Margaret
Don't panic! Gaelic follows the English!
My name is Margaret. I'm fifteen years old and I currently live in Texas, in the USA.
I have always been taught to take pride in my family's ancestry, which is almost entirely Scottish. At the age of five, my parents enrolled me in Highland Dancing lessons. One day, I was flipping through the SOBHD textbook, and I noticed that the tunes which I danced to so often had Gaelic titles. While researching the correct pronunciation of these titles, I stumbled upon tons of information about the Gaelic language.
The first thing that I noticed was how beautiful it looked. I also realized just how important the language is to Scottish culture. That's when I decided that I wanted to learn Gaelic.
Unfortunately, I'm unable to use Gaelic much in my daily life. Since I live in the US, there aren't many native Gaelic speakers nearby, especially in Texas. Lol. However, I am planning to live in the Scottish Highlands someday, so hopefully I'll be able to converse with the locals there.
‘S e Mairead an t-ainm a th'orm. Tha mi còig bliadhna deug a dh'aois agus tha mi a' fuireach ann an Texas anns na Stàitean Aonaichte.
On a rugadh mi, bha mi a-riamh ag ionnsachadh gum bu chòir dhomh spèis a thoirt do shinnsearachd mo theaghlaich, a tha Albannach. Nuair a bha mi còig bliadhna dh'aois, chaidh mi gu leasannan Dannsa Gàidhealach. Aon latha, bha mi a' dol tron leabhar SOBHD agus mhothaich mi gun robh tiotalan Gàidhlig air fuinn nan dannsa a bha mi a' dèanamh cho tric. Nuair a bha mi a' rannsachadh fuimneachadh ceart de na tiotalan seo, lorg mo tòrr fiosrachaidh mu Ghàidhlig.
A' chiad rud a mhothaich mi, b' e cho àlainn ‘s a tha i nuair a tha i sgrìobhte. Thuig mi cho cudromach ‘s a tha an cànan dha dualchas na h-Alba. Sin nuair a dhearbh mi gun robh mi ag iarraidh Gàidhlig ionnsachadh.
Gu mì-fhortanach, chan urrainn dhomh Gàidhlig a chleachdadh nam bheatha làitheil. Ged a tha mi a' fuireach sna Stàitean Aonaichte, chan eil mòran luchd na Gàidhlig faisg air làimh. Lol. Ach, tha mi an dùil a bhith a' fuireach sa Ghàidhealtachd aon latha, agus mar sin, tha mi an dòchas gum bi mi a' bruidhinn ri Gàidheil.
