-
Poet Ali: Hi.
Audience: Hi.
-
PA: I want to ask you guys a question.
How many languages do you speak?
-
This is not a rhetorical question.
-
I actually want you to think of a number.
-
For some of you, it's pretty easy.
-
Inside your head, you're like, "It's one.
You're speaking it, buddy. I'm done."
-
Others of you maybe are wondering
-
if the language an ex-boyfriend
or ex-girlfriend taught you,
-
where you learned all the cusswords,
-
if it counts -- go ahead and count it.
-
When I asked myself the question,
I came up with four,
-
arguably five, if I've been drinking.
-
(Laughter)
-
Con un po' di vino,
posso parlare italiano.
-
(Applause)
-
Cheers!
-
But on closer examination,
I came up with 83 -- 83 languages,
-
and I got tired and I stopped counting.
-
And it forced me to revisit
this definition that we have of language.
-
The first entry said,
-
"The method of human communication,
either spoken or written,
-
consisting of the use of words
in a structured or conventional way."
-
The definition at the bottom refers
to specialized fields,
-
like medicine, science, tech.
-
We know they have their own vernacular,
-
their own jargon.
-
But what most interested me was
that definition right in the center there:
-
"the system of communication used
by a particular community or country."
-
And I'm not interested
in altering this definition.
-
I'm interested in applying it
to everything we do,
-
because I believe that we speak
far more languages than we realize.
-
And for the rest of our time together,
-
I'm going to attempt
to speak in one language
-
that is native to every single
human being in this room.
-
But that changes things a little bit,
-
because then it's no longer
a presentation.
-
It becomes a conversation,
-
and in any conversation,
-
there must be some sort of interaction.
-
And for any interaction to happen,
-
there has to be a degree
of willingness on both parties.
-
And I think if we just are willing,
we will see the magic that can happen
-
with just a little bit of willingness.
-
So I've chosen a relatively low-risk
common denominator
-
that can kind of gauge
if we're all willing.
-
If you're happy and you know it,
clap your hands.
-
(Claps)
-
Now you're talking!
-
Para toda la gente que habla español,
-
por favor ponganse de pie.
-
Y miren una persona sentada
a cualquier lado
-
y comenzar a reir.
-
(Laughter)
-
Thank you so much.
Please be seated.
-
Now, if that felt a little bit awkward,
-
I promise there was no joke
being had at your expense.
-
I simply asked the Spanish-speaking
audience to stand up,
-
look at a person that was sitting
close to them and laugh.
-
And I know that wasn't nice,
and I'm sorry,
-
but in that moment,
-
some of us felt something.
-
You see, we're often aware
of what language does
-
when we speak somebody's language,
-
what it does to connect,
what it does to bind.
-
But we often forget what it does
when you can't speak that language,
-
what it does to isolate,
what it does to exclude.
-
And I want us to hold on
as we journey through
-
our little walk of languages here.
-
(Farsi) I'd like to translate
the idea of "taarof."
-
I said in Farsi, "I'd like to translate
-
this idea of 'taarof'
in the Persian culture,"
-
which, really -- it has no equivalent
in the English lexicon.
-
The best definition would be
something like an extreme grace
-
or an extreme humility.
-
But that doesn't quite get the job done.
-
So I'll give you an example.
-
If two gentlemen
were walking by each other,
-
it'd be very common
for the first one to say,
-
(speaks in Farsi),
-
which means, "I am indebted to you."
-
The other gentlemen would respond back,
-
(speaks in Farsi)
-
which means, "I open my shirt for you."
-
The first guy would respond back,
-
(speaks in Farsi)
-
which means, "I am your servant."
-
And then the second guy
would respond back to him,
-
(speaks in Farsi)
-
which literally means,
"I am the dirt beneath your feet."
-
(Laughter)
-
Here's an exhibit for you guys,
in case you didn't get the picture.
-
(Laughter)
-
And I share that with you, because
-
with new languages come new concepts
that didn't exist before.
-
And the other thing is,
-
sometimes we think language is about
understanding the meaning of a word,
-
but I believe language is about
making a word meaningful for yourself.
-
If I were to flash this series
of words on the screen,
-
some of you, you'd know exactly
what it is right away.
-
Others of you, you might
struggle a little bit.
-
And I could probably draw
a pretty clear-cut line
-
right around the age
of 35 and older, 35 and younger.
-
And for those of us that are in the know,
-
we know that's text-speak,
or SMS language.
