seachtain na gaeilge

[Blackrose87]

To be honest my Irish has slipped a lot since I was at school. The fact that it's not a language I can used every day means I just can't practice it, so it's gotten very rusty.
I think if I was still living in Ireland I would make more of an effort with it, and there would be a lot more opportunity to learn and practice it.
It does sometimes annoy me that I can't speak my national language fluently, so maybe I'll look into Irish classes or meetings here in Scotland.

[Singlemalt]

I agree, I wish I had paid more attention as a boy when my grandfather was still alive. However to honour this Gaelic Week the best I can do is tell a family story, in English.

My mother's family is from Cape Breton in Nova Scotia where there is still lots of Scot's Gaelic spoken, even radio broadcasts. Her maternal grandmother (a Cameron) learned Gaelic as her first language and only started speaking English when she went to school. When she reached her 70's, whether due to dementia or determination she lost, or refused to use, English. It was a major controversy in the family if she was genuinely afflicted or just being stubborn. In any case, in her last ten years she never was heard to speak a word of English.

It was a challenge to the family who had to seek medical attention and services for her only from Gaelic speakers. Fortunately in the 1950's in Cape Breton it was available.