The moment that made a grandmother cry

A parent recently told me a story about her daughter that I haven't stopped thinking about.

Her daughter understood Punjabi perfectly.
But whenever her nani spoke to her, she'd freeze.

Nani would ask a question.
Silence.

She wanted to answer, but the words just wouldn't come out.

So she'd look at Mum for help or switch to English instead.

The parent felt lost. Didn't know why her daughter can understand but not respond to her Nani.

She signed up to classes with me.

Then one day something changed.

Nani asked a question.
And her daughter answered.
In Punjabi.

Then they carried on chatting.
A proper conversation.

No translating. No prompting. Just a grandmother and granddaughter talking.

Then something unexpected happened. Nani cried.

Not because the Punjabi was perfect.

But because she could finally have a conversation with her granddaughter.

That's what Punjabi is really about.

Connection.

If your child is 6–11 yeard old and understands Punjabi but struggles to speak it confidently, reply to this email and I'll send you details of our next programme.


Do you want to recieve these blogs directly to your inbox, sign up here:
https://punjabi.nirmolakheera.com/stayintouch

Back to blog

Leave a comment