-
It's a series of characters meant
to convey the most amount of meaning
-
with the least amount of characters,
-
which sounds pretty similar
to our definition of languages:
-
"system of communication
used by a community."
-
Now, anyone who's ever got
into an argument via text
-
can make a case for how it's maybe
not the best method of communication,
-
but what if I told you
that what you saw earlier
-
was a modern-day love letter?
-
If you follow along:
-
"For the time being, I love you lots,
-
because you positively bring out
all the best in me,
-
and I laugh out loud, in other words,
let's me know what's up.
-
'Cause you are a cutie in my opinion,
and as far as I know to see you,
-
if you're not seeing someone,
would make happy.
-
For your information,
I'll be right there forever.
-
In any case, keep in touch,
no response necessary,
-
all my best wishes, don't know,
don't care if anyone sees this.
-
Don't go there, see you later,
bye for now, hugs and kisses,
-
you only live once."
-
(Applause)
-
Kind of a modern-day Romeo or Juliet.
-
In that moment, if you laughed,
-
you spoke another language
that needs no explanation: laughter.
-
It's one of the most common
languages in the world.
-
We don't have to explain it to each other,
it's just something we all feel,
-
and that's why things like laughter
and things like music are so prevalent,
-
because they seem to somehow
transcend explanation
-
and convey a profound amount of meaning.
-
Every language we learn is a portal
-
by which we can access another language.
-
The more you know, the more you can speak.
-
And it's something common that we all do.
-
We take any new concept,
and we filter it through
-
an already existing access
of reality within us.
-
And that's why languages are so important,
-
because they give us access to new worlds,
-
not just people.
-
It's not just about seeing or hearing,
it's about feeling, experiencing, sharing.
-
And despite these languages
that we've covered,
-
I really don't think we've covered
-
one of the most profound
languages,
-
and that's the language of experience.
-
That's why when you're
talking with someone,
-
if they've shared something you've shared,
you don't need to explain it much.
-
Or that's why, when you're sharing
a story and you finish,
-
and the people you're talking to
don't quite get it,
-
the first thing we all say is,
-
"Guess you had to be there."
-
I guess you had to be here this week
to know what this is about.
-
It's kind of hard to explain, isn't it?
-
And for the sake of our research,
I'm going to close by asking
-
that you participate one more time
in this language of experience.
-
I'm going to filter
through some languages,
-
and if I'm speaking your language,
-
I'm going to ask that you just stand
and you stay standing.
-
You don't need to ask permission,
-
just let me know that you see me,
-
and I can also see you
-
if you speak this language of experience.
-
Do you speak this language?
-
When I was growing up in primary school,
-
at the end of the year,
we would have these parties,
-
and we'd vote on whether we wanted
to celebrate at an amusement park
-
or a water park.
-
And I would really hope the party
wasn't at a water park,
-
because then I'd have
to be in a bathing suit.
-
I don't know about you, but sometimes
when I approach a dressing room,
-
my sweat glands start
activating on their own,
-
because I know the garment is not
going to look on me
-
like it did on that mannequin.
-
Or how about this?
-
When I would go to family functions
or family gatherings,
-
every time I wanted a second plate --
-
and I usually did --
-
(Laughter)
-
it was a whole exercise
in cost-benefit analysis,
-
my relatives looking at me like,
-
"I don't know. Do you really need that?
Looks like you're doing OK there, bud."
-
Did my cheeks have a big
"Pinch me" sign that I didn't see?
-
And if you're squirming
or you're laughing or you stood up,
-
or you're beginning to stand,
-
you're speaking the language
that I endearingly call
-
"the language of growing up a fat kid."
-
And any body-image issue
is a dialect of that language.
-
I want you to stay standing.
-
Again, if I'm speaking your language,
please go ahead and stand.
-
Imagine two bills in my hand.
-
One is the phone bill,
-
and one is the electric bill.
-
Eeny, meeny, miny, mo,
pay one off, let the other one go,
-
which means, "I might not have enough
to pay both at the current moment."
-
You've got to be resourceful.
You've got to figure it out.
-
And if you're standing, you know
the language of barely making ends meet,
-
of financial struggle.
-
And if you've been lucky enough
to speak that language,
-
you understand that there is
no motivator of greatness like deficiency.
-
Not having resources,
not having looks, not having finances
-
can often be the barren soil
-
from which the most productive seeds
are painstakingly plowed and harvested.
-
I'm going to ask
if you speak this language.
-
The second you recognize it,
feel free to stand.
