why we eat soup and lot of meats, to keep ourselves warm. We eat lamb or beef every day. We think lamb soup is best when you are tired and we give it to pregnant women, so the baby will be strong and healthy. The first few months seemed fine without any soup or lamb. However, I felt tired and heavy like I couldn’t move fast. My mom advised me to make lamb soup, but I was too shy to ask my host family to buy some lamb meat. By the time I left my host family, I had already gained more than ten pounds. Then I moved in with my aunt, and we made Mongolian food every day, but not with lamb. In a few months, I finally felt like myself, and I was losing weight. One day my aunt made a lamb soup, but I had only one sip. Since then I have not had any lamb soup, not because it is hard to find the ingredients we use, because it is just never going to be the same. So I wanted to save all my cravings to the original one when I go back to my country.

Language was another part that I missed about being Mongolian. I think Mongolian language has the smartest slang and proverbs. Who wouldn’t think like this about their native tongue? There is lot of slang which is really smart, but they cannot be translated into English. If I translated them, they would sound funny or meaningless, so that other people can’t understand what I am trying to say. I was taught British English which made it confusing. Mongolian and English languages have the opposite set up of sentences. It was even more confusing when I wanted to translate something into English. For example if you wanted to say “I love you” in Mongolian you would say “I you love”. Now when I talk to my mom she says that I sound funny. I guess I am mixing the two languages. I can’t wait to go back to my country and talk in Mongolian and watch TV in Mongolian every day.

The thing that I missed the most about being Mongolian is how people treat each other in Mongolia. Mongolia is really old country and that is why our traditions are very formal. In Mongolia when we talk to older people, we use respectful words, we greet them first, we give our first cup of tea, and first plate of the food to them, no matter what, we listen to them and we greet everyone we see, at least we nod. Younger people have to ask about older people’s health, and if we have a guest we must give them tea or something to eat, plus the guest has to finish the tea. First, it was really awkward for me to call my teacher using the same word to call my friends. One day I was in a crowded train, I saw a really old lady who looked like 80 or older standing there and a young guy sitting right next to her. I could not help but say “why don’t you give your seat for her?” the guy gave me really dirty look but the old lady said “it is okay, sweetheart”, and the whole crowd looked at me funny. Right at that moment I thought it wouldn’t have happened in Mongolia.

wouldn’t have happened in Mongolia.
I am really happy that now I am here and making my dream come true. I have learned lot of things living here. I am still learning, and I would love to learn more about this great country. I want other people to know about my country, about my old traditions and cultures, and I also want people in Mongolia to know about how Americans live and learn from them, but still remember and be proud of where they are from. The biggest lesson that I have learned from living here is that there is no place like home, and no matter what, you will miss every part of it.