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Well, right now, somewhere nearby, the Big Race is going on. The Boonta Eve Race, it's called, apparently. I just hope the boy wins, or else we'll all be stuck here for a very long time. I–
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Sorry for the interruption. As I was writing earlier, I was sitting on the ramp and looking out at the endless wasteland that is Tatooine, or all I've seen of it. I managed to write that little bit when Jedi Kenobi came down the ramp. He strode a few paces away from the ship and stood there for a moment, turning slowly as he looked out across the landscape with this intense look on his face.
He seemed nervous and I asked him about it (Yes, I actually spoke to him–it may take a lot to convince me to speak up, but I am capable of it after all.) and we actually had a conversation. Even more important than the fact that I managed to speak with the handsome Jedi Kenobi, though, is what he said to me. Somehow we ended up talking about my accent and he confessed that he had been teased about his accent in the past, which surprised me. I guess that's because his is barely noticeable; it's really very dignified and nothing at all like my own and I couldn't really see anyone else teasing him about anything! Sigh.
He asked what kind of accent it is and I explained how the village I come from is one of the few where the older people still speak the old language of Naboo and that even though most of the younger people (like me) don't really speak it, we all end up with Nubé-accented Basic anyway. And, believe it or not, he actually managed to show me a different way of looking at things. He pointed out that in a way, I'm helping Nubé stay alive and in the minds of the people and I should be proud to represent my planet like that.
I never thought of my accent as something to be proud of. Actually, I never thought of it at all until six months ago, when I was uprooted and sent far from home to be a Handmaiden and realized that I spoke differently from everyone. There are only a few scattered places where anyone remembers the old language of Naboo and people from those places rarely leave. Having the accent marks me as being from an out-of-the-way, backwater town, and I've always felt that people look down on me for that.
Now all of sudden I'm remembering that there are linguists who circulate through the villages, recording the language to preserve it. I'm realizing that the Nubé language is very precious, and that people should be treasuring the fact that anyone still remembers it and respecting those that do. And even if I don't speak it fluently, I know more about it than anyone I've come into contact with since I left home, including our Queen!
Nubé really is such a beautiful language, and what Jedi Kenobi said opened my eyes to the fact that my accent may actually carry some of that beauty over into Basic.
In other words, I've been turned upside down and inside out–but this time in a good way. I will have to think about this. Maybe I can convince Padmé to put more resources into saving Nubé. Maybe I can help it stay alive by studying it myself and by speaking up and letting people hear my accent.
Ooh, this total change of attitude is giving me a headache...
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