Christopher
Don't panic! English follows the Gaelic!
'S e Crìsdean an t-ainm a th' orm agus 's ann à Melbourne an Astràilia a tha mi; tha mi air tòiseachadh ag ionnsachadh Gàidhlig cuide ri mo mhic (6 agus gu bhith 3) airson grunn adhbharan:
Bha mi nam uchd-leanabh agus cha robh mi a-riamh a' faireachdainn coltach ris an teaghlach-mhacachd. Nuair a bha mi a' rannsachadh mo fhreumhan, dh'ionnsaich mi gun robh teaghlach m' athar nàdarra Albannach agus teaghlach mo mhàthar às Èirinn. Tha an dualchas seo uabhasach tarraingeach dhomh agus tha e na phàirt den charactar agam a-nis.
Tha mi uabhasach dèidheil air ceòl is cultar punk, thòisich mi a' rannsachadh punk Cheilteach agus ceòl traidiseanta, agus bha na fuinn, sgeulachdan is ionnstramaidean uabhasach tarraingeach dhomh, bha feum agam air tuilleadh!
Dh'ionnsaich mi Fraingis leam fhìn, (chan eil na sgilean labhairt cho math ach tha mo sgilean leughaidh beagan nas fheàrr), mar sin nuair a dh'iarr mo mhac, a tha sia bliadhna dh'aois, 'cànan dìomhair' son na balaich san taigh againne, bha fios agam dè an cànan! Tha a' ghaol air a' cheòl Cheilteach cho làidir ris a' ghaol agamsa agus nuair a dh'inns mi dha mo bheachd, ghabh e ris. 'S ann an t-seachdain-sa chaidh a thòisich sinn, mar sin chan urrainn dhomh comhairle a thoirt do luchd-ionnsachaidh eile.
Tha fios agam bho bhith ag ionnsachadh Fraingis gur robh an trioblaid as motha a bh' agam cuideachd na bhuaidh; tha ceum agam ann an sgrìobhaidh agus deasachadh agus dh'fheumainn (cha b' urrainn dhomh leigeil seachad) a bhith ag ionnsachadh mu fhreumhan fhacail, gràmar is structair. Cuideachail, ach a' tarraing m' aire o bhith a' labhairt.
Mar eacarsaich Gàidhlig, tha sinn a' cur fàilte air a' chèile anns a' Ghàidhlig; a bharrachd air seo, tha sinn ag ràdh tapadh leibh an àite thanks, bidh sinn a' cleachdadh tuilleadh tro na seachdainean a tha romhainn.
'S e 'Is math sin' an abairt as fheàrr leam air sgàth 's gu bheil e coltach ri It's smashin'. Tha mi a' smaoineachadh gu bheil blas math air is tha sin dha mo chuideachadh ann a bhith a' cumail cuimhne air.
Crìsdean, Naoise, Ciaran
My name is Chris from Melbourne, Australia; I have started learning Gaelic along with my sons (6 and nearly 3) for several reasons:
I am adopted and have never felt an affinity to my adoptive family, so when I pursued my ancestry and discovered my natural father's family were Scottish and my mother's Irish I started to feel a draw toward my heritage and culture that has overtaken many facets of my character and self.
As an avid punk music/culture devotee I then delved further into Celtic punk and traditional music and found the melodies, stories and instruments all-invasive! I needed more!
I am self-taught in French (speak poorly but read marginally better), so that when my 6 year old asked to have a 'secret language' for the boys in our house, I knew exactly were I wanted to go with it. He loves the Celtic music as much as I, so when I told him my idea he was all for it. I explained that as there are few Gaelic speakers in Australia, it would be like our own secret language, but one we could use with some other people, and more importantly, it would help continue our heritage. We have only started seriously this week so I certainly can't offer any tips to others.
I know with learning French my biggest problem was also a strength, in that my degree was in writing and editing so I need (read, can't resist) to learn about root words, grammar and structure to get relevance- handy, but a distraction from just plain speaking.
As an exercise in using Gaelic, we have started greeting each other in Gaelic and responding to the greeting; as well as only using tapadh leibh now instead of thanks. More to come as the weeks roll on. My favourite expression is: Is math sin because it sounds like It's smashin', so I think it has a cool colloquial feel to it and I use that thought to help me remember it.
Crìsdean, Naoise, Ciaran
