Language Barrier 2

Most of my friends here are not native English speakers. They come from different parts of Europe, or Japan, or Turkey. Most of them have to speak English, because that is the most common world language. Many of them went abroad so that they would improve their English.

This is not an issue for me. I went abroad to meet different people. However, funny things happen. Many of my friends ask me to correct their grammar so their English will improve, which I do, but this breaks up the flow in conversation. Or, because people imitate others, esp with language, I find myself speaking in fragments or pausing as I think of words, as they do. Or just speaking slowly in general because otherwise they won't understand me. I also find myself forgetting English words, or explaining things in a different English than I would use at home. And you would never hear me say the most Californian of phrases (like, my computer is "HELLA jank").

And don't get me started on other English dialects. When I first started hanging out with Aussies, I always needed a slang translation, sometimes I can't understand what my Brit is saying, and Scots might as well be speaking another language.

But the funny thing about language is, even if my friends English isn't perfect (though to me it's perfect enough), or they say something using words that one wouldn't use ("make" a photo instead of "take" a photo), I still understand what they convey, and the message comes across, the conversation flows.