-
When we heard the diagnosis,
-
I thought, "Not that word.
-
Anything but that word.
-
I hate that word."
-
And then you ask a series of questions:
-
"Are you sure?"
-
"Has it spread?"
-
"How long?"
-
"Doctor, how long?"
-
And a series of answers
determines a person's life.
-
And when my dad was hungry,
we'd all rush to the dinner table to eat,
-
because that's what we did before.
-
We ate together, so we were
going to continue doing that.
-
And I didn't understand
why we were losing this battle,
-
because I was taught if you fight
and if you have the right spirit,
-
you're supposed to win.
-
And we weren't winning.
-
For any of you that stood up,
-
you know very well that
I'm speaking the language
-
of watching a loved one battle cancer.
-
(Applause)
-
Any terminal illness
is a derivative of that language.
-
I'm going to speak one last language.
-
Oh -- no, no, I'm listening.
-
Yeah, yeah, yeah, no no, no no,
me and you, right here, yup.
-
(Laughter)
-
No, I'm with ya. I'm with ya!
-
(Laughter)
-
Or, imagine the lights are all off and
a blue light is just shining in your face
-
as you're laying on the bed.
-
And I know some of you, like me,
-
have dropped that phone
right on your face.
-
(Laughter)
-
Or this one, right?
-
Passenger seat freaking out,
like, "Can you watch the road?"
-
And for anybody that stood up,
-
you speak the language that I like to call
"the language of disconnection."
-
It's been called
the language of connection,
-
but I like to call it
the language of disconnection.
-
I don't mean disconnection,
I mean disconnection,
-
human disconnection,
-
disconnected from each other,
-
from where we are, from our own thoughts,
-
so we can occupy another space.
-
If you're not standing,
-
you probably know what it's like
to feel left out.
-
(Laughter)
-
(Applause)
-
You probably -- you know what it's like
when everybody's a part of something,
-
and you're not.
-
You know what it's like
being the minority.
-
And now that I'm speaking your language,
-
I'm going to ask you to stand,
-
since we're speaking the same language.
-
Because I believe that language
of being the minority
-
is one of the most important languages
you can ever speak in your life,
-
because how you feel
in that position of compromise
-
will directly determine how you act
in that position of power.
-
Thank you for participating.
-
If you'd take a seat,
I want to speak one last language.
-
(Applause)
-
This one, you don't need to stand.
-
I just want to see if you recognize it.
-
Most the girls in the world
are complainin' about it.
-
Most the poems in the world
been written about it.
-
Most the music on the radio
be hittin' about it, kickin' about it,
-
or rippin' about it.
-
Most the verses in the game
people spittin' about it,
-
most the songs in the world,
people talkin' about it.
-
Most the broken hearts I know
are walkin' without it,
-
started to doubt it,
-
or lost without it.
-
Most the shadows in the dark
have forgotten about it.
-
Everybody in the world
would be trippin' without it.
-
Every boy and every girl
will be dead without it,
-
struggle without it, nothing without it.
-
Most the pages that are filled
are filled about it.
-
The tears that are spilled
are spilled about it.
-
The people that have felt it
are real about it.
-
A life without it, you'd be lost.
-
When I'm in it and I feel it,
I be shoutin' about it.
-
Everybody in the whole world
knowin' about it.
-
I'm hurt and broke down
and be flowin' about it,
-
goin' about it wrong
'cause I didn't allow it.
-
Can the wound or scar heal without it?
-
Can't the way that you feel
be concealed about it?
-
Everybody has their own ideal about it,
-
dream about it,
-
appeal about it.
-
So what's the deal about it?
-
Are you 'bout it to know
that life is a dream
-
and unreal without it?
-
But I'm just a writer.
-
What can I reveal about it?
-
Why is it that the most spoken-about
language in the world
-
is the one we have the toughest time
speaking or expressing?
-
No matter how many books,
how many seminars,
-
how many life-coaching sessions we go to,
-
we just can't get enough of it.
-
And I ask you now:
-
Is that number that you had
at the beginning, has that changed?
-
And I challenge you, when you see someone,
-
to ask yourself:
-
What languages do we share?
-
And if you don't come up with anything,
-
ask yourself: What languages
could we share?
-
And if you still don't
come up with anything,
-
ask yourself: What languages can I learn?
-
And now matter how inconsequential
-
or insignificant that conversation
seems at the moment,
-
I promise you it will
serve you in the future.
-
My name is Poet Ali. Thank you.
-
(Applause)